A round-up of the good news that the media refuse to report.

Iraq to Scrap Food Program by June to Comply with World Bank
By Ali Jawad
Azzaman

The government has decided to end the rationing food program which has saved millions of Iraqis from starvation.

The decision, the government said, was in line with the obligations it has made to the World Bank.

Iraq Braced for More Cholera Outbreaks
By Emad al-Shara'
Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Health experts are warning that the country could be hit by new cases of cholera once temperatures start to rise.

Iraqi Official: Baghdad Is Drowning In Sewage
Agence France Presse

Baghdad is drowning in sewage, thirsty for water and largely powerless, an Iraqi official said on Sunday in a grim assessment of services in the capital five years after the US-led invasion.

Row Over Killing of Iraqi Family
BBC News

An Iraqi couple and their son, 19, have been killed when US soldiers stormed a tiny one-room house north of Baghdad.

The US military says its troops killed the two men in self-defence after gunfire came from the house, but local people say the victims were unarmed.

Parliament Walkout Freezes Bill on Iraqi Local Elections
Gulf News

Editor's note: this is the latest chapter in an ongoing power struggle between the executive branch headed by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his cabinet, and the Iraqi legislature

Orphans Face Uncertain Future
By Hazim al-Shara'
Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Five-year-old Layla Mohammad clings to one memory: her mother combing Layla's hair, styling it like the popular Lebanese singer, Nancy.

U.S. Admits Killing Iraqi Civilians
BBC News

The US military has admitted accidentally killing nine Iraqi civilians, including a child, during raids south of Baghdad.

VP Supports Forming New Government
Voices of Iraq (via Iraq Updates)

Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdel al-Mahdi on Thursday expressed his support for forming entirely new government.

No Improvement in Electricity Output- Minister
By Falah al-Maamouri
Azzaman

There has been no improvement in the production of electricity in the country in the past 12 moths, Minister of Electricity Kareem Waheed said.

Members of Sadr Movement in Iraqi Parliament Urge Cleric not to Renew Ceasefire with U.S.
Middle East Online

Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Thursday warned members of his Mahdi Army militia not to break a six-month ceasefire as his fighters clashed with US and Iraqi soldiers in Baghdad.

Radical Shiite Group Raises New Security Concerns
By Basil Adas
Gulf News

The emergence of the radical Shiite organisation Ansar Al Mahdi has raised many questions among Shiite political groups. They include its size and number of supporters in Iraq and abroad and whether the group is part of the "Heaven's Army" organisation or a separate extremist religious organisation.

Kurds Say They'll Leave Government if Demands not Met
By Kareem Zair
Azzaman

The Kurds will withdraw from the government of Prime Minister Noori al-Maliki if their share of the country's oil revenues is reduced. More?