More US troops for Iraq

BAGHDAD, Aug 13 (Reuters): Iraq's new prime minister-designate won swift endorsements from uneasy mutual allies the United States and Iran  Tuesday as he called on political leaders to end crippling feuds that have let jihadists seize a third of the country.
Haider al-Abadi still faces opposition closer to home, where his Shia party colleague Nuri al-Maliki has refused to step aside after eight years as premier that have alienated Iraq's once dominant Sunni minority and irked Washington and Tehran.
However, Shia militia and army commanders long loyal to Maliki signaled their backing for the change, as did many people on the streets of Baghdad, eager for an end to fears of a further descent into sectarian and ethnic bloodletting.
Sunni neighbours Turkey and Saudi Arabia also welcomed Abadi's appointment.
A suicide bomber attacked a checkpoint near Abadi's Baghdad home on Tuesday, two police sources and local media said. There was no immediate word on casualties. At least 17 people were killed in two car bombings earlier on Tuesday in Shi'ite areas of Baghdad.
The United States sent about 130 additional military personnel to northern Iraq on Tuesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said. The soldiers will develop options for helping Iraqi civilians trapped on Mount Sinjar by Islamic State fighters, the Pentagon said in a statement.
Since June the United States has sent about 700 military personnel to Iraq to protect U.S. diplomats there and take stock of Iraq's military capacity.