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Archives: April 2004

Photographs Of Abused Iraqi Prisoners

Photographs of Abused Iraqi PrisonersScreen captures from the CBS 60 Minutes broadcast of photographs of abused Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghuraib prison are available at memory hole. Others are floating around the…

Guest Commentary Ray Close On Real

Guest Commentary: Ray Close on 'The Real Meaning of Fallujah'Guest CommentaryRay Close ' The proposed plan to turn over control of the Fallujah security situation to an Iraqi force under the command…

10 Us Troops Killed On Thursday Between

10 US Troops Killed on ThursdayBetween a huge roadside bomb in Baghdad, a rocket propelled grenade attack in Sadr City, and an attack in the eastern city of Baqubah, guerrillas killed 10…

Stand Down In Fallujah Us Abruptly

Stand-Down in FallujahThe US abruptly decided Thursday not to press the Marine assault on Fallujah. Instead, it is forming a 1000-man Iraqi unit to restore order in the city, led by a…

Haeri Criticizes Muqtada Ayatollah

Haeri Criticizes MuqtadaAyatollah Kadhim al-Haeri, now in Qom, Iran, criticized Muqtada al-Sadr, according to AFP/ash-Sharq al-Awsat. Technically, Muqtada is under the authority of al-Haeri, though if Muqtada has managed to finish his…

Usa Today Poll 57 Of Iraqis Say Us Out

USA Today Poll: 57% of Iraqis say 'US Out Now'From March 22 to April 2, 60 trained Iraqi pollsters interviewed 3,444 randomly selected Iraqis for USA Today. This is one of the…

Fallujah And Najaf Al Hayat Reports

Fallujah and Najafal-Hayat reports that the Interim Governing Council continues to attempt to negotiate a settlement at Fallujah between guerrillas and the US Marines. The Marines called down 500-pound bombs and AC-130…

New Executive Of Technocrats Being

New Executive of Technocrats being Readied for Iraq Az-Zaman reports that American sources told it yesterday that influential quarters in the Central Intelligence Agency are putting forward as candidate for high office…

Iraq Corruption At Pentagon Allegations

Iraq Corruption at Pentagon Allegations of corruption have been raised against a Pentagon figure. He is said to have pressured the Coalition Provisional Authority to make a telecom bid private rather than…

Brahimi Plan Controversial Lakhdar

Brahimi Plan ControversialLakhdar Brahimi spoke further on Tuesday about his ideal plan for a caretaker government in the period June 30 - January 31, the run-up to national elections. It seems clear…

Muqtada And Fighters Defiant In Najaf

Muqtada and Fighters Defiant in NajafLuke Harding of the Guardian managed to get to Kufa after the big battle there. He writes: ' These days, Mr Sadr, a 30-year-old cleric whose father…

Ac 130s At Fallujah And Najaf 64

AC-130s at Fallujah and Najaf (64 Sadrists Killed)I made the mistake of turning on the television in the middle of the day and was treated to horrific images of part of the…

Protest Letter Of 52 British Former

Protest Letter of 52 British Former Diplomats to Blair on Iraq PolicyThe letter is worth reading in full, and probably it is also worth googling the signatories. It is extraordinary how terrified…

More Violence In Iraq I Was At

More Violence in IraqI was at a conference at Columbia on Monday and then traveling and so was away from news most of the day. When I did get a chance to…

Shots Fired At Bulgarian President

Shots Fired at Bulgarian President ParvanovAttacks Kill 9 in Iraq, Including 2 US Military PersonnelGuerrillas directed fire at visiting Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov as his motorcade moved from the Polish base to…

Ex Baath Reservist Officers Recalled In

Ex-Baath Reservist Officers Recalled in IraqAz-Zaman: The new minister of defense, Ali Allawi, has called upon all officers in the former Baath military reserves, who have been cleared by US civil administrator…

Sadrists Stockpile Weapons In Najaf

Sadrists Stockpile Weapons in Najaf Mosques, SchoolsAP reports that a US general has said that he will move US troops into a base just near the holy city of Najaf as Spanish…

60 Of Documentation For Modern Iraqi

60% of Documentation for Modern Iraqi History LostAsh-Sharq al-Awsat/ AFP have an article on the impact of the looting last April after the fall of the regime on the documentation for modern…

Poll 57 Of Americans Believe Saddam

Poll: 57% of Americans Believe Saddam Gave Substantial Support to al-QaedaA new poll shows that as of mid-March, 57% of Americans believed that Saddam Hussein had given substantial support to al-Qaeda. Worse,…

Iranian Diplomat Says Us Attack On

Iranian Diplomat Says a US attack on Najaf will Lead to Widespread Crisis throughout IraqFrom the ISNA website, via by BBC World Monitoring:Iranian charge d'affaires to Iraq, Hasan Kazemi-Qomi made several statements…

40 Killed In Another Bloody Iraq

40 Killed in Another Bloody Iraq SaturdayAt Least 5 US Soldiers Dead; Unknown US Casualties in Haswa, KutBoat Bombers Strike Basra Vessels, Kill 2As sun sets on Saturday in Iraq, it pulls…

Muqtada Al Sadr Warns He Will Unleash

Muqtada al-Sadr Warns He will Unleash Kamikaze Bombers if Najaf is AttackedBulgarian Soldier Killed in Clash at Karbalaash-Sharq al-Awsat: Muqtada al-Sadr, leader of the Mahdi Army militia, said in his Friday prayers…

Is Chalabi Out Brahimi Plan Advances

Is Chalabi Out? Brahimi Plan advances, Baathists RehabilitatedThe intrepid Robin Wright and Walter Pincus at the Washington Post argue that the Brahimi plan for Iraq could forestall the coronation of Ahmad Chalabi…

What Is To Be Done In Iraq Polk Guest

What is to Be Done in Iraq?: PolkGuest CommentaryBy William R. Polk ' While C.I.A. director George J. Tenet struggles in Washington to prove that his agency did not exaggerate the danger…

Commentary On Senate Committee On

Commentary on the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Hearing on Iraq: Nathan BrownGuest Commentary by Nathan J. Brown, George Washington Universityhttp://home.gwu.edu/~nbrownThis week's Senate Foreign Relations hearings--in which you participated--made headlines partly because…

Situation Around Najaf Remains Tense

Situation Around Najaf remains TenseMuqtada al-Sadr and his movement remain defiant. In Basra, about 800 Sadrists held a demonstration, led by Shaikh Abdul Sattar al-Bahadili, in which they alleged that the British…

Hitchens Questions On Iraq Reader Sent

Hitchens Questions on IraqA reader sent me these questions that he said Christopher Hitchens had posed. I then found them at his web site. They are:1) Do you believe that a confrontation…

More On Senate Foreign Relations

More on Senate Foreign Relations Committee Testimony: Cole and DodgeHere are oral comments of myself and Toby Dodge last Tuesday at the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.Senator Lugar: . . . Dr.…

Perle At Senate Committee On Foreign

Perle at the Senate Committee on Foreign RelationsIt was quite an experience to be on the same panel on Tuesday with Richard Perle and Toby Dodge, before the US Senate Committee on…

Brahimi Criticizes Us Bias Toward

Brahimi Criticizes US Bias Toward IsraelAl-Hayat reports that UN special envoy to Iraq Lakhdar Brahimi remarked on Wednesday that it was unjust for the US to show such a strong bias in…

Jaafari Suggests To Muqtada That He Go

Jaafari Suggests to Muqtada that he go into Exileaz-Zaman reports from Najaf that informed sources are saying that the chief intermediary between the Coalition and Muqtada al-Sadr right now is the leader…

Cole Testimony At Senate Foreign

Cole Testimony at Senate Foreign Relations Committee, April 20US Mistakes in Iraq by Juan ColeTestimony before Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, April 20, 2004This brief addresses three areas. First, what mistakes have…

Basra Toll Rises To 68 Dead 238 Wounded

Basra Toll rises to 68 Dead, 238 Wounded, Including ChildrenRiyadh Shaken by Blasts, As WellThe horrific series of bombings at police stations in Basra have also killed or injured large numbers of…

Has Al Khoei Family Intervened On

Has the al-Khoei Family Intervened on Muqtada's Behalf?Received the following from an Iraqi reader: ' My uncle in Baghdad who is absolutely not a supporter of Moqtada tells me that the Al-Koei…

Whitaker On Progressive Islam Brian

Whitaker on Progressive Islam Brian Whitaker looks at the struggle in the Muslim world between progressives and authoritarians. He makes the good point: 'Before jumping to conclusions about why this might be,…

40 Dead As Blasts Rip Basra Police

40 Dead as Blasts Rip Basra Police Stations; Renewed Fighting at FallujahAP is reporting that three huge bombs went off at 3 different police stations in the southern city of Basra almost…

Corruption And Graft Jason Vest Of

Corruption and GraftJason Vest of the Village Voice has gotten hold of a juicy Coalition Provisional Authority memo that details political corruption among American-appointed Iraqi politicians, the actual lack of electricity, the…

Loya Jirga On Tigris Us Secretary Of

Loya Jirga on the Tigris? US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said Weds. that a "Loya Jirga" could be held in Iraq. He seems to me to be grasping at straws.The loya…

Muqtada Vs

Muqtada vs. the Grand AyatollahsEd Wong of the NYT has a canny read on the stand-off between Muqtada al-Sadr and the Grand Ayatollahs of Najaf.' by choosing to make his stand in…

Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Holds Iraq HearingsI didn't post much on Tuesday because I was testifying in Washington at the Senate Foreign relations commitee hearing on Iraq.The Senate CFR began three days…

22 Killed 92 Injured At Abu Ghuraib Ap

22 Killed, 92 Injured at Abu GhuraibAP reports that a bombardment by guerrillas of the Abu Ghuraib prison resulted in 22 deaths of inmates and about 92 injured. The prison has been…

30 Iraqis 12 Us Troops Killed Over

30 Iraqis, 12 US Troops Killed over Deadly Weekend5 US troops were killed Sunday in fighting near the Syrian border at Husayba, but various other incidents on Saturday brought the weeked total…

Najaf Muqtada Myers And Zapatero

Najaf: Muqtada, Myers, and ZapateroA spokesman for Muqtada al-Sadr, Qais al-Khaz'ali, said Sunday that his forces would extend their truce with the Coalition for two further days, Monday and Tuesday, in honor…

Attack On Najaf Will Be Zero Hour Of

An Attack on Najaf "Will be Zero Hour of a Massive Popular Uprising": al-Khaz'ali ash-Sharq al-Awsat: Hundreds of members of Muqtada al-Sadr's Army of the Mahdi rallied in the streets of Najaf…

Najaf Crisis And International

Najaf Crisis and International ImplicationsIran: US Will Pay a 'Heavy Price'Iran warned the American government that it would "pay a heavy price" if its forces attacked the cities of Najaf and Karbala.…

Rantisi And Najaf Sunday Herald

Rantisi and NajafThe Sunday Herald correctly points out that the Israeli murder of Abdul Aziz Rantisi, the head of the political wing of the Hamas party, on Saturday, will cause further trouble…

Story Of Arrest Warrant For Muqtada

Story of the Arrest Warrant for MuqtadaMore on the back story of the warrant for Muqtada's arrest.' According to the brief, Juhy has found an eyewitness who is willing to testify that…

Clashes Outside Kufa Situation Tense In

Clashes outside Kufa; Situation Tense in Shrine Citiesash-Sharq al-Awsat: A series of explosions shook the city of Kufa on Friday, and eyewitnesses saw dozens of armed militiamen hurrying to various parts of…

Muqtadas Friday Sermon Marines Should

Muqtada's Friday Sermon: Marines should SurrenderMuqtada al-Sadr announced in his Friday prayers sermon at Kufa on Friday that "truce negotiations [with the American forces] are useless," and that he will not dissolve…

Clergy Of Najaf To Mahdi Army Go Fight

Clergy of Najaf to Mahdi Army: Go fight outside the Cityash-Sharq al-Awsat: The clerics of the Najaf seminaries have called upon the Army of the Mahdi to go fight the Americans outside…

Mortar Shells Kill 8 In Mosul Things

Mortar Shells Kill 8 in MosulThings are so bad in Iraq, and so many people have been killed lately, that what would once have been my headline for today was barely picked…

Negotiations Over Muqtada Al Sadr Al

Negotiations over Muqtada al-Sadral-Hayat: The Iranian delegation to Najaf is continuing its attempts to calm the situation, despite the assassination in Baghdad of the Iranian cultural attache, Khalil Na`imi. The Iranian delegation…

Bluster And Begging Duality Of Us

Bluster and Begging: The Duality of US Foreign Policy in the Middle EastThe Bush administration requested Syria's participation in "calming the situation" in Iraq. Bashar al-Asad received letters from Bush and Colin…

Salon

Salon.com Article on FallujahMy piece on Fallujah and its connection to the Palestine issue is online at Salon.com. Readers interested in this angle will also benefit from Tom Engelhardt's "The American Legacy…

Lone On How To Fix It Salim Lones Op Ed

Lone on How to Fix ItSalim Lone's op-ed in the Toronto Globe and Mail gives an experienced UN hand's view of the unfolding disaster in Iraq. He was communications director in Baghdad…

Brahimi Plan Unveiled Full Text Of

Brahimi Plan unveiledThe full text of the Brahimi plan is at the UN Observer. Here are the main points: ' 2. Let me emphasise from the outset that in this political process…

Muqtada Agrees To Dissolve Militia May

Muqtada Agrees to Dissolve Militia, May go into temporary exile in Iranaz-Zaman reports that Muqtada al-Sadr has accepted a solution of the problems between him and the Coalition on the basis of…

Muqtada Will Negotiate Without

Muqtada Will Negotiate without Preconditions: Iran InvolvedReuters is reporting that radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has ceased demanding a US pullback from Najaf as a precondition for negotiating. He gave in under…

Mediation With Muqtada And Limits Of

Mediation with Muqtada and the Limits of Tolerance The Scotsman reports that the standoff between the American forces and those of Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf continues. Muqtada appears to be seeking a…

Arguing With Bush I Saw President Bushs

Arguing with BushI saw President Bush's news conference Tuesday evening. He said many things that disturbed me, not in any partisan sort of way (and I continue to maintain that simple partisanship…

Shadid Its Pretty Bad Here

Shadid: "It's Pretty Bad Here."It isn't often that one gets to hear a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist speak in his own voice from the field, but that's what you get at the Washington…

Cole And Gerecht On Shiites Of Iraq

Cole and Gerecht on Shiites of Iraq (Lehrer Newshour)The text of my appearance on the Lehrer News Hour is available at http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june04/alsadr_04-13.html.

Shiite Negotiators Warn Us Report About

Shiite Negotiators Warn USThe report about Sistani's strongly-worded message to the US warning them against attacking Najaf is now available in English. I haven't seen an Arabic text. Some 2500 US troops…

6 Us Troops Deaths Announced 4 Police

6 US Troops' Deaths Announced; 4 Police Killedash-Sharq al-Awsat/AFP: The US military authorities announced Monday that guerrillas had killed 6 US troops in the past three days in separate incidents, deaths that…

Shiite Leaders Negotiate With Muqtada

Shiite Leaders Negotiate with MuqtadaThe London daily ash-Sharq al-Awsat reports that attempts to mediate between radical Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr and the US are continuing in Najaf, even as there were further…

Sistani Threatens Shiite Resistance If

Sistani Threatens Shiite Resistance if US Invades NajafThe Iranian newspaper Baztab is reporting that Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani has sent a strongly-worded message to the Coalition forces, in which he warned them…

More What Went Wrong Carol Giacomo

More 'What went Wrong?' Carol Giacomo quotes an array of policy experts on the problem with the current US strategy in Iraq: ' What's really needed is a viable political process and…

Cole On Fresh Air Ive Long Been Fan Of

Cole on Fresh AirI've long been a fan of Terry Gross's NPR show, "Fresh Air." So am happy to report that I am interviewed in Tuesday's edition. Just a head's up for…

Us Turns To Negotiations With

US Turns to Negotiations with InsurgentsAs Riccardi points out, the Bush Administration has abruptly ceased its cowboy rhetoric and says it is willing to consider negotiated settlements to its problems in Sunni…

Pentagon Announces Death Of 17 Us

Pentagon Announces Death of 17 US Troops in Iraq; 5 Killed Sunday Nicholas Riccardi of the LA Times (reg. req.) reports that Iraqi guerrillas killed 5 US troops on Sunday, including three…

Muqtada Aid Denies Seeking Asylum In

Muqtada Aid Denies Seeking Asylum in Iran; Demands release of HostagesThe LA Times reported that on Sunday, a spokesman for Muqtada al-Sadr said, "There is no chance that the armies of occupation…

Did Badran Resign Because Alawi Is Out

Did Badran Resign because Alawi is Out as PM? Or in?al-Hayat: Sources close to the Interim Governing Council say that the resignation of Interior Minister Nuri al-Badran came after a number of…

Virulent Racism Disregard For Civilian

Virulent Racism, Disregard for Civilian Life Mar US Military Approach: British CommanderSean Rayment of the Telegraph reports a story today that should be on the front pages of every American newspaper. He…

Revolution In Baqubah 5 Us Soldiers

Revolution in Baqubah5 US soldiers Killed in Baghdad and al-Anbar According to Reuters and other wire services:Baqubah A violent revolt broke out in the eastern city of Baqubah, in which guerrillas mounted…

Muqtadas Fate Reuters Is Reporting That

Muqtada's FateReuters is reporting that several members of the Interim Governing Council met Saturday with Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf, seeking a compromise that might end the violence in the south. Naseer Chaderji,…

What Went Wrong In Washington And Green

What Went Wrong in Washington and the Green ZoneJeffrey Gettleman of the New York Times has two important articles today. Since he was almost killed getting them, I hope someone is paying…

Fallujah Bloodbath Threatens Us

Fallujah Bloodbath threatens US-Appointed Iraqi Government with CollapseAP reported that the US-appointed Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) issued a demand early on Saturday that the US cease its military action against Fallujah and…

Tension Remains High In Sadrist Areas

Tension Remains High in Sadrist AreasAbdul Karim al-Muhammadawi, legendary leader of the Iraqi Hizbullah, which organized the Shiite Marsh Arabs to fight Saddam, has suspended his membership in the Interim Governing Council…

Muqtada To Bush Back Off Or Lose

Muqtada to Bush: Back off or Lose the ElectionThe Saudi London daily ash-Sharq al-Awsat reports that Muqtada al-Sadr called Friday upon US President George W. Bush to "withdraw his forces from Iraq…

Fighting Rages In Fallujah Najaf

Fighting Rages in Fallujah, Najaf, Karbala; 6 US Troops Dead, Hundreds of IraqisThe US suffered 6 more combat deaths on Wednesday and Thursday. In a CNN interview retired General Barry MacCaffrey said…

Situation In Najaf Kind Friend Who Was

The Situation in NajafA kind friend who was able to get a phone call into Najaf reports as follows: ' I called my friend in Najaf today Thursday . . . Private…

Muqtada Calls For End To Hostilities

Muqtada Calls for an End to HostilitiesBack to Iraq has posted a link to the text of a proclamation by Muqtada al-Sadr that calls on his followers to cease military operations and…

Patel On Muqtada Al Sadr David Patel

Patel on Muqtada al-SadrDavid Patel writes from Iraq concerning the allegation that Muqtada is being "run" by the Iran-based cleric Kadhim al-Haeri: ' I have been in Basra since Sep and know…

Gunbattles Rage In Many Iraqi Cities On

Gunbattles Rage in Many Iraqi Cities on Wednesdayaz-Zaman reports ongoing gunbattles in Ramadi and Fallujah between Sunni Arab forces and US marines. It also notes that clashes have broken out in the…

Militias Forbidden And Us Hypocrisy

Militias Forbidden? And US HypocrisyCoalition Provisional Authority spokesman Dan Senor, who has often attempted to peddle frankly false stories, was at it again on Wednesday. He said Muqtada al-Sadr was targeted because…

Sistani Fatwa On Insurgency Trans

Sistani Fatwa on Insurgencytrans. J. Cole from Sistani.orgQuestion:You know the cruel methods that the Occupation Forces are employing in the continuing clashes for several days in areas of Baghdad and in several…

12 Us Troops Killed At Ramadi Over 24

12 US Troops Killed at Ramadi; Over 24 Wounded; 3 Killed at KadhimiyahUS troops died at the hands of Sunni Arab guerrillas at Ramadi on Tuesday, but also at the hands of…

Second Front Multi City Sadrist

The Second Front: Multi-City Sadrist Uprising ContinuesThe difficulty the United States and its allies are having in regaining control of the major cities of the Shiite south is breathtaking in its implications.…

Iran Factor There Has Been Great Deal

The Iran factor There has been a great deal of speculation about possible Iranian connections to the Shiite resistance to US occupation in Iraq. The connection is not straightforward. Grand Ayatollah Ali…

Mahdi Army Fights Coalition In Baghdad

Mahdi Army Fights Coalition in Baghdad, Karbala, Basra: Takes control of Shrine of Imam Ali in Najafwire services report that there was more violence on Monday in Baghad. A contingent of the…

Muqtada Proud To Be Outlaw Al Hairi

Muqtada: Proud to be an Outlaw; Al-Ha'iri: Americans are making War on the ShiitesAsh-Sharq al-Awsat: According to Shaikh Qais al-Khazali, the leader of the Army of the Mahdi in Baghdad, Muqtada al-Sadr…

Bush White House Deadlocked Over Iraq I

Bush White House Deadlocked over IraqI saw Senators Biden and Lugar on the Lehrer Newshour on Monday, and I think Senator Biden intimated an explanation for some of what is happening in…

Nearly 3 Million Iraqis Sunni And

Nearly 3 Million Iraqis, Sunni and Shiite, Approve of attacks on AmericansAn opinion poll taken in late February showed that 10 % of Iraq's Shiites say attacks on US troops are "acceptable."…

Muqtada Rejects Calls To Renounce

Muqtada rejects Calls to Renounce ViolenceReuters is now reporting that Muqtada al-Sadr has rejected an appeal by Muhammad Bahr al-Ulum and other Shiite clerics to renounce violence and tactics like taking over…

Arrest Warrant For Muqtada Al Sadr Dan

Arrest Warrant for Muqtada al-SadrDan Senor in a briefing in Baghdad on Monday revealed that an arrest warrant had been issued months ago "by an Iraqi judge" and implied that it would…

Muqtada Under Siege Us Helicopters

Muqtada Under Siege, US Helicopters Patrol Skies above East BaghdadSistani calls for calmIn the aftermath of one of the most turbulent days yet in American-occupied Iraq, the London daily al-Hayat reports that…

Levine Dark Side Of Globalization Dont

Levine: Dark Side of Globalization Don't miss Mark Levine's excellent meditation on the US occupation of Iraq and the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza as elements of uncontrollable "globalization"…

Effect Of Plus Ultra Casualties On

Effect of Plus Ultra Casualties on Coalition?Agence France Presse reports that a human rights group and the main opposition party have called for the exit of the 380 Salvadoran troops from Iraq…

2 Killed In Seizure Of Sadrist Office

2 Killed in Seizure of Sadrist Office in Baghdad; Muqtada Aide Had Called for IGC ResignationTwo pieces of information from BBC world monitoring.First, it reports on Sunday April 4 that: Al-Jazeera TV,…

Muqtada Aide Australia Out According To

Muqtada Aide: Australia Out!According to Australian Broadcasting Co., Imam Amer al-Hussaini, an aide to Muqtada al-Sadr, called Sunday for an immediate withdrawal of Australian troops from Iraq. ' "The Saddam regime (is)…

Incompetence Or Double Dealing In

Incompetence or Double-Dealing in Coalition Management of Iraq?The Coalition decision to provoke a fight with Muqtada al-Sadr's movement only three months before the Coalition Provisional Authority goes out of business has to…

Shiite Clashes In With Coalition In

Shiite Clashes in with Coalition in Najaf Baghdad: Phase II of the Anti-Occupation Struggle BeginsNine Coalition Troops Killed, Dozens wounded in Confronting Uprising[Updated]The always tense relationship between the Sadrist movement among Iraqi…

Iraq Information Or Party Propaganda

Iraq Information or Party Propaganda?The Guardian has a story on Sunday about how the Iraq Information Office is not just a Coalition Provisional Authority way of getting the news out about their…

Thousands Protest Newspaper Closure In

Thousands Protest Newspaper Closure in BaghdadSome 5,000 followers of Muqtada al-Sadr marched through largely Shiite East Baghdad on Saturday, protesting the closure of his al-Hawzah newspaper. The building demonstrations come against a…

Gypsy Town Razed By Militant Sadrists

Gypsy Town Razed by Militant Sadrists as Den of IniquityThe Financial Times reports, a little belatedly, that Muqtada al-Sadr's Army of the Mahdi militia raided and destroyed the town of Kawlia near…

Deaths Of Americans In Fallujah In

Deaths of Americans in Fallujah: In revenge for Sharon's Murder of Sheikh Yassin?There is increasing evidence that the brutal attack on the American security guards in Fallujah, and the desecration of their…

Kimmitt Fallujah Will Be Just Like

Kimmitt: Fallujah will be just like BaqubahOn the killing of the US security personnel in Fallujah on Wednesday: ' GEN. KIMMITT: What I'm suggesting is that there is an incident that happened…

3 Us Troops Wounded 6 Iraqis Killed

3 US Troops Wounded, 6 Iraqis KilledWire services report that guerrillas near Fallujah wounded three US troops with a roadside bomb on Thursday. Also yesterday, guerrillas in northern Baghdad wounded at least…

Tomdispatch Rice And Beans Tom

Tomdispatch: "Rice and Beans"Tom Engelhardt of Tomdispatch.com discusses the odd maneuvering of the Bush administration around the testimony of National Security Adviser Condi Rice and the president and vice president before the…

9 Americans Killed In And Around

9 Americans Killed in and around Fallujah; Bodies DesecratedThe amount of violence against Americans on Wednesday was remarkable, with 5 US soldiers killed by a roadside bomb and four civilian security men…

Thousands Of Shiites Protest In

Thousands of Shiites Protest in Downtown BaghdadIt wasn't in the headlines in US media because of the violence in Fallujah, but several thousand angry Shiites demonstrated in downtown Baghdad on Wednesday, protesting…

Zubaidi No Right Of Return Compensation

Zubaidi: No right of Return, Compensation for Iraqi JewsThe Iraqi minister of Housing and Rebuilding, Bayan Baqir al-Zubaidi, denied Wednesday that the current Iraqi governing council had passed laws giving Iraqi Jews…