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Archives: September 2005

85 Shiites Dead At Balad In

85 Shiites Dead at Balad in Carbombings 5 US Troops Killed at RamadiFriday morning, al-Jazeerah is reporting at least 10 dead and more wounded in a market in the Shiite city of…

Fayyad In Baghdad It Is No Longer

Fayyad in Baghdad: It is no Longer BaghdadAl-Sharq al-Awsat carries a long, anguished and meditative piece by Maad Fayyad, an Arab journalist normally based in London, on the occasion of his return…

You Will Be Democratic Or Else Nearly

You will be Democratic, Or Else! Nearly 3/4s of Americans are now skeptical about the use of force to spread democracy. The idea that the US should simply invade countries, overthrow their…

American Street Speaks My Article Is

The American Street Speaks My article is out in Salon.com, The "American street" speaks: Will the Democratic Party listen? The lede is:"As more and more Americans turn against Bush's Iraq war, Democratic…

Bombings In Tal Afar Baghdad Najaf

Bombings in Tal Afar, Baghdad, Najaf Iraq is not World War II Someone detonated a bomb outside the house of Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf around 7 pm Wednesday Iraq time. The blast…

Iran And Iraq Muhsin Al Hakim

Iran and Iraq Muhsin al-Hakim "Horrified" at British Assault in BasraMuhsin al-Hakim, the son of Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, spoke out in Tehran about the British attack on a Basra jail. Abdul Aziz…

Guest Editorial Achcar On Iraq

Guest Editorial: Achcar on "Iraq Developments""Iraq developments"by Gilbert Achcar' 1) The Saudi Kingdom and IraqThe last weeks and days have seen intensive campaigning by the Saudi Kingdom on the issue of Iraq,…

Car Bomber Penetrates Green Zone 33

Car Bomber Penetrates Green Zone 33 Deaths in Guerrilla Violence The Washington Post reports that "A car bomber penetrated the heavily fortified Green Zone in the center of the capital on Tuesday…

Conyers On Arrest Of Antiwar

Conyers on Arrest of Antiwar ProtestersCongressman John Conyers writes:' September 27, 2005Office of the Chief United States Park PoliceDwight E. Pettiford1100 Ohio Drive S.W.Washington, D. C. 20242Dear Chief Pettiford:I am writing to…

Sunnis Seek Last Minute Changes In

Sunnis Seek Last-Minute changes in Constitution Shiite teachers in Baghdad and Iraqi police and 10 passengers on a government bus were killed in violence on MondayThe Sunni National Dialogue Council and other…

Kos Diaries Daily Kos Diaries On Us

Kos Diaries Daily Kos Diaries on US troop withdrawals from Iraq:"Quit Your Bellyachin'".and"Juan Cole says now is the time to leave Iraq"Stirling Newberry at BOP also has a good discussion.I should clarify…

De Baathification Statistics Gilbert

De-Baathification StatisticsGilbert Achcar kindly shares his translation of the following from Al-Hayat:' Ali al-Lami, member of the De-Ba’athification Commission, told Al-Hayat that the number of Ba’athists that were affected by De-Ba’athification “does…

British Spies In Basra Fighting

British Spies in Basra Fighting Weapons Smugglers 27 Killed, 62 Wounded in Violence Those two SAS special operations troops captured by the Basra police last Monday were one of 8 such teams…

Grand Ayatollah Ishaq Fayyads Fatwa In

Grand Ayatollah Ishaq Fayyad's Fatwa in Favor the ConstitutionKarbalaNews.net [Arabic] publishes a copy of the fatwa by Grand Ayatollah Ishaq Fayyad in favor of the Iraqi constitution:Fayyad, an Afghan Hazara by birth,…

Cole On Issue Issue Web Based

Cole on "The Issue" "The Issue," a web-based interview show at Evolvetv.tv launches today with interviews of Juan Cole on Iraq.Given the meltdown during the past week of the mainstream television news…

Rebuttal By Achcar Gilbert Achcar

Rebuttal by Achcar Gilbert Achcar replies to my response. I think we've reached the point where our positions are clear and I'm disinclined to respond further, despite my respect for the seriousness…

Why We Have To Get Troops Out Of Iraq

Why we Have to get the Troops Out of IraqThe hundreds of thousands of protesters who came out throughout the world on Saturday were demanding a US and British withdrawal from Iraq.…

Tens Of Thousands Demonstrate Against

Tens of Thousands Demonstrate Against Iraq War Al-Hakim Calls for "Yes" on Constitution Arrest Warrant in Basra for BritishOver 100,000 protesters rallied in Washington, DC, against the Iraq War on Saturday. Protests…

Reader Response On Coleachcar Billmon

Reader Response on Cole/AchcarBillmon carefully considers the pros and cons and finally decides to call for US troops out now because otherwise there is a real danger of the US becoming a…

Cobban Critique Of Cole My Good Friend

Cobban Critique of ColeMy good friend Helena Cobban offers her own critique of my position on the need for some way of forestalling massive conventional civil war in Iraq in the aftermath…

Fadilah Calls For Defeat Of

Fadilah Calls for Defeat of Constitution Ayatollah Muhammad Ya`qubi, the leader in Najaf of the Fadilah (Virtue) Party--which has a big political and social base in the southern port city of Basra--has…

Abdul Amir Younes Hussein Not Charged

Abdul Amir Younes Hussein Not Charged 5 Months LaterArianna Huffington explores the case of CBS cameraman Abdul Amir Younes Hussein, who was detained by the US military after a car bombing in…

Achcar Replies Gilbert Achcar Replies

Achcar RepliesGilbert Achcar replies to my posting of 9/23 on the undesirability of an immediate and complete withdrawal of US forces from Iraq:' Let me begin this second open letter to you…

Iraq Conversation With Juan Cole My

Iraq - A Conversation with Juan Cole My video interview on Iraq with Markinsanfran is up at Daily Kos. I also talk about the Middle East Forum campaign against rational analysis of…

Sistani Urges Support For Constitution

Sistani urges Support for Constitution And for Iran Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani called Thursday for Iraqis to vote "yes" on the new Iraqi constitution in the referendum on October 15, according to…

Schwartz Us Out Now Violence Continued

Schwartz: US out Now The violence continued to percolate along on Thursday in Iraq, with up to 12 persons dead in guerrilla actions.Michael Schwartz argues that the US military cannot play any…

Cole On Evolve Tv Steve Garfield Has

Cole on Evolve TVSteve Garfield has up a trailer for "The Issue", an interview program at the web-based Evolve TV, on which I am Mark Moulitsas's guest on September 25. "Reality-based broadcasting"…

Cole Web Interview I Web Video

Cole Web Interview I A web video interview with me on Iraq by Diogenes ("Mark In Sanfrancisco") will be aired Friday. This is the preview.

Us Bombs Dhuluiyyah Basra Declares

US Bombs Dhulu'iyyah Basra declares Noncooperation US warplanes bombed the small Sunni Arab city of Dhulu'iyyah (Thuluiya) on Wednesday. The bombing is unlikely to be an effective counter-insurgency measure. In fact, it…

Huffington On Bolton And Plame Someone

Huffington on Bolton and PlameSomeone in the Bush White House blew the cover of a CIA operative, Valerie Plame, to punish her husband, Joe Wilson. Wilson had gone to Niger to investigate…

9 Americans Dead Sadrs Popularity

9 Americans Dead Sadr's Popularity Grows versus British in Basra Guerrillas have used bombings to kill nine Americans since Monday. Four US GIs were killed at Ramadi on Tuesday. The bombings come…

British Storm Basra Jail With Tanks

British Storm Basra Jail with Tanks Sabrina Tavernise of the New York Times gives the only account of alarming events in Basra I have yet seen that makes sense.The Guardian seems to…

Muqtada Al Sadrs Response To Basra

Muqtada Al-Sadr's Response to Basra Events - Achcar TranslationGilbert Achcar writes:"The office of Muqtada al-Sadr published tonight (Sept 19) the following press release that I have translated from Arabic FYI. It is…

Iranian Television On Basra Tensions

Iranian Television on Basra TensionsBBC World Monitoring translated this report on Al-Alam, the Iranian Arabic-language satellite program, on Sept. 14:September 14, 2005, WednesdayBasra residents blame UK troop "violations" for increase in militant…

Evolve Tv Evolve Tvs Issue Will Be Web

Evolve TV Evolve TV's "The Issue" will be a web-based hard-hitting interview program on public and foreign affairs. Now that PBS is being increasingly politicized, and given the dreadful state of corporate…

One To Two Billion Dollars Missing At

One to Two Billion Dollars Missing at Ministry of DefenseHannah Allam of Knight Ridder broke the story this past summer that a billion dollars was missing at the ministry of defense, according…

Member Of Parliament Killed 24 Bodies

Member of Parliament killed 24 Bodies Found The deputy speaker of the Iraqi parliament, Husain Shahristani, had the final text of the constitution "read" in parliament so as to meet a criterion…

Egyptian Elections And Bushs War My

The Egyptian Elections and Bush's War My article, "Bush's war and the Egyptian elections", which argues that "Mubarak's rigged victory shows that right-wing predictions of an "Arab spring" were wishful thinking." -…

Security Situation In Baghdad Sinking

Security Situation in Baghdad Sinking like the TitanicAn observer in Iraq writes to me: "The situation has deteriorated in Baghdad dramatically today. Five neighborhoods (hay) in Baghdad are controlled by insurgents, and…

52 Dead Dozens Wounded Guerrilla

52 Dead, Dozens Wounded Guerrilla violence, including a massive car bomb, killed 52 Iraqis on Saturday. The biggest incident occurred at a market at Nahrawan, a town just east of Baghdad that…

More On Hitchens And Cole Ive Now Seen

More on Hitchens and ColeI've now seen a transcript showing that Christopher Hitchens in his debate with George Galloway said that I "claimed" to know "farsi" but had "never stepped foot in…

25 Dead Dozens Wounded Sadrists In Tuz

25 Dead, Dozens Wounded Sadrists in Tuz Khurmato Targeted At least 25 Iraqis were killed in guerilla violence on Friday and dozens wounded. The biggest incident was a huge bomb at a…

Union Opposition To Petroleum Industry

Union Opposition to Petroleum Industry PrivatizationThe General Union of Oil Employees in Basra has issued a strong statement against privatization of the Iraqi petroleum industry.:GUOE Position on Privatisation August 2005 - Statement…

32 Dead In Guerrilla Violence Al Hayat

32 Dead in Guerrilla Violence Al-Hayat: Some 30 policemen were killed in 3 suicide bombings Thursday, and 60 were wounded. Also killed was a Shiite religious leader. The body was discovered of…

Hitchens Galloway And Cole I Just

Hitchens, Galloway and Cole I just haven't had time to watch the Hitchens/ Galloway debate, and won't have time to do it until this weekend. Kind readers are messaging me to say…

Necklace Of Bombs For Baghdad Us

A Necklace of Bombs for Baghdad US Troops Attacked Sistani: No Civil War even if Half of Shiites are Killed Al-Hayat: After the 12 explosions that rocked Baghdad on Wednesday and left…

David Langness Reports On New Orleans

David Langness Reports on New OrleansMy dear friend David Langness, who has long experience in the field of humanitarian relief work, reports:'Howdy, folks,Back from a difficult, gruesome and yet exhilarating week in…

Black Wednesdays Death Toll Rises To

Black Wednesday's Death Toll rises to 150 The death toll in Wednesday's eight bombings in Baghdad rose to 150, with one bomb in Kadhimiyah accounting for about 114. I can only imagine…

At Least 90 Dead 162 Injured In

At least 90 Dead, 162 Injured in Baghdad Blast Sunnis Reject Constitution At 7 am on Wednesday morning, guerrillas detonated a huge suicide car bomb in the midst of Shiite day laborers…

Guest Editorial Myerson On Iraqi

Guest Editorial: Myerson on Iraqi Constitution "Federalism and the Iraqi Constitution"by Roger B. Myerson The draft Iraqi constitution deserves much more public discussion in America as well as in Iraq. As an…

Tal Afar As Ethnic Civil War Much Of

Tal Afar as Ethnic Civil War Much of the American press has reported the Tal Afar campaign as a strike by the new Iraqi Army, supported by US troops, against foreign infiltrators…

No Comments Raed In Sad Sign Of Times

No Comments: Raed In a sad sign of the times, Raed Jarrar and friends, the Iraqi bloggers, have closed their comment section. They were alarmed by the recent launching of a lawsuit…

No Constitution Yet Waters Of Battle

No Constitution Yet Waters of Battle recede in Tal Afar The final text of the Iraqi constitution has still not been worked out, and so the United Nations cannot begin to print…

911 77 And 830 On Fourth Year

9/11, 7/7 and 8/30On the fourth-year anniversary of the al-Qaeda attacks on the US, it is important that we take stock of where we stand. We do not stand in a good…

Tal Afar Stormed Threat Of Ethnic

Tal Afar Stormed Threat of Ethnic Cleansing Grows in IraqIraqi troops took the lead in the ground assault in the northern Turkmen city of Tal Afar, in an attempt by the US…

Television Review Flight That Fought

Television Review: The Flight that Fought BackThe Discovery Channel is airing a documentary on United Airlines flight 93, which was hijacked and crashed in Pennsylvania on September 11. It will be on…

Private Company Shuts Down Baghdad

Private Company Shuts down Baghdad International Airport More violence in Baghdad The steady drumbeat of mayhem continued again on Friday. One bomb in Baghdad killed 4 persons, including three policemen, and wounded…

Another Winning Formula For Iraq

Another Winning Formula for IraqDistinguished Middle East historian William R. Polk writes: ' If my comments in my last essay on the suggestion of Scott Gerwehr and Nina Hachigian on how to…

Disaster Of Us Economic Policy In Iraq

The Disaster of US Economic Policy in IraqAn informed observer of the Iraq scene writes:' For most constructive purposes, it is not worth adding controversy over the Bush Administration’s economic policy in…

Huge Bomb In Basra Kills 16 14 Bodies

Huge Bomb in Basra Kills 16 14 Bodies Discovered in Mahmudiyah Guerrillas detonated an enormous bomb outside a restaurant in the southern port city of Basra on Thursday, killing 16 persons and…

Who Is Enemy Really My Talk At New

Who is the Enemy, Really? My talk at the New America Foundation conference on Terrorism, Security and America's Purpose is available in streaming video (windows media player).Thanks again to Steve Clemons of…

Louisiana National Guard Coming Home 4

Louisiana National Guard coming Home 4 US Security Men Killed Guerrillas used a roadside bomb to kill 4 US private security men in the southern city of Basra on Wednesday. They had…

4 Us Troops Dead Constitutional Talks

4 US Troops Dead Constitutional Talks End The US military has withdrawn from the Shiite holy city of Najaf, seat of the Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. Although the Lt. Col. James Oliver…

20 Killed In Guerrilla Violence

20 Killed in Guerrilla Violence Talabani Lashes out at the Arab League In the western city of Hit on Monday guerrillas detonated a suicide car bomb at a US/Iraqi base, killing 3…

Terrorism Security And Americas

Terrorism, Security, and America's Purpose The New America Foundation is hosting a conference on "Terrorism, Security and America's Purpose" at the Capitol Hilton on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Conference Schedule is here.There…

Hitchs Last Stand My Article At Salon

Hitch's Last Stand My article at Salon.com is "Christopher Hitchens' last battle." ' The British hawk gives 10 reasons why Americans should be proud of the Iraq war. He goes 0 for…

Guerrillas Come Back In Qaim Heavy

Guerrillas come Back in Qaim Heavy Clashes in Tal Afar Reuters reports that pipeline sabotage has again interrupted exports from the Kirkuk fields to the Ceyhan terminal. The Kirkuk fields under normal…

Looting There Looting Here Fallujah

Looting There, Looting Here Fallujah There, New Orleans HereIn April of 2003 the US military stood by and allowed Baghdad to be looted. Not only were private establishments emptied, but all the…

26 Dead In Iraq Guerrilla Violence La

26 Dead in Iraq Guerrilla ViolenceThe LA Times reports that guerrillas launched major attacks in Baqubah and Samarra on Saturday. The US military campaign in the northern Turkmen city of Tel Afar…

Mahmood Othman Turkey Interfering In

Mahmood Othman: Turkey Interfering in IraqGilbert Achcar kindly shares his translation of this article in al-Hayat:OTHMAN TO AL-HAYAT: TURKEY FEARS THE SPREAD OF DEMOCRACYBaghdad – Heba Hani, Al-Hayat, September 3, 2005Kurdish leader…

Fayyad Calls For Yes Vote On

Fayyad Calls for Yes Vote on Constitution Muqtada Praises Resistance Al-Hayat: Shiite on Shiite disputes sharpened in the Friday prayers sermons this week. Grand Ayatollah Ishaq Fayyad, a junior colleague of Ali…

Iraqi Constitutions Downside For Women

The Iraqi constitution's downside for women Reprint. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)The Iraqi constitution's downside for womenBy JUAN COLEThursday, September 1, 2005, Page A21One of George W. Bush's justifications for his Iraq…

Sistani Calls On Government To Fulfill

Sistani Calls on Government to fulfill its Duties Najaf Furious about Bridge Stampede, calls for Investigation Al-Hayat:Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani on Thursday called on the Iraqi government to "fulfill its legal responsibilities"…

Message From New Orleans Refugee

Message from a New Orleans Refugee Message from a New Orleans refugee:' I am emailing everyone I can to say this (it is 9:53 a.m., Thursday, September 1, three days after the…

Liberal Blogosphere For Hurricane

Liberal Blogosphere for Hurricane ReliefKari Chisholm and Chris Bowers write'Hurricane Katrina has devastated thousands of lives. Today, we're announcing a coordinated effort by the liberal/progressive blogosphere to help the victims of the…

Stampede Catastrophe Brings Dissension

Stampede Catastrophe Brings Dissension, Unity Bush's polling numbers drop A Sadrist cabinet member responded to the horrific crushing of over 1000 persons in a crowd of worshippers on its way to the…