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Archives: July 2008
Cole in Salon: Why Bush Folded on Iran
My essay why Bush sent a high-level diplomat to meet Iranian negotiators with no preconditions is out in Salon.com.Excerpt:'Pundits and diplomats nearly got whiplash from the double take they did when George…
McCain and the Rage Celebrities; Does he Need to go to Rehab?
McCain had pledged to run a clean campaign, but like Mike Tyson when he's in the mood to munch ear, the Republicans just can't control themselves. First they tried to blame Barack…Bhasin:"Situation on the Ground" or Political Convenience? Thoughts on a US Withdrawal from Iraq
Madhavi Bhasin writes in an IC Guest Editorial:The most consistent answer to the differently phrased generic query, “When will the U.S. troops withdraw from Iraq?” is “Will be determined by the situation…Diyala Campaign Begins
The al-Maliki government has just launched another of its military offensives against guerrillas, this time in Baquba, the capital of Diyala Province. I am skeptical about these campaigns. They are announced well…Because You aren’t Angry Enough: Found on Reddit
Russia just defeated the US in the race for Central Asian gas. The US bet on a gas pipeline through Taliban territory in Afghanistan and Pakistan to India while trying to sideline…
Pakistani Taliban threaten Suicide Bombings;
Mark LeVine is disturbed by the tendency of Barack Obama and other US politicians to lump the Taliban together with al-Qaeda. The latter, he says is an international terrorist organization. The Taliban…Women Bombers Open Gates of Hell in Iraq; 61 Dead, Hundreds Wounded; Kurdish Mobs Attack Turkmen Offices in Kirkuk
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that four female suicide bombers killed or wounded 350 persons on Monday. Late reports give 61 as the number of those killed. Al-Hayat says the bombings reminded Iraqis…Bombings of Shiites during Pilgrimage to Kadhimiya; 11 Thought Dead; Turkey Bombs Iraq Again
Guerrillas in Iraq set off three bombs one after another on Monday morning, targeting Shiite pilgrims on their way to the Shrine of Imam Musa al-Kadhim in Kadhimiya, north Baghdad, to commemorate…
100 Pushtun Guerrillas Killed at Spera from Air; ISI under Civilian Control?
One hundred Pushtun guerrillas launched a major offensive in an attempt to take Spera District center. They drew down on themselves the full fury of US and NATO air forces that gave…MP Calls for Talabani’s Removal; Veto of Provinces Law called Unconstitutional
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that a controversy is raging in the Iraqi parliament about the veto exercised by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani against a bill passed last week enabling elections in the…Bush Charged with Murder One in Congressional Hearing
Vincent Bugliosi's opening statements during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the constitutional limits of executive power.He argues that since Bush took the country to war against Iraq on false pretenses and…Fox News= W. T.V.
Scott McClellan admits on Hardball that the White House fed Fox News hosts talking points. Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow point out that in the US, the government is forbidden to propagandize…Taliban Resurgence threatens Elections
Obama Obama in Newsweek:' Our success in Afghanistan is going to be deeply dependent not just on getting more troops there, which we need, but also some sustained high-level engagement with Pakistan—something…Kurdistan Seeks to Annex Other Iraqi Provinces
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that the Kurdistan Alliance has responded to the Iraqi parliament's passage of a bill concerning provincial elections. (The bill was vetoed by Kurdish President Jalal Talabani). The committee…Female Suicide Bomber Kills 8 in Diyala; Turks bomb Iraq again
A female suicide bomber killed 8 Iraqis in Diyala province on Thursday, including the head of a local Awakening Council.Turkey bombed 13 targets in northern Iraq on Thursday, targeting positions of the…Obama ist ein Berliner
Obama addresses a crowd of 200,000 in Berlin. Some were shouting in English, "Yes we can!"Text transcript here.CBS Edits McCain Whopper out of Broadcast
Keith Olbermann and Jedreport clear up the gaffe that John McCain made about the history of the surge and examine the Orwellian editing techniques of CBS News.
A Social History of the Surge
I want to weigh in as a social historian of Iraq on the controversy over whether the "surge" "worked." The NYT notes:'Mr. McCain bristled in an interview with the “CBS Evening News”…Bhasin: John McCain and Barack Obama’s Foreign Policy Choices: Different Bottles, Same Wine
Madhavi Bhasin writes in an IC Guest Editorial:The race to elect the successor to President George W. Bush is attracting more attention from across the globe than any previous Presidential contest in…Cole in Salon: Obama is Wrong on Afghanistan
My Salon column, , "Obama is saying the Wrong things about Afghanistan," , is now available online.Excerpt:' The governor of the North-West Frontier province, Owais Ghani, immediately spoke out against Obama, saying…Passage of Electoral Provision Likely will Delay Elections
It is not looking good for the holding of provincial elections in Iraq this year.First the high electoral commission warned that if enabling legislation was not passed by the end of July,…
Troop Agreement Misses Deadline; Provincial Law Misses Deadline; Bombings in Mosul, Diyala, Fallujah
First there was going to be a status of forces agreement between the US and Iraq, which would be ratified by the Iraqi parliament and would grant the US long-term bases. Private…Obama in Iraq; Der Spiegel Proves al-Maliki Story Correct; Series of Bombings hit Baghdad
Senator Barack Obama is in Iraq for consultations with American military commanders and Iraqi leaders. Despite all the talk about Iraq being "calm," I'd like to point out that the month just…Obama in Afghanistan
Presidential hopeful Barack Obama held consultations Saturday in Kabul with Afghan government officials. He discussed the rapidly deteriorating security situation in the country. I heard him on television at one point pledging…OSC: Afghan Observers Sceptical of Senator Obama’s Plan To Send More Troops
The USG Open Source Center translates a report in Dari Persian on a parliamentarian and two close observers from Afghanistan who entertain the severest doubts about Barack Obama's plan to send more…Bush Accepts Time Horizon for US Troop withdrawal
Bush has agreed in all but name with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on a timetable for US troop withdrawal from that country. As usual Bush's staff made up an implausible euphemism…Gazprom’s Businesss with Iran
The USG Open Source Center summarizes Russian press comment on the Gazprom deals with Libya and Iran. The deal with Iran is extremely important because if it goes forward, it would require…Helman: Is Bush’s Engagement with Iran Hurting McCain, Helping Obama?
Ambassador Gerald B. Helman writes, in a guest op-ed for IC:The decision by the Administration to send William Burns, the State Department’s third ranking official and a career diplomat, to participate in…Is it 1992 and the Economy, Stupid? Deja Vu all Over Again; McCain loses Lead among Men, is 7 Points Down
Is Barack Obama in some sense Clinton 2.0 when it comes to the public's perception of what the candidate could do for the economy? Just as Clinton benefited in 1992 from a…Bombs Kill 40, Wound Dozens; Al-Duri Calls for Continued Resistance; Gates Slams Militarization of Foreign Policy
Guerrillas launched a series of bombing campaigns in the eastern mixed province of Diyala and in the northern city of Mosul on Tuesday, killing at least 40 and wounding dozens. In Diyala,…Obama Caricature Offensive to Muslims; US Government does not Secure Nuclear Material; Afghanistan slams Pakistan for Terrorism
It is typical of the atmosphere in America today that the New Yorker cover caricaturing the Obamas is called offensive by the Obama campaign but virtually no one is talking about how…Basra Security still Fragile; Offensive Planned in Diyala; Will Petrodollars Resolve Iraq Crisis?
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that the Iraqi government is about to send troops into Diyala in an attempt to tamp down violence and combat local militias there, just as was done in…Obama on Iraq and Afghanistan: A Friendly Critique
Barack Obama wants to get out of Iraq by summer 2010 but wants to send 10,000 extra troops to Afghanistan.Obama's editorial is thoughtful and far more sensible than anything we are hearing…Does John McCain’s sick sense of humor matter?
First, he sang 'bomb, bomb, bomb/ bomb, bomb Iran' to the tune of the Beach Boys' 'Barbara Ann.'Now, on being told that Iran has increased its importation of American cigarettes, he quipped…Troops Injured Outside Combat Ignored in Media; Al-Maliki Gives Away Money
Greg Mitchell points out that the media continue to give little coverage to non-combat-related deaths among American troops in Iraq. Actually, they seldom mention the number of those wounded in combat, much…2 GIs’ Bodies Found; US, Israel Reject Rumors of IAF Flights in Iraq
The bodies of two US troops MIA were recently discovered in Iraq.Have Israeli planes been flying in Iraq, in and out of US air bases, to case Iran for and attack? The…Crocker on Aljazeera The Iraq-US Security Agreement
Aljazeera International reports on the current situation in Iraq and the negotiations between Iraq and the US for a Status of Forces Agreement. US Ambassador in Baghdad Ryan Crocker is interviewed at…OSC: Iran Reaction to Possible US Interest Section
The USG Open Source Center reports on reactions in Iran to the possibility of the opening of a US interest section, i.e. a muted embassy, in Tehran.OSC Report: Iran -- Reaction to…Bhasin: Maliki and the Timetable: It’s all about Blackwater
Madhavi Bhasin writes:On July 7th the Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in an Address before the Arab Ambassadors stated that his Government was looking at the necessity of terminating foreign presence on…Knight: Out — without ‘Bloodbath’ or ‘Regional Chaos’
Charles Knight writesIn October of last year a Boston-area activist called me and reported that he'd recently visited an antiwar Massachusetts congressperson in order to urge that more be done to get…Cole in Salon: FBI Plan to Profile Muslims Unconstitutional
My column in Salon.com: 'The FBI's plan to "profile" Muslims': It's unconstitutional, un-American -- and it might hurt, rather than help, the FBI's effort to stop real acts of terror. Excerpt:' The…Saghir: Timetable Demand not a Tactic; 53 Dead, 76 Wounded;
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that the chances that a Status of Forces Agreement will be concluded between Baghdad and Washington have declined substantially. The intention is now to sign a memorandum of…Attack on US Embassy in Istanbul
Six are dead in a terrorist attack on the US Embassy in Istanbul. The dead were 3 Turkish policemen and the three attackers, who appear to have been angry amateurs. The identity…1 GI Killed, 5 Wounded in Iraq; Rubaie’s Comments Roil McCain Campaign
The statements of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and National Security Counsellor Muwaffaq Rubaie about the need for a timetable for US troop withdrawal may have an unexpected and significant impact on the…Genetically Modified Seeds not Used in Iraq
A US observer with experience on the ground in Iraq writes with regard my link on Sunday to a piece about Monsanto and hooking Iraqi farmers on genetically modified seeds:The small report…Maliki and Timetable for US Withdrawal
A White House spokesman emphasized that US-Iraqi talks on a Status of Forces Agreement do not include mention of a hard date for US withdrawal.The disclaimer came after Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri…Walleser: The List: Project to Resettle Iraqi Allies
In the months since my last post “On Mercy and Redress,” The List : Project to Resettle Iraqi Allies has grown in scope as well as in influence, but it still has…