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Archives: April 2009
Cloughley: PAKISTAN’S ARMY, THE TALIBAN, AND WASHINGTON
Brian Cloughley writes in a guest op-ed for IC:Pakistan’s army continues to face challenges, not the least of which is the growing insurrection by Taliban and Taliban-supporting tribesmen in the Federally Administered…
Pakistani Army Takes Capital of Buner, Pushing Back Taliban Advance; Obama Considering More Aid
The Pakistani military parachuted soldiers Tuesday into Buner, in the Malakand district of the North-West Frontier Province, to take on the estimated 500 militants who had made a bid to take over…Obama’s First Hundred Days in the Greater Middle East
The hundred day benchmark for journalists sizing up a new administration is probably inappropriate on foreign affairs, which are complicated and move slowly. Still, we can assess the changes in approach and…Al-Maliki Denounces US Raid as Violating SOFA; Larijani dissatisfied with US
AP reports that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has denounced a US raid in Kut as a violation of the security agreement between Washington and Baghdad. WaPo goes further and says that al-Maliki…Pakistan Crisis and Social Statistics
Readers have written me asking what I think of the rash of almost apocalyptic pronouncements on the security situation in Pakistan issuing from the New York Times, The Telegraph, and Secretary of…Maliki Government Resists Deal with Baathists
The NYT reports that behind the scenes the US has been pressuring Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to find a way to reconcile with former Baathist elements, but that he has refused. Actually…Shrine of Imam Musa al-Kazim Targeted, 60 Killed, 125 Wounded
Update: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Baghdad Saturday morning on a mission to assess the reasons for the recent rise in large-scale bombings.Two suicide bombers killed 60 persons and wounded…A Modest Proposal: George’s Day and Saving Bookstores (and not bad for Florists either)
There is a delightful custom in Barcelona. On April 23, St. George's Day, men give their girlfriends or wives a rose. And the women give their male beloved a book. The gift…Cheney, Rice, Ashcroft, Gonzales Signed off on Torture
McClatchy reports that torture was reauthorized in spring of 2003 by four Bush administration officials: Dick Cheney, Condi Rice, John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales. It has already been revealed by McClatchy that…At Least 78 Killed in Iraq Bombings; AP: At Least 110,000 Dead in Violence
Brian Murphy of AP reports that bombings in Iraq killed 78 persons on Thursday A female suicide bomber in the upscale Shiite neighborhood of Karrada in Baghdad struck a crowd that had…REVISED TRANSCRIPT: LIZ CHENEY DEFENDS HER FATHER ON MSNBC
MSNBC sent me this by email. I couldn't find it on the web, so I'm reprinting here- JRICREVISED TRANSCRIPT: LIZ CHENEY DEFENDS HER FATHER ON MSNBC NEW YORK – April 23, 2009…Pelosi was Briefed on Harman’s Wire Tap
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says she was briefed several years ago that Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA) had shown up in a wiretap. Pelosi denies that she was pressured by Israeli-American…Cheney, Rumsfeld Pressured for Torture to Justify Iraq War; 5 Killed in Iraq Mosque Bombing
Jonathan S. Landay at McClatchy has discovered the real reason that Abu Zubaydah and Khalid Sheikh Muhammad were tortured dozens of times in the run-up to the Iraq War. It was because…Harman Admits She Talked to American; Saban said Involved
On being interviewed by Robert Siegel of National Public Radio on Tuesday, Rep. Jane Harman kept denying she knew which conversations had been referred to by the Congressional Quarterly report, even seemed…Harman Scandal: All about War on Iran
Jeff Stein of CQ.com reported on Sunday evening that the National Security Agency had picked up a telephone conversation by Representative Jane Harman (D-CA) with a suspected spy for Israel. It is…Cunningham: "The Forgotten Meaning of Tiananmen"
Philip J Cunningham writes in a guest op-ed for IC:“Tiananmen” is a taboo topic in China. But even in places where it is remembered and commemorated, the Beijing student movement of 1989…Saberi Case Roils US-Iran Relations, Iranian Politics
Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi, just convicted of espionage and sentenced to 8 years in prison, should be afforded every opportunity for a thorough legal defense in her appeal, according to Iranian President…
Levy Review of Engaging the Muslim World
The review by Daniel Levy of the New America Foundation of my new book, Engaging the Muslim World in The American Prospect is now available in full online (click here).Here is one…Do You want more Gas?
First the Israeli government built a separation wall right through a Palestinian village, Bilin, on the West Bank inside the Palestine Authority (i.e. beyond the Israeli border).Then young people assembled regularly to…Iraqi Defense Ministry: Bombings won’t Delay US Withdrawal
Iraqi defense ministry spokesman Muhammad al-Askari said Friday that the recent string of bombings in Iraq would not delay the US military withdrawal. He told Agence France Presse, "It would be good…Karzai Backs down on Key Elements of Law on Shiite Personal Status
The Afghan government says that it will amend a recently passed law that puts Afghanistan's Shiites under the law of their branch of Islam for personal status purposes. The law allowed marital…10 Policemen Killed in Kirkuk Bombing; 85% of Iraqis Killed by US Aerial Bombing Women and Children
A parked car bomb in the northern oil city of Kirkuk killed 10 policemen in a passing convoy and wounded 20 other persons on Wednesday.Kirkuk is the object of a lively struggle…Armitage: "They Tortured" "Maybe I should Have Resigned"
Avi Lewis interviews former Deputy Secretary of State for Aljazeera English:Armitage admits:1. He and his boss Colin Powell lost a major battle within the Bush administration on whether the Geneva Conventions on…25 Gays Killed in Iraq; Broad Trends against Human Rights Disturbing
On a wide range of fronts, human and civil rights in Iraq are in trouble.Amnesty International says that there has been a spate of killings of gay men, with 25 murdered in…Wingnut Pundits Who Trashed Obama over Pirate Stand-Off, Proved Wrong for the Zillionth Time
Kenneth T. Walsh at US News & World Report gives details of President Obama's handling of the Somali pirates' holding of Captain Richard Phillips hostage.The crisis began early in the morning of…Cole Interview at Progressive Book Club
The Progressive Book Club's interview with me about my new book, Engaging the Muslim World, as been posted.Note that if you join the Progressive Book Club, you can get my book for…
Cole & Charlie Rose
Click here for Charlie Rose's interview with me about my new book, Engaging the Muslim World.Rose's is among the best interview shows on television, and don't miss his conversation with my co-guest,…Cole in Salon: "The Great Right-Wing Freak-Out"
My Salon.com, "The Great Right-Wing Freak-Out" has been posted, with the subtitle: "Symptoms of the conservative crack-up were on full display after President Obama's trip abroad. Bill Kristol, take a bow."Excerpt:' President…Odierno Certain that US Troops will be Out of Iraq by Late 2011
General Ray Odierno, after months of appearing to want to wriggle out of the requirement in the Status of Forces Agreement that US troops depart Iraq by the end of 2011, reversed…Take a Deep Breath on Pakistan
I don't know David Kilcullen. But the things he is alleged to have told Paul McGeogh of the Sydney Morning Herald about Pakistan are just bizarre. I don't know what is intended…Pakistan: US Drones have killed 687 Innocents
Pakistani authorities investigating the aftermath of US bombing raids in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan have come to the conclusion that they cause more harm than good:' Of the 60…Suicide Bomber Kills 9 Sons of Iraq, wounds over 30
A suicide bomber wearing an explosives vest detonated his payload Saturday in the midst of a crowd of Sunni Arab militiamen in Iskandariya south of Baghdad. He killed 9 members of the…Truck Bomber Kills 5 US Troops in Mosul;
McClatchy reports that a suicide truck bomber hit a police barricade in the northern city of Mosul on Friday, detonating 200 pounds of explosives just as a US convoy was going by.…Tens of Thousands Rally against US on Anniversary of Saddam’s Fall
April 9 was the sixth anniversary of the fall of the Saddam Hussein government in Iraq. The date passed without much remark in the United States, which is consumed with its own…Cole at "Confronting Napoleon": San Francisco’s Humanities West
Humanities West, a San Francisco cultural institution, is having a program April 17-18 on Napoleon at which I will speak on Napoleon's Egypt. Media Contact: Genevieve Antaky510/482-3553, gantaky@comcast.net Public Info: Humanities West…US to Join UNSC Talks with Iran on Nuclear Program
The US will join Germany and United Nations Security Council partners in face to face negotiations with Iran on its nuclear enrichment program. The Bush administration generally stayed away from the talks,…Obama in Iraq Again Pledges Troop Withdrawal
President Barack Obama made an unscheduled stop in Baghdad on Tuesday, meeting with US troops and also with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.Obama told US troops there,' this is going to be a…OSC: Candidate For Governor of Ninawa Says Political Tactics Can Resolve Violence
The USG Open Source Center translates an interview in a Qatari newspaper with the incoming Sunni Arab governor of the northern Ninevah (Ninawa, Mosul) Province, one of the more violent places in…
Obama: The US is not, and Never will be, at War with Islam
President Barack Obama conducted a state visit of the Turkish capital of Ankara on Monday, visiting the mausoleum of the Republic's founder, Mustafa Kemal Attaturk and addressing parliament. The Turkish officer corps,…6 Coordinated Bombings Rip through Shiite Baghdad; 34 Dead, over 100 Wounded
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that guerrillas set off six coordinated bombs in Shiite areas of Baghdad on Monday, killing 34 and wounding over 100, and raising fears that Iraq was slipping back…Obama the Visionary: End Nukes, admit Turkey to EU
Barack Obama continues to shake up the world with his new ideas, demonstrating himself again among the more creative and bold leaders the world has seen in the past half-century. In Prague…
Cole on C-Span 2 re: Engaging the Muslim World
My talk at the New America Foundation on the need for a new Western relationship with the Muslim world, in connection with my new book, "Engaging the Muslim World," was shown on…Turkey Relents on Rasmussen; NATO Sends only 3000 Troops to Afghanistan
Turkey relented on Saturday and agreed to allow Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Denmark, to become head of NATO if a Turkish assistant was appointed for him.Milliyet reports:'Erdogan said Turkey had…Silverman: "The Sons of Iraq and Iraqi Politics"
Adam L. Silverman writes in a guest editorial for IC:On 1 April 2009 Juan Cole briefly wrote about the events surrounding the arrest of the Fadl District Sons of Iraq (SOI) leader.…Turkey Blocks Rasmussen at NATO
The NATO summit is off to a shaky start. It was supposed to elect a new leader, and the Obama administration backed Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen for the role. Rasmussen…Top Ten Ways the US is Turning Afghanistan into Iraq
1. Exaggerating the threat. An Afghan army foot patrol was attacked by guerrillas in Helmand Province on Wednesday, according to AP. US and Afghan soldiers responded, engaging in a firefight. Then the…
Lieberman and Wiping Countries off the face of the Map
Avigdor Lieberman, the Moldovan night club bouncer, is now foreign minister of Israel. The world has had a lot of fun laughing at the pronouncements of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who stands…Sadr Movement Said to be Splintering
Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that the Sadr Movement led by Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr is facing the possibility of internal factionalism, among imprisoned members and among those under Iranian influence.Muqtada al-Sadr had created…