Archives for 2009

Even though the Zardari government has arrested hundreds of activists, planning for the march on Islamabad this weekend continued unabated. In what sounds like an ominous threat, Nawaz Sharif said Thursday that his rival, President Asaf Ali Zardar,would not serve out his 5-year term. He did not elaborate on the meaning of this cryptic pronouncement. […]

Iraqi shoe-thrower Muntadhar al-Zaidi was sentenced to 3 years in prison on Thursday, under a statute forbidding assaults on visiting heads of state. The maximum sentence is 15 years, but the judge said he took into account al-Zaidi’s youth and that it was his first offense. Al-Zaydi’s lawyers maintained that the law only forbade assault, […]

The USG Open Source Center translates from Urdu an article on planned al-Qaeda attacks on on US facilities in Pakistan under cover of turmoil provoked by the long march.. Pakistan: Al- Qa’ida Said Plans To Target Long March, US Properties in CountryReport by ANN: “Long March: Al-Qa’ida Has Formed 10 Squads To Attack US Properties: […]

Well, I already used “crisis deepens in Pakistan,” so what should I say about the news that the Pakistan People’s Party government has had hundreds of attorneys and Muslim League (N) party activists arrested , invoking Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code throughout Punjab Province and in its capital, Lahore. This provision, which dates […]

Scott Horton at Harper’s Magazine asked me six questions about my new book, Engaging the Muslim World, which will be in bookstores March 17 (or in some cases earlier), and which is intended as advice for the Obama administration and the general public. Here is an excerpt from one of the exchanges: ‘ [Q] 6. […]

My interpretation of Chas Freeman’s withdrawal from appointment as the chairman of the National Intelligence Council is that it was provoked primarily by Chuck Schumer and Rahm Emanuel. Schumer’s call to White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel was probably the decisive event, though we don’t know what Emanuel’s reaction was. That is, the original […]

The NYT reports that a suicide bomber killed 33 persons and wounded over 60 at Abu Ghraib, striking at a meeting of tribal sheikhs accompanied by military officers. Seven of the dead were officers, including the commanding officer of the newly opened Abu Ghraib prison, according to al-Hayat writing in Arabic. Also killed was a […]

Al-Iraqiyah, Al-Sharqiyah Roundup: Thirty Killed in Baghdad Suicide BombingIraq — OSC SummarySunday, March 8, 2009 Document Type: OSC Summary . . . Baghdad Al-Iraqiyah Television in Arabic, government-sponsored television station, run by the Iraqi Media Network, carried the following reports between 1500 GMT and 1700 GMT . . . — “Iraqi Government Spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh […]

Below is a note former MEPC president, Chas Freeman, sent to friends and supporters. Begin Text: To all who supported me or gave me words of encouragement during the controversy of the past two weeks, you have my gratitude and respect. You will by now have seen the statement by Director of National Intelligence Dennis […]