Muqtada al-Sadr on Sunday rejected Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s terms for ending his campaign against Sadr’s Mahdi Army. Al-Maliki wants the militia to give up heavy weaponry and turn over wanted commanders. Salah al-Ubaydi, a Sadr spokesman, called the demands “illogical.” Some 50 Iraqi political leaders from various parties (including Sunnis) protested on Sunday against […]
Moyers and Wright at PBS, Parts 3-4
The other two parts of Bill Moyers’ interview with Reverend Wright are below. Journalism should be about explaining things and setting them in context, not about ‘gotcha’ moments. As the Web becomes better at video, we bloggers will set up our own networks, and people thirsty for the real back story will come to our […]
Karzai Attacked in Kabul
Afghan President Hamid Karzai escaped unharmed from a guerrilla assassination attempt on Sunday. US politicians who keep saying that Afghanistan is the good war would be well advised to consider whether the mission there is actually clear, whether it can be accomplished, and whether it is worth blood and treasure. Afghanistan is an enormous, rugged […]
More on Syrian Reactor Bombing; From an Informed Reader
An informed reader writes: What little information provided in the CIA videotape concerning the destruction of the purported Syrian reactor only provokes more questions. The alleged reactor is described, because of its dimensions and shape, as a duplicate of the North Korean reactor at Yongbyon. The reactor at Yongbyon is a rough copy of an […]
Reverend Wright on Bill Moyers
Reverend Wright on Bill Moyers: Part I: Part II: Parts III and IV to come.
A Million Palestinians Threatened with Starvation by Israel
The Israelis already have the Gaza Strip under military siege, carefully controlling what and who goes in and out of it. They have now cut off most fuel, and the United Nations has been forced to stop distributing food aid. This Israeli government action is an unvarnished war crime. It is known as collective punishment. […]
Mullen Rattles Sabres at Iran; Muqtada Reaffirms Truce
Another US soldier was killed on Thursday. Guerrillas blew up an oil pipeline from a refinery south of Baghdad on Friday. Iraqi oil production has declined somewhat lately, according to this report. Adm. Michael Mullen, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sharpened his rhetoric against Iran on Friday. Mullen appeared earlier to want to […]
Syria Reactor Story a Diversion; But From What?
The US and Israel accused Syria on Thursday of building a secret nuclear reactor with North Korean help. There was a lot of innuendo in the press that the reactor was intended for nuclear weapons production. But AFP notes: ‘ They said US intelligence had “high confidence” that the structure bombed by the Israelis was […]
5 US Troops Killed; Turkey Bombs N. Iraq; Iran Backs al-Maliki against Mahdi Army
Five US troops were killed in Iraq on Tuesday. Turkey bombed northern Iraq again on Wednesday, claiming to hit at guerrillas of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) “attempting to infiltrate Turkey from the Khakurk region of northern Iraq.” Iran’s foreign minister, Manuchehr Mottaki, strongly backed Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s attack on the Mahdi Army militia […]
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