The USG Open Source Center reports on the way that the United Iraqi Alliance, the largest Shiite bloc, led by Abdul Aziz al-Hakim of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, has attempted to distance itself from the Biden-Gelb plan for a soft partition of Iraq. (This attempt at distancing come despite the similarity of the […]
Iraq turns to China for Arms Shiite Bloc Denounces US arming of Sunnis
WaPo says that the Iraqi government has made a $100 mn. deal with China for the purchase of light weaponry, especially AK-47 assault rifles. Some observers are afraid that these arms will actually end up in the hands of sectarian militiamen or anti-government guerrillas, through graft or theft or because much of the Iraqi police […]
Ahmadinejad Calls for Saudi Cooperation
The USG Open Source Center has done a report on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s calls for Iran and Saudi Arabia to cooperate in filling the regional power vacuum. The Saudis do not seem eager for such cooperation and in fact have incisively criticized Iran’s new role in the region. Iran: Ahmadinezhad Calls for Saudi Support […]
Tutu Excluded Double Standard at the University of St. Thomas
Bishop Desmond Tutu has stood all his life for nonviolent peace-making and an end to racism. Obviously, he would be upset about the Israeli mistreatment of the Palestinians, and has said so. For that stance he was uninvited from speaking at the Catholic University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. (See also Richard Silverstein on this […]
Polish Ambassador Wounded; Maliki: Blackwater Must Go; PM Praises Saudi Fatwa
Guerrillas injured the Polish ambassador to Iraq on Wednesday with roadside bombs.Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki again insisted on Wednesday that the Blackwater security firm should leave Iraq. He accused its employees of having been trigger-happy on several occasions. Al-Maliki began making this demand soon after the September 16 shootings at Nisur Square, which left […]
The Arab Dilemma in Hollywood
Ashraf Khalil at the LAT discusses the dilemma for actors of Arab extraction in Hollywood that they have to play terrorists or they just don’t find work. Some Arab American actors only get ahead by “passing” (claiming, like the Coneheads on Saturday Night Live, to be “French.”) There is a word for what these actors […]
Iran’s Armed Forces
The USG Open Source Center translates an Iranian newspaper article on the combat capabilities of Iranian military forces. ‘Article Examines Combat Capabilities of Iranian Military ForcesArticle by Ali Ghafuri: “A Glance at the Combat Capabilities of the Iranian Army,” page 15Iran (Internet Version-WWW)Wednesday, October 3, 2007 Document Type: OSC Translated Text A Powerful Army, Messenger […]
Kahl: 30,000 – 70,000 US Troops Likely to be in Iraq for Many Years
Colin Kahl of Georgetown University writes: ‘There will be 100-130K troops in Iraq when Bush leaves. The number will depend largely on who wins the factional infighting between the White House and MNF-I (Petraeus) on the one hand, and CENTCOM, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Secretary Gates on the other hand. The former want […]
Brown: 1,000 British troops to be Withdrawn
British PM Gordon Brown, in Baghdad and Basra for consultations with PM Nuri al-Maliki, with British commanders, and with his US allies, announced that he would withdraw another 1,000 British troops from Basra by Christmas. A majority of the British public wants all the troops out now, but the US is putting enormous pressure on […]
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