Juan Cole

Khalilzad and Iran: Guest Comments An informed observer writes: ‘ Ambassador Khalilzad made statements in Baghdad regarding Iran, perhaps for US and Western consumption and seemingly timed in relation to events in Lebanon, based upon this reported context: “Privately, some senior U.S. officials are skeptical the Iranian government is doing more than providing money to […]

Lebanon Accepts UN Ceasefire Hizbullah Kills 24 Israeli Soldiers Despite significant reservations, the Lebanese government on Sunday morning accepted the UN security council resolution. Hizbullah leader Shaikh Hasan Nasrallah also indicated that his party would obey it if the Lebanese government accepted it. I saw Michael Hudson on CNN saying that he thought the fighting […]

Fuel Crisis in Baghdad Dozens of Bodies Found The Sunni Arab guerrillas have long sought to cut Baghdad off from fuel. Al-Sharq al-Awsat/ AFP say that the strategy may be working. The current fuel crisis in Baghdad is virtually unprecedented. This report suggests that if it goes on, it could bring down Maliki’s government. Iraq’s […]

Personal Message on Marjayoun Dr. Khalil Mouchantaf writes from the US Northeast: ‘Dear Mr. Cole, Today I received very sad and shocking news. Three of the civilians who died out of the seven in the convoy escaping Southern Lebanon were from my mother’s town of Marjeoun, a town that has been in the news recently. […]

Qaeda Operative in London Bomb Plot Escapes ‘ Senator Mark Pryor of Arkansas said the administration’s “poor management” in Iraq “has created a rallying cry for international terrorists” and “diverted our focus, our military and more than $US300 billion . . . from the war on terrorism.” Pryor said US ports, borders and chemical plants […]

Israeli Response to UN Ceasefire Call: Invades with 30,000 more Troops, Races for Litani The United Nations Security Council finally called for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon late Friday. A “cessation of hostilities” means that Hizbullah has to stop its attacks, but Israel doesn’t have to stop its attacks or withdraw from […]

Iraq: Kurdish-Shiite Struggle for Kirkuk Provokes Violence in Shiite South Even though most sermons on Friday in Iraq, both Shiite and Sunni, denounced faith-based violence, tensions over religion continued to run high. In the wake of a massive bomb in the holy city of Najaf on Thursday, young Shiite nationalist cleric Muqtada al-Sadr demanded that […]

Shapiro Guest Editorial: ‘ What will Israel Do? What Will Israel Do? by Adam Shapiro ‘ Each day and night of the week I have been here, I have heard and felt the impact of Israel’s advanced weaponry as it crashes into buildings, roads, bridges and other infrastructure of Beirut. But it is not only […]

The Pakistan Connection Pakistani police on Thursday arrested a number of UK Muslims within Pakistan who were also suspected of involvement in the “Liquid Bomb Threat.” British authorities say that they have been investigating the group behind the airplane bombing plot for “about a year.” The Scotsman says that the investigation began in 2005. US […]