Juan Cole

Year Four of Iraq Civil War: 51 Killed AP reports that guerrilla violence in Iraq killed 51 on Friday. In addition to bombings and drive-by shootings, police discovered 25 bodies, killed execution-style, in Kadhimiyah and Binok districts. (Kadhimiyah is largely Shiite). AP adds, “The rising death toll among Iraqis on Friday included five worshippers killed […]

Police Strike in Fallujah Tal Afar Success Questioned Alzaman/Reuters report that the police in Fallujah went on strike. They are protesting excesses committed by the largely Shiite Iraqi army troops installed in Sunni Fallujah by the Americans. A military spokesman in Baghdad maintained that any excesses were isolated incidents. It seems that even after the […]

Guerrilla Violence Kills 58 Khalilzad Accuses Iranians A suicide bomber detonated his payload outside the major crime unit of the Ministry of the Interior on Thursday, killing 15 policemen and 10 civilians and wounding 35 others. Then guerrillas blew up a market outside a Shiite mosque, killing 6 and wounding 20, with women and children […]

Civil War? What Civil War? Cole in Salon Readers have repeatedly asked me for a criterion by which we might fairly objectively decide if Iraq is in a Civil War (contrary to Bush’s and Rumsfeld’s denials). I have attempted such an argument at Salon.com. Excerpt: ‘ That there should be a political controversy over whether […]

At Least 35 Killed Lebanon Shiite Leaders Criticize American Meeting Roadside bombs targetting police in Baghdad and Iskandariyah killed five and wounded a dozen on Wednesday. Guerrillas in Baghdad killed 15 Shiite pilgrims in separate attacks, and wounded scores others, as they returnted from the 40th day commemoration of the anniversary of the martyrdom of […]

Daring Jailbreak Suggests Guerrillas’ Power Sistani, Senators press Jaafari on new Government Up to 200 Iraqi guerrillas in the Sunni Arab city of Miqdadiyah north of Baghdad mounted a sophisticated military operation to 32 free prisoners in the local jail, some of them guerrillas. They succeeded. In the fierce firefight, guerrillas killed 18 policemen while […]

39 Killed Sunni Arabs demand War Reparations from US At least 39 Iraqis were killed in guerrilla violence on Monday, the third anniversary of the US invasion. Guerrillas killed 10 policemen in separate bomb attacks, as well as hitting a cafe, killing 3 and wounding 23. There was also an attack on officials of the […]

Top Ten Catastrophes of the Third Year of American Iraq The American war against Iraq began on March 20, 2003, so today is the third anniversary. The Himalyan mistakes of the American administration of the country in its first two years have by now been much analyzed — the punitive steps against even low-level Baath […]

Allawi: This is Civil War 35 Killed in Sectarian Violence Iyad Allawi, the former interim prime minister of Iraq, said Sunday that Iraq is in a civil war. ‘ “It is unfortunate that we are in civil war. We are losing each day as an average 50 to 60 people throughout the country, if not […]