Juan Cole

Cole on Fresh Air I’ve long been a fan of Terry Gross’s NPR show, “Fresh Air.” So am happy to report that I am interviewed in Tuesday’s edition. Just a head’s up for those who asked for one.

US Turns to Negotiations with Insurgents As Riccardi points out, the Bush Administration has abruptly ceased its cowboy rhetoric and says it is willing to consider negotiated settlements to its problems in Sunni Arab Fallujah and in the Shiite south with the militia of cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. This approach has surely been forced on the […]

Pentagon Announces Death of 17 US Troops in Iraq; 5 Killed Sunday Nicholas Riccardi of the LA Times (reg. req.) reports that Iraqi guerrillas killed 5 US troops on Sunday, including three in a firefight west of Baghdad and two in a helicopter that they managed to shoot down. The US military also reported 12 […]

Muqtada Aid Denies Seeking Asylum in Iran; Demands release of Hostages The LA Times reported that on Sunday, a spokesman for Muqtada al-Sadr said, “There is no chance that the armies of occupation will reenter Najaf.” Shaykh Abdul Hadi al-Darraji, an al-Sadr aide, did a live telephone interview with Jamal Rayyan of al-Jazeerah on Sunday, […]

Did Badran Resign because Alawi is Out as PM? Or in? al-Hayat: Sources close to the Interim Governing Council say that the resignation of Interior Minister Nuri al-Badran came after a number of hints he was going to resign, because of his conflicts with the Coalition Provisional Authority. He maintains that the CPA refused to […]

Virulent Racism, Disregard for Civilian Life Mar US Military Approach: British Commander Sean Rayment of the Telegraph reports a story today that should be on the front pages of every American newspaper. He reports extremely deep dissatisifaction in the British officer corps with American military counter-insurgency tactics. The critique begins with attitudes. The officer quoted […]

Revolution in Baqubah 5 US soldiers Killed in Baghdad and al-Anbar According to Reuters and other wire services: Baqubah A violent revolt broke out in the eastern city of Baqubah, in which guerrillas mounted assaults on government buildings and police stations. Fighting spread throughout the city, only slowing down Saturday afternoon. Baqubah looked like a […]

Muqtada’s Fate Reuters is reporting that several members of the Interim Governing Council met Saturday with Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf, seeking a compromise that might end the violence in the south. Naseer Chaderji, a liberal Sunni nationalist, said, “Moqtada has regard in Iraq, mainly through his father. But he cannot be allowed to achieve his […]

What Went Wrong in Washington and the Green Zone Jeffrey Gettleman of the New York Times has two important articles today. Since he was almost killed getting them, I hope someone is paying attention. One forthrightly acknowledges the instigating role of the Israeli assassination of Sheikh Ahmad Yassin on the blow-up in Iraq. The other […]