Juan Cole

Vigilanteism in Basra Scheherezade Faramarzi of AP reports on the Shiite militias of Basra and the way they are imposing both law and order, and a puritan style of life on the population (though sometimes they do some kidnapping or coercion of their own). The militias pose a long-term problem for Iraqi security, since they […]

What a Document Looks like Jonathan Schanzer, writing in the Weekly Standard, notes that I had asked Bill Safire for even a single “document” that shows that Saddam Hussein’s government cooperated with al-Qaeda before September 11. He suggests that we might substitute for such a document his interview with Abdul Rahman al-Shamari, who he says […]

6 US Soldiers wounded in 24 hours Wire services quoted by al-Jazeerah report that guerrillas wounded three US soldiers with rocket-propelled grenade fire Thursday night near Tikrit. On Friday morning, guerrillas in Tikrit lightly wounded another two US troops in a bom blast. A third soldier was seriously wounded in an attack on his convoy […]

Islamists on IGC Defeated on Islamic Law Provision Raghida Dergham reports in al-Hayat that the representatives on the Interim Governing Council of the Islamist tendency suffered a political defeat on Friday when the IGC abrogated Directive 137, which it had issued in late December, and which put personal status law in the jurisdiction of religious […]

Abdul Hamid Confronted over his Allegation that the Shiites are a Minority The Kuwaiti newspaper al-Qabas reports that it had a further confrontation with Muhsin Abdul Hamid, leader of the Iraqi Islamic Party and February’s president of the Interim Governing council. Al-Qabas and other news sources reported recently that Abdul Hamid maintained that Shiites constituted […]

Explosions in Baquba, Baghdad AP reports that ‘ In Baqouba . . . an explosion occurred Thursday in the city center and witnesses said three police cars were on fire. ‘. It continues, ‘ The U.S. command said [a] fuel truck, assigned to the 1st Armored Division, was hit by a roadside bomb in the […]

Army of the Helpers of the Sunnah a Major Insurgent Group Al-Hayat newspaper in London says it has gotten hold of many memos and videotapes concerning Jaysh Ansar al-Sunnah and pointing to its relationship with the Kurdish radical Islamist group, Ansar al-Islam. The memos say that the Army of the Helpers of the Sunnah (AHS) […]

Cole Interviews with Chicago Public Radio’s Worldview Those of you with RealAudio can listen to two interviews I did with Chicago Public Radio’s Worldview program, hosted by Jerome McDonnell. The interviews are listed under February 26. One treats the Americana in Arabic Translation Library. The other is on the issue of transitional government in Iraq. […]

We may as Well Just Record all our Telephone Calls and send them to Maryland Philip Knightley and Kim Sengupta describe how the US National Security Agency and the British Government Communications Headquarters eavesdrop on the whole world. The NSA is forbidden from listening in on Americans without a warrant, but the US government circumvents […]