Juan Cole

Bremer and CPA “Extremely Offended” at Call for UN Role A member of the Interim Governing Council, Mahmoud Osman, told al-Hayat newspaper that the Coalition Provisional Authority was extremely offended by the IGC’s call for the United Nations to play a role in the transition to Iraqi sovereignty. He said that Washington id not want […]

Ethnic Violence in Kurdistan Boils Over; 3 Dead on Thursday, 5 Dead on Wednesday On Thursday, Kirkuk Police Chief Turhan Yusuf said, “Unknown attackers stabbed two Kurds to death and threw their bodies near a bridge in the centre of the city.” This act was presumably in revenge for the shooting of 3 Arabs by […]

Ashcroft Appoints Special Prosecutor in Plame Identity-Disclosure Scandal Attorney-General John Ashcroft recused himself Wednesday in the investigation of the Valerie Plame case, saying he will appoint a special prosecutor. High Bush administration officials broke US law in July of 2003 by revealing to reporter Bob Novak that Valerie Plame, wife of Ambassador Joe Wilson, was […]

Basra: Massive Drug, Petroleum smuggling; Christians, Musicians Harassed Because the southern Iraqi city of Basra (1.3 million) is under British military occupation rather than American, it is little covered in the US press (does anybody else think this is odd?) There have been several British and Arab reports about the situation there recently. They indicate […]

More Iranians in Karbala than Iraqis? One finds these little gems in things like theCoalition Provisional Authority Briefing on Dec. 30, already on the Web. (Participating was Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, Deputy Director for Operations and Daniel Senor, Senior Coalition Provisional Authority Adviser.) The below passage is rich in what it says about how porous […]

Firefight with Ansar al-Islam in Mosul kills 3 US troops in Mosul fought with the Ansar al-Islam terrorist group in Mosul on Sunday, killing 3 and capturing several other members, according to US military spokesmen. Ansar al-Islam had operated in the American-policed no-fly zone of northern Iraq, and is alleged to have ties to al-Qaeda. […]

Corruption Concerns Delay Pentagon Reconstruction Projects in Iraq The Boston Globe reports that the Pentagon has canceled the process of giving out bids to reconstruct Iraq until February 1, out of concern for pervasive corruption. It is being alleged that a small group of mercantile clans is manipulating the bidding process through dummy companies, hiding […]

Barzani: Kurdish Rights must be in Iraq Basic Law; Kubba: Washington rejects Loose Federalism The two most prominent Kurdish leaders are making a full court press for an Iraqi Kurdistan to be enshrined in law before the American civil administration decamps on July 1. Jalal Talabani, head of the Kurdistan Patriotic Union claimed during a […]

al-Rubaie: No Sunni-Shiite Conflict; need for National Reconciliation In Nasiriyah, Interim Governing Council member Muwaffaq al-Rubaie affirmed that there are no disputes between Shiites and Sunnis. He said that these two branches of Islam had suffered intellectual and political persecution during the former regime, and they are both now standing in a single row, serving […]