Juan Cole

IGC Fails to Agree on Election Formula Al-Sharq al-Awsat and al-Hayat reported completely differently on the 4-hour-long Interim Governing Council meeting on Sunday. Al-Sharq al-Awsat said that the 25 members had reached an agreement on the need to go to the Iraqi people in selecting a new government. But then it quoted some members as […]

Helen Thomas Blasts Rumsfeld for Closure of al-Arabiya Helen Thomas condemned the closure of al-Arabiya offices in Iraq: ‘The raid by the U.S.-appointed Iraqi officials on an Arab television network bureau in Baghdad and the ban on its broadcasts hardly fits my idea of how to spread democracy in the Middle East. Isn’t that the […]

Japan Roiled by Attack on Diplomats Despite the tough rhetoric about standing his ground by Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi, opposition parties and other observers are bringing sharply into question the deployment of Japanese Self-Defense Forces in Iraq in the wake of the ambush of two Japanese diplomats on Saturday. According to Asahi Shimbun Katsuya Okada, […]

Shadid on Shiite Politics in Iraq As usual, Anthony Shadid of the Washington Post (an Arabist) does some of the best in-depth reporting on Shiite religious politics in Iraq. He managed to get an interview with Grand Ayatollah Hussain Bashir al-Najafi, the first I know of in English. His nuanced and informed report raises serious […]

Baathists Poisoning Water in Mosul Al-Sharq al-Awsat claims today that pro-Saddam forces are attempting to spread panic and dissension in Mosul by dumping poison and petroleum products into the water supply of several Mosul neighborhoods. Health workers verified the pollution of the water in three neighborhoods and alerted the residents.

Massacre of Spanish Secret Agents Guerrillas ambushed two vehicles carrying Spanish intelligence operatives in Latifiya, a Sunni town just south of Baghdad on Saturday, killing 7 and wounding another. They used rocket propelled grenades and machine guns. Crowds of young men gathered to celebrate, kicking the bodies and chanting slogans in favor of Saddam Hussein. […]

Sistani Position on New Elections The office of Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani affirmed Saturday in Najaf that he had reservations about the Nov. 15 plan for caucus type elections. Replying to questions from a newspaper, he said (trans. J. Cole): “First of all, the preparation of the Iraqi State (Basic) Law for the transitional period […]

72 US troops killed in Hostilities in November 72 US soldiers were killed by hostile fire in Iraq during November, the highest of any month since the major fighting started last March. And for the Coalition troops as a whole, the number is 107! I was taken aback by the size of the number. I […]

Sunni walks out of Tourism Conference AFP reports that Adnan Doulami, the religious director for Sunni Muslims walked out on a tourism conference on Saturday. He was protesting the remarks of Hussein al-Shami, director of Shiite pious endowments. Al-Shami attacked Wahhabis for denigrating shrines and saints, insisting that the shrines of the Shiite Imams are […]