Clipmarks | arifsali's 'iraq' clips

Pakistan tops Iraq, Afghanistan in suicide bombing deaths

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 05:31:55 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

LAHORE: Pakistan has finally topped the list of countries suffering from the menace of deadly suicide bombings which have caused the highest number of human losses during the first eight months of 2008, leaving Afghanistan and Iraq behind.

Figures compiled by the country's elite intelligence agency show that Pakistan suffered 28 suicide attacks during the first eight months of 2008, killing over 471 people and wounding 713 others, including innocent civilians as well as the armed forces personnel.

The Pakistani security forces, especially the armed forces personnel, seem to be the main target of the human bombs ever since the Pakistan Army carried out the bloody Lal Masjid operation which allegedly killed hundreds, including innocent civilians.

Tags: pakistan, terrorism

'Coalition of the willing' shrinks as Japan calls off air mission in Iraq

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 04:55:12 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.dailystar.com.lb

Washington paints Tokyo's pullout as sign of 'progress'

TOKYO: Japan said Thursday it was ending an air mission in Iraq, wrapping up a military deployment which was historic for the pacifist nation but deeply unpopular among the public.

Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said Tokyo planned by the end of the year to bring back planes that flew goods and personnel into Iraq in support of the United Nations and US-led coalition.

The mission is Japan's last remaining military operation in Iraq after the country, which has been officially pacifist since defeat in World War II, ended a landmark ground deployment in 2006.

Tags: iraq, united states, japan, war

Al-Qaeda in US invaded Iraq: Women cannot buy cucumbers!

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 22:19:06 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: You know what you can potentially do with cucumbers, don't you?

Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Al-Qa'eda is losing support in Iraq because of a brutal crackdown on activities it regards as un-Islamic - including women buying cucumbers.

Besides the terrible killings inflicted by the fanatics on those who refuse to pledge allegiance to them, Al-Qa'eda has lost credibility for enforcing a series of rules imposing their way of thought on the most mundane aspects of everyday life.

They include a ban on women buying suggestively-shaped vegetables, according to one tribal leader in the western province of Anbar.

Sheikh Hameed al-Hayyes, a Sunni elder, told Reuters: "They even killed female goats because their private parts were not covered and their tails were pointed upward, which they said was haram.

"They regarded the cucumber as male and tomato as female. Women were not allowed to buy cucumbers, only men."

Tags: al qaeda, humor, iraq, united states

How Tenet Betrayed the CIA on WMD in Iraq

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 06:15:59 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: Habbush explained to the British official that Saddam tried to maintain the impression that he did have such weapons in order to impress Iran.

Suskind writes that the head of MI6, Richard Dearlove, flew to Washington to present details of the Habbush report to Tenet, who then briefed National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. Soon after that, the CIA informed the British that the Bush administration was not interested in keeping the Habbush channel open, according to Suskind’s account.

Clip Source: www.ipsnews.net

Journalist Ron Suskind’s revelation that Saddam Hussein’s intelligence chief was a prewar intelligence source reporting to the British that Saddam had no weapons of mass destruction (WMD) adds yet another dimension to the systematic effort by then Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director George Tenet to quash any evidence -- no matter how credible -- that conflicted with the George W. Bush administration’s propaganda line that Saddam was actively pursuing a nuclear weapons programme.

According to Suskind’s new book, ‘The Way of the World’, Iraqi Director of Intelligence Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti had been passing on sensitive intelligence to the UK’s MI6 intelligence service for more than a year before the U.S invasion. In early 2003, Suskind writes, Habbush told MI6 official Michael Shipster in Jordan that Saddam had ended his nuclear programme in 1991 and his biological weapons programme in 1996.

Tags: iraq, bush administration

Love blooms in Baghdad

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:51:08 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.usatoday.com

BAGHDAD — A riverside park closely guarded by a U.S. security company has become the hottest make-out spot in town for young Iraqi lovers who would otherwise be harassed — or worse — by Islamic extremists.

Many of the couples sneak away from university lectures and sit arm-in-arm, whispering and kissing under the shade of eucalyptus trees each morning. On many days, there's not a single empty bench.

Four checkpoints manned by guards from the Sandi Group security company control access to Abu Nawas Park. Every car is searched. Anyone with a gun, including Iraqi police, is kept out.

For some of Iraq's conservatives, the park is a symbol of the poisonous effect the U.S. occupation is having on Iraq. For young Iraqis, it's a unique refuge in a society that has become more restrictive in recent years.

"This is the safest single place in Baghdad," said Enas Saleh, 26, a schoolteacher who lied to her family and ditched her computer training class to sneak off to the park with her boyfriend.

Tags: iraq, love

Jolie-Pitt Foundation donates $1M to Iraqi kids

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:41:07 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.usatoday.com

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's love for children is by no means limited to their own: The couple has donated $1 million to help kids affected by the war in Iraq, the Education Partnership for Children of Conflict announced Wednesday.

The organization will distribute the donation, made through the couple's Jolie-Pitt Foundation, to four organizations working on behalf of children who have lost parents, homes and schools in Iraq. Children in the U.S. who have lost parents in the conflict will also benefit.

"These educational support programs for children of conflict are the best way to help them heal," said Jolie in a written statement from Education Partnership for Children of Conflict, which she co-chairs.

"We hope to encourage others to give to these great organizations," Pitt added in the statement.

Tags: iraq, children

The Booze Is Back in Baghdad

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:02:40 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.newsweek.com

Slowly, in certain urban pockets, a more liberal, secular culture is returning to Iraq's streets.

Elias Khalaf's cracked grin may have saved his life. The portly, balding liquor-store owner was kidnapped five months ago by fundamentalists who held him prisoner in a brick factory for five days until he convinced them he couldn't raise the ransom they demanded. "If I had any money," he asked his jailers, "don't you think I'd fix my teeth?" As soon as he was released, he shut down his shop in Baghdad—the last of nine liquor stores he'd once owned throughout Iraq, from Mosul in the north to the southern Shiite religious heartland.

Khalaf is now thinking of starting up again. He stands and watches the steady stream of customers into and out of Jaguar, a liquor shop owned by a friend of his near the Green Zone. The floor-to-ceiling shelves are kept stocked with Johnnie Walker, Chivas Regal and a mysterious clear liquid in bottles plastered with the Hertz logo.

Tags: iraq, alcohol

BBC uncovers lost Iraq billions

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 17:31:59 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (£11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.

For the first time, the extent to which some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding has been researched by the BBC's Panorama using US and Iraqi government sources.

A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.

The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.

While George Bush remains in the White House, it is unlikely the gagging orders will be lifted.

To date, no major US contractor faces trial for fraud or mismanagement in Iraq.

Tags: iraq, united states, bbc

“shell shock”

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 22:48:14 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: cosmicvariance.com

Over Memorial Day weekend this year there was a flurry of media coverage about the devastating psychological toll of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

The single most awful paragraph in the round-up:

“According to the Army, more than 2,000 active-duty soldiers attempted suicide or suffered serious self-inflicted injuries in 2007, compared to fewer than 500 such cases in 2002, the year before the United States invaded Iraq.

It is, thankfully, becoming much more broadly understood within the military and beyond that “shell shock” is not malingering, or evidence of an essential weakness of moral fiber. PTSD is now understood as a disease, and as one that involves physical changes in the brain.

Tags: united states, military, suicide, brani, disease

Where Are Those Iranian Weapons in Iraq?

Thu, 22 May 2008 20:39:12 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.ipsnews.net

The U.S. military command in Iraq continues to talk about an alleged pipeline of Iranian weapons to Iraqi Shiites opposing the U.S. occupation, implying that they have become dependent on Iran for indirect-fire weapons and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs).

But U.S. officials have failed thus far to provide evidence that would support that claim, and a long-delayed U.S. military report on Iranian arms is unlikely to offer any data on what proportion of the weapons in the hands of Shiite fighters are from Iran and what proportion comes from purchases on the open market.

When Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner was asked that question at a briefing May 8, he did not answer it directly. Instead Bergner reverted to a standard U.S. military line that these groups "could not do what they're doing without the support of foreign support [sic]." Then he defined "foreign support" to include training and funding as well as weapons, implicitly conceding that he did not have much of a case based on weapons alone.

Tags: iraq, iran, united states, politics, weapons, war

Destruction of Iraq's past

Wed, 21 May 2008 03:10:11 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.presstv.ir

Director of the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute Museum says the US presence in Iraq is destroying the country's keys to its past.

"The destruction of Iraq's past has the potential of being one of the longest-lasting legacies of the US presence in Iraq," Geoff Emberling said.

An exhibit on the pillaging of Iraq's heritage titled "Catastrophe!" is currently running at the Chicago museum, along with seminars from Iraqi experts and delivered to US troops deploying in the region, The Christian Science Monitor reported.

Qais Hussein Rashid, director of research and antiquities excavations for Iraq's Board of Antiquities and Heritage, also says that "the looting of ancient sites is an old problem, of course, but this phenomenon has accelerated since the invasion of Iraq and the general insecurity that has left so many sites with no protection."

"We feel we are losing many of the keys to our past and the many pieces that together make up our heritage," the Iraqi official added.

Tags: iraq, united states

The Untold Story of Corruption in Iraq

Sat, 17 May 2008 01:13:07 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.chicagopublicradio.org

The Bush Administration says its makes strong efforts to fight corruption in Iraq — but according to my next guest — they’re making a strong effort to cover up corruption in Iraq.

Arthur Brennan is a retired Superior Court Judge from New Hampshire. He has experience helping Cambodia establish its court system. Judge Brennan is also a veteran of the 82nd Airborne Division and served in the Reserves for 20 years.

Justice Brennan testified at a Senate hearing this week and said the work of these organizations was ignored and demeaned by the State Department, the Justice Department and the Iraqi government.

Justice Brennan only spent a few weeks in Iraq before his wife was diagnosed with cancer and he had to resign — but what he saw amazed him.

In his Senate testimony, Judge Brennan testified that the State Department had “negligently, recklessly and sometimes intentionally misled Congress, the American people and the people of Iraq.”

Tags: iraq, corruption, united states

Soldier Refuses Tour, Citing "Stomach-Churning Horrors"

Fri, 16 May 2008 23:47:54 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.ipsnews.net

A U.S. Army soldier who served as a military journalist in Afghanistan, Japan, Europe and the Philippines announced Thursday his intent to refuse orders to deploy to Iraq.

"As an Army journalist whose job it was to collect and filter service members' stories, I heard many stomach-churning testimonies of the horrors of the crimes taking place in Iraq," said Sergeant Matthis Chiroux, 24, in an announcement under the rotunda of the House of Representative's Cannon Office Building.

"For fear of retaliation from the military, I failed to report these crimes, but never again will I allow fear to silence me. Never again will I fail to stand," he said.

Chirioux said he's aware he will likely face prosecution for refusing the deployment, but said, "I choose to remain in the United States to defend myself from charges brought by the Army if they are willing to pursue them. I refuse to participate in the occupation of Iraq."

Tags: iraq, soldiers

US confession: Weapons were not made in Iran after all

Wed, 14 May 2008 20:56:07 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.campaigniran.org

In a sharp reversal of its longstanding accusations against Iran arming militants in Iraq , the US military has made an unprecedented albeit quiet confession: the weapons they had recently found in Iraq were not made in Iran at all.

According to a report by the LA Times correspondent Tina Susman in Baghdad: “A plan to show some alleged Iranian-supplied explosives to journalists last week in Karbala and then destroy them was canceled after the United States realized none of them was from Iran. A U.S. military spokesman attributed the confusion to a misunderstanding that emerged after an Iraqi Army general in Karbala erroneously reported the items were of Iranian origin. When U.S. explosives experts went to investigate, they discovered they were not Iranian after all.”

Tags: iran, united states, politics

Is life for Iraqis improving?

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 23:25:04 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: From Christian Science Monitor

Clip Source: www.csmonitor.com

"The Americans did what we could not do: they removed Saddam," says Muwaffaq. "We are indebted to them for that. But we are now close to forgetting this good deed because of the suffering of the past five years."

The experiences of Muwaffaq's family mirror the hardship and determination of many Iraqis since the US invasion of Iraq on March 20, 2003. Muwaffaq, like many of his countrymen, today finds fresh hope in the significant drop in violence and sectarian killings over the past few months.

When asked how they expect things to be one year from now, 45 percent of Iraqis said things would be somewhat better or much better, according to the results of a poll commissioned by the BBC and ABC News and released Monday. That's up from 29 percent six months ago, but lower than in 2005. The poll shows that Shiites and Kurds are more optimistic than Sunnis.

But many Iraqis and outside analysts regard the current situation as little more than a fragile cease-fire

Tags: iraq