News & Views 06/22/07

Photo: Iraqi Shiites carry poters of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani as they protest in the holy city of Najaf, against the bombing of the Shrine of Imam Al-Askari located in the northern city of Samarra. (AFP/Qassem Zein)

REPORTS – LIFE IN IRAQ

Number Of Iraqis Slaughtered In America's War On Iraq - At Least 655,000 + +

Some Updates From Earlier This Week

In the northern city of Mosul, eight Christian students and their professor were kidnapped by armed men who surrounded the minibus they were riding in. In Baghdad, the toll from Tuesday's bombing at a busy square rose to 87 as more bodies were recovered and some of the wounded died. South of Baghdad, in Shiite-dominated areas, violence appeared to be on the rise. In Hilla, three Sunni Arab mosques were bombed.

Iraq's orphans left to the kindness of strangers

In much of the capital the only thing that keeps this growing number of orphans off the streets is the kindness of strangers. In Sadr City, a vast Shiite slum in northeast Baghdad controlled by the political movement of radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, Husham Hassan, 37, cares for around 30 orphans in a home funded by private donations. Prior to opening the "Safety House," Hassan worked for another private organisation established in 2003 to care for Baghdad's orphans. But four months ago the organization was forced to close for financial reasons. Fearing for the orphans he helped care for, Hassan opened his own facility with funds collected from friends and neighbours. The house is cramped but clean, the bunkbeds are freshly made, and the children, aged five to 16, are active and healthy. Volunteers teach reading and math, play with the children, sew clothes, and prepare meals.

Chilling stories from the Mahdi Army

In 2005, Abu Rusil was a penniless Shiite Muslim taxi driver who could barely afford to rent a room. Then Sunni gunmen stopped his older brother at a checkpoint, checked his ID and discovered he was a Shiite. They dragged him from his car and shot him dead on the spot. Now Abu Rusil lives for revenge. He brags about the people he's killed; there are so many, he boasted in an interview with McClatchy Newspapers, that he's lost count. His tales are horrific - people buried alive, others burned in their homes, still more who died when holes were drilled in their heads and shoulders. "Life is about getting even," he said coldly, dressed in the all-black uniform of the Mahdi Army militia. "There is no innocent Sunni." There's no way to confirm Abu Rusil's accounts, but there's every reason to believe them and the challenge they pose to American efforts to pacify the city. He talks of fomenting a revolution to drive the Sunnis from Iraq, of his training trips to Iran and of his need to avenge his brother's death. In Adhamiyah, the Sunni neighborhood where his brother died, residents confirmed that he leaves signed notes on dead Sunnis. "Best regards," they read. "Half of Adhamiyah is gone because I killed them," Abu Rusil said.

Transparency???

At small gatherings and inside old cafes the betting runs high ... will the Parliament buckle under the pressure?? How unseemly for the government of a sovereign state - and its Parliament to be pressured into making ...of all things ... amendments to its own constitution ... by a foreign force! It may have been understandable had the pressure been put on to urge the government to pick up its pace in providing adequate security in the country enabling the US to withdraw its forces gradually . That is something I can understand, and in fact would cheer on, and the US would have been within its rights. But constitutional amendments? Oil and Gas Law?? Debathification???

What is it to the US what identity the Iraqis wish to give their country? Whether "Arab State" - straight out, or "An entity active in its Arab and Muslim environment"?? Meaning no defined identity? Why is it so important to the US Admin? And what of debathification?? After laying off thousands of absolutely competent employees, whether technical or administrative, for no other reason that they were obliged to write their names on Bathi lists simply to be able to obtain employment; the whole administrative structure of the government collapsed. So now what?? We haven't got any competent administrators or technicians to run the new show. Do we rehire the old ones?? What the hell! Why was it so important to Mr. Bremer to oust all competent professionals from our Gov. structure? Wouldn't it have been more prudent to keep everyone in place then pick out the rotten apples at our leisure ... with no collapse at all? Now to amend.

As for the Oil and Gas Law....... my heart aches for the thousands of lives that were intentionally put in jeoppardy for the black gold. What a curse! And now the pressure is on. The Iraqi Gov has succumbed. Will the Iraqi Parliament succumb also?? The scene is so clear for all those with the wish to see clearly. How transparent can you get??


Hundreds flee homes as Turkish forces battle Kurdish fighters

Hundreds of Iraqi Kurds have been forced to flee their homes after up to 30,000 Turkish soldiers massed on the Iraqi-Turkish border and launched attacks against Kurdish fighters, Iraqi border police say. Local aid agencies said Kurdish fighters had prevented them from entering the villages, which were being targeted. "The bombardments have forced hundreds to abandon their homes and leave for safer areas. Some houses were looted by Kurdish fighters, according to witnesses in the area," said Rastgo Muhammad Barsaz, spokesman for the non-governmental organisation Kurdistan Campaign to Help Victims of War. "Dashati Takhe village, on the border near Zakho, is one of the most affected areas. We have been informed of civilian causalities but we don't know how many, as we are being denied access to the area. But by telephone, civilians have told us they are short of food and water," Barsaz said. In response to recent attacks, including a bombing in Ankara in May that killed eight people, Turkey expanded its force along the border, deploying additional artillery and dozens of tanks. Iraqi border police say Turkey has 20,000-30,000 soldiers along its border with Iraq, and has set up a special security zone that restricts movement in the area.

REPORTS – IRAQI MILITIAS, POLITICIANS, POWER BROKERS

Vice President Has Tried to Quit; Shi’ite Leaders in Disarray

Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi, a senior Shiite politician often mentioned as a potential prime minister, tendered his resignation last week in a move that reflects deepening frustration inside the Iraqi government with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Other senior Iraqi officials have considered resigning in recent weeks over the failures of their government to make progress after more than a year in power, according to Iraqi and U.S. officials. Abdul Mahdi said he was provoked by the second bombing of the Shiite shrine in Samarra on June 13, in which he said corrupt police abetted Sunni insurgents. "The two minarets were as important to us as September 11, and we should be accountable to the people," Abdul Mahdi said in a telephone interview Wednesday. "We should be doing more to move in a positive direction -- on corruption, accountability and defending the important sites." Abdul Mahdi's attempted resignation, which has been held at bay by promises of action, is also a sign of growing disarray among the Shiites who lead the government.

As the U.S. military attempts to show the success this summer of a security plan to pacify the capital and other parts of the country, Iraq's prime minister has also entered what many officials say is a crucial test period for his government. A growing number of Iraqi leaders, including several fellow Shiites, are expressing discontent with Maliki's ability to stanch the bloodshed, contain civil war, make progress on economic fronts and share power with the minority Sunnis. Maliki's political benefactor, radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, has again withdrawn his followers in parliament in the wake of the Samarra bombing. The leader of Sadr's legislative bloc, Nasar al-Rubaie, said that "the Maliki government will surely collapse if the situation continues as it is right now." Humam Hamoudi, a senior leader of another powerful Shiite faction, the Supreme Islamic Council in Iraq, said that "these two months will give a strong indication on the issue of his continuation, or whether we go into the crisis of looking for another prime minister." "Everybody wants him to succeed," Hamoudi added. "Rather, I should say, many, not everybody."

Shi’ite Rivalries Slash at a Once Calm Iraqi City

The Shiite heartland of southern Iraq has generally been an oasis of calm in contrast to Baghdad and the central part of the country, but now violence is convulsing this city [Diwaniya]. Shiites are killing and kidnapping other Shiites, the police force is made up of competing militias and the inner city is a web of impoverished streets where idealized portraits of young men, killed in recent gun battles with Iraqi and American troops, hang from signposts above empty lots. Unrest in Diwaniya, mirrored in Nasiriya to the south, reflects the emergence of a poisonous political landscape in which competing Shiite groups no longer look to the political system to allocate power. The government's authority appears to have broken down, with the governor calling this spring for Iraqi Army units, backed by American troops, to restore order. Civilians, not sure where to look for protection, are caught in the deepening fear and uncertainty.

Even now, with a large Iraqi Army force and American troops in the area, the violence has continued. In the first 10 days of June, two police officers were shot dead, an American soldier died from a roadside bomb and the brother and nephew of a prominent militia official were killed. While still less dangerous than central Iraq, where militant Sunni Arabs and Shiites battle for control, the situation has worsened since violence first broke out here last August. By the time the reporter left the city, the tone of the encounter with the police had changed from threatening to a plea for help. Mr. Ali and two of his police officer colleagues apologized for not having air-conditioning at the police station, but explained that their generator was broken. They were making tea on a small gas stove. But the worst came at night, Mr. Ali said. ''Please, if you speak to the governor, please ask him to fix our generator,'' he said. ''At night our checkpoint sinks into darkness and we cannot see if someone is about to attack us.''

Kurdish Leaders Debate Polygamy Ban

Iraqi Kurdistan's parliament is challenging social and religious tradition by considering legislation that would officially ban polygamy in this northern region, in a move that has divided some Kurdish political leaders and women's groups. According to Iraqi legislation concerning the individual, which is largely derived from Islamic law, men can be married to as many as to four women at the same time. The proposed legislation would make the practice illegal in Iraqi Kurdistan, and has reignited a long-standing debate among Kurds about whether polygamy hurts or helps women, and whether legal restrictions would stop multiple marriages. "It has become a part of the culture," said Roonak Faraj, head of the Women's Media and Cultural Centre in Sulaimaniyah. Faraj is one of many women's rights activists and political leaders who support a ban on polygamy, but she does not believe the law will work unless it is accompanied by an awareness campaign. Polygamy is a traditional practice in Iraq that is supported by many clerics, leaders and citizens, both men and women. At the same time, other politicians and women's groups have fought against the practice for years and argue that it is time to outlaw the tradition.

REPORTS – US/UK/OTHERS IN IRAQ

Green Zone Attacks

At least nine mortar rounds or rockets exploded inside the fortified Green Zone in what's become a near-daily demonstration of the limitations of the U.S.-led security crackdown and militants' resolve to rain terror on even the most protected area of Baghdad.

Heavy Fighting as U.S. Troops Squeeze Insurgents in Iraq City

Fighting was heavy in parts of Baquba on Wednesday as American troops continued to squeeze a large section of the city in an effort to rid it of insurgents believed to be part of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia. Soldiers moved block by block through the city, the capital of Diyala Province, clearing houses and removing roadside bombs. As they pressed in, American troops discovered a medical aid station for insurgents -- another sign that the Qaeda fighters had prepared for an intense fight. The hospital, uncovered by troops from the Fifth Battalion, 20th Infantry, was equipped with oxygen tanks, defibrillators, generators and surgical equipment, as well as pieces of insurgent propaganda. While the soldiers searched the houses, loud explosions rumbled through the city. Americans were using satellite-guided bombs and rockets where underground bombs were believed to have been buried. The American troops have found 25 improvised explosive devices and have destroyed five homes that were rigged with explosives, the military said in a statement.

U.S. Refuses to Free 5 Captured Iranians Until at Least October

The United States will not release five Iranians detained in a U.S. military raid in northern Iraq until at least October, despite entreaties from the Iraqi government and pressure from Iran, U.S. officials said. The delay is as much due to a communication and procedural foul-up within the U.S. government as a policy decision, they added. During his Washington visit this week, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari appealed to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates to free the Iranians, who were arrested in Irbil in January, U.S. and Arab officials said. Zebari told U.S. officials that the release would help the new U.S.-Iran dialogue on Iraq, which brought diplomats from the two nations together last month in Baghdad at their first public meeting in almost three decades. Iran has become pivotal to U.S. efforts to stabilize Iraq because Tehran exerts great influence in Iraq with a wide cross-section of parties and has armed and trained many militant groups. Zebari also warned that Tehran might not attend a second session unless the Iranians are released, the sources said. The U.S. raid on Iran's northern liaison office Jan. 11 was designed to detain two senior Iranian officials who were visiting Iraq, U.S. officials said. The two escaped arrest, but U.S. commandos did detain five mid-level operatives working with Iran's elite Quds Force, which is the foreign operations wing of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and is tied to arming, training and funding militants in Iraq.

This guy is a total idiot: Iraq Deaths Don't Mean Failure, Pace Says

The recent rise in U.S. troop deaths in Iraq is the "wrong metric" to use in assessing the effectiveness of the new security strategy for Baghdad, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said yesterday in a news conference with Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates. Despite military reports to Congress that use numbers of attacks and overall levels of violence as an important gauge of Iraq's security status, Gates and Pace told reporters at the Pentagon yesterday that violence is not a useful measure of progress. Setting the stage for mandatory reports to Congress in September, both officials said violence could go up in the summer months as troops try to give the Iraqi government time to set the country on the right track. "If you had zero violence and people were not feeling good about their future, where are you?" said Pace, emphasizing that the sentiment of the Iraqi people is a much better measurement than the number of attacks. "So it's not about levels of violence. It's about progress being made, in fact, in the minds of the Iraqi people, so that they have confidence in their government in the way forward."

COMMENTARY

Opinion: Iraqi Kurdistan's Universities Need Reform

But the university system requires extensive reforms before it can serve Iraqi students. The region's universities are hindered by politics, corruption, a lack of resources and a culture that does not promote critical or independent thought. These higher education problems - which are crippling Kurdistan on almost every level - could jeopardise the future of Iraqi Kurdistan and Iraq. Over the next few decades, Iraq will continue to face many challenges that will require open-minded citizens who can think critically. In order to lead the country, the disillusioned younger generation needs to acquire the skills and knowledge that are currently not offered in Iraq’s Kurdish universities. As a journalist and a 2004 graduate of the University of Sulaimaniyah, I can personally attest to the shortcomings of Iraqi Kurdistan's higher education system. I studied English, and about 80 out of the 130 students who entered the department my year received "special acceptance", meaning they relied on a powerful personal connection - usually through one of the main Kurdish parties - to enroll at the university.

Opinion: Putting out fire with gasoline

The US forces are set to arm Sunni nationalist groups in central Iraq to beat up local al-Qaida units and terrorist cells, according to reports out of Washington and Baghdad this morning. It's a bold, foolhardy, or even desperate measure - according to your point of view. By all accounts, it's got a tick in the box from the overall US commander in the country, General David Petraeus, although his deputy, Lt General Ray Odierno, also an experienced Iraq hand, is reported to be much more reluctant. The US and British have tried turning locals against each other in previous counter-insurgency and guerrilla campaigns - with varying success. It carries a high political risk, which can go on for generations. The Americans and Brits armed the Mujahedin against the Soviet forces occupying Afghanistan in the 1980s. In the 90s, they mutated into the Taliban, which has successfully metamorphosed through several stages to become a regional threat now well beyond the borders of Afghanistan and the northern tribal badlands of Pakistan. Short-term expedients often have long-term consequences.

How to Help Iraqi Refugees

Iraq Moratorium Day – September 21 and every third Friday thereafter

"I hereby make a commitment that on Friday, September 21, 2007, and the third Friday of every subsequent month I will break my daily routine and take some action, by myself or with others, to end the War in Iraq."

Quote of the day: "The West won the world not by the superiority of its ideas or values or religion but rather by its superiority in applying organized violence. Westerners often forget this fact, non-Westerners never do." Samuel P. Huntington