The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Wednesday, March 9, 2011

War News for Wednesday, March 09, 2011

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED attack in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, March 9th.


Putting Afghan Plan Into Action Proves Difficult

Bad Weather Shuts Iraq Electricity System


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: “An IED went off near an Iraqi army convoy in New Baghdad area, southeastern Baghdad, leaving three soldiers wounded and their military vehicle damaged,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: “Another IED emplaced on the roadside near al-Kindi hospital intersection in central Baghdad went off, injuring a traffic policeman and a civilian and damaging some passing vehicles,” he added.

#3: “A third IED attached to a civilian vehicle in the area of al-Sayyediya went off, leaving the driver, a policeman in the rank of lt. colonel, and his wife severely injured,” the source said, adding the two were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.

#4: The director of the Iraqi air force training department director was killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast in eastern Baghdad on Wednesday, a security source said. “An IED went off near an Iraqi army convoy on al-Qanah street, eastern Baghdad, leaving Brig. Taha Mohammed dead,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#5: A sticky bomb attached to a car wounded a government employee in eastern Baghdad on Tuesday night, an Interior Ministry source said.

#6: Gunmen using weapons equipped with silencers killed a man in the Mashtal district of eastern Baghdad on Tuesday, an Interior Ministry source said.

#7: Gunmen killed a man with silenced guns in the Ghadir district of eastern Baghdad on Tuesday, an Interior Ministry source said.


Diyala Prv:
#1: In Iraq's eastern province of Diyala, three civilians were wounded, one of them in critical condition, when a sticky bomb attached to their car detonated near a parking lot in the provincial capital city of Baquba, some 65 km northeast of Baghdad, a police source from Diyala's operations command told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.


Abu Ghraib:
#1: In a similar incident, gunmen clad in Iraqi military uniforms raided a house in Baghdad's western neighborhood of Abu Ghraib, and stabbed a man to death.


Taji:
#1: A civilian man was killed in a blast from an improvised explosive device (IED) in northern Baghdad on Wednesday, a security source said. “An IED attached to a vehicle went off in the area of al-Taji, northern Baghdad, leaving its driver killed,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Hawija:
#1: A doctor has been killed when a missile fired by the US forces struck his house in Iraq's northern province of al-Tamim, a report says. US military warplanes conducted an airstrike on Sunday and targeted several residences in a village close to Hawijah town, located 282 kilometers (175 miles) north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, where they killed a doctor and detained his brother, Aswat al-Iraq news agency quoted Omar al-Juburi, a lawmaker from al-Wasat (Center) bloc as saying on Tuesday.


Kirkuk:
#1: A Katyusha rocket landed near a Kurdish security building, and wounded a Kurdish security member in southern Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, on Tuesday, police said.


Mosul:
#1: Three gunmen were killed just south of the northern city of Mosul after Iraqi forces opened fire on them as they were allegedly trying to plant an explosive device.

#2: According to the news website Aswat al-Iraq, an Iraqi army soldier was killed when an improvised explosive device attached to his car exploded in Mosul.

#3: Two policemen were wounded on Tuesday in a roadside bomb blast in western Mosul, according to a security source. “The bomb exploded in 17 Tamouz neighborhood, western Mosul, targeting an emergency police vehicle patrol, injuring two policemen, including a lieutenant,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#4: The commander of the 7th police contingent was wounded in an improvised explosive device blast in western Mosul city on Wednesday, according to a security source in Ninewa. “Col. Abad Etweiba was wounded when an IED blast targeted his motorcade in al-Rifai’e neighborhood, western Mosul. The attack also left one of the policemen guarding him wounded,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “Etweiba was injured by shrapnel in his leg but his condition is stable,” the source added.

#5: A civilian man was injured in a hand-grenade attack in central Mosul city on Wednesday, a security source in Ninewa said. “A gunman threw a hand-grenade on al-Hadbaa police department in the area of Bab al-Toub, central Mosul, leaving one civilian wounded,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “The gunman hurled the grenade from al-Sawafa souk (outdoor market) before escaping the site, but no casualties were reported amongst policemen,” he added.


Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: At least five people were killed and three others injured in the second U.S. drone strike in northwestern tribal area of Pakistan on Tuesday afternoon, local media reported. According to Urdu TV ARY News, U.S. drones fired two missiles at a house in Datta Khel area of North Waziristan, a place bordering Afghanistan and is believed to be a stronghold of militants. This is the second attack in the last four hours. Earlier, a drone strike killed five people in Azam Warsak area of South Waziristan.

#2: At least 20 Nato oil supply tankers were sent back to Peshawar from Takht Baig check post in Jamrud by the political administration on Tuesday. Political administration has halted the Nato oil supplying tankers and sent them back towards Peshawar without mentioning any reason. The owners and drivers of the tankers staged protest demonstration against the administration at GT road Tarnab farm area.

4 comments:

Dancewater said...

After one year of her participation in the last parliamentary election in March 7th 2010, Hiyam Tawfiq is completely disappointed because she feels that she had been deceived by the promises of the Iraqi political party she voted for. Her frustration and disappointment led here to Tahrir square in downtown Baghdad to join few hundred Iraqis organized a demonstration in March 7 2011; one year after the election. They call their demonstration THE DAY OF REGRET referring to their regret for participating in the parliamentary election. The demonstrators were confined to certain area of the square designated by yellow police tape and surrounded by dozens of Iraqi security forces who were searching those who join the demonstration.
“I feel a volcano inside me because of my anger that can damage the whole Green Zone if I release it”, said Hiyam, a 34 years former employee in the high electoral commission that prepared for the election.


Day of Regret

Dancewater said...

Why the Lying??



Two stories were told about a "mass grave" that was uncovered in Diyala.

General Abdulhussein al Shammeri, police chief of Diyala province told AFP, "We found 153 bodies of men, women and children. Of the men, some were in civilian clothing; others in army or police uniforms. We were able to uncover this mass grave as a result of confessions made by a suspect we detained some two weeks ago".


To al Mashriq newspaper he added, "Most of them were blindfolded and had their hands tied behind their backs – the hallmark of Qaida assassinations. We believe they were victims of al Qaida.

The area in which the "mass grave" was found was a well known Qaida hot bed, especially during 2006 and 2007. It lies 35 miles to the northeast of Baghdad, 12 miles to the south of Baquba, Diyala's provincial capital.

This was the story that major Iraqi press adopted – And why not? A named source – a general no less, gave the information.

But another story was told by Reuters:

One hundred and fifty three individual graves had been unearthed yesterday and today….. A tribal leader in the area had told Reuters that the site was well known as "the cemetery of mujahideen" – a reference to the al Qaida fighters who battled U.S. and Iraqi forces.

This great big discrepancy – Why?? Could it be two different sites, a mass grave and a cemetary - or what?? - I couldn't help myself – I had to check.

I called our Diyala stringer and this is what I got:

"I was there. I saw them myself. It was incredible – the way they were each buried - individually, according to the word of Islamic tradition: their faces towards the Kaaba (Mekka), the libna (mud brick) under the head, the white shroud – complete to the smallest detail.
"Since when did al Qaida burry its victims observing such details?? No – These were Qaida fighters for sure".

SO – I ask: What benefit would security forces gain by distorting this story? Is it to sow more hatred for al Qaida? And if this story – this unashamed statement by a General, is a lie – Then what else is a lie? And to what end?

Is this how the Iraqi security forces hope to gain the trust of the Iraqi people? And if we can't believe a General - a chief of police of a province ….???

Dancewater said...

Link to above post

Dancewater said...

At least nine local officials, including two provincial governors, also announced that they would step down in response to protesters’ demands for substantial government reform.

The resignations came in the wake of Iraq’s “Day of Rage” demonstrations on February 25, when thousands of people in towns and cities took to the streets, chanting anti-government slogans and demanding change.

Shiltagh Aboud, the governor of Basra, announced his resignation last week following weeks of protests in which angry residents called for provincial officials to go and demanded better living conditions. Basra, home to the country’s biggest oil fields, is the main revenue earner for Iraq but locals maintain the oil wealth has not benefited ordinary citizens.

Basra had a budget of 800 billion Iraqi dinars (more than 680 million US dollars) for local projects in 2010, according to the parliament’s economic committee. Residents say, however, that rubbish remains piled up in the main streets; the sewage system is poor and there is little access to clean drinking water or an adequate electricity supply.

“Where has our budget gone? Where has our wealth gone?” Hassan Shakir, a 35-year-old teacher in Basra, said. “Before [the US-led invasion of] 2003, I had more electricity than I have now. Our conditions are deteriorating while our millions of dollars are disappearing.”


Iraq protests