An interesting analytical piece from the Christian Science Monitor: The US military strategy in Iraq has been consistent for months now: Use aggressive military operations to disrupt the flow of foreign fighters entering the country and the insurgent support lines that run along the Euphrates River west to the Syrian border. Simultaneously, the US is […]
Archives for 2005
Vines: US may begin drawdown after Iraqi elections
From the Pakistan Tribune, “4 Day Operation Ended in Western Iraq” U.S. and Iraqi forces have ended a four-day operation, Spear, aimed at clearing insurgent bases and training camps in western Iraq. Military officials say forces killed some 50 fighters and discovered more than a dozen car bombs in and around the town of Karabilah […]
Pakistanis assure Afghans of support on security
From Reuters: KABUL – Pakistan has assured Afghanistan of its support and cooperation in the war on terror after angry words between the neighbours over accusations Pakistan is not doing enough to stop Taliban violence. The assurance comes as fears mount that Taliban fighters launching attacks from Pakistan will disrupt a September parliamentary election in […]
Vincent: Baffled in Basra
Steven Vincent writes an interesting article on the situation in Basra in National Review Online: …Basra’s police force isn’t the only example of the social and psychological dysfunctionalities that plague this city of 1.5 million residents. Even as brave and dedicated people here begin to reconstruct their lives in the face of daunting problems “” […]
Kahn: When “academic freedom” justifies academic terror
Tzvi Kahn writes in The American Thinker: According to the logic of a recent report issued by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), denying accused criminals a job constitutes an unethical breach of “academic freedom.” So, if Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein had doctorates and respectable publication records, could they receive teaching positions […]
New U.S. Ambassador ‘Horrified’ By Iraq Violence
From Radio Free Europe: Baghdad — The new U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, said today he is horrified at the level of violence wracking the country, and that Islamic extremists and former members of Saddam Hussein’s outlawed Ba’ath Party are trying to start a civil war in Iraq. Khalilzad said after meeting in Baghdad […]
UK: Manchester arrest ‘connected to Iraq suicide attacks’
From the UK TimesOnline: The housemate of a man who allegedly travelled to Iraq to carry out a suicide bomb attack has been arrested in Manchester, police said. The 40-year-old man was arrested under the Terrorism Act after a dawn raid in the Moss Side area of the city. It is believed that another man […]
‘Palestinian prisoner destroyed Quran’
Another silly story of Qur’an abuse. Prison Service says female security prisoner goes on rampage during body search, tosses Quran pages toward toilet. From YNet News: ASHKELON – A female Palestinian security prisoner in Ashkelon’s Shikma Prison tore up pages from a copy of the Quran and threw them toward the toilet during a routine […]
Anti-Syrian Critic Killed in Lebanon Blast
From AP via The Guardian: BEIRUT, Lebanon – A bomb Tuesday killed a politician who was a harsh critic of Syria’s power in Lebanon, police said, the second slaying of an anti-Syrian figure this month. The explosion that killed former Communist Party chief George Hawi as he rode in his car came two days after […]
‘Bloody good’ to be home, says Wood
An interesting update on the claims the Australian Mufti is making concerning Wood’s captors and his release. From the New Zealand Herald: CANBERRA – Douglas Wood, the 63-year-old Australian engineer rescued last week from kidnappers in Iraq, flew into Melbourne yesterday to a joyful reunion with his family but with questions still surrounding his release… […]