Month: August 2008

Updated at 6:45 p.m. EDT, Aug. 31, 2008At least 13 Iraqis were killed and 8 more were wounded in the latest attacks. Meanwhile, the tense situation between central government forces and Peshmerga forces continues in Khanaqin. Also, Ramadan begins tomorrow for Sunni Muslims and the day after for Shi’ites. In Khanaqin, tensions between the Kurdish … Continue reading “Sunday: 13 Iraqis Killed, 8 Wounded”

Updated at 12:26 p.m. EDT, Aug. 31, 2008At least six Iraqis were killed and four more were wounded in the latest attacks. Three Turkish truck drivers were wounded during a blast in Mosul as well. In Turkey, two Turkish soldiers were killed in a clash with PKK rebels. No Coalition deaths were reported. Also, a … Continue reading “Saturday: 6 Iraqis Killed, 4 Wounded; 3 Turks Wounded”

As Muslims begin one of their most important holidays – the month of Ramadan – charitable organizations serving the American Muslim community are taking what some observers believe is a desperate last step to keep the US government from shutting them down. Muslim Advocates (MA), a San Francisco-based national educational and advocacy organization established by … Continue reading “Muslim Charities Negotiate a Minefield”

BAQUBA – Residents of Baquba deny police claims that kidnappings are now a matter of the past. "There are fewer people disappearing, but it continues," a trader who asked to be referred to as Abu Ali told IPS. "All of us know that several people are still being kidnapped every week." A local sheikh, speaking … Continue reading “Iraq Kidnappings Now Become ‘Unofficial’”

Americans have traditionally been optimists, and still probably think that if we could only make the right choices, the next President – working together with the next Congress – could clean up the mess Bush-Cheney and The Best Congress Money Can Buy have made, thereby making it safe to go abroad once again carrying an … Continue reading “What a Mess To Clean Up”

This is the last Charley Reese column, as the author is retiring. All of us at Antiwar.com will miss his insights and wish him well. Years ago, the first time I saw my friend Brother Dave Gardner after he had survived a plane crash, the comedian smiled and said, "The devil like to got me." … Continue reading “Goodbye”

Eighteen-year-old Sahar Vardi is currently in an Israeli military prison. She is being punished for the crime of refusing to be conscripted into the Israeli military. A few weeks before her imprisonment she wrote Israel’s Minister of Defense, Ehud Barak, explaining her decision to become a conscientious objector. “I have been to the occupied Palestinian … Continue reading “Refusing to Oppress”

Updated at 10:20 p.m. EDT, Aug. 29, 2008Many reporters take Fridays off as it is the weekly prayer day for Muslims; however, today has been unusually quiet even for a Friday. Only nine Iraqis were reported killed and one was reported wounded. Meanwhile, a U.S. soldier died in a non-combat related incident. A day after … Continue reading “Friday: 1 US Soldier, 9 Iraqis Killed; 1 Iraqi Wounded”

Despite George W. Bush’s claim that he’s “truly not that concerned” about Osama bin Laden, the administration is erecting 10 “Wanted” billboards in Afghanistan, offering rewards of $25 million for bin Laden, $10 million for Taliban leader Mullah Omar, and $1 million for Adam Gadahn, an American member of Al Qaeda, now listed as a … Continue reading “Surging in Afghanistan: Too Much, Too Late?”

The office of the Vice President has surely undergone a transformation in recent years: from Dan Quayle to Dick Cheney is a long way to travel. The role of the VP, with Cheney acting as the eminence grise of the Bush regime – and, some would say, the real President – has been amplified to … Continue reading “Obama’s Cheney”