In a scene that conjures memories of Mogadishu, Somalia, where Americans were murdered and dragged through the streets, the grisly killing of 4 American private security guards in Fallujah has reverberated throughout the Western media, giving rise to two reactions:...
Missing the Point on the New Terror
I can't deny that it has been fun to see all the Bushies pushed on the defensive or jolted into attack mode so dramatically that you can't help but discern just how insecure and vulnerable they are – as are most people who are at least dimly aware that they have...
Fallujah Deflates Washington’s Optimism
April Fools' Day is traditionally one of good-natured mischief, but not this year. Indeed, U.S. President George W. Bush's trademark smirk, which normally fits the day's spirit almost to a T, was nowhere to be seen Thursday. The reason was clear enough: Iraq suddenly,...
A Grim Milestone
In a shocking upsurge of violence, American deaths in Iraq reached a grim milestone yesterday. The bombing in Fallujah resulted in the deaths of five GIs and four contract workers: In one of the bloodiest days for the U.S. military this year, five 1st Infantry...
Documents Shed New Light on US Support for 1964 Brazilian Coup
A newly declassified audiotape and documents released here Wednesday 40 years after the 1964 coup that installed military rule in Brazil show that then US President Lyndon Johnson was directly involved in the decision to back the coup forces, if necessary. In a...
Condi’s Contradictions
"He needs to get his story straight," National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice says of her whistleblowing former aide Richard Clarke. Oh, he does? Rice's contradictory statements about what the White House knew or didn't know, did or didn't do, before 9-11...
Saying It Ain’t So
What Albanian separatists did in occupied Kosovo in four mid-March days resulted in over 30 deaths, the destruction of over 30 churches and hundreds of homes and vehicles – but more so, threatened to yank off the idyllic mask the occupiers and the compliant media...
With Friends Like Uzbekistan…
This week's outburst of apparently Islamist-related violence, which has killed more than 40 people in two major cities in Uzbekistan in the past three days, could spur renewed attention to the strategically located Central Asian country's deplorable human rights...
India’s Post-9/11 Law on Terrorism More Abused Than Used
Mohammed Haneef Abdul Razak Sheikh says he was held under India's controversial anti-terrorism law for distributing food to victims of the anti-Muslim pogrom that swept western Gujarat state two years ago. All the 287 cases booked under the Prevention of Terrorism Act...