Month: May 2008

Updated at 7:35 p.m. EDT, May 15, 2008At least 26 Iraqis were killed and 50 were wounded in the latest attacks. The numbers rose from yesterday’s suicide bombing near Baghdad, while more attacks occurred in the capital itself. No Coalition deaths were reported. The death toll from yesterday’s suicide bombing at a funeral in Abu … Continue reading “Thursday: 26 Iraqis Killed, 50 Wounded”

Early this month, the George W. Bush administration’s plan to create a new crescendo of accusations against Iran for allegedly smuggling arms to Shiite militias in Iraq encountered not just one but two setbacks. The government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki refused to endorse US charges of Iranian involvement in arms smuggling to the Mahdi … Continue reading “Maliki Stalls US Plan to Frame Iran”

Almost every country in the world has had a civil war, but rarely has a nation survived a second one. The outburst of violence that erupted on the streets of West Beirut last week now threatens to rip apart the small patchwork state, with analysts here and in Lebanon saying that the events over the … Continue reading “Lebanon Crisis Shows Hues of Iraq”

If politics makes strange bedfellows, then the relationship between Iran, the United States and the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq is the strangest ménage à trois in international relations today. Violent Shia-on-Shia hostilities officially came to an end this week when a formal cease-fire was declared between government forces of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and … Continue reading “Tangled Web of Allegiances Leads Back to Tehran”

GAZA CITY – The Israeli siege of Gaza that has restricted access to food, water and medicine is now beginning to hit unborn children and newborn babies. "Many babies are born suffering from anemia that they have inherited from their mothers," Dr. Salah al-Rantisi, head of the women’s health department at the Palestinian ministry of … Continue reading “Siege Hits Palestinians Before They Are Born”

Recently I was invited to provide testimony before the Chicago City Council on a proposed resolution to oppose any US military action against Iran. I salute the City Council for having the courage and sense of civic responsibility to consider a resolution which would pressure the Congressional delegation of the State of Illinois to heed … Continue reading “The Myth of the Iranian Sanctuary”

Updated at 9:15 p.m. EDT, May 14, 2008A pair of blasts targeting the Iraqi Islamic Party rocked Baghdad, while light violence continues in the Sadr City suburb. Later in the day, a large suicide bombing occurred west of the capital. At least 49 Iraqis were killed and 114 more were wounded. No Coalition deaths were … Continue reading “Wednesday: 49 Iraqis Killed, 114 Wounded”

Pressed by the demands of the "global war on terrorism," the United States is violating an international protocol that forbids the recruitment of children under the age of 18 for military service, according to a new report [.pdf] released Tuesday by a major civil rights group that charged that recruitment practices target children as young … Continue reading “School Recruiting Could Violate Intl. Protocol”

Poor Obama. No matter how much he tries to placate the Israel lobby, they just won’t take yes for an answer. The Lobby has been after him for months, trying to dig up "evidence" that someone with the middle name of "Hussein" is necessarily an enemy of Israel. The best they could come up with … Continue reading “Obama vs. The Lobby”

The city of Chengdu is both deflated and energized at the same time. Hours of tremors, the lack of a clear picture of the situation, and nights out on the streets in sleeping bags and tents have left the population of the city slightly jittery. On a walk through Chengdu, many residents were eating sunflower … Continue reading “Tremors in Chengdu”