Thursday: 20 Iraqis Killed, 46 Wounded
At least 20 Iraqis were killed and 46 more were wounded in new violence. Few attacks were reported, but a double suicide bombing in Tikrit left many casualties.
Month: July 2011
Terrorism Experts on Parade
On Friday night and Saturday morning I scanned the newspapers and watched the usual after-the-fact nonsense on television in the wake of the horrific terror attack in Norway. The late edition of Friday’s Wall Street Journal featured a lead editorial blaming “jihadis” for the slaughter, an attack that was, per the editorial writer, launched because … Continue reading “Terrorism Experts on Parade”
Wednesday: 1 Iraqi Killed, 6 Wounded
Light violence left one Iraqi dead and six more wounded. However, it is unclear how many, if any, Iraqi casualties are occurring at the Iranian border, where Kurdish rebels are fighting against Iranian troops.
The Return of the Neocons’ Prodigal Son
Suggestions that the “counter-jihadist” ideology spread by such websites as Frontpagemag.com, run by neocon David Horowitz, and the affiliated “Jihad Watch,” inspired – and provoked – the Norway killer Anders Behring Breivik have been met with cries of outrage by the neoconservative Right. This is hardly surprising: confronted with the sight of someone who put … Continue reading “The Return of the Neocons’ Prodigal Son”
The West Has a Double Standard in Terrorism Cases
The mass slaughter of innocents by Anders Behring Breivik in Norway has highlighted the selective perception of such heinous acts of terrorism by U.S. and Western media. Although those who study terrorism cannot seem to reach a standard definition of terrorism — perhaps because past actions of their own governments might be so classified (for … Continue reading “The West Has a Double Standard in Terrorism Cases”
Tuesday: 10 Iraqis Killed, 17 Wounded
At least 10 Iraqis were killed and 17 more were wounded in new and updated attacks. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki asked resident Jalal Talabani to pardon 50 followers of Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. The request underscores Maliki’s need of Sadr’s favor to maintain power.
US Concern for Rights Conspicuously Absent in Bahrain
It is becoming painfully obvious that the United States is hostile to the “Arab Spring.” In Egypt, U.S. military aid programs remain in force, and in Yemen a “secret” U.S. war may be in the offing. In the United Arab Emirates plans may be afoot to develop a for-profit rapid reaction force (to crackdown, surely, … Continue reading “US Concern for Rights Conspicuously Absent in Bahrain”
Obama Puts Bombs Before Bread
The television warned that some images might be graphic. What ensued was footage of children and babies, some wailing, most eerily quiet in mothers’ arms, skin and bones and two breaths closer to death. The children of Somalia are dying from starvation. In a region of the world that has been wracked by natural and … Continue reading “Obama Puts Bombs Before Bread”
Illusions of Security and Danger
In response to the attacks in Norway, everyone immediately began pointing fingers. President Obama and the establishment instantly blamed Islamists, at least implicitly. Now that the alleged killer is profiled as a radical anti-Islamist, the center left is blaming right-wing “extremism” and agitating for an institutional response to such dangerous lines of thinking. Beyond the … Continue reading “Illusions of Security and Danger”
Taliban Backs Off From Attacking Civilians
PESHAWAR — A series of Taliban attacks selectively targeting Pakistani security forces is being seen as an attempt to shore up the flagging popularity of the fundamentalist Islamic scholars. “As long as the Taliban targeted security forces alone, the local people supported them as they believed it to be part of the jihad against the … Continue reading “Taliban Backs Off From Attacking Civilians”