Month: May 2014

Clashes and security operations in Anbar province left dozens dead and wounded. Also, attacks on journalists from militants and the government continue.

The head of the U.N. team that investigated the Aug. 21, 2013 Sarin attack in the Damascus suburbs, Ake Sellstrom, is doubtful about the number of victims of the attack reported immediately after the event. Sellstrom has suggested that many people who claimed to have been seriously affected by Sarin merely imagined that they had … Continue reading “UN Probe Chief Doubtful on Syria Sarin Exposure Claims”

Despite all of the hand wringing in the United States about Russia’s soft invasion and annexation of Crimea and its intimidation of eastern Ukraine, President Barack Obama’s tour of East Asia demonstrates why U.S.-Russian relations probably will avoid plummeting into a new Cold War. Although President Obama insisted during his trip to four East Asian … Continue reading “Despite the Crisis Over Ukraine, America Will Likely Need Russia Soon”

What in heck is going on between North Korea and China, its traditional protector and ally? In a bombshell revelation, anonymous "Chinese military authorities" leaked internal documents to the Japanese media detailing plans to deal with North Korea’s projected collapse – and the details are quite interesting. According to the documents, whether the cause of … Continue reading “North Korean Nightmare”

In Anbar: Militants tried to take control of Amiriyat al-Falluja. Six policeman, four civilians and 15 militants were killed. The takeover failed. This town is south of Falluja and is home to several families that fled Falluja during previous tensions. Shelling killed two civilians and wounded three more. Eight militants were killed in areas west … Continue reading “67 Killed, 57 Wounded As Militants Fail Iraq Town Takeover”

“What Would America Fight For?” That question shouts from the cover of this week’s Economist. It is, asserts the magazine, “the question haunting its allies.” While most agree that America would fight to defend her treaty allies and to protect vital interests if imperiled, the question is raised by President Obama’s reticence in Crimea, Ukraine … Continue reading “Is Obama Wrong on Ukraine?”

In Anbar: In Falluja, shelling and air strikes left 15 dead and 11 wounded. A bomb targeted a security official’s home in Haditha, wounding his wife and two children. Two policemen were killed and a third one was wounded in Hit when gunmen attacked their checkpoint. Five gunmen were killed and six more were wounded … Continue reading “Security Forces Focus of Attacks That Leave 36 Dead, 46 Wounded”

QAMISHLI, Syria – Malki Hana says his men are afraid of cameras. “Most of them are army defectors and they may easily get in trouble,” says this commander of a mostly unknown armed group in Syria. From his headquarters in Derik, 700 km northeast of Damascus, Hana, 34, briefs IPS on his militia comprising almost … Continue reading “Syrian Split Divides Christians”

The murder of at least 38 people in the city of Odessa in the midst of Kiev’s "anti-terrorist" offensive last Friday revealed the true face of the fascist regime that has seized power in Kiev – and the Western media is doing everything it can to cover up the truth. Most "mainstream" accounts of what … Continue reading “Odessa: Ukraine’s Waco”

Violence continues unabated in Anbar and other parts of Iraq