Clashes continued in Mosul where dozens of militants of were killed, but the worst attack occurred in Diyala province where suicide bombers blew themselves up at a political party office. At least 82 people were killed today and 110 more were wounded.
Militants continued their siege of Mosul today and also attack a university in Ramadi. Later in the day, Baghdad suffered from a series of bombings. Overall, at least 184 people were killed and 183 were wounded.
Seventy years ago, on June 6 1944, the Western Allies launched the largest amphibious operation in history, landing hundreds of thousands of men and tanks onto the beaches of Normandy. American, British, Canadian, Australian and various "Free Forces" (Czech, French, Polish, etc.) took part in the operation, backed by the British and US naval and …
Continue reading “Is This What D-Day Was For?”
Irrespective of how one feels about the direction taken by various Arab revolutions in the last three years, a few facts remain incontestable. Arab revolts began in the streets of poor, despairing Arab cities, and Arabs had every right to rebel considering the dismal state of affairs in which they live. Few disagree with these …
Continue reading “Reporting the Middle East: Please Go Back to the Streets”
Insurgents attempted to take over Mosul from the west, but the government was able to take back most of the city. At least 166 people were killed and 101 more were wounded there and across Iraq. There were foreign nationals among the dead insurgents.
What in the name of all that’s holy is going on in Ukraine? The Kiev "government" – and I use the term loosely – is claiming to have killed over 300 "separatist militants" in the eastern city of Luhansk, and wounded 500 – an extremely dubious claim that even the pro-Kiev Western media is reporting …
Continue reading “Kiev Escalates: Air Strikes on Ukraine’s Rebel Cities”
Think of Barack Obama’s recent return to West Point at graduation time to offer his approach to an increasingly chaotic world as a bookend on an era. George W. Bush went to the Academy in June 2002 – less than a year after 9/11, seven months after the U.S. had triumphantly invaded Afghanistan, 10 months …
Continue reading “Clueless in Cairo”
On May 23, 2012, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton went to the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference (SOFIC) trade show in Tampa, Florida to share her vision of “smart power” and to explain the State Department’s crucial role in extending the reach and efficacy of America’s growing “international counterterrorism network.” First, there is such a …
Continue reading “Hillary Clinton and the Weaponization of the State Department”
A large-scale attack took place in Samarra, but the Iraq government was able to repulse the militants. Nearby Baiji also came under attack. Over 120 militants were killed out of the 166 reported dead today. At least 96 were wounded. The numbers will likely rise.
All of the dirty DC dealings in Netflix’s House of Cards arguably make it the most cynical of the current crop of highly-acclaimed and talked over television shows. However, the epic Game of Thrones – in spite of its fantastical elements – paints an even more brutal picture of the vile nature of politics, and …
Continue reading “Game of Thrones Gets the Nastiness of Politics and War Right” 
