BAGHDAD - Now that the smoke has cleared and the rubble settled, residents of a group of bombed Iraqi villages see the raid as really a US loss. Many Iraqis view the attack Jan. 10 by bombers and F-16 jets on a cluster of villages in the Latifiya district south of...
Iraqi Police and Army Sidelined by Sunni Fighters
BAQUBA - New military operations in Diyala province north of Baghdad have exacerbated a growing conflict between U.S.-backed Sunni fighters on the one hand and Iraqi army and police forces on the other. The U.S. military commenced a large military operation Jan. 8 in...
Iraqis ‘Awake’ to a New Danger
BAGHDAD – The newly formed "Awakening" forces set up by the U.S. military are bringing new conflict. For months now the U.S. military has been actively building what it calls Awakening forces and "concerned local citizens" in an effort to...
Iraq Less Violent and Hellish Only in Numbers
FALLUJAH - US and Iraqi officials claim that security is improving across al-Anbar province and much of Iraq. Security during the last half of 2007 was indeed better than in the period between February 2006 and mid-2007. But this has brought little solace to many...
Killer of US Soldiers Becomes Hero for Iraqis
BAGHDAD - The recent killing of two U.S. soldiers by their Iraqi colleague has raised disturbing questions about U.S. military relations with Iraqi forces. On Dec. 26, an Iraqi soldier opened fire on U.S. soldiers accompanying him during a joint military patrol in the...
US-Backed ‘Awakening’ Forces Arouse New Conflicts
FALLUJAH - The controversial move of the US military to back Sunni "Awakening" forces has created another wedge between Sunni and Shi'ite political groups. Following disputes between the tribal groups assembled into Awakening forces and the Iraqi government,...
Looking to Security from Paper Police
BAGHDAD - In a country with no security and no jobs, just about anyone can work as a policeman. "To survive in Iraq under US occupation, there are only two jobs; police and garbage collection," Baghdad journalist Mohammad al-Dulaymi told IPS....
‘Bad’ Women Raped and Killed in Southern Iraq
BAGHDAD - Women are being killed by militia groups in southern Iraq for not conforming to strict Islamic ways, the police say. And increased threats from militia groups are driving many women away from their homes. Basra police chief Gen. Jalil Hannoon has told...
In Iraq, Not Even the Hajj is Free of Corruption
RAMADI - Many Iraqis are angry that the government seems to be picking favorites for the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Muslims are obliged to carry out the pilgrimage, as long as they are able-bodied and can afford to, at least once in their lifetime. Saudi...
Iraqi Widows Become the Silent Tragedy
BAGHDAD - Hundreds of thousands of widows are becoming the silent tragedy of a country sliding deeper into chaos by the day. Widows are the flip side of violence that has meant more than a million men dead, detained or disabled, Iraqi NGOs estimate. These men's wives...