Dahr Jamail

BAGHDAD – Uncertainty and tension are running high in Baghdad ahead of the provincial election due Jan. 31. But this time fears are also touched by a new hope. "Iraq is transitioning into something more stable," former Iraqi interim prime minister Ayad Allawi told IPS. "The U.S. is pulling out soon because of the new … Continue reading “Tentative Hope Rises Ahead of Iraq Elections”

PORTLAND, Ore. – Veterans from the U.S. occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, along with Iraqis, Afghans, Vietnam veterans, and family members of U.S. military personnel, converged in this West Coast city over the weekend to share stories of atrocities being committed daily in Iraq, in a continuation of the "Winter Soldier" hearings held in Silver … Continue reading “Winter Soldiers: ‘We Have to Share This Pain’”

with Arkan Hamed BAGHDAD – Not even the elevators work now at Baghdad Medical City, built once as the center for some of the best medical care. One of the ten elevators still does, and the priority for this is patients who have lost their legs – and there are many of them. The rest, … Continue reading “In Baghdad, Even the Hospitals Are Sick”

By using the written word and art, veterans of the US occupation of Iraq are transforming their trauma into a message of both healing and resistance to the failed US adventure. "If I say nothing, I have failed," writes veteran Drew Cameron, "If I do nothing, I am guilty. If I live by these ideals … Continue reading “Iraq War Vets Transforming Trauma”

Aside from the Iraqi people, nobody knows what the U.S. military is doing in Iraq better than the soldiers themselves. A new book gives readers vivid and detailed accounts of the devastation the U.S. occupation has brought to Iraq, in the soldiers’ own words. Winter Soldier Iraq and Afghanistan: Eyewitness Accounts of the Occupation, published … Continue reading “New Book Lets Winter Soldiers Be Heard”

FALLUJAH, Jul 31 (IPS) – A tense security situation in this volatile city has worsened after some policemen found bombs planted on the roofs of their houses. Astonishing attacks have been launched against police leaders during the past weeks in Fallujah, 69 km west of Baghdad, after reports of the US and Iraqi government’s plans … Continue reading “Police Bombings Raise New Fears”

BAGHDAD – Welcomed at first after the US-led invasion in 2003, most NGOs have run into skepticism and mistrust. Few remain to help. Hundreds of local and foreign NGOs became active in Iraq since the US-led invasion in 2003, after decades of restrictions under the regime of former dictator Saddam Hussein. "The former Iraqi regime … Continue reading “Most NGOs in Iraq Losing Face”

FALLUJAH – U.S. and Iraqi forces are preparing another siege of Fallujah under the pretext of combating "terror," residents and officials say. Located 40 mi. west of Baghdad, the city that suffered two devastating U.S. attacks in 2004 has watched security degrade over recent months. "Ruling powers in the city fighting to gain full control … Continue reading “Fallujah Braces for Another Assault”

FALLUJAH – Security has collapsed again in Fallujah, despite US military claims. Local militias supported by US forces claim to have "cleansed" the city, 70 km to the west of Baghdad, of all insurgency. But the sudden resignation of the city’s chief of police, Colonel Fayssal al-Zoba’i, has appeared as one recent sign of growing … Continue reading “Unrest Surfaces in Fallujah Again”

US journalist Zoriah Miller says he was censored by the US military in the Iraqi city of Fallujah after photographing Marines who died in a suicide bombing. On Jun. 26, a suicide bomber attacked a city council meeting in Fallujah, 69 kms west of Baghdad, between local tribal sheikhs and military officials. Three Marines, Cpl. … Continue reading “Journalist Charges Censorship by US Military in Fallujah”