Updated at 5:35 p.m. EDT, Oct. 14, 2009
At least 15 Iraqis were killed and 64 more were wounded in attacks that included bombings in the holy city of Karbala. Meanwhile, the government has released its first official death toll and approved a draft budget.
read moreBackdoor Escalation
The official explanation for Obama's Nobel Peace Prize is that the Norwegians are using the Nobel as an incentive for the president to fulfill what many see as his bright promise and a kind of prophylactic against a repeat of Bush-era warmongering. After all, how...
Will Tough Sanctions Against Iran Be Effective?
Negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 group – the five permanent members of the United Nations (UN) Security Council plus Germany – began on Oct. 1. Iran's negotiating team was led by Saeed Jalili, the hard-line secretary-general of its Supreme National Security...
Five Facts About Afghanistan
The corridors of power in the nation's capital are abuzz with the complexities of the situation in Afghanistan. If only we send 40,000 more troops, say the military brass, the U.S. could have some hope of turning the situation around and preventing Afghanistan from...
Pro-War Officials Play Up Taliban-al-Qaeda Ties
U.S. national security officials, concerned that President Barack Obama might be abandoning the strategy of full-fledged counterinsurgency war in Afghanistan, are claiming new intelligence assessments suggesting that al-Qaeda would be allowed to return to Afghanistan...
Security Council Urged to Take Up Gaza War
Pressure has been building on the UN Security Council to address the impact of the Gaza war on civilians in advance of its meeting Wednesday to discuss the Middle East. "The Security Council has a historic opportunity to uphold the principle of civilian...
Saving Face and Losing Lives
This past week there has been a lot of discussion and debate on the continuing war in Afghanistan. Lasting twice as long as World War II and with no end in sight, the war in Afghanistan has been one of the longest conflicts in which our country has ever been involved....
Foreign Policy Hawks Launch New Campaign Against Obama
Just days after the Nobel Committee in Oslo awarded Barack Obama its coveted peace prize, two of Washington's most prominent foreign policy hawks launched a new group and ad campaign designed to depict the president as weak and defend the more aggressive policies of...
Tuesday: 11 Iraqis Killed, 18 Wounded
Updated at 6:05 p.m. EDT, Oct. 13, 2009
At least 11 Iraqis were killed and 18 more were wounded in the latest violence. The political atmosphere in Baghdad, however, nearly eclipsed the reports of attacks across the country. Parliamentary speaker Iyad Al Samarrai warned that issues surrounding Kirkuk could stall the adoption of a new election law. Meanwhile, the Iraqi parliament approved the return of a small number of British troops. Also, Baghdad Operations Command complained their arrests are being politicized.
read moreLong Wars and Peace Prizes
Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who has become the point man for the long-war mafia, delivered his ultimatum to President Barack Obama on Friday, Oct. 9. As has been his practice over the past several weeks, McChrystal proxy-leaked details of his demands through the Wall...
