The text of the U.S.-Iraq status of forces agreement (SOFA) signed by U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari Monday closes the door to a further U.S. military presence beyond 2011 even more tightly than the previous draft and locks in a...
Updated at 7:10 p.m. EST, Nov. 19, 2008At least 11 Iraqis were killed and another 18 were wounded in today's attacks. Also, the Iraqi governent reported that they had discovered a mass grave three months ago near Najaf. The grave contained 150 bodies killed during the...
On Sunday, in his first television interview since winning the presidential election, Barack Obama repeated his campaign pledge to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay and to ban the use of torture by U.S. forces. Speaking on 60 Minutes, he explained, "I have said...
The latest tightening of Israel's chokehold on Gaza – ending all supplies into the Strip for more than a week – has produced immediate and shocking consequences for Gaza's 1.5 million inhabitants. The refusal to allow in fuel has forced the shutting down of...
In the wake of the recent election results it's essential to ask how the Empire fared. It's not just occupying Iraq. It's not just brutally occupying Afghanistan under the guise of a war on terror being fought by the heirs of the Wahhabist-influenced,...
A think-tank closely tied to U.S. President-elect Barack Obama is calling for a "dramatic strategic shift" in Washington's policy toward Pakistan, one designed to both strengthen civilian institutions and promote an effective counter-insurgency against...
Updated at 5:50 p.m. EST, Nov. 18, 2008At least 23 Iraqis were killed and 35 more were wounded in the latest reports of violence. In political news, elections have been set for Jan. 31 in most of Iraq's 18 provinces. The top Iraqi cleric gave tacit support to a...
Barack Obama's first appointment, that of Chicago Congressman Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff, is quite frankly unsettling and suggests that voters who had hoped for real change in Washington will be disappointed. There should also be some concern on the part of...
The first official "decree" of our new president should be to draft the children of the rich, according to Michael Moore's latest book, Mike's Election Guide 2008. Moore's presidential decree builds on the idea that a draft would swell popular resistance to...
In his victory speech, Barack Obama told us: "I will listen to you, especially when we disagree." And, you know what? I believe him. He will listen. That's the one important difference, I think, between the outgoing and incoming administrations: George W. Bush would...
