Category: Uncategorized

CAIRO (IPS) – Egypt has presented a security initiative to support an Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, but wants to avoid being drawn into a “security trap.” The initiative calls for a bilateral ceasefire agreement between the Palestinians and Israelis, and the resumption of negotiations aimed at implementing the stalled roadmap peace plan. Egypt … Continue reading “Egypt Eager to Help Israel Out of Gaza”

TEHRAN (IPS) – While foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi has rejected claims that Iran received highly classified U.S. intelligence from Ahmad Chalabi, other government officials and the hardline newspapers that support them have remained largely silent on the allegations Washington has leveled against its former top Iraqi ally. The various mouthpieces of Supreme Leader … Continue reading “Despite US Backlash, Chalabi Still a ‘Kingmaker’”

Recorded May 22, 2004 A “Philip Dru” interview with Lt. Col. (ret.) Karen Kwiatkowski. Kwiatkowski spent her final four and a half years in uniform working at the Pentagon, where she was privy to much neoconservative chicanery in the run-up to war. She writes for LewRockwell.com WMV format (requires Windows Media Player) MP3 format (download … Continue reading “An Insider’s Look at the March to War”

While Iraqi and American political players have been frenetically rearranging the chairs of interim government members on the Titanic that is occupied Iraq today, a massive car bomb explosion rumbles my hotel, miles from where it detonated outside of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan building near the so-called Green Zone. So rather than celebratory gunfire … Continue reading “New President, New Car Bomb”

It had to happen, sooner or later, or else the irony would not be complete: news has emerged this week that oil has been discovered in Bosnia. Granted, the find is nowhere near as big as the Middle Eastern fields, but given the precious liquid’s current paucity in the world, chances are it will be … Continue reading “Once More, With Irony”

Rafah, Jenin, Khan Yunis, Zeitun: Foreign-sounding names of so distanced and disturbing a reality. All that we know of them is what the media have selectively determined to impart, if we are interested to hear the story. The Rafah refugee camp, a small strip of land at the southern edge of Gaza was the target … Continue reading “Celebrating Life in Rafah”

UNITED NATIONS (IPS) – The United States is seeking the approval of the new interim government in Baghdad for a joint UK-U.S. resolution that will legitimize the continuing military occupation of Iraq. Iraq’s newly-anointed foreign minister, Hoshyar Zebari, is due to arrive in New York later this week to voice his government’s support for the … Continue reading “US Seeks Iraqi Nod for Continued Occupation”

CARACAS (IPS) – Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez admitted that the opposition may have gathered enough signatures to trigger a recall referendum that could remove him from power within the next few months. The political crisis thus seems to be moving smoothly in the direction of a peaceful, electoral solution, according to analysts. “I never said … Continue reading “Chávez Says Opposition May Have Enough Signatures”

A friend recently asked me to write some about how Iraqis are getting by in regards to feeding themselves amidst 60% unemployment, the fuel crisis, and the already terrible security situation that continues to degrade. The increased number of women and children begging for dinars on the streets of Baghdad shows, more than anything else, … Continue reading “Hospitality and Hunger in Baghdad”

Jose Padilla, originally detained for an alleged “dirty bomb” plot, is now being accused of conspiring to blow up apartment buildings with natural gas. Padilla, a New York-born American citizen, has been held since May 2002 without being charged. He was forbidden to speak to a lawyer until February 2004, shortly before the Supreme Court … Continue reading “Justice Dept. Changes Story on Padilla”