Updated at 9:09 p.m. EDT, June 6, 2010
A spate of attacks focused on Baghdad and surrounding communities. Overall, at least 12 Iraqis were killed and 46 more were wounded in those and other attacks across the country. Meanwhile, a lack of water could fuel Iraq’s next insurgency. Also, cross-border attacks between Turkish forces and the PKK continue in the north.
Updated at 6:02 p.m. EDT, June 3, 2010
At least 14 Iraqis were killed and 42 more were wounded in the latest attacks and in a mass grave discovered near the capital. Also, the PKK, which has sought to give Kurds an independent country have ended their unilateral truce with Turkey.
The condemnations, the imprecations, the expressions of shock are rolling in, as the nations of the world raise their voices in protest over the Mediterranean massacre carried out by Israeli commandos, but rather than get into specifics, I want to note a general pattern that this incident seems to confirm. It is often said, by …
Continue reading “The Mediterranean Massacre”
Updated at 8:22 p.m. EDT, May 29, 2010
The drawn-out selection of the next prime minister continues to vex both citizens and the men who propose to run the country, as the current prime minister continues to fight for a second term. Meanwhile, a Kurdish rebel leader threatens to bow out of the peace process with Turkey over disinterest from Ankara. Also, light violence left at least eight Iraqis dead and six more wounded.
Updated at 8:50 p.m. EDT, May 27, 2010
At least four Iraqis were killed and 28 more were wounded in the latest attacks. Also, Turkey reported killing another 19 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels in last week’s air assault. Independently confirmed accounts are impossible from this region of Iraq; however, the PKK has admitted so some deaths. Also, one Turkish soldier was killed and four more were wounded in clashes on the Turkish side of the border.
“I think this announcement is as convincing an answer to the efforts undertaken in Tehran over the last few days as any we could provide,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on START (strategic arms reduction treaty) on May 18, announcing the introduction of a draft resolution to …
Continue reading “How Dare They Make a Deal With Iran?”
Updated at 8:12 p.m. EDT, May 20, 2010
At least 10 Iraqis were killed and 46 were wounded in a series of small attacks across the country. Meanwhile, the prime minister issued an incendiary statement basically telling the winning party in parliamentary elections to give up on heading the new government. Also, Turkish warplanes launched a two-hour air strike on about 50 suspected PKK rebel locations.
When Brazil and Turkey clinched a deal with Iran over its disputed nuclear program last weekend, the two non-permanent members of the Security Council not only challenged the unbridled political power exercised by the five big powers but also jeopardized U.S. plans for a unanimous resolution imposing sanctions against Tehran. As a result, the 15-member …
Continue reading “Brazil-Turkey Deal with Iran Undermines Big Power Politics”
The administration of President Barack Obama has reacted skeptically to the nuclear swap accord signed Monday by Iran, Turkey, and Brazil, suggesting that Tehran would have to take significant additional steps to satisfy U.S. and Western demands to curb its nuclear program. “We acknowledge the efforts that have been made by Turkey and Brazil,” White …
Continue reading “Brazil-Turkey-Mediated Iran Deal Puts Ball in US Court”
In the latest violence, at least 14 Iraqis were killed and 24 more were wounded. Turkish warplanes chasing Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels across the border bombed suspected hideouts in northern Iraq, after an attack that left two soldiers dead in Turkey; rebels denied any loses on their side. Mea
