be just

Attacking Iran for Israel? - by Ray McGovern : "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is at her mushroom-cloud hyperbolic best, and this time Iran is the target. Her claim last week that 'the policies of Iran constitute perhaps the single greatest challenge to American security interests in the Middle East and around the world' is simply too much of a stretch."

52% of Americans support military strike against Iran : World : DAILY YOMIURI ONLINE (The Daily Yomiuri)

Iran has 'evidence' US backing 'terrorists' - New Zealand's source for World News on Stuff.co.nz : "Iran has access to evidence of US support for terrorist groups in the Middle East, a senior Iranian official has been quoted as saying. "

The American Police State : "A Dallas jury, a week ago, deadlocked in its deliberations and caused a mistrial in the government case against this country’s largest Islamic charity. The action raises a defiant fist on the sinking ship of American democracy. "

On Track for U.S. Collapse : "Bush and Cheney are steering the U.S. into a collapse. Only strong public voices by influential people can prevent the coming disaster. We desperately need for men and women who are known to the public and have credibility to speak up in the critical period ahead to avoid catastrophe."

US: Iran seeks nuclear weapons - Yahoo! News : "WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States on Monday brushed aside the UN nuclear watchdog agency chief's warning that there was no proof Iran seeks atomic weapons, and invited him to stay out of diplomacy with Tehran. "

AlterNet: Rights and Liberties: The Bush Era's Dark Legacy of Torture It was not the first time the Congress has discussed extraordinary rendition -- or Arar's case, for that matter. The case achieved notoriety years ago, and YouTube contains multiple clips of a very angry Sen. Patrick Leahy laying into former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales this past winter about the torture of Maher Arar. "We knew damn well if he went to Canada he wouldn't be tortured," the Vermont senator boomed. "He'd be held and he'd be investigated. We also knew damn well if he went to Syria he'd be tortured. And it's beneath the dignity of this country ... to send somebody to another country to be tortured. You know and I know that this has happened a number of times the past five years by this country."

Somalis demand that Ethiopians leave - Independent Online Edition > Africa : "Hundreds of protesters demanding the departure of government-allied Ethiopian troops burned tires and threw stones yesterday in the Somali capital as some of the worst violence in months continued for a second day. "

The Daily Star - Politics - Three dead as Ethiopian troops open fire on protesters in Mogadishu : "MOGADISHU: Ethiopian forces opened fire on demonstrators protesting against their presence in Mogadishu on Sunday, killing at least three, witnesses said, as fresh violence engulfed the Somali capital. A crowd of hundreds of protesters chanting 'Allahu akhbar' (God is great) and wielding sticks had been marching in the streets of southern Mogadishu in reaction to the latest Ethiopian crackdown on the insurgency when the deaths occurred."

Iran Adapts to Economic Pressure : "Confronted by mounting U.S. and U.N. pressure, Iran has been steadily shifting its trade from West to East and, with the benefit of record high oil prices, is likely to be able to withstand the new U.S. sanctions, according to U.S., European and Iranian analysts."

herald scotland glasgow edinburgh newspaper news scot newsquest gannett : "e US is secretly upgrading special stealth bomber hangars on the British island protectorate of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean in preparation for strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, according to military sources."

Muslimedia.com : "or those who spend time observing and analysing the US’s policy toward Iran objectively, it is commonplace to point out that there always seem to be two entirely different trends to developments, which point in different directions and yet maintain an uneasy co-existence. This understanding is based on both what is happening now with regards to Iran, and parallels with what happened a few years ago, in the build-up to the American invasion of Iraq in 2003."

Basra fight pointless, says British commander - Telegraph : "One of the most senior British commanders in Iraq has claimed that there is no point in fighting on in Basra, likening British troops in the city to 'Robocop' and admitting that innocent people were hurt as a result of their actions."

Al Jazeera English - News - Fighting Rages In Mogadishu Fighting in Mogadishu has raged for a second day with Ethiopian troops clashing with Muslim fighters in the Somali capital's heaviest battles for weeks. Local media reported that at least 15 people have been killed in fighting in the last two days, including as many as seven Ethiopian soldiers.

blackagendareport.com - ‘Self-Help’: A Stolen Word Wielded as a Weapon Against Black Activism : "True Self-Help Earlier this year, Black Agenda Report and CBC Monitor circulated a petition with a list of seven demands for presentation to the Congressional Black Caucus. All were rooted in issues that lay at the core of the Historical Black Political Consensus; positions around which many generations of African Americans had coalesced. Most were related to existing legislation before Congress. 1. Dismantle racially selective mass incarceration. 2. Aid and empower those dispersed and dispossessed by Katrina. 3. End the war in Iraq now. 4. Get the U.S. military out of Africa. 5. Transform the cities and create millions of jobs. 6. Establish truly universal, single payer health care. 7. Ensure voting rights."

The End Of Civilization If I can see this, I would guess the United States Government, what with its thousands of full time experts, probably can too. Now, if you are the government (and I don’t mean Tom “I am the federal government” DeLay), and your experts tell you that civilization as we know it is doomed, what do you do? Well, for starters, you do not tell your population of sheeple. That would precipitate panic and result in premature doom, which would consume the government along with everything else. Above all, government seeks to survive, so you would maintain the facade of normalcy for the benefit of your population while you use what time you have left to prepare, as quietly as possible, for the inescapable future. ............... Elections are one such distraction. Elections arouse peoples’ passions and keep them entertained for weeks or months. Elections even give people the illusion of participation, when, in fact, elections mean absolutely nothing in a country like the Un...

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Neocons Embrace Islamic Terror Group : "The U.S. State Department officially considers the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) a Foreign Terrorist Organization. While those honors date back to 1994, they've been renewed during the Bush years. Indeed in 2003 Foggy Bottom went further, including the National Council of Resistance of Iran -- an MEK alias -- under the terrorist designation. (The MEK is also known as the People's Mujahedeen.)"

AlterNet: ForeignPolicy: Bush's Response to 9/11 Was Deadlier Than the Attacks Themselves : "They came in as unreformed Cold Warriors, only lacking a cold war -- and looking for an enemy: a Russia to roll back even further; rogue states like Saddam's rickety dictatorship to smash. They were still in the old fight, eager to make sure that the 'Evil Empire,' already long down for the count, would remain prostrate forever; eager to ensure that any new evil empire like, say, China's would never be able to stand tall enough to be a challenge. They saw opportunities to move into areas previously beyond the reach of American imperial power like the former SSRs of the Soviet Union in Central Asia, which just happened to be sitting on potentially fabulous undeveloped energy fields; or farther into the even more fabulously energy-rich Middle East, where Saddam's Iraq, planted atop the planet's third largest reserves of petroleum, seemed so ready for a fall -- wit...

Michael Rubin: Neocon Bunting on Giuliani’s Dog and Pony Show : Another Day in the Empire : "Astute political commentators realize Rudy Giuliani doesn’t stand a chance of becoming the next commander and decider guy, as that position is reserved for a Democrat, most likely Hillary Clinton. Our rulers are fond of the musical chairs process, selecting a Republican one term and a Democrat the next, providing the illusion we are throwing out the bums, when in fact we are voting for the same old globalist one-worlders. Thus Giuliani has nothing to lose by staffing his campaign with irredeemable neocons, most recently Michael Rubin and David Frum. “They join a staunchly neo-conservative team that includes Martin Kramer, an Israeli-American Shi’ism expert who wrote a book several years ago faulting the U.S. Middle East academic community for failing to anticipate the rise of al-Qaeda; Norman Podhoretz, a founder of the neo-conservative movement, who counsels a military strike to stop Iran...

Senate and Neocons Agree to Carve Up Bill of Rights : Another Day in the Empire : "It’s now official, the entire Senate is criminally complicit in undermining the Fourth Amendment. “Senate Democrats and Republicans reached agreement with the Bush administration yesterday on the terms of new legislation to control the federal government’s domestic surveillance program, which includes a highly controversial grant of legal immunity to telecommunications companies that have assisted the program, according to congressional sources,” reports the CIA’s favorite newspaper, the Washington Post."

Abu Aardvark: Iraq: tactics vs strategy, revisited Body counts are only one small part of a much larger puzzle. What I want to know is not the day to day casualty trends, or good news stories from some carefully selected hamlet, or the latest assassination of an Awakening shaykh. I want to know: does the devolution to the local level make strategic sense, even if it reaps short-term tactical sense? Towards what endpoint are the tactics leading? Do we want to see a unified Iraq with a sustainable political accord - the official goal of American policy, as Undersecretary of State Nick Burns reminded the DACOR audience yesterday? If so, are American political and military tactics encouraging or discouraging such an outcome? Those are questions that we could be discussing in this moment of relative American political respite, but there's really not much of it (a moment of self-criticism here: I suppose I should give credit to the Biden partition/federalism resolution effort...

BBC NEWS | Africa | Heavy fighting in Somali capital : "Some of the heaviest fighting in months has broken out between Ethiopian forces and local insurgents in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu."

Al Jazeera English - News - Us To Force Diplomats To Go To Iraq The US state department has said it will require its diplomats to staff its embassy in Iraq due to a lack of volunteers. Forty to 50 posts will be open next year in the embassy, located in Baghdad's fortified green zone. Until now postings have been staffed on a voluntary basis and have often been hard to fill. Up to 300 US diplomats will be notified that they are "prime candidates" for one-year terms in Iraq.

Asia Times Online :: Middle East News - US soldiers shy from battle in Iraq WATERTOWN, New York - Iraq war veterans now stationed at a base here in upstate New York say that morale among US soldiers in the country is so poor, many are simply parking their Humvees and pretending to be on patrol, a practice dubbed "search and avoid" missions.

State minister 'encouraged massacre of 2,500 Muslims' - Independent Online Edition > Asia : "ndia's largest opposition party has dismissed claims that its government in the state of Gujarat encouraged the killing of nearly 2,500 Muslims in March 2002. The allegations against the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were made in secret video recordings by an investigative magazine which were also broadcast on local television. The BJP says the allegations are a conspiracy hatched by India's governing Congress party ahead of elections in Gujarat next month." India is a so called democratic country. Muslims were victims of the whole system for so long along with others like untouchables. Democratic election used there to oppress minorities even though minorities reached the highest place in government. In India there is open fascism practiced without being accountable for it.

CTV.ca | Canada asks U.S. to remove Arar from no-fly lists : "Canada formally asked the United States on Thursday to remove former Canadian terror suspect Maher Arar from its no-fly list -- a day after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice publicly admitted Washington bungled the case." Maher Arar was kidnapped by Americans then transferred to Syria to be tortured by America and his name is still on the so called No Fly Zone after the fact this man like thousands like him found completely innocents. The slave woman Condominium [Condoleezza]Rice ones said “We don't torture” yet her masters with her knowledge and in front of the world America tortured people around the world and extradite prisoners to be tortured. America is becoming slowly a fascist state where Muslims are the first victims of the 21st century. Those who are watching from a distance, they will be next after Muslims perished and punished just for being Muslims.

Waterboarding stance may hurt Mukasey confirmation - - The Washington Times, America's Newspaper : "Retired U.S. District Judge Michael B. Mukasey's nomination as attorney general may have run into unexpected trouble yesterday after his refusal last week to say whether the interrogation practice of waterboarding constituted torture."

The Raw Story | US Embassy offers just $12,500 for boy slain by Blackwater : "For the families of Iraqi civilians killed by the US security firm Blackwater last month, it may be difficult to place a monetary value on the loss of their loved ones -- but they agree it has to more than the few thousand dollars currently being offered up by the US Embassy. The embassy made a rare move on Wednesday to compensate surviving victims and the families of fatalities related to a Sept. 16 shooting incident involving Blackwater's private security guards, according to a report in the Washington Post by Sudarsan Raghavan. But the money being offered -- just 12,500 in one case involving the death of a 10-year old boy named Ali -- is being greeted with disgust by many. Ali's father, Mohammad Hafud Abdul Razaq, turned the embassy's offer down cold, telling the US Embassy's deputy chief of mission Patracia Butenis the amount was 'far too little.' What he wanted, according ...

Guantanamo military lawyer breaks ranks to condemn 'unconscionable' detention - Independent Online Edition > Americas : "An American military lawyer and veteran of dozens of secret Guantanamo tribunals has made a devastating attack on the legal process for determining whether Guantanamo prisoners are 'enemy combatants'. The whistleblower, an army major inside the military court system which the United States has established at Guantanamo Bay, has described the detention of one prisoner, a hospital administrator from Sudan, as 'unconscionable'."

Welcome to 'Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week' - by Khody Akhavi Right-wing pundit David Horowitz was in rare form during a tightly controlled "public speech" at the George Washington University on Thursday night, decrying the US academic Left as a hateful "lynch mob" who act as apologists for the impending threat of the "Islamo-fascist" jihad.

Ethiopia's dictator warns opposition - BBC » Ethiopian Review

Endgame for Iraqi Oil? - by Jack Miles and Tom Engelhardt Before the invasion of Iraq, while millions demonstrated in the streets, often waving homemade placards with "No Blood for Oil" – or equivalents like "Don't Trade Lives for Oil" and like "How Did USA's Oil Get Under Iraq's Sand?" – the Bush administration said remarkably little about the vast quantities of petroleum on which Saddam Hussein's regime was perched. The President did, however, speak reverently about preserving not Iraq's "energy reserves" but its "patrimony," as he so euphemistically put it. The American mainstream media followed suit, dismissing arguments about the significance of Iraqi and Middle Eastern oil as the refuge of, if not scoundrels, then at least truly simpleminded dissidents who knew not whereof they spoke. Generally, in our news pages and on the TV news, with Iraq at the edge of a shock-and-awe invasion, Iraqi energy reserves were d...

Wars May Cost $2.4 Trillion Over Decade he wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could cost as much as $2.4 trillion through the next decade, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday. The White House brushed off the analysis as "speculation." The estimate was the most comprehensive and far-reaching one to date. It factored in costs previously not counted and assumed that large number of forces would remain in the regions. According to analysis, the U.S. has spent about $604 billion on the wars, including $39 billion in diplomatic operations and foreign aid. If the U.S. were to reduce the number of troops deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan to 75,000 six years from now, it would cost the U.S. $1 trillion more for military and diplomatic operations and $705 billion in interest payments to pay for the wars through 2017.

Al Jazeera English - News - Blowback, Pakistan-Style

Erdogan warns of sanctions against Iraq : "ANKARA - Turkey is considering economic sanctions against Iraq over the presence of Kurdish rebel sanctuaries there, Anatolia news agency quoted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying Tuesday."

Reuters AlertNet - FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, Oct 23 : "* SAMARRA - The U.S. military said six Iraqi civilians were among 11 people killed in an air strike by an attack helicopter near Samarra, 100 km (60 miles) north of Baghdad, after five men were seen planting a roadside bomb. Iraqi police said 16 civilians, including women and children, were killed and 14 wounded."

Poll shows global opposition to Iran - and U.S. | Reuters : "BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Iran is the country most people around the world would like see having less power, followed closely by the United States, a new opinion poll showed on Wednesday. The survey, which polled 57,000 people from 52 countries, showed 39 percent of respondents wanted to see the influence of Iran diminished, compared with 37 percent for the United States." Apparently those people who are surveyed can’t distinguish between RAPIST and a country like Iran threatened by it.

AKI - Adnkronos international Iraq: At least 60 killed in clashes north of Baghdad

US Army Lures Foreigners with Promise of Citizenship More than 30,000 foreign troops are enlisted in the US Army, many of them serving in Iraq. Their reward for risking their lives for their adopted country is US citizenship. When Anna Maria Clarke, 26, was a teenager living in the western German city of Mannheim, she already had a weakness for smart uniforms, particularly on American soldiers, and for war movies like "Full Metal Jacket." It was an attraction that Clarke, a German citizen, felt early on and still feels today.

Baghdad Burning : "It is estimated that there are at least 1.5 million Iraqis in Syria today. I believe it. Walking down the streets of Damascus, you can hear the Iraqi accent everywhere. There are areas like Geramana and Qudsiya that are packed full of Iraqi refugees. Syrians are few and far between in these areas. Even the public schools in the areas are full of Iraqi children. A cousin of mine is now attending a school in Qudsiya and his class is composed of 26 Iraqi children, and 5 Syrian children. It’s beyond belief sometimes. Most of the families have nothing to live on beyond their savings which are quickly being depleted with rent and the costs of living. "

Say What You Like, Just Don’t Say It Here - New York Times : "Two cases pending in federal court in Manhattan will soon test how far the government can go in keeping Americans safe from what a State Department manual calls the “irresponsible expressions of opinion by prominent aliens.” One case concerns a decision by the Bush administration to bar a Muslim scholar from visiting the United States. The other is a criminal prosecution of two Brooklyn businessmen for transmitting Hezbollah’s television station on their satellite service."

Tough going for antiwar Republicans

Cold-blooded murders Abdul Nasser Al Kubaisi, a chieftain of one Fallujah tribe, told Gulf News: "It is likely that what happened in Fallujah three years ago will happen in Baghdad too after the cold-blooded murders committed against innocent Iraqis by members of these security firms. So, to avoid this happening, these companies should leave Iraq right away". The American and British companies are facing resentment and indignation after the incident in Nisoor Square, where 17 Iraqis were killed, and the murder of two Iraqi women in the Al Masbah neighbourhood by personnel working for an Australian security firm.

TODAY'S ZAMAN "Diplomatic means should be used and dialogue should continue between Iraq and Turkey," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told reporters on Sunday. "Any solution that creates tension will only worsen the situation in northern Iraq, although we believe there is a need to confront the terrorist 'grouplets'."

Al Jazeera English - News - Scores Killed In Us Iraq Raid : "US forces in Iraq say they have killed 49 'criminals' during a raid in Sadr City, but Iraqi witnesses said many of the dead were actually civilians and children. "

ONLF military operation resulted in 140 Woyannes dead » Ethiopian Review : "At 6am local Ogaden time on October 20th a major ONLF military operation involving nearly one thousand ONLF troops near the town of Caado located 25km northwest of Wardheer resulted in over 140 TPLF regime troops killed with many more wounded. The TPLF regime troops were escorting Abay Tsehaye, a senior TPLF official and close confidant of Melez Zenawi."

US will not be able to use Afghanistan to attack: Iran FM - Yahoo! News : "HERAT, Afghanistan (AFP) - Iran believes Afghanistan would never allow its soil to be used by the United States to launch an attack, the Iranian foreign minister said here Saturday."

Bush's Pentagon Papers: The Urge to Confess - by Tom Engelhardt They can't help themselves. They want to confess. How else to explain the torture memorandums that continue to flow out of the inner sancta of this administration, the most recent of which were evidently leaked to the New York Times. Those two, from the Alberto Gonzales Justice Department, were written in 2005 and recommitted the administration to the torture techniques it had been pushing for years. As the Times noted, the first of those memorandums, from February of that year, was "an expansive endorsement of the harshest interrogation techniques ever used by the Central Intelligence Agency." The second "secret opinion" was issued as Congress moved to outlaw "cruel, inhuman, and degrading" treatment (not that such acts weren't already against U.S. and international law). It brazenly "declared that none of the C.I.A. interrogation methods violated that standard"; and, t...

abc13.com: News from KTRK, around the world : "The Topol RS-12M rocket hit its intended target on Kamchatka near the Pacific Ocean, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces said in a statement. The launch, from the Plesetsk launch facility in northern Russia, was part of the country's plan to upgrade its ballistic missiles and extend the life of its Topol missiles."

Foreign fighters seen on the rise�-�-�The Washington Times, America's Newspaper : "Foreign fighters are entering Afghanistan from Pakistan in greater numbers than at any time since the Taliban was ousted in 2001, Afghanistan's defense minister said yesterday."

Reconstruction In Iraq at a Crawl, Auditor Reports : "Provincial reconstruction teams, the civilian centerpiece of the Bush administration's strategy in Iraq, are making 'incremental' progress in some areas and very little in others, a government auditor told Congress yesterday. 'Improvement . . . is likely to be slow and will require years of steady engagement,' Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction , told a House panel. The teams are designed to help Iraqis build and maintain democratic institutions, provide basic services and create jobs at a local level. There are about two dozen teams spread across Iraq, each staffed with a handful to several dozen U.S. civilian and military subject experts."

Putin attacks US foreign policy, announces new nuclear weapon - Yahoo! News : "MOSCOW (AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday chastised the United States over its policy in Iraq and Iran, and announced 'grandiose' military plans, including development of a new nuclear weapon."

Mass Murderin the Horn of Africa- by Justin Raimondo

The Associated Press: UN: Private Military Recruiting Booming : "GENEVA (AP) — The use of private security guards like those involved in the shooting deaths of Iraqi civilians is part of a growing new form of mercenary activity — the recruitment of people around the globe to peform military jobs in other nations, a U.N. report says."

Blackwater: Mercenaries by Definition : "Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater mercenaries, has been a huge financial supporter of George W. Bush and the Republican Party. That might explain why Mister Bush's State Department worked with Prince's people to try and cover up the latest Blackwater slaughter of civilians in Iraq, and could be a big part of the reason why so many Republicans came to the chief mercenary's defense during Congressional hearings. His fondness for and belief in all things Republican probably answers too, Erik Prince's problem with honesty.Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater mercenaries, has been a huge financial supporter of George W. Bush and the Republican Party. That might explain why Mister Bush's State Department worked with Prince's people to try and cover up the latest Blackwater slaughter of civilians in Iraq, and could be a big part of the reason why so many Republicans came to the chief mercenary's defense during Co...

Think Progress » Abizaid: ‘We’ve Treated The Arab World As A Collection Of Big Gas Stations’ UPDATE: The Stanford Daily, which originally reported on the round table, incorrectly attributed some of New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman’s comments to Gen. Abizaid. Though Abizaid did say “Of course it’s about oil, we can’t really deny that,”

The price of an Iraqi life-$500 to $5,000 The price of an Iraqi life, for purposes of compensation for the families of civilians killed by Americans, can be as low as $500 and as high as $8 million. It depends on who does the assessment. On the low end, $500 was paid to the brother of a man caught in a firefight outside the gate of his house. The $8 million is what the Iraqi government is demanding for the families of each of the 17 people it said were killed when private security contractors guarding U.S. diplomats opened fire in a crowded Baghdad square on September 16. In between those poles, payments are frequently in the $3,000 to $5,000 range. High-profile victims whose death might have an impact on U.S.-Iraqi relations command more. Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi's bodyguard, Raheem Khalif, for example. He was shot dead last Christmas Eve by a drunken contractor of the U.S. private security company Blackwater, whose men were also involved in the September shooting. The inci...

The Real Iraq We Knew Against this backdrop, the U.S. military has been trying in vain to hold the country together. Even with "the surge," we simply do not have enough soldiers and marines to meet the professed goals of clearing areas from insurgent control, holding them securely and building sustainable institutions. Though temporary reinforcing operations in places like Fallujah, An Najaf, Tal Afar, and now Baghdad may brief well on PowerPoint presentations, in practice they just push insurgents to another spot on the map and often strengthen the insurgents' cause by harassing locals to a point of swayed allegiances. Millions of Iraqis correctly recognize these actions for what they are and vote with their feet -- moving within Iraq or leaving the country entirely. Still, our colonels and generals keep holding on to flawed concepts.

Iraqi Writer Butheina Al-Nasiri on American Killings in Iraq | AfterDowningStreet.org Buthaina Al-Nasiri is a well-known and prolific Iraqi writer and journalist living in Cairo. In response to my last article (on American killings in Iraq), she offers these thoughts on the wholesale slaughter of Iraqis by American forces, and on the routine and deceptive mis-identification of those killed (males) as "members of Al Qaeda": You may remember that the Iraqi resistance has called by the US spinners by different names at different stages of invasion and occupation: 1. First they were "dead enders" and "Saddam's hunchmen," etc. That was before arresting Saddam Hussein. 2. Next they were called insurgents, after the puppet government was installed . Insurgency means revolting against a legal, recognized government. 3. At last they are being called Al Qaeda terrorists. Every anti-occupation group is now referred to as Al Qaeda. Every man killed by the troops i...

“A defiant Blackwater Chairman Erik Prince said yesterday he will not allow Iraqi authorities to arrest his contractors and try them in Iraq's faulty justice system.” The owner of the mercenary company spoke the truth here. However, he may not be able to defend and protect himself and his murderous group.from the prosecution. The fact he doesn’t belief in Iraqi system that setup by his government and his president (another war criminal like Erik is) means nothing. He hires people to kill civilians and terrorizing a nation(s) under occupation: If there is justice in the world or in the part of the world he could have been standing on trial today; the reality is, George W. Bush and his criminal gang will never see a day in trial.

Ethiopia's 'own Darfur' as villagers flee government-backed violence - Independent Online Edition > Africa : "But while Khartoum's counter-insurgency in Darfur has been described by the US as 'genocide' and by the UN as 'crimes against humanity', international condemnation of Ethiopia has, so far, been limited. Indeed, the US has given its backing to Ethiopia. America's top official on African affairs, assistant secretary of state, Jendayi Frazer, visited one town in the Ogaden last month. On her return to Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, she criticised the rebels and said the reports of military abuses were merely allegations. 'We urge any and every government to respect human rights and to try to avoid civilian casualties but that's difficult in dealing with an insurgency,' she said. America sees Ethiopia as its principal Horn of Africa ally in the 'war on terror'. The US gave tacit approval for Ethiopia's Christ...

Ethiopia's 'own Darfur' as villagers flee government-backed violence - Independent Online Edition > Africa Early one June morning, in Kamuda, a village of 200 families in the remote Ogaden region in eastern Ethiopia, 180 soldiers announced their arrival by firing guns in the air. The village, they said, had been providing food and shelter for the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a separatist rebel group . As the villagers froze in horror, the soldiers plucked out seven young women, all aged between 15 and 18, and left. The following morning the youngest girl was found. Her body, bloodied and beaten, was hanging from a tree. The next day a second girl was found hanging from the same tree. A third suffered the same fate. The others were never seen again.........

ei: Separation of families "priority humanitarian issue" : "JERUSALEM, 14 October 2007 (IRIN) - Some 580 women living in the occupied Golan region are disconnected from their families in Syria as they are not allowed to cross from the occupied zone to their homeland, a new women's organization has said."

Electronic Lebanon: Palestinians return to desolate, dangerous camp : "NAHR AL-BARED, 12 October (IRIN) - The first Palestinian families displaced by 15 weeks of intense fighting between the army and Islamist militants that left much of north Lebanon's Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in ruins have begun returning home to start rebuilding their lives."

Resentment and Rations as Eritrea Nears a Crisis - New York Times

Opium in Afghanistan: Eradicate or subsidize? - International Herald Tribune : "As opium harvests in Afghanistan have steadily increased, some politicians and think tanks - mostly in Britain - have raised a trenchant question: Rather than trying to eradicate Afghanistan's poppies, why not buy them and make morphine? Given that the World Health Organization estimates that more than 6.2 million of the world's poor are dying of cancer, AIDS, burns and wounds without adequate pain relief, the argument goes, wouldn't it make sense?"

Israel refuses entry to 6 Gazans in urgent need of medical care - Haaretz - Israel News : "The defense establishment is preventing the entry into Israel of six Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in urgent need of medical attention, Army Radio reported on Sunday. The six, all sick with cancer or heart conditions, twice requested permission to enter, and were denied both times due to security considerations, according to the report. "

Iraqi warlord's defeat only hardens his resolve : " IRBIL, Iraq — The Muslim warlord reclines in suburban opulence. He smiles mischievously despite his recent troubles. Over the last five years, his once heavily armed Kurdish militia has been disbanded, his mountainside base crushed by U.S. cruise missiles, his movement thrown into chaos. He was locked up at Baghdad's notorious Camp Cropper with his former blood enemies, including former President Saddam Hussein. But Sheik Ali Bapir, the charismatic 46-year-old leader of a Kurdish organization called the Islamic Group, believes he has come through his travails as a winner."

Gulfnews: Baquba residents tense amid rise in armed factions : "Abdul Salam Al Naseri, an Iraqi journalist, told Gulf News: 'The American forces chose adventurous policies that carry lots of risk for Iraqis. The situation in Baquba is complicated and I believe Americans might plan to instigate a war between Shiite and Sunni gunmen to weaken the two, besides Americans created this atmosphere that lead Sunni gunmen to fight Al Qaida and Shiite gunmen to attack Iranian influence in the region.'"

Al Jazeera English - News - Israel And Hezbollah Agree Exchange : "Lebanon's Hezbollah movement has agreed to hand over the remains of an Israeli in exchange for a Lebanese prisoner and the bodies of two of the group's fighters. "

Al Jazeera English - News - Israel To Resume Al-Aqsa Dig : "Israel has decided to resume controversial excavation work outside the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Arab East Jerusalem. The digging, which Israel says will clear the way for construction of a new pedestrian walkway to the Old City compound, sparked angry protests from Muslims when it was begun in February."

Robert Fisk: A reign of terror which history has chosen to neglect - Independent Online Edition > Robert Fisk : "On 15 September 1915, for example (and a carbon of this document exists), Talaat Pasha, the Turkish Interior minister, cabled an instruction to his prefect in Aleppo about what he should do with the tens of thousands of Armenians in his city. 'You have already been informed that the government... has decided to destroy completely all the indicated persons living in Turkey... Their existence must be terminated, however tragic the measures taken may be, and no regard must be paid to either age or sex, or to any scruples of conscience.'"

Afrique Informations - Actualité et infos sur l'Afrique - Namibia shuts down mercenary firm, deports 2 US citizens : "Windhoek, Namibia - Namibia has deported two US citizens and shut down an American mercenary firm for recruiting Namibians to work as 'security guards' in war torn Iraq and Afghanistan. "

Erdogan: Whatever The Cost Is, It Will Be Met : "ISTANBUL - 'If we decide on a cross-border operation, we do not have patience to lose more time. Whatever the cost is, it will be met,' Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday. "

Aswat Aliraq : "“For more than a year, Rick Francona, then an Air Force lieutenant colonel, was part of a secret CIA task force working to overthrow Saddam Hussein, the Bill Clinton administration’s failed attempt at regime change in Iraq,” the radio said in a report quoting the MSNBC news. Francona said that the U.S. should try to stop the hanging of former Iraqi Defense Minister Sultan Hashim Ahmed, one of the generals recruited in that effort."

Afghanistan 'is going down fast' | The Australian : "The death of Trooper David Pearce underlines the rising dangers for Australia's 1000 soldiers in Afghanistan, most of them deployed in the Taliban's southern heartland -- a region some of Canberra's NATO allies consider too dangerous to fight in. 'This place can only go up or down, and it's going down fast, which is something the international community simply will not understand,' said a security analyst who has been working in and out of Afghanistan for 30 years. Almost six years after the hardline Islamist Taliban were ousted, their insurgency is gaining strength, fuelled by resentment at NATO bombing of civilians, billions of dollars of wasted aid, a lack of jobs and record crops of opium, the raw material for heroin."

"Sources: CIA legal official quit in protest over “enhanced interrogations”" by Ken Silverstein (Harper's Magazine) : "Well over a year ago I reported on a brewing revolt within the CIA over the Bush Administration’s use of renditions, “enhanced interrogation” techniques (otherwise known as torture) and other tough tactics employed in the “war on terrorism.” One former official with whom I spoke at the time told me, “There are people who fear that indictments and subpoenas could be coming down, and they don’t want to get caught up in it.” This person went on to describe a split at the CIA, saying, “There’s an SS group within the agency that’s willing to do anything and there’s a Wehrmacht group that is saying, ‘I’m not gonna touch this stuff’.”"

Former CEO Says U.S. Punished Phone Firm : "A former Qwest Communications International executive, appealing a conviction for insider trading, has alleged that the government withdrew opportunities for contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars after Qwest refused to participate in an unidentified National Security Agency program that the company thought might be illegal. Former chief executive Joseph P. Nacchio, convicted in April of 19 counts of insider trading, said the NSA approached Qwest more than six months before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to court documents unsealed in Denver this week."

Jan Oberg: Gore's Peace Prize, a Grand Misjudgment : "The concept and definition of peace should indeed be broad. But neither of the recipients have made contributions that can match thousands of other individuals and NGOs who devote their lives to fighting militarism, nuclearism, wars, reducing violence, work for peacebuilding, tolerance, reconciliation and co-existence - the core issues of the Nobel Peace Prize. It is also regrettable that the Prize rewards government-related work, rather than civil society - Non-Governmentals, making the implicit point that governments rather than the people make peace. In particular, Al Gore - as vice-president under Bill Clinton between 1993 and 2001 was never heard or seen as a peace-maker. Clinton-Gore had a crash program for building up US military facilities and made military allies all around Russia - and missed history's greatest opportunity for a new world order."

ei: Passing undefeated: Remembering Haider Abdul-Shafi : "Here was someone who always managed to transcend factionalism and religiosity, tribal politics and self-serving ideologies, maintaining his principles through any external difficulties. He co-founded the Palestine Liberation Organization in the 1960s and went on to start the Palestine Red Crescent Society in Gaza in the 1970s. The resilient man led the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid peace talks in 1991 and in 1993 resigned the post after learning from his hotel radio that Yasser Arafat had reached a secret agreement in Oslo without consulting the Palestinian negotiators in Spain. Abdul-Shafi told me, in the first interview I had with him, that learning of Arafat's secret deal from the media was a particularly embarrassing moment for him."

Bravo, Barack Obama! American flag pins are for idiots | Salon.com New Rule: Show me a man wearing an American flag pin in his lapel, and I'll show you an asshole. I'm sure there are exceptions, but in general people need to remember that lapels aren't for wearing pins to create the illusion that you're supporting the troops. They're for wearing ribbons to create the illusion that you're helping cure a disease.

Al Jazeera English - News - Ex-General Calls Iraq A 'Nightmare'

Six Iraqi insurgent groups announce formation of a "political council" to liberate Iraq : "Six main Iraqi insurgent groups announced the formation of a 'political council' aimed at 'liberating' Iraq from U.S. occupation in a video aired Thursday on the Arab TV station Al-Jazeera. The council appeared to be a new attempt to organize and assert the leadership of the multiple insurgent groups, which have moved to distance themselves from another coalition of insurgent factions led by al-Qaida in Iraq. In the video aired on Al-Jazeera, a man identified as the council's spokesman — wearing traditional Iraqi garb and his face blacked out — announced the council's formation and a 'political program to liberate Iraq.'"

Jimmy Carter Slams Bush On Human Rights : "The U.S. tortures prisoners in violation of international law, former President Jimmy Carter said Wednesday, adding that President Bush makes up his own definition of torture. "

Wars strip $284 billion from African economies: report�|�International News�|�Reuters.com : "Wars stripped about $284 billion from Africa's economies between 1990 and 2005, roughly equal to the amount of aid money given to the world's poorest continent, according to a report on Thursday by Oxfam International."

U.S. military: 19 insurgents and 15 civilians, including 9 children, killed in raid targeting al-Qaida in Iraq - International Herald Tribune

FT.com / World - Ethiopia to exchange famine for food : "The government of Ethiopia, which has one of Africa’s most state-dominated economies, is stepping into uncharted territory by launching a commodity exchange to help alleviate food shortages and encourage the commercialisation of agriculture."

Violence has Pakistanis debating US tie - Yahoo! News : "ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Violence linked to growing Islamic militancy in Pakistan has killed more than 1,000 people in a little over three months, fanning opposition to the country's close alliance with the United States."

No, the US Is Not Winning in Anbar - by William S. Lind : "The fact that some Sunni tribes have turned on al-Qaeda does not mean they like us. It just means we have for the moment become the #2 enemy instead of #1, or perhaps #3, with the Shi'ites ranking ahead of us. Some think the Sunnis are just getting whatever they can from us as they prepare for another, more bitter round of the Sunni vs. Shi'ite civil war."

Al Jazeera English - News - Myanmar's War Against Minorities While the recent protests in Myanmar were staged by pro-democracy campaigners, the government has been waging a longer battle with the country's ethnic minorities. There are 100 ethnic communities in Myanmar, but the main ones are found in the state of Chin in the west, and Shan and Karen in the east. They make up roughly one-third of Myanmar's population of 47 million but decades of fighting have seen more than 500,000 people flee across the border to neighbouring countries, mostly to Thailand. Although a number of groups have signed ceasefire agreements with Myanmar's military government some, including those in Karen, continue their armed struggle for autonomy with the help of more than 11,000 members.

ei: Politics of fear Founded in 2003, the ATFP's website states that it is "a not-for-profit organization that advocates to the American people the national security interests of the United States in establishing a Palestinian state." [3] Hoping to replicate the success of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and the Iraqi National Congress in aligning their policy goals with US national interests, the ATFP believes this can be achieved through a program that reflects the Palestine Liberation Organization's (PLO) strategy adopted in 1988 of a peaceful solution based on existing UN resolutions, international law and human rights. That this approach suffers from an inherent and fundamental contradiction appears to have been lost on the ATFP. Namely, that while an independent Palestinian state may be in America's national interest, it has demonstrated absolutely no inclination to support the creation of a Palestinian state based on UN resolutions, int...

50 killed as jets pound village: People fleeing troubled Mirali -DAWN - Top Stories; October 10, 2007 MIRAMSHAH, Oct 9: At least 50 people were killed and some 200 wounded on Tuesday after fighter jets bombed a village market near Mirali town in North Waziristan, witnesses said.

Abu Aardvark: Doing dialogue in Cairo

The Associated Press: U.S.-Led Iraq Coalition Withering Fast : "Britain's decision to bring half of its 5,000 soldiers home from Iraq by spring is the latest blow to the U.S.-led coalition. The alliance is crumbling, and fast: excluding Americans, the multinational force was once 50,000 strong — by mid-2008, it will be down to 7,000."

Has the US Ceded Southern Iraq? - TIME : "U.S. military officers in Iraq often wonder about the possible presence of Iranian operatives in cities south of Baghdad like Karbala and Najaf, two key strongholds for Shi'ite militias thought to have links to Tehran. Many soldiers believe those two cities, home to more than 1.5 million people altogether, are where Shi'ite militants gather, train and arm themselves with help from Iran for attacks against U.S. forces farther north. Some intelligence even suggests that Iran's elite military force, the Revolutionary Guard, has opened training camps in the area for Iraqi guerrillas. But getting a clear picture of the happenings there and in other cities in that region is hard for one simple reason: U.S. troops don't go there anymore."

Tikun Olam-תקון עולם: Make the World a Better Place : "If only Jack Abramoff had known the kid he beat up in high school was going to win a Pulitzer Prize and 'out' him on This American Life ( listen ). Perhaps Jack might've done something a little more useful with his life than lie, cheat and steal in the halls of power. Maybe it would've scared him straight. Who knows."

Al Jazeera English - News - Us Court Dismisses 'Rendition' Case : "The US Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by a Lebanese-born German citizen who said he was kidnapped and tortured by the CIA. The case of Khaled el-Masri was a high profile case of the CIA's 'rendition' programme under which people regarded as terror suspects by the US are seized in one country and taken to another for interrogation."

Al Jazeera English - News - Thompson Warns Of 'Islamic Fascism' : "Fred Thompson, the actor and ex-senator who has joined the Republican race for the US presidency, has vowed to halt the spread of 'Islamic fascism' during a televised debate with his party rivals. Thompson said 'It is a global war - Islamic fascism has declared it upon us,' during the debate with his eight rivals in Michigan on Tuesday. "

The man who stands between US and new war - Telegraph : "Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, has taken charge of the forces in the American government opposed to a US military attack on Iran, writes Tim Shipman."

Watada: What's a (thoughtful) lieutenant to do? : "Let's assume Lt. Col. John Head, the Army judge who presided over the first court-martial of Lt. Ehren Watada last February, used impeccable legal reasoning when he denied Watada the right to insist that the war in Iraq is illegal -- which, the young soldier says, makes it his sworn duty to protect the Constitution by refusing to fight in such a war."

U.S. considered radiological weapon : " 10/08/07 'AP' -- -- WASHINGTON --In one of the longest-held secrets of the Cold War, the U.S. Army explored the potential for using radioactive poisons to assassinate 'important individuals' such as military or civilian leaders, according to newly declassified documents obtained by The Associated Press."

Military sees big decline in black enlistees : "African-Americans, whose longstanding relationship with the US military helped them prove their abilities and offered a way to get ahead, have turned away from the armed forces in record numbers since 2000, a period covering the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the start of the Iraq war. Defense Department statistics show the number of young black enlistees has fallen by more than 58 percent since fiscal year 2000. The Army in particular has been hit hard: In fiscal year 2000, according to the Pentagon statistics, more than 42,000 black men and women applied to enlist; in fiscal year 2005, the most recent for which a racial breakdown is available, just over 17,000 signed up."

Nato troops kill four civilians in Afghanistan : "KABUL: Nato soldiers shot dead three Afghan civilians when they did not heed warnings to stop near checkpoints or military vehicles, while police shot dead a woman in similar circumstances, officials said on Sunday."

Asia Times Online :: South Asia news - India holds key in NATO's world view : "Washington genuinely seeks a NATO-India partnership. As NATO retools for the 21st century for new missions in Africa and South Asia, and as it advances across the Middle East toward the Indian Ocean, looking for global partnerships (numbering 20 at present), India inevitably figures in its agenda. This became starkly evident last month. "

Al Jazeera English - Focus - Pakistani Army's '$20Bn' Business : "As legislators in Pakistan go to the polls against a backdrop of political protests and religious militancy, a recent book on the Pakistani military has thrown light on the army's role in private enterprise. "

NPR : John Hope Franklin Puts a 'Mirror to America' : "All Things Considered, October 30, 2005 · Historian John Hope Franklin has spent much of his life -- 90 years, so far -- investigating the legacy of slavery in America."

Banning Desmond Tutu - City Pages (Minneapolis/St. Paul) : "But in a move that still has faculty members shaking their heads in disbelief, St. Thomas administrators—concerned that Tutu's appearance might offend local Jews—told organizers that a visit from the archbishop was out of the question. 'We had heard some things he said that some people judged to be anti-Semitic and against Israeli policy,' says Doug Hennes, St. Thomas's vice president for university and government relations. 'We're not saying he's anti-Semitic. But he's compared the state of Israel to Hitler and our feeling was that making moral equivalencies like that are hurtful to some members of the Jewish community.'"

Venezuela Responds to US Secretary of Defense | venezuelanalysis.com : "Responding to US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who said that Hugo Chavez is a 'threat to regional stability,' Venezuelan Vice-President Jorge Rodriguez affirmed that Hugo Chavez is indeed a 'tremendous threat' to the 'empires of the world,' and assured they would continue to be a 'greater threat' as time goes on. Responding to US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who said that Hugo Chavez is a 'threat to regional stability,' Venezuelan Vice-President Jorge Rodriguez affirmed that Hugo Chavez is indeed a 'tremendous threat' to the 'empires of the world,' and assured they would continue to be a 'greater threat' as time goes on. "

blackagendareport.com - White Man’s Wars, Past and Present : "Racism is the engine that makes the rich man's world go ‘round. Majorities of white people of all classes identify with their moneyed-brethren, and can be counted on to rally to the racist banner. Such is the case with the U.S. offensive in the Middle East, and the villlianization of Muslims in general. 'Eternal war' is now American policy, but it is a war that has gone on without end for half a millennium, since the Europeans 'discovered' new regions for rape and pillage in 1492. They have since described their march of death as the spread of 'civilization.' Tell that to the 95 percent of indigenous Americans who died when the Europeans arrived, or the tens of millions of Africans whose societies were totally destroyed by the slave trade. And tell it to the one million Iraqis who have perished in the current war. Racism is the engine that makes the rich man's world go ‘round. Majorities ...

Jon Wiener: Who Wants To Bomb Iran? Democrats, Not Republicans, Says Seymour Hersh - Off The Bus on The Huffington Post : "When I asked Hersh who wants to bomb Iran, he said, 'Ironically there is a lot of pressure coming from Democrats. Hillary Clinton, Obama, and Edwards have all said we cannot have a nuclear-armed Iran. Clearly the pressure from Democrats is a reflection of - we might as well say it - Israeli and Jewish input.' He added the obvious: 'a lot of money comes to the Democratic campaigns' from Jewish contributors."

Imagine Peace First of all, imagine a world with no religion. A world where sick and evil people could not manipulate the masses into believing that the set of myths and beliefs that they profess are more important or powerful than the other's set of myths or beliefs. Israelis could not (with the help of Christian extremists) tell Palestinians that it is okay to occupy them or kill them so that the Jews could claim their "Promised Land." Land promised to whom by whom? Muslims could not proclaim "jihad" against infidels. There would have been no Nazi holocaust against Jews; no Crusades; no holocaust against our own native population; no black slavery justified by the Christian scriptures; no George Bush saying that his Christian God is like a mob-boss ordering him to "hit" the world. Imagine that!

allAfrica.com: Somalia: Three People, One of Them a Prominent General Slain in Mogadishu (Page 1 of 1) : "At least three people have been shot dead in Mogadishu city late on Friday, one of them a prominent former intelligence officer, general Ahmed Jila'ow addow known as General Jila'ow. According to eyewitnesses, armed militiamen with pistols have shot and killed General Jila'ow at the crossroad known as (4ta Jardino) at Yaqhsid district in the northern part of Mogadishu, the general was in his car during the incident."

So Who's Afraid of the Israel Lobby? - by Ray McGovern : "Who's afraid of the Israel Lobby? Virtually everyone: Republican, Democrat – Conservative, Liberal. The fear factor is non-partisan, you might say, and palpable. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) brags that it is the most influential foreign policy lobbying organization on Capitol Hill, and has demonstrated that time and again – and not only on Capitol Hill."

Conservatives Are Such Jokers - New York Times : "Reagan thought the issue of hunger in the world’s richest nation was nothing but a big joke. Here’s what Reagan said in his famous 1964 speech “A Time for Choosing,” which made him a national political figure: “We were told four years ago that 17 million people went to bed hungry each night. Well, that was probably true. They were all on a diet.” Today’s leading conservatives are Reagan’s heirs. If you’re poor, if you don’t have health insurance, if you’re sick — well, they don’t think it’s a serious issue. In fact, they think it’s funny."

I was watching Bill Moyer’s Journal this evening. The show was about how Christian Evangelical fascists led by a blood thirsty man by the name of Hagee. (his “last name”) Among his followers and supporters are the president of USA whom elected by millions of people. Hagee has millions of followers who support and applaud the destruction of Iraq, the rape of men and women by Americans in Iraq, the killings of million plus Iraqis, support and applaud the four million Iraqi displacements from their home. Now they are recommending the same fate to be fallen on Iranians claiming the same WMD reasons they have given before the invasion of Iraq. Iraq and Iran doesn’t have nuclear weapons; if they had one, they would have been respected. The cowards who are giving Christianity a bad name driving the policy in Washington to kill off all Muslims wherever they can be found starting with Palestinians. I have confident America’s policies not only will not succeed, but also accelerate the fall of t...

"I'm ashamed of this" : "MIKE GRAVEL: I love my country, and I love the human race. And I want to see a change made in the leadership of our country so we can do more to protect the human race....With respect to my country going to war when there's no reason to go to war, killing human beings, I'm ashamed of this.MIKE GRAVEL: I love my country, and I love the human race. And I want to see a change made in the leadership of our country so we can do more to protect the human race....With respect to my country going to war when there's no reason to go to war, killing human beings, I'm ashamed of this."

U.S. $10 trillion in the red - 10/01/2007 - MiamiHerald.com : "WASHINGTON -- As the national debt heads toward the $10-trillion mark, generous Americans are sending checks to the federal government. Donations to the Bureau of the Public Debt have topped $2.5 million so far this year. That's the highest amount since at least 1996. It's not making much of a dent, though. For the fifth time since 2001, Congress is raising the debt limit, increasing it by $850 billion to $9.815 trillion. The Senate approved the plan on a 53-42 vote Thursday. That's $9,815,000,000,000.00."

Poll: Most Israelis support using nukes | Jerusalem Post : "Approximately 72 percent of Israelis support the use of nuclear weapons in certain circumstances, according to a Canadian survey released recently. "

: "About 80 percent of Americans believe Iran's contested nuclear program is aimed at producing nuclear weapons while only six percent are of the opinion that the program is peaceful, a poll conducted by FOXNews showed."

Al Jazeera English - News - Us Raid In Iraq Kills 'Civilians' : "At least 17 Iraqi civilians, including women and children, have been killed in a US air raid, Iraqi officials and witnesses say. US military officials have yet to respond to the claim, but issued a statement that it had killed 25 Shia fighters in clashes near the city of Baquba, in the same area as the alleged attack on the civilians."

Asia Times Online :: South Asia news - Taliban poised for a big push : "KARACHI - Following the success of their 2006 spring offensive, the Taliban were expected to make even further gains in Afghanistan this year. It never happened, due to strong pre-emptive action by Western coalition forces in Afghanistan and Pakistani military action against Taliban bases in the Pakistani tribal areas. However, plans for a mass uprising on the back of renewed insurgency activity are far from shelved, and could be implemented with vigor at the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan next week, with tens of thousands of freshly trained men pouring into Afghanistan"

ABC News: Mystery Surrounds Soldier's Death : "Massachusetts Army National Guard Spc. Ciara Durkin, 29, on home leave in early September, gave her siblings what now seems ominous advice. She told them that if anything were to happen to her while she was serving to investigate. Friday, Ciara was found dead near a church in the Bagram airfield in Afghanistan. She had been shot in the head. So far, the Army only has said that her death was not combat related."

Iraqi leaders turn against US-created 'militias' - Yahoo! News : "BAGHDAD (AFP) - The Iraqi government lashed out on Thursday against a US military initiative that pits civilians against Al-Qaeda fighters, accusing it of creating new militias in the war-weary nation. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's media adviser Yasin Majeed said the Shiite-led government was now trying to bring armed groups set up by the US military under the control of the Iraqi army. 'There are groups which have set up checkpoints without coordinating with the government,' he said. 'Apparently they coordinated with the (US military). They should be placed under army control.'"

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Our Most Important Mission: Prevent War with Iran : "The United States continues to hold the Iranians prisoner, undoubtedly subjecting them to “special treatment” in order to elicit some sort of confession, if our handling of other Iranian diplomats previously captured in Iraq is any guide. Their release any time soon is unlikely, given the impact a de facto admission that the Bush administration got it wrong would have on the overall case against Iran it is trying to build. The fate of Farhadi is likewise up in the air. "

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Our Most Important Mission: Prevent War with Iran : "If you think the Iraq war is a disaster, just wait until we start bombing Iran. The countdown to another war is both real and terrifying and it won’t be stopped so long as Iraq is in the spotlight."

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Only a U.S. Withdrawal Will Stop Al Qaeda in Iraq : "… It is still a shaky union, a desperate marriage of convenience based on shared enemies: Iran, and the Sunnis' former-friend-turned-foe Al Qaeda. Many of America's new allies are former insurgents and Saddam Hussein loyalists (Saddam was a Sunni) who only a short while ago were routinely called terrorists, 'anti-Iraqi fighters,' and 'Baathist dead-enders.' They are suspicious of one another and strongly anti-American, although willing to work, for the moment, with the U.S."