be just

Voices - Israel, Cheney and Bush – What Did They Know and When Did They Know It? : "The latest U.S. National Intelligence Estimate assessing Iran’s nuclear military capability was just released on Monday, December 3rd. The NIE clearly debunks the Cheney-Bush neocon regime’s neocon-job desperately trying to convince the American people and the world that a neo-Nazi invasion of Iran must immediately be put on the table. Ray McGovern’s interpretation of this turnaround in events is amply expressed when he asserts: “For those who have doubts about miracles, a double one [has] occurred. An honest National Intelligence Estimate [NIE] on Iran’s nuclear program has been issued, and its ‘Key Judgments’ were made public.” Published on Antiwar.com on December 4th, and entitled “A Miracle: Honest Intel on Iran Nukes,” the staggering magnitude of this turn of events, although clearly celebrated by McGovern, is nevertheless underplayed by even him. But his lead-in does indeed somewhat emphasi...

Sadr militia moves to clean house - Los Angeles Times : "BAGHDAD — Militia commander Abu Maha had studied his quarry carefully, watching as the man acquired fancy suits, gold watches and the street name 'Master.' Now, heavily armed and dressed in an Adidas track suit, Abu Maha told his followers it was time to act against one of their comrades. A dozen of them gripped their assault rifles and headed out. The Master, accused of sliding into immoral behavior after stoutly defending Shiite Muslims in Iraq's sectarian violence, was about to learn that justice in the Mahdi Army could be very rough."

ei: The next "generous offer"? : "Referring to the Palestinians, the Israeli prime minister stated in his Annapolis speech: 'Your people, too, have suffered for many years; and there are some who still suffer. Many Palestinians have been living for decades in camps, disconnected from the environment in which they grew up, wallowing in poverty, in neglect, alienation, bitterness, and a deep, unrelenting sense of humiliation.' Olmert's characterization of the refugees is only partially correct. Poverty, neglect, alienation, bitterness and feelings of humiliation, are only one component of the refugee experience. There are also other components, such as community, pride, generosity, and perseverance. This one-dimensional characterization obviously suits Olmert's conception of a solution. It also casts refugees as objects that will be acted upon (once again), rather than subjects who can genuinely participate in finding a solution. A recent article in the Isr...

Reuters AlertNet - JORDAN: Iraqi asylum-seekers fall victim to resettlement scams : "AMMAN, 6 December 2007 (IRIN) - Many Iraqi asylum-seekers in Jordan have fallen victim to resettlement scams in which they are approached by individuals claiming to guarantee their resettlement in a third country with the help of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), according to UN officials and Iraqi residents. There are no exact figures about the number of those who have been defrauded but testimonies of individuals and police records show they are in the thousands."

Al Jazeera English - News - Cia Destroyed 'Waterboarding' Tapes : "The CIA has admitted destroying video tapes showing what is described as the 'harsh interrogation' of al-Qaeda suspects. The interrogations of two suspects were taped in 2002 and the tapes were destroyed in 2005, after the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq surfaced. Michael Hayden, the CIA director, told his staff on Thursday that the tapes were destroyed so identities of interrogators would not be compromised."