In These Times (Free subscription) | 07/18/2008
"Firebrand." It was the ubiquitous moniker used to describe Iraq's fiercely anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr when, in March 2004, his leering portrait became commonplace among American media reports of Iraq. American Viceroy L. Paul Bremer III had just shut down al-Sadr's Baghdad newspaper, al-Hawza, and hinted at arresting him, ushering in the first of several confrontations with al-Sadr...
Doug's World (Free subscription) | 06/28/2008
Probably not, but here’s some food for thought from the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America: … The history of the present King of Great Britain [King George] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States … He has [...]
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | 06/16/2008
6/16/08 *Al-Maliki refused to receive Muqtada al-Sadr in Iran* Sources close to the office of Prime Minister Mr. Guinness Rafidain "that there had been introduced to Mr. Maliki to sit at Muqtada al-Sadr and Mr. al-Maliki had rejected this offer and refused to sit down to Muqtada al-Sadr as...
Drudge Retort (Free subscription) | 07/22/2008
U.S. military leaders and everyday Iraqis think that cleric Muqtada al Sadr's order to his followers is a key reason for the dramatic fall in violence. The universal fear is what will happen if the freeze ends. Sadr's motives remain an enigma to many Iraqis, even his followers. The result is angst over much of Iraq, despite the improved security.
Ensaios Imperfeitos (Free subscription) | 06/05/2008
Iraqi Clerics say NO THANKS to US Bases in Iraq Muqtada al-Sadr wants any agreement to be submitted to a national referendum. Understanding the least-understood and most important figure in Iraq Read http://on-truth.blogspot.com
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | yesterday
*Halfway there* Iraqis must compromise on provincial elections and sharing of oil wealth Thursday, July 24, 2008 3:01 AM Improved security and a reduction in ethnic tension create opportunities for Iraqis' reconciliation and stability, but political struggles regarding provincial...
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | yesterday
Parliament forms committee to return displaced families to native Baghdad districts-MP Baghdad - Voices of Iraq Wednesday , 23 /07 /2008 Time 10:20:55 BAGHDAD, July23, (VOI) - A lawmaker from a Shiite bloc on Wednesday announced forming a parliamentary committee to return the displaced...
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | yesterday
*4 days of raids reveal shortcomings of Iraqi army * Nancy A. Youssef July 23, 2008 5:41 PM McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) AMARA, Iraq - It wasn't yet dawn, and the Iraqi army unit was already behind schedule. It was about to launch a major operation against another cluster of towns overrun by...
Progressive Bloggers (Free subscription) | 07/23/2008
McCain is really running out of tricks. One thing he was really hoping to nail Obama on was the supposed success of the Iraq "surge", which he has supported ever since it was first proposed. And it's true. Although Iraq remains a country afflicted by sectarian tension and frequent violence, the level of mayhem is nowhere near what it was only a year ago. American troop deaths are way down, and
Political Animal (Free subscription) | 07/22/2008 | Politics
OBAMA ON THE SURGE....Over at the Corner, Andy McCarthy berates Barack Obama's explanation for the reduction in violence in Iraq ("What you had is a combination of political factors inside of Iraq that then came right at the same time...
Michael Goldfarb - The Blog (Free subscription) | 07/22/2008
On PBS last night the Center for American Progress's Lawrence Korb argued that the Democrats' taking power in the 2006 congressional elections led to the Anbar Awakening, which was a more important factor than the surge in reducing violence in...
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | 07/22/2008
BAGHDAD, July 21 (VOI) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said on Monday during his meeting with visiting U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama that developments in Iraq will determine the presence of foreign troops in the country. Al-Maliki stressed that developments on the...
The Huffington Post (Free subscription) | 07/22/2008 | Politics
I understand why John McCain's campaign is desperately looking for negatives in Obama's overseas trip, claiming "people in Missouri" aren't "going to like seeing tens of thousands of Europeans screaming" for Obama. But why have so many in the media internalized this claptrap? People like Gloria Borger, who said on CNN that Obama doesn't "want to be seen having too many adoring people after him in Europe,"...
Dean's World (Free subscription) | 07/19/2008
It doesn’t get much bigger than this on the reconciliation front: Iraq once again has a unity government, as the Sunni parties rejoin the parliament: BAGHDAD - Iraq’s largest Sunni Arab political bloc ended a nearly yearlong boycott of the Shiite-led government Saturday in another step toward healing the sectarian rifts that once brought almost daily [...]
Investor's Iraq Forum (Free subscription) | 07/16/2008
*Patrick Kkbrn: The Mahdi Army may be forced to fight again despite declining popularity and increasing social reaction against it* 16/07/2008 WASHINGTON / BAGHDAD - Noor Supporters of exposure and supporters of Muqtada al-Sadr to flee because of fatigue or being subjected to detention and...
