Iraq snapshot

AP misplaces 1.1 million Iraqi refugees

Yesterday, I was present for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's subcommittee hearing on Iraqi refugees. I have no idea where Kimberly Hefling (AP) was because her figures are off: "Nearly 2 million are estimated to remain outside the country, mostly in Syria and Jordan, and an additional 1.6 million, forced from their homes by sectarian and ethnic violence, are displaced inside Iraq." Check the snapshot, you'll see this wasn't a fleeting reference. The figures given were 2 million (not "nearly") outside Iraq and 2.7 million displaced internally. Senator Bob Casey mentioned those figures (for a total of 4.7 million -- those are the UNHCR figures) several times in his opening remarks and, in fact, made the figures a round of questioning. Did the three have faith in those figures?

Ellen Laipson (Henry L. Stimson Center) felt the figures were fluid and was less likely to commit one way or the other, Nancy Aossey (International Medical Corps) was comfortable with the figures (and agreed the numbers were fluid) and pointed out that the UN uses the same methodology when calculating refugees in other regions while Nabil al-Tikriti (University of Mary Washington) noted that the UN figures are neither the highest numbers regularly reported by some or the lowest but within the middle. (Nancy Aossey's name was mispelled in yesterday's snapshot the first time it appeared. It appeared multiple times after and was spelled correctly. I was rushing the dictation -- due to the hearing running so late -- and take the responsibility for that mispelling. My apologies. It's pronounced "Aussie" -- for any wondering, she clarified that when Casey asked her in yesterday's hearing.)

This was a lengthy exchange (that's just a summary, I have notes, we can quote in full). And the 4.7 million would be utilized throughout the hearing. (And is utilized in the Senate press release on the hearing that will be included at the end of this entry.)

If a figure was given once and AP got it wrong, we'd note they got it wrong and move on. But I was at that hearing and it wasn't just used once. Not only was the number used repeatedly, the validity of the 4.7 million number was raised by Casey and all three witnesses weighed in on it. So how, from 4.7 million, AP runs with 3.6 million is anyone's guess? The less generous speculation would be that they have intentionally set out to underplay the refugee crisis. Whether that was the intent or not, their sloppy reporting has resulted in that as they erase 1.1 million Iraqi refugees.

AP gets credit for covering it. That appears to be the only report on yesterday's hearing. But they cover it very poorly and considering what AP's emphasizing by Nancy Aossey (the only witness AP even mentions) it would appear someone showed up late for the hearing (real late when you consider it started over an hour after it was scheduled to begin) and left early. (The points AP's emphasizing by Aossey were not her main points in her opening remarks or the points she made at the end when Bob Casey Jr. gave all three the chance to emphasize the areas they thought were most important before the hearing ended.)

I'm going back and forth and don't have the time to debate this further. We would prefer not to link to Voice of America. It is government sponsored propaganda. That's why it cannot broadcast in the US. That said, Deborah Tate has a lenthy VoA report and does a much better job than AP (including getting the figures used in the hearing correct). (Tate's report omits Nabil al-Tikriti for some reason.) Refugees International has issued a press release on the hearing:



We've got another press release but we'll close out this entry with it. (It's lengthy.) That hearing was very important and the topic was very important. It's a telling statement of today's press that it's better covered by the Voice of America and that it's ignored otherwise except for an AP report. Is the refugee crisis given the attention it warrants? Pick up your paper of choice and you'll see that they are obviously not given that attention.

Along with front paging Iraq, this morning the New York Times also has two articles filed in Iraq. The second is Campbell Robertson and Sam Dagher's "British Forces Transfer Command in Southern Iraq to U.S. as Bomb Kills 7 in North" which notes British forces once numbered 40,000 in Iraq, fell to 4,000 and will further fall to approximately 400 now that the 'withdrawal' has taken place. (Those remaining are 'non-combat' and they will be under US command.) We'll note this from the article:

With the end of the British-led southeast division on Tuesday, Basra became the headquarters of a new division for American-led forces that stretches all the way from Baghdad's southern suburbs to the Kuwaiti border, encompassing Iraq's nine southern provinces.
Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, prides itself on being a cosmopolitan port city, a gateway to the Persian Gulf and Iraq's engine of economic development because of the vast oil reserves nearby. Basra Province has further strategic significance as the land route to Kuwait for American forces as they withdraw over the next 17 months.

It's interesting that this gets covered when you consider that the government e-mails about the pre-war intel and the announcement that an inquiry would take place after the 'withdrawal' got no coverage. That's not a slam at the paper's Baghdad correspondents. That is a slam at its many London-based correspondents including John F. Burns.

The UK Socialist Worker uses the withdraw to ("finally," as Pru notes) cover the inquiry:

This article should be read after: » Pakistan: Nato's war escalates

Iraq: British troops withdrawal does not mean peace

The British occupation forces in southern Iraq passed military command of the region to the US Army this week.

The handover was hailed by Gordon Brown's government as a major landmark on the road towards the final withdrawal of the 4,100 British troops in Basra. But Iraq is far from a success story – with more than a million Iraqis dead, and thousands more wounded.

Since the 2003 invasion, some 179 British personnel and over 4,000 US troops have also been killed.

The US claims that Iraq is now stable, but this "stability" rests on the cooperation between US forces and the Sunni-based Iraqi "awakening councils".

The fragility of this set up was made clear last week when clashes broke out between fighters from the "awakening councils" and occupation forces in Baghdad.

The occupation rests on dividing up the country into Sunni, Shia and Kurdish areas. The northern city of Mosul, a key oil centre, is increasingly the scene of clashes between Kurdish and Sunni forces over who will control it.

British troops are to remain in Iraq even after formally withdrawing in order to train Iraqi security forces.

---

Iraq inquiry must be public

Reg Keys, Rose Gentle and Peter Brierley, three members of Military Families Against the War who have all lost sons in Iraq, delivered a letter to Downing Street last week calling for a full public inquiry into the Iraq war.

Later the same day, foreign secretary David Miliband told parliament that an inquiry would take place "as soon as practicable" after most British troops return from Iraq in July.

However, Miliband suggested that the inquiry is likely to take place in secret.

This would be an insult to democracy and all of those who have campaigned tirelessly for the truth about the disastrous Iraq war.

The following should be read alongside this article:
» Pakistan: Nato's war escalates
» Anti-war campaigners help force out Czech PM
» Nato's role in promoting Western imperialism

© Socialist Worker (unless otherwise stated). You may republish if you include an active link to the original.

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Arab Times notes:

Britain's chief of defence staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup paid tribute "to those who made the ultimate sacrifice" and described the Iraq campaign as "a noble endeavour." "This occasion is about the countless number of men and women from the far-flung corners of the United States and from Great Britain who have striven with such courage here," he said. "I salute you with pride." Major General Andy Salmon, the senior British officer in Basra, handed over the southern base to an American commander, in a key step towards all foreign troops leaving the country and a full return to Iraqi sovereignty. The colours of the coalition's Multinational Division South-East, a specially inscribed Royal Marines flag, were lowered and replaced with the standard of the US Army’s 10th Mountain Division.
Salmon, a Royal Marine and veteran of the 1982 Falklands conflict and 1991 Gulf War, was among 40 British troops to leave Basra after Tuesday's ceremony. He and his predecessors were praised by Iraqi army General Nassir Abadi.

Caroline Wyatt (BBC) reports that the majority of British forces leaving will not be leaving until May 31st. She also notes 179 British troops have died and we'll add "thus far" because British troops are not home and will not be home come May 31st. Xinhua notes, "Tuesday's departure is part of an agreement signed between Iraq and Britain in November last year, in which the latter pledged to complete pullout of its last 4,100 soldiers from Iraq by late July 2009." Caroline Alexander (Bloomberg News) explains:

Major General Andy Salmon handed over what will become known as Multinational Division South to U.S. Major General Michael Oates during a ceremony at a military base in the southern city of Basra. The pullout is a process that will culminate on May 31, the Ministry of Defence said.
"This is a further step forward in the U.K.’s work in Iraq," Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a statement. "There have been difficult times along the way, but British troops have made an outstanding contribution to laying the ground for a stable and increasingly prosperous Basra."

The Washington Post's Sudarsan Raghavan (at Financial Times of London) quotes US Gen Ray Odierno stating, "We have shed blood together and that is a bond that no man can break. You have restored hope where chaos reigned." Raghavan notes that approximately 7,000 US service members will replace the departing British. Terri Jud (Independent of London) explains, "Yesterday, a bright pink trailer offering 'pretzel dogs' was a sign that the Americans had begun moving into the British base, having been warned by their unofficial website that they will have to endure more spartan living conditions until the luxuries to which US forces are accustomed are built." Richard Beeston (Times of London) observes:

The British Army still knows how to perform a ceremonial withdrawal better than anyone, as the Royal Marines band and a lone piper proved at Basra airport yesterday. Thanks to decades of lowering flags and marching into the sunset on every corner of the planet, the drill is dignified and graceful – and certainly well rehearsed.
Yesterday was a poignant moment, not just for the 300 assembled American, British and Iraqi officers and other officials but for the tens of thousands who have served in Iraq over the past six years.

The Times of London's Deborah Haynes interviews UK Maj-Gen Andy Salmon:

"I think we have made a difference; we can see amazing progress has taken place in Basra. There is still an awful lot to do, of course. At least we can go having done our bit."
Asked what he planned to do when he arrived home, the general, who left Basra last night, said: "Have a couple of beers, I think, and see my missus."
A staff of about 40 also departed with him, flying first to Cyprus and then on to Britain, where they will be greeted with a champagne reception. Their exit paves the way for the majority of Britain's remaining 4,100-strong contingent to leave Iraq by July.


And Alsumaria points out, "It is to be noted that senior Iraqi officers attended the ceremony and praised the British Army saying that Iraq owes them a lot for helping Iraq's Army in all its missions."

The Kurdistan Regional Government notes:

»	Alexander the Great defeated Persian Emperor Darius at the Battle of Arbela, near the ancient city of Erbil. Today Erbil is the capital of Kurdistan Region

The 'withdrawal' will be covered in today's snapshot. A few e-mails on that and the reason it wasn't noted had to do with covering yesterday's Senate hearing. If you look for news on the UK's ceremony, you will find a ton of options (far beyond what's noted in this entry). The refugee issue received very, very little coverage. On the refugee crisis, Senator Bob Casey Jr.'s office issued the following:

March 31, 2009

WASHINGTON, DC- U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs Subcommittee, today chaired a hearing on the return and resettlement of displaced Iraqis. The hearing focused on the efforts being taken by the Iraqi government, the United States and the rest of the international community to facilitate the return of Iraqis displaced internally and the repatriation of Iraqi refugees living in neighboring countries.

"Large numbers of Iraqis unable to return home not only has humanitarian consequences, but poses security risks to future Iraqi stability and the interests of neighboring states and the international community," Senator Casey said. "Accordingly, as the United States begins to draw down its military presence in Iraq, we have a both a moral and a security interest in ensuring the safety and welfare of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs)."

At the hearing, Senator Casey urged the United States to work in concert with Iraq’s neighbors, donor governments and other international actors to address challenges facing Iraqi refugees and IDPs, such as: the lack of legal status for refugees; the inability of refugees to work legally; limited access to health care and education; critical food shortages and inadequate shelter, drinking water, sanitation and protection. The panel of witnesses that testified at today's hearing included: Ms. Ellen Laipson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Henry L. Stimson Center; Ms. Nancy Aossey, President and Chief Executive Officer of the International Medical Corps; and Mr. Nabil Al-Tikriti, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Mary Washington.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that 4.7 million Iraqis have been forced to leave their homes. Approximately 2.7 million are displaced internally, while 2 million have fled to neighboring states, particularly Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. Last year, Senator Casey joined Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) in introducing the Support for Vulnerable and Displaced Iraqis Act of 2008 to mandate the development of a comprehensive U.S. strategy to address the mass displacement of Iraqis.

Senator Casey's opening statement follows below.

U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs Subcommittee

Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.

Opening Statement on the Return and Resettlement of Displaced Iraqis

March 31, 2009

Today, the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs meets to examine the crisis concerning Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs), one of the tragic humanitarian consequences of America’s war in Iraq. The purpose of this hearing is to determine the efforts being taken by the Iraqi government, the United States and the rest of the international community to facilitate the resettlement of Iraqis displaced internally, and the repatriation of Iraqi refugees living in neighboring countries. The presence of such a large population in a state of displacement not only has humanitarian consequences, but poses security risks to future Iraqi stability and the interests of neighboring states and the international community. Accordingly, as the United States begins to draw down its military presence in Iraq, we have a both a moral and a security interest in ensuring the safety and welfare of Iraqi refugees and IDPs.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that 4.7 million Iraqis have been forced to leave their homes. Approximately 2.7 million are displaced internally, while 2 million have fled to neighboring states, particularly Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Indeed, these numbers have been called into dispute, and I invite the views of our witnesses today on whether they are too high or too low. The Iraqi government has demonstrated an inability to deal with a problem of such magnitude. Declining oil revenues and institutional deficiencies are preventing the government from effectively addressing this issue. In spite of improved security conditions, displaced Iraqis who return home are confronted with deplorable living conditions, or worse, destroyed homes. I am also concerned that ongoing sectarian divisions could be preventing the government from mustering the political will necessary to deal with the refugee crisis. We should assess whether the government’s Shiite majority has an agenda to keep large numbers of Sunni refugees from returning to Iraq, and we also need to understand what is prompting thousands of Iraqi Christians to flee to Syria.

The exodus of refugees out of Iraq is overwhelming Iraq’s neighbors, which I witnessed firsthand during my trip to Jordan in 2007. Counties like Jordan and Syria cannot handle the constant flow of refugees from Iraq, and some have started to impose legal and visa restrictions on new arrivals. These countries are not signatories to the 1951 Refugee Convention and have denied Iraqi refugees within their borders the protections and basic human rights refugees claim in most countries. As Refugees International reported last month, these Iraqis cannot find gainful employment in their host countries, and they are quickly running out of resources to sustain themselves. Unfortunately, the return of refugees to Iraq, however desirable, continues to be problematic, due to a difficult security environment and inadequate living conditions awaiting them at home.

I was pleased to hear that the Obama Administration announced FY2009 contributions of more than $141 million to help displaced Iraqis. However, the crisis does not appear to be improving. It is my understanding that the Administration is engaged in an ongoing review of policy towards the refugee challenge. President Obama has announced that, by August 2010, the majority of U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Iraq. While I fully support the President’s plan to withdraw our forces from Iraq, I believe we must sustain our commitment to the refugee and IDP situation affecting nearly five million of its citizens, especially when the problem cannot be effectively controlled by the Iraqi government and places undue strain on its neighbors. We cannot ignore the consequences for regional stability and Iraq's internal order if a large population of dispossessed and displaced individuals remains in place. Without any opportunity for reintegration or an escape from poverty and despair, displaced populations may be susceptible to recruitment by extremist groups, threatening the viability of the Iraqi state.

In September 2008, my distinguished colleague, Senator Ben Cardin, and I filed legislation -- titled "The Support for Vulnerable and Displaced Iraqis Act of 2008" -- to mandate the development of a comprehensive U.S. strategy to address the mass displacement of Iraqis. This bill addressed several issues that are still pertinent today. And as several of my colleagues and I emphasized to then President-elect Obama in a letter we wrote in December 2008, these issues should be a focus of his administration’s overall approach to Iraq.

First, a U.S. strategy on Iraqi refugees should address the responsibility of the Iraqi government to help meet the urgent needs of its displaced citizens, including an assessment of how much assistance is needed to help meet these needs. Second, it should assess what conditions are necessary for the voluntary, safe, and sustainable return of displaced Iraqis. Finally, it should outline steps the U.S. government will take to engage the international community to implement the strategy. It is imperative that the United States work in concert with Iraq's neighbors, donor governments, and other international actors to address challenges facing Iraqi refugees and IDPs, such as:

the lack of legal status for refugees;
the inability of refugees to work legally;
limited access to health care and education;
critical food shortages;
inadequate shelter, drinking water, sanitation and protection.

Moreover, in the context of renewing U.S. engagement with Syria, the Administration could find an important avenue for cooperation by working with Damascus on the refugee crisis.

The U.S. government can also bolster its efforts to resettle in the United States those Iraqi refugees who risked their lives to assist the U.S. mission. Resettlement is the right thing to do, and it would also ease the burden on Iraq's neighbors. Only in 2007 did the previous Administration significantly increase the number of Iraq refugees to be settled in the United States. And even though the U.S. exceeded its FY 2008 admissions target of 12,000 Iraqi refugees, the demand for resettlement outpaces the steps the U.S. government is taking. Any comprehensive U.S. strategy on Iraqi refugees should examine our current resettlement plan, and draw on all relevant government agencies to support this process.

We are joined here today by an esteemed panel of experts, who will discuss the myriad challenges involved in the Iraqi refugee crisis. Our first witness is Ellen Laipson, President and CEO of The Henry L. Stimson Center since 2002. Ms. Laipson is one of Washington’s preeminent authorities on the Middle East, having written extensively about the challenges the United States faces in Iraq. Prior to joining the Stimson Center, Ms. Laipson served nearly 25 years in the United States government, many of which were devoted to analysis and policymaking on Middle Eastern issues. She was the Vice Chair of the National Intelligence Council from 1997-2002, and held senior posts at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and in the National Security Council. I look forward to her analysis of the refugee crisis, how it relates to regional stability, and how the United States should approach this problem.

Nancy Aossey is President and CEO of the International Medical Corps. After becoming CEO shortly after IMC's founding in the mid-1980s, Ms. Aossey helped to transform International Medical Corps into one of the world's largest humanitarian organizations, providing more than $120 million in disaster response and recovery programs annually. Thanks to Ms. Aossey’s leadership, International Medical Corps assists the internally displaced throughout Iraq, providing badly needed medical care to those in need. She has also served as Chairman of the Board of InterAction and now serves on its Executive Committee.

Our final witness is Dr. Nabil al Tikriti of the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Dr. al Tikriti has written extensively on the effects of population displacement in Iraq and its neighbors, and its policy implications for the region. In addition to his scholarship, Al-Tikriti volunteered with the Catholic Relief Services humanitarian assistance project in Iraq in 1991-1992, and later served with Doctors without Borders as a relief worker in Somalia, Iran, Albania, Turkey, and Jordan.

###

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Shifting sands in Iraq

Iraq actually makes the front page of the New York Times today (a rarity) via Alissa J. Rubin's "Iraqi Militants Show New Boldness" which documents the currently shifting sands. It's a strongly written article and although I was referring to news value, it's also strongly written stylistically: "A recent series of attacks, however, like bubbles that indicate fish beneath still water, suggest the potential danger, all the more perilous now because the American troops who helped to pacify Iraq are leaving."

She sketches out the recent violence and the possible meanings very well but we'll grab from other things for that and instead zoom in on some of the news she's reporting that's not in other reports (or highlighted from her article elsewhere). She notes a new weapon being utilized, RKG-3 grenades which "weigh just five pounds and, attached to parachutes, can be lobbed by a teenager but can penetrate the American military's latest heavily armored vehicle, the MRAP." Rubin notes these inexpensive weapons cost $10 a piece.

Not in the article, this is me, is the fact that the American military has long laughed at the mortar attacks. The mortar attacks are not precise and rarely cause alarm. (Troops stationed inside the Green Zone have been injured by mortar attacks. An attack that wounded Australian troops several years ago stands out. However, the attack that frightened the US military, the attack on the Green Zone, was the 2006 late spring attack which wasn't mortars but an attempt to storm the Green Zone -- this led to the first in a series of al-Maliki's 'crack downs'.) If more precise than the mortarts, the RKG-3s could become a serious source of concern. (Which is why we're noting it. I'm not interested in doing war pornography on all the gadgets.)

Rubin's article contains a wide range of voices -- Iraqi officials, American officials, "Awakenings," etc. One unnamed US "military intelligence officer" is convinced the resistance is dead and that "terrorism" is just going to be a fact of life for Iraq ("for a long time") but others are less sure. Col James Phelps thinks it could rebound like a spring (however, his grasp of how a spring works seems, at best, weak). There is a concern/panic over 'sleeper cells' which echoes statements made in Rania Abouzeid (Time magazine) report (noted in yesterday's snapshot). Is the concern realistic or not? At this point, no one knows (and Rubin doesn't attempt to present it any other way or to take sides). But, true or false, it feeds into al-Maliki's talk of why he can't let "Awakenings" be absorbed by his puppet government. (The counter-argument is that these concerns are not about potential absorbings, these concerns are that "sleepers" are already in the Iraqi security forces.) Nouri's best buddy, the Condi to his George, Mowaffak al-Rubaie (who was awarded the title of "Iraq's national seucirty adviser" following a dramatic upset in the swimsuit competition) is insistent that it's (you know it's coming) "Al Qaeda and the hard-core Saddamists" -- and you get the feeling that al Qaeda's tossed in for the international audience and "Saddamists" for all the Shi'ites in Iraq. Like Condi, Mowaffak knows how to work the room.

For the article, "14 leaders of the Awakening movement" were interviewed and they see reason for concerns: "assassination attempts, homemade bombs placed near their homes or under their cars, leaflets urging them not to work with the Iraqi government." Mullah Nadhim al-Jubori goes on the record and notes kidnappings of four men serving under him (two set free when ransom was paid, the other two killed)and notes: "The ransom was picked up in Baghdad. That tells me there is good coordination and organization among Al Qaede members."

Rubin notes Diyala Province never saw the 'safety' increase Baghdad did although Baquba is less likely to be called "the city of death" today. ("Forty-three people were killed in Diyala in March, up from 29 in February and 6 in January, according to the Diyala Operations Command.") And she quotes Ali al-Tamimi ("chief of the Proinvicial Council's security committee") stating that despite warnings made (by him) there has been no heeding of them as the situation continues to deteriorate.

It's a very strong article. We'll note this from it:


Several well-planned bombings, one on a street recently reopened because it was thought to be safe, have killed 123 people, most of them in and around Baghdad. Three were suicide bombings, signatures of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia, a homegrown Sunni extremist group with some foreign leadership.

And the reason we're noting that is because the attack Rubin's linked to (linked to NYT report on) is also addressed by an Iraqi correspondent for McClatchy:

"I just can not understand why the insurgents target the civilians. They are not security forces like us. They don't cause any harm to anyone. They just want to live"
With thes words and with a strong will to control the tears, the policeman who escorted me to the scene of yesterday's explosion started the conversation. I couldn't give him any answer because the same question troubles my mind. The blast killed at least 16 people and wounded some 45. The death toll likely rose today.
I walked slowly down the street which was, until the explosion a lively street filled with men, women and children. I saw some of them but they were still under the effect of the explosion. Their faces tell the story of ongoing pain and suffering of Iraqis.That's the opening to the photo essay provided in "Story of ongoing pain" and the photos (no corpses, but blood is in them) remind of how long it's been (the very early days of the illegal war) since bombings have really been covered. (The BBC frequently runs a photo essay, I'm referring to US outlets.) This is post-bombing, after the scene has been 'cleaned.' And look at at all the damage and all the remaining blood.

Back to the shifting sands Rubin's covering, Nathan Hodge's "Iraq's Militia Clash Could Bode Ill for Afghanistan" (Wired) covers it via a roundup of sources (Fadel, Ricks, etc. -- we linked to all of those yesterday morning so no excerpt). We'll note this from Anna Mulrine's "What's Behind the Latest Sunni-Shiite Clashes in Iraq" (US News & World Reports):

It seems clear that U.S. commanders had cause for concern. SOI leaders throughout the country have complained that they haven't been paid in months. One U.S. military spokesman said that the dearth of paychecks was the result of a problem with the Ministry of the Interior's payroll process and that it had been rectified recently.
Beyond payroll issues, the government has failed to incorporate these Sunnis into the predominately Shiite Iraqi security forces as the U.S. government said would happen. While the Iraqi government had promised to allow one fifth of the SOI members, or 19,000, to join security forces, only 5,000 had been given jobs. Sunni SOI leaders attribute this to animosity among the majority-Shiite government leaders and fears that members of the Awakening movement could turn against them as U.S. forces withdraw.
The simmering issue moved into the spotlight last week with the arrest of Adil al-Mashhadani, a Sunni leader who was handcuffed and brought in on terrorism charges. He had been an outspoken critic of what many believe to be the Iraqi government's marginalization the Sons of Iraq.

Robert H. Reid (AP) observes:

But the move into al-Fadel, a crime- ridden slum run by insurgents for years, carried big risks -- chief among them that Sunnis would view the action not as a move against a criminal but a politically motivated Shiite push against Sunnis. It came after arrests of other Awakening Council figures in Baghdad and nearby Diyala province.
With suspicions running deep, some council leaders questioned the government's motives -- including why the warrant was issued in December but served only now.

In some of today's violence, Alsumaria reports, "Eight people including 4 police officers were killed and 10 other people were wounded when a suicide bomber broke into a police compound with his booby trapped car and blasted it there in the middle of Mosul city. To that, two civilians were wounded in a blast that took place near Al Ali Al Aazim mosque in Al Zaafaraniah region. To that, a mortar fell beside the Oil Marketing Company."

Iraq's Foreign Ministry notes:



31 March, 2009

Deputy Foreign Minister Meets French Senate Council Delegation

Dr. Abdul Karim Hashim, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary for Administration and Financial Affairs met on Tuesday, March 31st with the French Senate delegation consisting of Senator Jean-Francois Bonese, former Foreign Minister and Mrs. Monique Saurizea, members of Foreign Relations, Defense and Security Committee of the French Senate.

During the meeting they reviewed bilateral relations and ways of promoting the interests of the two friendly nations. Dr. Abdul Karim Hashim stressed the importance of communication and exchange of visits at various levels since they strengthen dialogue and cooperation between the various political actors.

On his part, the guest was pleased with the progress of security in the country and the political developments after the success of provincial elections that took place recently and expressed willingness to activate dialogue and meetings to serve the political process in Iraq.

In the US, With Aimee Allison (co-host of KPFA's The Morning Show with Philip Maldari), David Solnit authored Army Of None -- a valuable and wonderful book on counter-recruiting and strategies for peace. David Solnit notes:


Friend and filmmaker Rick Rowley comes to town with three films just shot on the ground in Iraq-- in typical high energy in-your-face style. Rick is joined by local IVAW organizer Carl "Davey" Davison and cutting-edge movement analyst Antonia Juhasz to do some collective thinking-discussing about how we can take on Obama to make the world a better place. Hope you can join us!

Please Invite your friends:
Bay Area Premiere
from the makers of "Fourth World War" & "This is What Democracy Looks Like"
OBAMA'S IRAQ
A Big Noise Film
followed by a Public Discussion:
How Do We End Occupation & Empire Under Obama?

Carl Davison, organizer with Iraq Veterans Against the War, served in the Marines and the Army, and refused deployment to Iraq.
Antonia Juhasz, analyst, activist, author of Tyrany of Oil; The World's Most Powerful Industry--and What We Must Do to Stop It
Rick Rowley, Big Noise film maker recently returned for Iraq.

Friday April 3, 7pm
ATA THEATER
992 Valencia Street (at 21st), SF
Everyone welcome, $6 donation requested, not required.

Obama's Iraq is an evening of short films never before seen in America. Shot on the other side of the blast shields in Iraq's walled cities, it covers a very different side of the war than is ever seen on American screens. It reports unembedded from war-torn Falluja, from the giant US prison at Umm Qasr, from the Mehdi Army stronghold inside Sadr City -- from the places where mainstream corporate channels can not or will not go. Obama's Iraq asks the questions -- what is occupation under Obama, and how can we end the war in Iraq and the empire behind it? After the film, a public discussion will begin to answer that question. Join us.


Sponsored by Courage to Resist,
Bay Area Iraq Veterans Against the War,
& Unconventional Action in the Bay.

Added, the following community sites updated last night:

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  THIS JUST IN! DEPSERATE WORLD LEADERS!

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obama's iraq

Iraq snapshot

The US military announces another death

Today the US military announced: "AL ANBAR PROVINCE, Iraq -- A Multi National Force -- West Marine died as the result of a non-combat related incident here March 31. The Marine's name is being withheld pending next-of-kin notification and release by the Department of Defense. The incident is under investigation." The announcement brings to 4262 the number of US service members killed in Iraq since the start of the illegal war. And Reuters' report of violence today includes a Mosul grenade attack which left three people injured, a Mosul suicide bombing which claimed 7 lives (eight when you count the bomber) and left at least forty injured, a Falluja sticky bombing which left three police officers injured and 2 Baghdad mortar attacks which left five people injured.


Attacks on British soldiers in Iraq rose dramatically in 2005 after military chiefs, under orders from Tony Blair, switched their attention to a new campaign in Afghanistan, the head of the Army has told The Times.
General Sir Richard Dannatt, who retires as Chief of the General Staff in August, indicated that the MoD became distracted after Mr Blair committed Britain to "a bigger effort" in Afghanistan in 2004. At that time southern Iraq was rela-tively quiet compared with Baghdad, where US troops were coming increasingly under attack. It was in this context that Mr Blair then decided to order military chiefs to start planning for Afghanistan.
Sources close to the former Prime Minister said that he had made the decision because of deteriorating security in Afghanistan, not because he wanted the main focus to switch from Iraq.
General Dannatt told The Times in an exclusive interview: "The importance about that decision [however] is that it was a strategic move by the United Kingdom to make a bigger effort in southern Afghanistan to relieve some of the pressure on the United States, because by the middle of 2004, in Baghdad and the north and the west of Iraq, violence was mounting considerably more than it was in the south."

The above is from Michael Evan's "General Sir Richard Dannatt says MoD took eye off Iraq as Afghan instability grew" (Times of London) and we noted it in the snapshot today but we're opening with it (after the announcement) to make sure everyone catches it. When you choose to fight illegal (and unwinnable) wars, as Barack Obama has now done, you are begging for announcements like the one Dannatt's making above. And as Barack plays his own version of whack-a-mole, determined to continue both illegal wars, he will tell the American people at some point (or more likely his political opponents will) the the Iraq War needs to continue and, woops, victory was in sight, but "We took our eye off the prize" (add "at Tora Bora" and you've got what John Kerry's been saying about Afghanistan since 2003). There is no "win." The brave thing to do would be a withdrawal (not a draw down). Barack's refused to do that, he owns both wars and he'll see-saw back and forth between the two. And that's a rather obvious point, even if it escapes the editorial board of the Los Angeles Times this morning.

And if you're not getting that, refer to Leila Fadel's "Vow to fight raises question: Is calm in Iraq just the eye of the storm?" (McClatchy Newspapers):

In America, the U.S. "surge" of additional troops to Baghdad is heralded as a success, and President Barack Obama has said he'll draw down American forces in Iraq and turn his attention to Afghanistan and Pakistan. In Iraq, however, what the U.S.-led invasion and occupation started is far from over.
Most Iraqis think that today's lower level of violence is the eye, not the end, of the storm, and that the decisive power struggles are just beginning. The U.S.-backed Iraqi government is widely regarded as an undeserving group of exiles who returned to Iraq on the backs of American tanks.
Over the weekend, fighting broke out between Sunni Muslims and Iraq's Shiite Muslim-led security forces, and it's unclear whether the security forces, still heavily backed by U.S. air and ground support, are loyal to their nation rather than their sect, tribe, town or ethnicity.
Although the Sunni insurgency that earlier had battled U.S. troops and Iraqi security forces and killed thousands of civilians is weakened, Mohammed is one of many Iraqis who still believe in what he calls the muqawima, the resistance. He always will.
Mohammed is one of the thousands of detainees who're being released from U.S. detention centers as America prepares to withdraw forces from Iraq. There are about 13,400 detainees in U.S.-run prisons, and on average 50 are released each day. Some are guilty of crimes, others are innocent, many have never been afforded due process and some have become radicalized by their time in prison.


Or as the author of the bestseller The Gamble, Thomas E. Ricks, noted at Foreign Policy yesterday:


I thought some of the surge-era deals in Iraq would unravel but I didn't think that would begin happening this quickly. It's only March 2009, and already Awakening fighters are fighting U.S. soldiers in the streets of Baghdad.
Anyone who tells you that the Iraq war is over should be forced to memorize this paragraph from the Sunday edition of the Washington Post:

As Apache helicopter gunships cruised above Baghdad's Fadhil neighborhood, former Sunni insurgents fought from rooftops and street corners against American and Iraqi forces, according to witnesses, the Iraqi military and police. At least 15 people were wounded in the gunfights, which lasted several hours. By nightfall, the street fighters had taken five Iraqi soldiers hostage.

That is Iraq 2009. Does it sound peaceful to you? Does it seem like the political questions vexing Iraq have been solved?

Fadel's article today opens with some lines of poetry and another article McClatchy's offering, "Iraqi ex-detainee's poem: 'When I see you I see Paradise'" is a translation of a poem by Sahar Issah:

Stop at the ruins and ask the wrecked corner. . . . Are my people aware of what's happening to me?

Ask the river, does it still remember me? . . . And the people, do they still hold their noses high?

Are they sleeping in comfort and in peace? . . . With an unembarrassed smile upon their lips

Tell them I am a hostage to humiliation. . . . Oh, my poetry, or have they become deaf

My partner, my passion for you is killing me. . . . In the heart there is flame from a blazing fire

How to reach those who have become so dear a quest. . . . And the longing inside me, my friend, is burning

The hand of days has torn me apart leaving. . . . A deep wound and a sick body

That's an excerpt and the poem is credited to Abu Izzuddin.

As Trina ("The economy"), Kat ("Stevie Nicks, music and TV") and Elaine ("Stevie Nicks") noted last night, Stevie Nicks releases her first ever live album today. (A DVD is also available -- and I believe it is her first made for DVD. Red Rocks and others originally filmed for home video were released on videotaped and transferred to DVD years later, but this is the first one recorded for the DVD technology.) That makes it big news but the fact that it's Stevie makes it big news period. The Soundstage Sessions is the name of the CD (or album downloadable at iTunes and Amazon) and Live In Chicago is the DVD. Below is the article Third did two weeks ago:

Stevie Nicks, rocking it her way

Posted by Third Estate Sunday Review at Sunday, March 22, 2009

As Elaine observed last night, "In a world that offers increasingly little and a government that promised 'change' but delivered none, I'll place my bets on Stevie." Indeed. The DVD and CD are available in stores today, both can be downloaded as well and Kat says to check out the bargain for both (plus a litograph) offered at Stevie's website. "Would you swallow your pride, could you speak a little louder, and the wind became . . ." You don't want to miss the live version of "Sara."

The Kurdistan Regional Government notes:




Iraq's Foreign Ministry notes:




The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.


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michael evans
mcclatchy newspapers
leila fadel
sahar issa
abu izzuddin
thomas e. ricks
stevie nicks
the los angeles times
like maria said paz
kats korner
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
thomas friedman is a great man
trinas kitchen
the third estate sunday review

The "Awakenings" . . . awakened

Rod Nordland has a major piece in this morning's New York Times entitled "Rebellious Sunni Council Disarmed After Clashes, Officials in Baghdad Say." The weakest section is the opening paragraph which repeats a claim and uses the verb "confirms" which makes a claim case-closed and true. It is not. The "Awakening"s in Fadhil have not been disarmed and it doesn't matter what Iraqi or US officials say. (Speaking on the phone with a friend at M-NF this morning and relaying that paragraph resulted in laugher and the comment, "Now that's a gut buster.") For starters, there is disarmament and there is disarmament in Iraq. Second of all, it's well known that "Awakenings" have been nervous about what they saw coming (and they appear to have been correct in their premonitions) and no one doubts for a moment that there are weapons stashed. Only house-to-house searches could collaborate the disarmament claim and "even that would be suspect" because burying weapons is fairly common in Iraq.

We'll note this section.


Iraq is in the process of taking over most of the responsibility for paying the Awakening Councils, which formerly was done by the Americans. Control of the councils passed from the American military to the Iraqi Army on Jan. 1.
"I personally was in the finance minister's office about two hours ago and he showed me basically what you would call a deposit slip, depositing the money in the Rafidain Bank," General Perkins said. The amount was $30 million, he said, which is the monthly payroll for Iraq's 94,000 Awakening Council members.

$30 million is the monthly payroll? David Perkins needs to appear before Congress because they were told, in testimony, that $18 million a month was the cost. That's $12 million more per month than anyone bothered to inform, $164 million a year.

"He said he was satisfied that the Iraqi government acted on valid evidence." Prior to that sentence, Nordland summarizes charges Perkins says are against Adil al-Mashhadani. Nordland should have provided an actual quote. The comments Perkins is making are not helpful to the mitigating tensions and may inflame them. I don't doubt Nordland's summary, but it should have been a direct quote because you have a US military spokesperson vouching for -- which really isn't Perkins' job -- criminal charges brought by the Iraqis against an Iraqi citizen. Perkins is a military flack. He is not an attorney nor is he trained in the criminal justice system. His comments should not have been made. Had Nordland quoted him directly, we'd rip Perkins apart right now; however, if there is fallout, Perkins will claim that the summary is incorrect. (Which is why Nordland should have provided a direct quote.)

It's a very strong article and you can comb over it for multiple details. We will note this section:

Criticism of the events in Fadhil continued to pour in from other members of the Awakening movement. "We made their hot places cold, but now the government's making them hot again," said Mustafa Kamel, leader of the council in Dora and Arab Jabour, both areas that saw particularly heavy fighting previously.

Kamel's feelings are a perfectly natural response and shouldn't surprise anyone. In yesterday's snapshot, we touched on this element:

Fadel explains to the Real News Network that "Awakenings" feel betrayed because the US military gave or "Awakenings" thought they were given amnesty but that the US military could only give amnesty for attacks on the US, not attacks on Iraqis. Note that the term "amnesty" was used (this is me, not Leila) by the US military in recruiting "Awakenings." It caused some rumbles on the internet play left side of the world (Arianna Huffington was a huffing back then about it). Clearly, had the "Awakenings" known that the "amnesty" was limited, they wouldn't have gone along. What would be the point? Help pacify/terrorize the country and then when Nouri no longer needs them, he can pick them off? If they had known that the amnesty did not apply across the board, they would not have gone along because the reason they were armed and against the puppet government in the first place was they didn't trust the puppet government (or the puppet).

Iraq was up for grabs and the ones who became the "Awakenings" did not support the Shi'ite controlled and dominated government the US was setting up. There is no way in the world that, for a few dollars a day, they would have thrown their lot in with the central government if they'd known they'd be sidelined (or imprisoned) after they'd been utilized by the central government (and by the Americans) to do what neither US nor Baghdad-controlled forces could do. And Fadel is Leila Fadel of McClatchy. We'll note a new article by her in the next entry.



Borzou Daragahi was among the earliest of US correspondents in Iraq for the current Iraq War. He remains a Middle East correspondent for the Los Angeles Times but was moved out of Iraq at the time Iran seemed to be the war in waiting. In today's paper, he interviews Shi'ite thug Jawad Bolani in "A look inside Iraq's Interior Ministry:"

Say the words "interior ministry" in almost any Middle Eastern country and you're certain to evoke fear and resentment.
In the name of protecting the homeland, internal security forces in just about every Arab country limit civil liberties, intrude on private lives and abuse human rights.
Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad Bolani bills himself as an independent-minded democrat and civil servant who wants to secure his country without resorting to heavy-handed tactics that might undermine what he describes as his nation's democratic progress. He took a break from a recent conference of Arab interior ministers in Beirut to sit down for an interview with The Times.

In Iraq 2½ years ago, you said that death squad infiltration of your ministry was a problem that you were addressing but that you didn't want to disparage the work of most of your officers. How did you fix the problem?

In 2006, the security situation was not good, the ministry was infiltrated. Today we have an institution functioning well and following rules. A lot of reforms have been implemented. We worked on creating an institution that monitors the country but remains under the law.

We also cleansed the institution of bad elements, replacing 58 senior officers.

Was it a matter of increasing intelligence capacity?

A few months ago, we inaugurated a new intelligence center equipped with the best technological equipment. We rely a lot on intelligence information to fight against [the group] Al Qaeda [in Iraq] and other outlawed militias. We have more than 10,000 elements [operatives] in the intelligence agency of the ministry.

These 10,000 elements, what have they accomplished so far?

They submitted 43,000 reports on various issues. Through the information they provided, we were able to arrest more than 800 wanted elements.

With Aimee Allison (co-host of KPFA's The Morning Show with Philip Maldari), David Solnit authored Army Of None -- a valuable and wonderful book on counter-recruiting and strategies for peace. David Solnit notes:


Friend and filmmaker Rick Rowley comes to town with three films just shot on the ground in Iraq-- in typical high energy in-your-face style. Rick is joined by local IVAW organizer Carl "Davey" Davison and cutting-edge movement analyst Antonia Juhasz to do some collective thinking-discussing about how we can take on Obama to make the world a better place. Hope you can join us!

Please Invite your friends:
Bay Area Premiere
from the makers of "Fourth World War" & "This is What Democracy Looks Like"
OBAMA'S IRAQ
A Big Noise Film
followed by a Public Discussion:
How Do We End Occupation & Empire Under Obama?

Carl Davison, organizer with Iraq Veterans Against the War, served in the Marines and the Army, and refused deployment to Iraq.
Antonia Juhasz, analyst, activist, author of Tyrany of Oil; The World's Most Powerful Industry--and What We Must Do to Stop It
Rick Rowley, Big Noise film maker recently returned for Iraq.

Friday April 3, 7pm
ATA THEATER
992 Valencia Street (at 21st), SF
Everyone welcome, $6 donation requested, not required.

Obama's Iraq is an evening of short films never before seen in America. Shot on the other side of the blast shields in Iraq's walled cities, it covers a very different side of the war than is ever seen on American screens. It reports unembedded from war-torn Falluja, from the giant US prison at Umm Qasr, from the Mehdi Army stronghold inside Sadr City -- from the places where mainstream corporate channels can not or will not go. Obama's Iraq asks the questions -- what is occupation under Obama, and how can we end the war in Iraq and the empire behind it? After the film, a public discussion will begin to answer that question. Join us.


Sponsored by Courage to Resist,
Bay Area Iraq Veterans Against the War,
& Unconventional Action in the Bay.

That will appear every morning between now and Friday in one of the morning entries. I'll try to add additional links in the announcement as the week progresses. We'll also note a film this morning, A Jihad for Love:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Kelly Hargraves Phone: 1-323-662-1930 kelly.hargraves@firstrunfeatures.com Wins the Prestigious GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Documentary At the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards last night in New York, director/producer Parvez Sharma and producer Sandi Dubowski accepted the Outstanding Documentary Award for A Jihad for Love, the world's first feature documentary to explore the complex global intersections between Islam and homosexuality. A Jihad for Love enjoyed a successful national theatrical release and comes out on DVD April 21. GLAAD, the nation's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender media advocacy and anti-defamation organization, presents the GLAAD Media Awards to recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the LGBT community and the issues that affect their lives. Fourteen centuries after the revelation of the holy Qur’an to the Prophet Muhammad, Islam today is the world’s second largest and fastest growing religion. In A Jihad for Love, Muslim gay filmmaker Parvez Sharma travels the many worlds of this dynamic faith, uncovering the stories of its most unlikely storytellers: lesbian and gay Muslims. Produced by Sandi DuBowski (Trembling Before G-d) and Sharma, the film was shot - often in secret - in twelve countries and nine languages over the course of six years. In Western media, the concept of 'jihad' is often equated with holy war. But it also has a deeper meaning: ' to struggle' or 'to strive in the path of God.' The majority of Muslims believe that homosexuality is forbidden by the Qur'an, and many scholars quote Hadith (sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad) to condemn homosexuality. As a result, gay and lesbian Muslims often must engage in their own personal ‘jihad for love’ – a pursuit that brings them into conflicts with their countries, their families, and even themselves. Many end up renouncing their faith altogether. But the subjects of A Jihad for Love aren't willing to abandon their faith. Instead, they struggle to reconcile their ardent belief with the innate reality of their being. They don’t seek to vilify or reject Islam, but rather to negotiate a new relationship to it. In doing so, the film's extraordinary characters attempt to point the way for all Muslims to move beyond the hostile, war-torn present toward a more hopeful future. A Jihad for Love is endorsed by Human Rights Watch, which recognizes select First Run Features films that shed light on human rights abuses throughout the world. Director/producer Parvez Sharma is a New York based writer and filmmaker. A Jihad for Love is his first feature and has become an international phenomenon with more than 700,000 viewers in 30 nations in the first year of its release. Sharma variously has been hailed “a gifted filmmaker” (WSJ), “frankly brave” (NPR), “provocative” (San Francisco Chronicle), and “an apostate” (South Africa's Muslim Judicial Council). A leading commentator on Islamic, racial and political issues, his writings frequently appear on The Huffington Post. Currently he is engaged in a nationwide speaking tour and in pre-production for a new film, partly set in his home country of India. Sharma previously has worked as a television journalist in India and the UK. He also worked on Democracy Now! in New York as a producer and as a print journalist in India and the US. He was educated in India, the UK and the US and in the past has served as an adjunct professor at American University, developing and teaching that university's first curriculum on Bollywood and other Indian cinemas. OUT Magazine named Sharma one of the OUT 100 for 2008. Producer Sandi DuBowski directed Trembling Before G-d (2001), which had a world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, received twelve awards, was released theatrically in the United States, Israel, Canada, Germany, South Africa, and UK and is airing on BBC, The Sundance Channel, ZDF-Arte, HBO Latin America, Israel’s Keshet/Channel Two, and other TV stations worldwide. DuBowski has conducted 800 live events with the film across the globe, and it has been seen by an estimated 8 million people. He created Trembling on the Road to document this life-changing movement for the DVD and launched www.filmsthatchangetheworld.com to engage people through global house parties and online events. DuBowski has spoken on numerous panels at conferences and festivals, including the Toronto IFF, Sundance, the Berlin Film Festival Talent Campus, Hot Docs, Silverdocs and IFP. Currently he is directing a new film called Soul Trainer. DVD BONUS FEATURES: Behind the Scenes • Director Interview • New Footage from Pakistan and Saudi Arabia • 8 Language Subtitle Options “Revealing and moving…notable for its depiction of the tenacity with which its subjects hold on to their faith despite the wall of bigotry, often homicidal, that confronts them.” – Wall Street Journal “A remarkable exploration, six years in the making, of the lives and struggles of gays and lesbians in the Islamic world today.” – Huffington Post “Dignity and despair woven tightly together…Courageous.” – The Guardian “Lifts the veil of secrecy….frankly brave.” – NPR, Talk of the Nation “A passionate, essential first step … both haunting and inspiring.” – New York Sun “Fascinating, provocative, important.” – San Francisco Chronicle “Intimate portrayals...courageous.” – Boston Globe “Pioneering, heartfelt...this film will both inspire and anger.” – Bay Area Reporter “Provocative, deeply felt, original and emotionally complex.” – Village Voice “Heartfelt debut… Gains depth of feeling as it goes and even develops something of a nail-biting narrative.” – The New York Times “Rich with compelling, often heartbreaking stories…a much-needed reminder that the foundation of any great religion consists of love and understanding.” – Film Threat A JIHAD FOR LOVE 81 minutes, color, English and Arabic, Farsi, Urdu, Hindi, Turkish & French w/English subtitles, 2008 UPC #: 720229913430 • Catalog #: FRF 913430D Suggested Retail Price: $24.95 Pre-book Date: March 17 • Street Date: April 21 For more information, including the press kit, photos, credits and more, please visit www.firstrunfeatures.com/jihadforlove_press.html.

The following community sites updated last night:

• 
  Thomas Friedman is a Great Man

  Monday thoughts

  10 hours ago
• 
  Mikey Likes It!

  Dennis Loo, Isaiah, Third

  10 hours ago
• 
  Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude

  that awful press conference

  10 hours ago
• 
  SICKOFITRADLZ

  Barbra and other instruments

  10 hours ago
• 
  Trina's Kitchen

  The economy

  10 hours ago
• 
  Ruth's Report

  Greg Sargent's a sexist pig

  10 hours ago
• 
  Oh Boy It Never Ends

  Movies and thoughts on off-limits

  10 hours ago
• 
  Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills)

  Stevie Nicks, music and TV

  10 hours ago
• 
  Cedric's Big Mix

  Vacation

  10 hours ago
• 
  The Daily Jot

  THIS JUST IN! TRAVEL PLANS!

  10 hours ago
• 
  Like Maria Said Paz

  Stevie Nicks

  13 hours ago

The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.


iraq
the new york times
rod nordland
mcclatchy newspapers
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real news network
the los angeles times
borzou daragahi
aimee allison
philip maldari
david solnit
obama's iraq
a jihad for love

Iraq snapshot

Obama and Odierno in conflict on draw down?

Push-back on the "Awakenings"

Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Swinging Prez"