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August 31, 2005

Der Spiegel's Interview With Bashar al-Assad

Joshua Landis at Syria Comment.Com has posted an interview that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gave top the German news magazine Der Spiegel. It's an informative interview.

Also see the Der Spiegel version. The reader comments posted at Syria Comment. Com are quite interesting.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:43 AM | Comments (0)

The Roundup of Suspects in Hariri Murder Continues in Lebanon

According to Ya Libnan (O Lebanon), "Nine pro Syrian suspects were rounded up in daybreak house raids in Beirut Tuesday [August 30, 2005] for interrogation by an international investigating committee trying to identify former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassins." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:30 AM | Comments (0)

Some Lebanese Officials Still Being Questioned in Hariri's Murder

The BBC reported today that Lebanon has freed Nasser Qandil, a former cabinet minister, who was "questioned about the killing of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri," but Major General Jamil al-Sayyad, former head of General Security; Major General Ali Hajj, former chief of police Brigadier General Raymond Azar; and former military intelligence chief Mustafa Hamdan and Republican Guard Commander are still being questioned by U.N. investigators.

Here's more of the BBC report.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:24 AM | Comments (0)

August 30, 2005

Ya Libnan: 'Finally Lebanon Arrests Pro-Syrian Security Officials

Ya Libnan (O Lebanon), using its own sources and Reuters, reported August 30, 2005 that, "Jamil al-Sayyed, the Director-General of Lebanon's General Security Directorate, is widely considered to be the most powerful (Lebanese) political figure in Lebanon."

"Working in conjunction with the head of Syrian intelligence in Lebanon, Maj. Gen. Ghazi Kanaan, Sayyed is directly or indirectly responsible for most illegal arrests and "disappearances" that took place in the country," the publication said, adding. "Sayyed resigned one day before Syria ended its military presence in Lebanon in April [2005]." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:28 AM | Comments (0)

Former Lebanese Security Chiefs Arrested in Hariri Assassination

Lebanon's "former general security chief Jamil al-Sayed, ex-military intelligence boss Raymond Azar and former internal security head Ali al-Hage" have been arrested in the February 14, 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, according to Agence France Presse and other news outlets. Here's more.

Updates will come later.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:16 AM | Comments (0)

August 29, 2005

Facts Getting in the Way of Desire to Celebrate Iraq's Constitution

In a special to washingtonpost.com, journalist Dan Froomkin wrote August 29, 2005 that "President Bush is trying to turn the completion of a divisive and disappointing draft constitution for Iraq into a cause for celebration."

"But the facts keep getting in the way," he wrote. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:18 PM | Comments (0)

Al-Mendhar: Sistani Rejects Federation and Stresses Unity

Al-Mendhar has a statement on federalism in Iraq that was purportedly issued by "Grand Ayatollah Al Sayyid Ali Al Sistani."

The Diplomatic Times Review does not know if the statement is accurate.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:02 PM | Comments (0)

Iraq the Model: Sistani Emabrrasses the Governement

Mohammed at Iraq the Model, the favorite blog of many pro-war bloggers in the United States, reported today that:

The differences between the Sheat (Shiite?)clergy and the parties that used its name during the elections are deepening and this appeared clearly after [Ali Husaini] Sistani [said] that he's not going to accept having his name or that of the clergy used for any future electoral campaign.The clergy's negative attitude towards Sheat ruling parties increased after more seeing criticism coming from the people in the Sheat regions to the worsening situation in their cities which is attributed to the failure of the local administrations in running the affairs of the cities; the peak of the crisis came when Sheat-Shaet conflicts started in Najaf and a few other cities. I was even told by some Najafi friends that the conflict pushed Sistani to rufuse any meetings with government officials.Today the differences reached the peak when Sistani dropped a bomb by rejecting federalism and thus rejecting the constitution of the Kurdish-Sheat alliance putting the current ruling parties in a difficult position.

Sistani in his statement said: "The Sunnis are your family. Stay by their side this time so that they stay by your side in the coming timesMohammed said, "This development reflects a critical turn in the relationship between the Sheat clergy and the government, and the ruling politicians will be faced again by the danger of having clerics interfering with politics but this time, the Sheat alliance which insisted on mentioning the clergy in the introduction of the constitution will certainly realize this danger and they will be left before a hard choice as they have put all their weight on the balance of the clergy and if the latter lets them down the consequences will be catastrophic for those politicians."

Here is Mohammed's entire post.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:43 PM | Comments (0)

August 28, 2005

Is Iraq Moving Closer to Civil War?

An August 28, 2005 report on Iraq in The Observer of London by correspondents Rory Carroll in Baghdad, Peter Beaumont in London and Paul Harris in Washington offers a vivid account of the political and military crisis in Iraq. They suggest that the country is on the brink of civil war.

See "Iraq takes yet another step closer to civil war."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:50 PM | Comments (0)

Sir Michael Jay's Warning Letter to Tony Blair's Cabinet Secretary

Here is the May 18, 2004 letter that Sir Michael Jay sent to Sir Andrew Turnbull, British Prime Minister Tony Blair's Cabinet Secretary, warning him about "potential underlying causes of extremism" that could affect the Muslim community in Britain. It was leaked to The Observer of London.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:29 PM | Comments (0)

A Warning Ignored

Martin Bright, Home Affairs editor of The Observer of London reported August 28, 2005 that, "The Foreign Office's top official warned Downing Street that the Iraq war was fuelling Muslim extremism in Britain a year before the 7 July [2005]bombings [in London]." Here's his highly informative report.

I think British Government officials have clearly established a link between terrorism in Britain and the war in Iraq, even if British Prime Minister Tony Blair won't admit it.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:09 PM | Comments (0)

Did Blair Ignore Warnings of Muslim Anger Over Iraq?

Greg Hurst, Political Correspondent for The Times Online, reported August 29, 2005 [London Time] that "attempts by [British Prime Minister] Tony Blair to deny a link between the occupation of Iraq and last months London bombings were further undermined yesterday [August 28, 2005] by the leak of a letter by a top diplomat." Mr. Hurst wrote:

Correspondence was published showing that Sir Michael Jay, head of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, gave warning a year earlier that Britain's foreign policy was a key factor in recruitment by extremist organizations. He cited disillusion among Muslims over Britain's position on Iraq and the Middle East peace process as a recurring theme in the Muslim community.

Sir Michael's warning was set out in a letter in May last year to Sir Andrew Turnbull, the outgoing Cabinet Secretary, in which he said Britain was now being seen among Muslims as a crusader state alongside America. He noted that, "A copy was published yesterday [August 28, 2005] by The Observer, which said that his references to Iraq were removed from core scripts, or briefing papers, circulated to Ministers summarizing the Governments position on Iraq and terrorism." For more, see "Blair warned of extremist threat from his policy on Middle East."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:49 PM | Comments (0)

999 Today: Resentment Rising in UK Over de Menzes Media Attention

"There is rising resentment within the United Kingdom at the national media's interest in the fatal shooting of Brazilian, Jean Charles de Menezes," according to James Logan at the 999 Today Network.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:33 PM | Comments (0)

Cressida Dick Takes Responsibility for de Menezes 'shoot to kill' Order

Cressida Dick, "the police commander said to have given the "shoot to kill" instructions when an innocent Brazilian [Jean Charles de Menezes] was killed on the Tube [July 22, 2005] said yesterday [August 28, 2005] that she would take full responsibility for her actions," the Daily Telegraph of London reports in its August 29, 2005 issue. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:22 PM | Comments (0)

Brazil Wants to Know Who killed Jean Charles de Menezes?

Érica Santana, reporter for Agência Brasil, said that Manoel Gomes Pereira, the director of the Foreign Ministry's Department of Brazilian Communities Abroad, "says that Brazil would like the British government to pinpoint the person responsible for the killing of Jean Charles de Menezes." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:08 PM | Comments (0)

Janet Daley: 'De Menezes is Recruited to an Ugly Cause'

Janet Daley at The Times Online analyzes why the July 22, 2005 killing of Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes by policemen looking for the failed July 21 London subway bombers is discussed in the British and world press press more than the July 7, 2005 killing of 52 Britons and the wounding of dozens of others by suicide bombers. Here's her analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:56 PM | Comments (0)

August 27, 2005

Is Bush Preparing Americans for Many Years of War in Iraq?

During his August 27, 2005 radio address, U.S. President George W. Bush told his listeners"

Our strategy is straightforward: As Iraqis stand up, Americans will stand down. And when Iraqi forces can defend their freedom by taking more and more of the fight to the enemy, our troops will come home with the honor they have earned.

Our efforts in Iraq and the broader Middle East will require more time, more sacrifice and continued resolve. Yet people across the Middle East are choosing a future of freedom and prosperity and hope. And as they take these brave steps, Americans will continue to stand with them because we know that free and democratic nations are peaceful nations.Mr. Bush said, "By advancing the cause of liberty in the Middle East, we will bring hope to millions and security to our own citizens. And we will lay the foundation of peace for our children and grandchildren."

If Mr. Bush is waiting for these conditions to occur before the U.S. withdraws from Iraq, Americans should prepare for many years of seeing their children off to war unless an antiwar movement in the U.S. combined with the resistance or a civil war in Iraq force U.S. troops to leave.

Here is a White House transcript of Mr. Bush's August 27 radio address

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:02 PM | Comments (0)

August 26, 2005

The CIA Blame Game on 9/11/ Intelligence Failures

The New York Times reported August 26, 2005 that:

A long-awaited CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) inspector-general's report on the agency's performance before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks includes detailed criticism of more than a dozen former and current agency officials, aiming its sharpest language at George Tenet, the former director of central intelligence, according to a former intelligence officer who was briefed on the findings and another government official who has seen the report.

Here' is The Times' report, as published at SFGate.Com.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:26 AM | Comments (0)

Fox News: Senate May Hold Hearings on Able Danger

Rupert Murdoch's Fox News reported August 25, 2005 that "Aides to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, are actively discussing scheduling a hearing on "Able Danger" and the larger issue of information-sharing between the Pentagon and the FBI."

Fox News noted that, "Able Danger is the code name for a military-intelligence unit that apparently learned a year before the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks that lead hijacker Mohamed Atta and other terrorists were already in the United States."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:11 AM | Comments (0)

What Kind of Iraq Does Draft Constitution Envision?

What kind of an Iraq is envisioned by the disputed draft constitution that the Bush Administration is pushing in Iraq? According to Zaman Daily Online of Turkey, the constitution states:

(1) The Iraqi regime is a republican, federal, democratic and pluralist regime.

(2) Two or more regions can be united through a plebiscite. At least a quarter of seats in the National Assembly will be shared with women.

(3) The official languages are Arabic and Kurdish. The Kerkuk (Kirkuk) issue will be solved after 2007.

(4) Islam is the official religion and the primary source of legislation. No laws against democratic principles can be enacted

(5) Oil and natural gas revenues will be equally distributed among the demographic distribution of the regions; and

(6) Deputies elect the Iraqi president, who must be an Iraqi by birth, with a majority of two thirds for a four-year term.

Zaman said, "Disputed issues in the draft constitution are summarized as limits of federalism, forming federal units, annulment of the Baath Party, issues regarding the situation of state officials of the overthrown Saddam government, separation of power among president, parliament and the cabinet." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:01 AM | Comments (0)

Unintended Consequences in Iraq

Former Australian Foreign Minister Bill Hayden told readers of the August 26, 2005 edition of The Australian that, "The Bush administration's Iraq policy has led to a disaster." He added:

Far from becoming a secular, liberal, democratic state, Iraq will almost certainly turn into a narrow, stifling Shia theocracy. It will be characterized by a harsh intolerance of nonconformity, by discrimination against other religions, sects and minorities, and by the repression of women.Moreover, it appears increasingly likely that Iran, not the US, will be the master external draftsman of Iraq's future. At least that seems to be what Tehran expects. Following Iraq's elections in January, a regional head of Iran's intelligence service applauded the result: "The people we [Iran] supported are in power." Talk about unintended consequences.

Mr. Hayden said, "There is general agreement that the US needs an exit policy. But it is difficult to conceive of one that is practical and will at the same time save face for Washington." Read the entire column here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:46 AM | Comments (0)

Amir Taheri: Iraq Taking a Giant Step Away From Tyranny

Amir Taheri, a journalist and author of books on the Middle East and Islam, contends in an article in the August 26, 2005 issue of The Australian that:

For the next few weeks all eyes will be on the Iraqi National Assembly as it debates the draft of the country's new constitution. Provided the assembly does not throw it out, the proposed text would be submitted to a popular referendum on October 15. This is why Iraqis from all ethnic and religious backgrounds are queuing up to register to vote. They understand the stakes involved.

He said, "Even before its publication, the text had been attacked by those who had opposed the liberation of Iraq in the first place. The main attacks have focused on two issues," he added." Read about those issues here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:38 AM | Comments (0)

Will a Forced Constitution Make a Difference in Iraqi?

The Christian Science Monitor explains "Why Iraq may not get a bounce from constitution."

If an agreement on a constitution is reached, it is to please the United States. The various factions in Iraq have their own agendas, which has nothing to do with democracy. It's about power, influence, controlling resources and keeping rival factions off balance.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:25 AM | Comments (0)

The U.S. is Finally Having its Great Debate Over the Iraq War

The Washington Post's David Ignatius notes in an August 26, 2005 column that,

America is finally having its great debate over the Iraq war.

In that debate," he said, "it's worth listening to a young Iraqi Shiite cleric named Ammar Hakim. He speaks for the people who arguably have gained the most from America's troubled mission in Iraq and, to a surprising extent, still believe in it."

Interestingly, this debate is taking place, in part, because the formidable Bush Administration propaganda machine has been unable to thwart it or send it in a direction that takes the focus off the human and economic toll the war is taking on the U.S.

For more, see "Playing The Shiite Card."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:13 AM | Comments (0)

August 25, 2005

Disputing Over Oil in Southern Sudan

Paul Redfern, a special correspondent for The East African, asked in the publication's August 22-28, 2005 edition:

What do a former England cricket star, a South African businessman and the new leader of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement have in common?

The answer, in a nutshell, is oil. And lots of it. For between them Salva Kiir, Phil Edmonds and Andrew Groves are the controlling influences in White Nile, a company that could in the near future exploit the vast oil reserves hidden beneath the surface in the Block Ba oil concession in southern Sudan.Mr. Redfern said, "The deal between the SPLM and White Nile, which originated in August 2004, is contested by Total, who say they were given the concession rights for Block Ba by the government in Khartoum in 1980."

The West's desire to have a steady supply of oil and profits seems to be the cause of such more trouble in the Middle East and Africa. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:06 AM | Comments (0)

Some Southern Sudanese Refugees Leery About Returning Home

An Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) article published in the East African said, "The recent death of Sudan's First Vice President and leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A), John Garang, has dampened enthusiasm for repatriation among some Sudanese refugee communities in Uganda, humanitarian workers say."

"We have talked to many who had high hopes in Garang, but with his death and the riots that ensued, they seem to be changing their minds about immediate repatriation," Walter Oola, a field manager for the International Rescue Committee, told IRIN.

According to IRIN, "Kiryandongo refugee settlement in Uganda's western district of Masindi houses some 15,800 Sudanese refugees." Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:11 AM | Comments (0)

August 24, 2005

Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army Given an Ultimatum

"Sudanese First-Vice President Salva Kiir Mayardit warned Wednesday [August 23, 2005] that his government in the south is ready to force out the Ugandan Lord Resistance Army (LRA)," according to Xinhua.Net.

Mr. Kiir, addressing at a public rally in Juba town in southern Sudan, "said seeking a solution for the southern Sudan-based LRA is a priority for his government in the south," Xinhua said, adding:

"Kampala and Khartoum signed an agreement in 2002 to allow the Ugandan army to launch cross-border operations against the notorious LRA, which has several bases in southern Sudan." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)

Bush Goes Back to the They Want to Destroy Our Way of Life Theme

Today U.S. President George W. Bush told a friendly audience in Nampa. Idaho, USA that, "Our nation is engaged in a global war on terror that affects the safety and security of every American. In Iraq," he added, "Afghanistan and across the world, we face dangerous enemies who want to harm our people, folks who want to destroy our way of life."

Has Osama bin Ladin and his allies ever said they wanted to destroy the American way of life, something they know they can't do?

Michael Scheuer, who once headed the CIA's bin Ladin unit, adequately addresses the "they want to destroy our way of life" issue in his book Imperial Hubris: Why The West Is Losing The War On Terror. According to the book, whose points are also outlined in Wikipedia, bin Ladin and his allies' attack U.S. interest because::

(1) The U.S. government supports Israel and is indifferent to the Palestinians
(2) To force U.S. and western troops out of the Arabian Peninsula
(3) To end U.S. occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan
(4) To end U.S. support of countries that oppress Muslims such as Russia, India and China
(5) To end U.S. pressure on Arabs to keep oil prices low; and
(6) To end U.S. support for tyrannical governments

These same reasons are outlined in Mr. Scheuer's book Through Our Enemies' Eyes: Osama Bin Laden, Radical Islam & the Future of America, which was initially a CIA training manual on bin Ladin.

Here is a White House transcript of Mr. Bush's Idaho speech.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:35 PM | Comments (0)

Some Religious Leaders Condemn Robertson's Call for Hit on Chavez

Los Angeles Times correspondents James Gerstenzang and Larry B. Stammer noted in an August 24, 2005 dispatch that,

Televangelist Pat Robertson's [of the United States] call for the assassination of leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez provoked a storm of criticism yesterday, triggering condemnation from fellow religious leaders and international outrage, while the Bush administration said he was a "private citizen" whose remarks were "inappropriate."

"Robertson remained publicly silent, but was criticized across the political and religious spectrum in the United States," they noted. Here's more. And here's are Google links on Robertson's call for Chavez's assassination.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:35 AM | Comments (0)

Fox to Ask Mexican Congress to Reduce More Foreign Debt

Mexico President Vicente Fox will ask [the Mexican] Congress to reduce foreign debt for a third year in his 2006 budget proposal, said Alejandro Werner, chief economist for the Finance Ministry, according to Bloomberg.com.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:16 AM | Comments (0)

Is there really an Iraqi nation?

USNews.Com's Kevin Whitelaw ask in the publication's National Security Watch column: Is there really an Iraqi nation? His answer is here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:51 AM | Comments (0)

'List of MI6 Officers Worldwide'

On August 22, 2005, Richard Norton Taylor of The Guardian reported in an article headlined "US website names MI6 officers" that, "

An American website posted what it purported to be the names of 74 members of the [British] Secret Intelligence Service, MI6," August 21, 2005.

Here is the purported list. It's on the Cryptome website.The Diplomatic Times Review has no way of authenticating it.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:32 AM | Comments (0)

August 23, 2005

Is Bush Preaching to the Choir on Afghanistan and Iraq?

As opposition to the war in Iraq becomes more visible, U.S. President George W. Bush has embarked on a public relations campaign to ensure that his support base continues to accept that their loved ones dying in far off places such as Iraq and Afghanistan is for a "noble cause. For example, on August 22, 2005, he told the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Convention underway at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah:

Vast oceans and friendly neighbors are not enough to protect us. A policy of retreat and isolation will not bring us safety. The only way to defend our citizens where we live is to go after the terrorists where they live. (Applause.)

So the second part of our strategy is to take the fight to the terrorists abroad before they can attack us here at home. This is the most difficult and dangerous mission in the war on terror. And like generations before them, our soldiers and sailors and airmen and Marines have stepped forward to accept the mission. They've damaged the al Qaeda network across the world and we're going to keep the terrorists on the run. From Afghanistan to Iraq, to the Horn of Africa, our men and women in uniform are bringing our enemies to justice and bringing justice to our enemies.
He added: Our goal is clear: to secure a more peaceful world for our children and grandchildren. We will accept nothing less than total victory over the terrorists and their hateful ideology. (Applause.)

While such statements make an audience feel good, reality suggests that there will be no total victory and the world will not be safer. It will become more dangerous as more Muslims join what many perceive as a "defensive jihad" against the U.S. and its allies, who are establishing more military bases in Muslim countries and helping their Muslim allies all over the world arrest or kill Muslims who challenge local authority and repressive, pro-West policies. This includes using Muslim resources more for the benefit of the West than Muslims.

For total victory over Muslim fighters, the U.S. and the West would have to destroy the global Islamic community. And that is not going to happen without a global fight. Many Muslims born in the West would even join this fight on the side of the Ummah, while others will back the West. This could conceivably lead to a Muslim civl war in the West.

By the way, Mr. Bush was right when he said the current struggle between the U.S. and the global "defensive Jihad" movement has World War proportions. This is explained very well by Michael Scheuer in his excellent book Imperial Hubris: Why The West Is Losing The War On Terror.

Here is the White House transcript of Mr. Bush's August 22, 2005 address.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:34 AM | Comments (0)

August 22, 2005

The Guardian: "US Website Names MI6 Officers'

Richard Norton Taylor of The Guardian reported August 22, 2005 that, "An American website posted what it purported to be the names of 74 members of the [British] Secret Intelligence Service, MI6," August 21, 2005.

For more, see "US website names MI6 officers." As of this post, I'm still trying to locate the website.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:57 AM | Comments (0)

Sudan Wants Probe of U.S.' 1998 Cruise Missile Attack on Khartoum

The Sudan Tribune reported August 22, 2005 that, "The government of Sudan reiterated a call for a United Nations probe into" the August 20, 1998, U.S. cruise missile strikes [on Sudan ] that destroyed "the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory on suspicion that it was involved in producing chemical weapons and had links with Al-Qaeda supremo Osama bin Laden, who had lived in Sudan until two years earlier."

The strikes were in retaliation for Al-Qaida's August 7, 1998 truck bomb attack on the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Here's the Sudan Tribune article.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:17 AM | Comments (0)

So far, 2005 Has Been A Deadly Year for U.S. Troops in Afghanistan

New York Times correspondent Carlotta Gall reported today that, "This year is already the deadliest for American soldiers in Afghanistan since the war of 2001, and the violence is likely to intensify before the nation's legislative elections on Sept. 18" 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:00 AM | Comments (0)

What Does 'Stay the Course' Mean?

Andrew Greeley, the prominent Catholic priest, sociologist, and veteran columnist, stated in his August 19, 2005 Chicago Sun-Times column:

Every time our smirking, swaggering, stubborn, dishonest president promises "to stay the course" in Iraq I feel sick, especially when, dressed in a sport shirt and standing comfortably under the blue Texas sky, he comments on the deaths in Iraq. Young men and women are dying, being maimed, suffering psychological trauma which will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

"All the president can do is mouth cliches," Mr. Greeley wrote in his most biting criticism of the president to date.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:48 AM | Comments (0)

Arab News: Israel Did the Palestinians No Favor in Gaza

Arab News told its readers in an August 22, 2005 editorial:

The settlers have lost. Their dreams are over. The Jewish soldiers did not refuse to obey orders; the Israeli people did not rise up; the demonstrations ultimately failed to sway the government and the majority of Israelis remained firm supporters of the decision to withdraw from Gaza. Most of the 21 settlements are now virtually deserted. The orderly, smooth and quick disengagement belies the scenes of wailing and defiance by some settlers that TV and the sensation-seeking media like to zoom in on. The settlers should be so lucky, given the constraints shown to them by their troops and with up to $500,000 in their pockets as compensation. There might have been emotional scenes of settlers leaving their homes nothing of course compared to Palestinians when their homes are destroyed by Israeli bulldozers but they are leaving not their land but someone else's. They are not doing the Palestinians a favor,

Arab news added:

Freeing just five percent of occupied land and involving just 21 of 150 illegal settlements, the Gaza withdrawal is not a marvel or a miracle or a painful concession as the Israeli government and settlers would like for the world to believe. Because Gaza is so unsafe, so barren, so poor, and of no strategic benefit not to mention that its huge Palestinian population threatens to tip the Jewish demographic scale in Israel its loss is of no consequence to the Israelis or to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who ensured that the price he had to pay was as low as possible.

The publication, which bills itself as "The Middle East's Leading English Language Daily," noted that Gaza still "remains in Israeli hands. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:32 AM | Comments (0)

Philip Gourevitch Describes Security That Surrounded Kadirgamar

Journalist Philip Gourevitch, writing in the August 29, 2005 issue of The New Yorker, describes the elaborate security he found surrounding the late Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, when he visited with him in Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital, earlier this year. He wrote:

Colombo 7, with its wide boulevards and winding, leafy lanes, is dense with government ministries and foreign embassies, and, clustered between them, the private homes of the political and business élite-- villas ranging in scale from ample to opulent. Colombo 7, therefore, is also a zone of elaborate security arrangements: blockaded streets picketed with military guards, men crouched in the shade cradling assault rifles, walled compounds and, in some of them, private militias.

The home of the Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, for instance, was hidden from view by a high perimeter wall, when I visited him earlier this year, and behind that wall rose another one, for good measure. At a fortified guard booth, my cell phone was taken into custody for the duration of my visit, and when I was ushered to a rattan chair on the house's deep veranda to await my audience, I found myself flanked by a pile of machine guns. "Yet, despite such precautions," Mr. Gourevitch noted, "Mr. Kadirgamar was shot dead at his home on the evening of Friday, August 12th, hit four times by snipers firing from a neighbor's house."

For more, see "Killing Kadirgamar."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:21 AM | Comments (0)

Sr. Lanka's Douglas Devananda Has Survived 10 Hit Attempts

As Sri Lanka's "Minister of Agricultural Marketing and Development and Hindu Affairs," Douglas Devananda "is now the only surviving Tamil minister in the ruling alliance," The Electric New Paper (TENP) of Singapore said in an August 22, 2005 article.

TENP said Mr. Devananda "has the proverbial, nine lives. Make it 10," the publication added, "for that is the number of attempts made on his life." Here's more.

Also see "Defiance from a Sri Lankan bunker," the BBC article the TENP article was partly based on.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:54 AM | Comments (0)

Former Ontario Premier Remembers Lakshman Kadirgamar

In an August 16, 2005 article in the Globe and Mail of Canada headlined "I Remember," former Ontario Premier Robert Keith "Bob Rae" said of Sri Lankan foreign minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, who was assassinated on August 12, 2005:

He talked often of his possible assassination. "I could be shot dead in my swimming pool," he once said. A leading Tamil lawyer and an Oxford graduate, he knew that he was a marked man, and that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) never hesitated to call him a traitor to their cause.

Mr. Rae said Mr. Kadirgamar "wanted peace, but not at any cost. He could not accept that the LTTE had a lock on representing the Tamil community," Mr. Rae wrote. "He felt that many Western governments were simply too slow to understand the real goals and objectives of the LTTE. He was prepared to accept a federal Sri Lanka, but not, as he put it, "a fascist, racist state in the heart of our country."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:36 AM | Comments (0)

Russia, China: 'Brothers In Arms Again?'

In the August 18, 2005 edition of PacNet Newsletter, the "weekly publication generated from a network of policy research institutes by Pacific Forum CSIS," Elizabeth Wishnick, assistant professor of political science at Montclair State University and a research associate at Columbia University's Weatherhead East Asian Institute, notes that:

Originally Russia proposed holding the exercise [known as Peace Mission 2005] in Xinjiang, due to its proximity to the Russian air base in Kyrgyzstan. Instead, the PRC [Peoples Republic of China] suggested Zhejiang province, across from Taiwan. When the Russian side rejected that location as too provocative, the two countries agreed to hold the exercise in Shandong province.

Ms. Wishnick said, "Peace Mission 2005 follows on previous SCO [Shanghai Cooperation Organization] counterterrorism exercises in Kyrgyzstan in 2002 and in Kazakhstan and China in 2003, but is distinctive in its composition and unexpected location. Peace Mission 2005 posits a hypothetical ethnic conflict breaking out in a third country, which appeals to its neighbors and the UN for help," she wrote. "Given China's opposition to participating in most international interventions, this scenario is puzzling enough, but the details of the exercises raise further questions."

For more, see "Brothers in arms again? Assessing the Sino-Russian military exercises."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:04 AM | Comments (0)

'Peace Mission 2005': An Analysis

Back on August 18, 2005, Sergei Karamayev recalled at MosNews.com that"

"Apart from the anti-terrorist military exercises in Kazakhstan in the fall of 2003, the Peace Mission 2005 [currently underway between Russia and China] is the first mutual operation involving the defense ministries of two of the Pacific regions largest countries since the Korean War in the 1950s. Then, Soviet and Chinese pilots fought against U.S. aviation side by side. But then the relations between our two counties suddenly cooled, and this cooling took on forms of escalation, as in, for example, the battles over the Damansky island in 1968.

"Only after perestroika," Mr. Karamayev wrote, "the breakup of the Soviet Union and the creation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in 1996 was military cooperation between China and Russia restored. And the current military training is testimony to that," he aded.

For more of this interesting analysis, see "China, Russia to Play Peace Mission 2005."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:20 AM | Comments (0)

What is the Meaning of Russia and China's War Games?

"Even though Russia and China have announced that joint military exercises [currently underway in the Russian Pacific near Vladivostok and in the Chinese coastal province of Shandong] aren't aimed at any third country and they are just flexing muscles in the face of terrorism, extremism, and separatism, they are also indirectly sending serious messages to Washington," contends Tehran Times columnist M.A. Saki in an article published August 21, 2005 at Tehrantimes.com.

"Common security and economic interests have brought the two giant neighbors closer to each other," the analyst said, adding:

The need for closer economic and military cooperation has become more evident as the United States sees itself as the only superpower in the world and has adopted the policy of preemptive war under the pretext of combating terrorism, taking unilateral measures and defying the United Nations.

For more, see "New twists in new Great Game."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:00 AM | Comments (0)

August 21, 2005

Tim Hanes: 'Sir Ian, You Must Go Now'

Tim Hames at The Times Onlline of London says it's time for Sir Ian Blair to go because "The Metropolitan Police Commissioner's conduct in the de Menezes case does not inspire confidence." Mr. Blair has the public support of British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Home Secretary Charles Clarke. The latter prompted Mr. Hames to write:

A diplomat, it has been said, is an honourable man sent abroad to lie for his country. A Home Secretary, it seems, is a decent soul sent out in front of the media to be less than frank to his country. Referring to the appalling death of Jean Charles de Menezes and the Keystone Kops performance reported to the Independent Police Complaints Commission and then subsequently leaked, Charles Clarke insisted yesterday: I am very happy with the conduct, not only of Sir Ian Blair, but the whole Metropolitan Police in relation to this inquiry.

"With due respect to the Home Secretary, who has dealt well with the London bombings and events since, that statement cannot possibly be a remotely accurate reflection of his real feelings," Mr. Hames added. "He must be absolutely livid and he is entitled to be." Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)

Tony Blair Gives 'Full Support' to Ian Blair

British Prime Minister Tony Blair gave his full support to Sir Ian Blair, the Metropolitan Police commissioner," August 21, 2005, "after he admitted that he did not know his officers had killed an innocent man until 24 hours after the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes on the London Underground" July 22, 2005," according to the Daily Telegraph of London.

With some Britons calling for his resignation, I think Ian Blair is grateful for support from any source, and especially the prime minister. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:33 PM | Comments (0)

Public Inquiry Into de Menezes Execution Likely

Jack Kirkup, political correspondent for Scotsman.com reported August 22, 2005, that "A full-scale public inquiry into the Metropolitan Police's shoot-to-kill policy came a step closer yesterday as the row [in England] over the death of Jean Charles de Menezes intensified."

"The Liberal Democrats became the first major political party to back a formal inquiry into the Met's firearms policy since the London bombings, and the government indicated ministers are open to the prospect of a statutory inquiry," he wrote, adding: "A public inquiry would be likely to have a much a wider scope than that being conducted by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC)." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:14 PM | Comments (0)

Captain Ed: 'Rich 'Swiftboats' Himself Into Irrelevancy'

Captain Ed over at the always interesting Captain's Quarters doesn't like New York Times Op-Ed columnist Frank Rich's August 21, 2005 column headlined "The Swift Boating of Cindy Sheehan." Says The Captain:

Rarely does a columnist for a national news outlet publish a piece as intellectually bankrupt as Frank Rich's entry today in the New York Times. The only item in the column that has full engagement with the truth is this single, lonely statement:

Nicholas D. Kristof and David Brooks are on vacation.

Otherwise, Rich engages in transparent sophistry that must be fisked to be believed.I'm think a columnist of Mr. Rich's stature adds balance to what has essentially been a lecture from the conservative punditocracy on the merits of the Iraq war and President Bush's democracy crusade in Iraq and the Middle East. Unlike Captain Ed, I don't think Mr. Rich is making himself irrelevant. In fact, I think he's more relevant today than he was when he was a theater critic. He is one of a handful of Mainstream Media (MSM) voices with the courage to say what's on his mind about the war without fear of being ostracized or blog swarmed for his views.

For more of The Captain's thoughts, see "Rich 'Swiftboats' Himself Into Irrelevancy."

By way, I enjoy reading Captain Ed's opinions although I disagree with them more than I agree.

Note: This item is cross-posted at The National Political Observer and The Opinion Gazette.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:41 PM | Comments (0)

Frank Rich on the 'Swift Boating' of Cindy Sheehan

New York Times Op-Ed columnist Frank Rich paints a vivid picture of President Bush that his media handlers and supporters won't like. It's called:"The Swift Boating of Cindy Sheehan." Here's part of the portrait:

Cindy Sheehan couldn't have picked a more apt date to begin the vigil that ambushed a president: Aug. 6 was the fourth anniversary of that fateful 2001 Crawford vacation day when George W. Bush responded to an intelligence briefing titled "Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States" by going fishing. On this Aug. 6 the president was no less determined to shrug off bad news. Though 14 marine reservists had been killed days earlier by a roadside bomb in Haditha, his national radio address that morning made no mention of Iraq. Once again Mr. Bush was in his bubble, ensuring that he wouldn't see Ms. Sheehan coming. So it goes with a president who hasn't foreseen any of the setbacks in the war he fabricated against an enemy who did not attack inside the United States in 2001.

Mr. Rich said, "When these setbacks happen in Iraq itself, the administration punts. But when they happen at home, there's a game plan. Once Ms. Sheehan could no longer be ignored, the Swift Boating began."

Mr. Rich's article is worth reading whether you are pro or anti-war.

By the way, the verb "Swift Boating" comes from an effort during the 2004 presidential campaign of some Swift Boat veterans of the Vietnam war to discredit Democratic presidential contender John Kerry's role in the war. Mr. Kerry commanded a Swift Boat

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:21 AM | Comments (0)

August 20, 2005

Dhanapala Turns Down Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Portfolio

According to ColomboPage, the Sri Lanka Internet newspaper, career diplomat Jayantha Dhanapala, head of the Peace Secretariat, has reportedly declined an offer made by President Chandrika Kumaratunga for the vacant Foreign Minister portfolio."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:25 PM | Comments (1)

Did London Police Offer de Menezes Family 'Blood Money'?

"Scotland Yard came under renewed pressure yesterday when the family of Jean Charles de Menezes, the 27-year-old Brazilian electrician mistakenly killed by anti-terror police on the London Underground a day after the failed suicide bombings on July 21, rejected a $1 million compensation offer, which they said was an insult, and was blood money," Mushtak Parker of Arab News reported in the papers August 2005 edition.

London's Metropolitan Police admitted August 20, 2005 that it had offered Mr. de Menezes' family compensation for executing him, according to Scotsman.com

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:14 PM | Comments (1)

This Doesn't Look Good for Sir Ian Blair

James Cusick of the Sunday Herald of Britain reported in the paper's August 21, 2005 edition that, "The head of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Ian Blair, was not told for 24 hours that the young Brazilian shot and killed by his men on a London tube train was innocent and had no connection with bombings in the city, he said last night."

The Herald said,

The astonishing claim suggests that Sir Ian was kept in the dark about the bungled shooting by senior officers inside the Met, or that the elite surveillance teams which tracked Jean Charles de Menezes took more than a day to discover the identity of the man they had killed by shooting him seven times in the head and once in the neck.

"Either option leaves confidence in both Sir Ian and his force at a critically low level," The Herald concluded. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:03 PM | Comments (0)

The Observer: 'Tell Us the Truth About de Menezes'

"Those calling for the head of Sir Ian Blair, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, over the killing of Jean Charles de Menezes on 22 July should wait until the full facts of the case are known," opined The Observer of London in its lead article in the August 21, 2005 issue. "If only Sir Ian had shown similar restraint," the publication said.

See "Tell us the truth about de Menezes" for more of the Observer leader.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:53 PM | Comments (0)

Relatives: de Menezes Shot Several Times in the Back of the Head

The Sunday Times of London reported in its August 21, 2005 edition that:

The day after [Brazilian electrician] Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead by police at Stockwell Underground station [in London], his grieving relatives and one of his closest friends filed into a mortuary to identify his body. They found him covered in a thin sheet and his face, unmarked, was ghostly white.

Gesio de Avila, a friend and fellow worker, looked carefully over the body, confused by de Menezes' peaceful repose. Where were the wounds from the seven bullets to the head that killed him? Every bit of colour had left his face, but apart from that it was normal, de Avila said last week. There was a bandage on his head behind his ear and when I looked closer, I realized what had happened. He had been shot several times in the back of the head. It was like he had been killed by bandits. The Times said, "De Menezes' cousins, Alex and Alessandro Pereira, who were also at Greenwich mortuary in southeast London, were outraged by what they saw."

For more, see "Focus: Executed: Anatomy of a police killing."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:40 PM | Comments (0)

Times Online: 'Executed: Anatomy of a Police Killing'

"Focus: Executed: Anatomy of a police killing" is a fascinating but infuriating Sunday Times of London account of the July 22, 2005 execution in London of Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes. Police claim they mistook him for one of four men who set off bombs in London on July 21, 2005..

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:31 PM | Comments (0)

Pope Benedict XVI's Address to Muslims at World Youth Day

Here is the Zenit News Agency's translation of Pope Benedict XVI's August 20, 2005 address to representatives of some Muslim communities attending World Youth day in Cologne, Germany. To read Benedict XVI's speech, see "Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue ... a Vital Necessity."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:53 PM | Comments (0)

Global Opinion and Analysis of Iraq's Constitution Drafting

If you want to know what editorial writers and journalist from 18 countries think about Iraq's effort to agree on a constitution, see "Iraq constitution: 'Work in Progress' or 'Blueprint for Success'?" Some 57 reports on the subject were collected by the U.S. State Department from July 29 - August 16, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:00 PM | Comments (0)

Global Opinion and Analysis of Israel's Gaza Withdrawal

Each day, the Media Reaction Branch (MRB) of the U.S. Department of State selects foreign press commentary in an attempt "to provide a representative picture of local editorial opinion" on global issues for U.S. policy makers and analysts. These reports summarize and interpret "foreign editorial opinion and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government," according MRB.

Since Israel's withdrawal from Gaza is currently in the news, I thought Diplomatic Times Review readers around the world would be interested in the State Department's selection of 104 reports from 34 countries that commented on the eviction of Jewish settlers from the Occupied Palestinian territory.

The reports cover the period July 28, 2005 to August 16, 2005. 'See "The Middle East: Good-bye to Gaza" to read them. It's worth your time.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:39 PM | Comments (0)

Is MSM Suffering Collateral Damage From Iraq War?

Ron Hutcheson of Knight Ridder Newspapers asserted August 18, 2005 that, "As the battle for Iraq's future plays out half a world away, the American news media are caught in the crossfire at home."

For more, see "Mainstream news media suffer collateral damage from Iraq war."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:07 PM | Comments (0)

'Radical Islam' Reportedly An Issue in Prisons

The August 20, 2005 edition of the Los Angeles Times has a worth-reading article headlined "Radical Islam an Issue in Prisons."

Such concerns are nothing new. Prison authorities have been worried about Islam in U.S. prison since the advent of the Nation of Islam. However, what is news is the fear that Muslims coming out prisons could become warriors in the defensive Jihad currently underway, to expel the U.S. from Muslim lands and protect Muslim resources.

Specifically, there is concern about keeping Salafi Dawa out of the prisons. The fear is that they will convert inmates to so-called "Wahhabism".

Prison authorities can fill each prison with a CIA trained, approved and paid imam and it would not prevent a Muslim who truly believes that his or her life and death are for Allah from doing what he or she can to protect the faith and Muslims when they are under attack. Once a Muslim leaves prison, he or she can get from the Internet what was not permitted while incarcerated.

Note: This article is cross-posted at The Opinion Gazette.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:44 PM | Comments (0)

Bush Plans to Visit War Supporters in the Western U.S.

It is obvious that the political impact of the growing anti-war movement in the United States, symbolized by Gold Star Families and Cindy Sheehan, is on U.S. President George W. Bush's mind, and the minds of his image shapers. To counter the international focus on Ms. Sheehan and the antiwar movement's challenge of his Iraq policies, Mr. Bush will hit the road next week in search of friendly audiences. He plans to fly thousands of miles to meet with friendly crowds in Idaho; crowds he knows support his wars. For some reason, he seems to fear exchanging thoughts and ideas with U.S. citizens camped out near his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Mr. Bush announced his intention to visit citizens in Idaho during his August 20, 2005 radio address. He said:

During the coming weeks, I will meet with some of the brave men and women who have been on the front lines in the war on terror. Next week in Idaho, I will visit with some of the fine citizen soldiers of the Idaho National Guard. I will also see the men and women of the Mountain Home Air Force Base who played a leading role in the air campaign in Afghanistan after the September the 11th attacks. I will thank all of them for their service in the war on terror and I will thank the families who make their essential work possible.

He also said:

Our troops know that they're fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere to protect their fellow Americans from a savage enemy. They know that if we do not confront these evil men abroad, we will have to face them one day in our own cities and streets, and they know that the safety and security of every American is at stake in this war, and they know we will prevail. Next week, in Utah, I will also address the Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention and thank the proud veterans who have given today's troops such a noble example of devotion and courage. At the end of the month, I will join our veterans and current service members in San Diego to commemorate the 60th anniversary of V-J Day, the day that ended World War II, the bloodiest conflict in human history

Mr. Bush said, "In this war, our nation depends on the courage of those who wear the uniform." But no matter what he says, there is no guarantee that the U.S. will prevail in Afghanistan and Iraq. In fact, I predict that the it won't. On the other hand, I understand that Mr. Bush has to reinforce his message among a public that is becoming increasingly skeptical about the Iraq war, with each death of a U.S. soldier. Note: This article is cross-posted at The National Political Observer.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:39 PM | Comments (0)

CNN Presents 'Dead Wrong: Inside an Intelligence Meltdown'

The CNN Presents documentary "Dead Wrong -- Inside an Intelligence Meltdown"airs August 21, 2005 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern Time in the United States. According to CNN, it "pieces together the events leading up to the mistaken WMD intelligence that was presented to the public" by former Secretary of State Colin Powell.

"A presidential commission that investigated the pre-war WMD intelligence found much of it to be "dead wrong," CNN said.

Note: This item is cross-posted at The Opinion Gazette and The National Political Observer, my other blogs.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:27 AM | Comments (0)

Bush v. Rumsfeld Leads to Rumsfeld v. Kristol

Pentagon Spokesman Lawrence Di Rita stands up for his boss, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, in the August 29, 2005 issue of The Weekly Standard. Mr. Rumsfeld is frequently attacked in print by Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol. The last time was in a piece headlined Bush v. Rumsfeld."( Aug. 15 / Aug. 22, 2005 issue),

The Pentagon struck back in the pages of The Standard. In an article headlined Rumsfeld v. Kristol, Mr. Di Rita noted that,

In his recent editorial ("Bush v. Rumsfeld," Aug. 15 / Aug. 22), William Kristol thinks that he senses the "inescapable whiff of weakness and defeatism" in the leadership of the Pentagon. This is nonsense.

"Kristol thinks that talking about a "struggle against violent extremism" is a step down from the "war on terror." They are one and the same. The president constantly reminds us that this is a new kind of war.

The family feud between Neo-cons and empire managers continues.

Note: This item is cross-posted at The Opinion Gazette.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:04 AM | Comments (0)

Deepak Chopra on 'War Deaths in Iraq'

Deepak Chopra, writing in the August 19, 2005 edition of The Huffington Post, said, "History will not deal kindly" with the March 20, 2003 U.S. and British invasion of Iraq in "in terms of the "acceptable" mass slaughter that has gone on" during and since the invasion.

I agree. Apparently many of his readers do not. But that's ok. That's what freedom if about.

This item is cross-posted at The Opinion Gazette.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:58 AM | Comments (0)

August 19, 2005

Trinidad and Tobago to Import Labor

"The Trinidad and Tobago government has announced that it has no choice but to import labor from other Caribbean countries because of the country's rapid pace of economic development," according to Caribbean Net News. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:57 PM | Comments (0)

Passport Requirement for Caribbean Visits Put on Hold

Prompted by complaints from Caribbean tourism officials, the Bush Administration withdrew "a proposed December 2005 deadline for implementing new rules that would have required Americans to show passports when returning from the Caribbean," The Associated Press reported August 18, 2005.

Although I haven't visited the Caribbean in years, I would view having to show a passport upon returning to the U.S. the same as I would if Americans were required to show identify papers upon returning to their home states after visiting Florida. I say that because of U.S. dominance in the Caribbean. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:48 PM | Comments (0)

Drayton: Wealth of the West Was Built on Africa's Exploitation

Dr Richard Drayton, a "senior lecturer in imperial and extra-European history since 1500 at Cambridge University," notes in an August 20, 2005 article in The Guardian of London that:

Britain was the principal slaving nation of the modern world. In "The Empire Pays Back," a documentary broadcast by Channel 4 on Monday [August 15, 2005], Robert Beckford called on the British to take stock of this past. Why, he asked, had Britain made no apology for African slavery, as it had done for the Irish potato famine? Why was there no substantial public monument of national contrition equivalent to Berlin's Holocaust Museum? Why, most crucially, was there no recognition of how wealth extracted from Africa and Africans made possible the vigour and prosperity of modern Britain? Was there not a case for Britain to pay reparations to the descendants of African slaves?

Mr. Drayton said, "These are timely questions in a summer in which [British Prime Minister Tony] Blair and [U.S. President George W. [Bush], their hands still wet with Iraqi blood, sought to rebrand themselves as the saviours of Africa." Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:30 PM | Comments (0)

East African Court of Justice May Close for Lack of Cases

"The East African Court of Justice is likely to collapse because no lawyer has filed a case before it since its inception," according to Maureen Mudi of The East African Standard. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:15 PM | Comments (0)

Liberia's Dual Citizenship Debate

The issue of dual citizenship is a hot topic among some writers and the politically active in Liberia and the diaspora. Jestina Doe-Anderson at the Liberian Observer published a thought-provoking analysis on the debate in the Observer's August 19, 2005 edition. Her position is that:

Given Liberia's current brain drain and the fact that most of our talent resides in the Diaspora, I will agree that our laws regarding dual citizenship should be revisited in order to encourage the repatriation of highly skilled and well-meaning Liberians who have renounced their Liberian citizenship in favor of that of another country, and to promote investment in Liberia. On the other hand, I am of the opinion that dual citizens should not hold sensitive government positions unless they officially renounce their second nationalities; and the right to vie for President or Vice President of the nation should continue to be restricted to natural-born citizens.

Ms. Doe-Anderson said, "Favoritism of natural-born citizens over naturalized citizens is warranted if one espouses the concept of birthright - that natural born Liberians have superior rights to those who obtain Liberian citizenship through naturalization, and to those who have relinquished their birthright by renouncing their Liberian citizenship for that of another nation."

For more, see " Is Dual Citizenship a Path to Progress Or a Departure From Nationalism?"

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:05 PM | Comments (0)

George Weah and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Battle for Liberian Presidency

"Who will become president of Liberia, George Oppong Weah or Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf?" asks Ben Browne in an informative article at The Liberia Times.com. I recommend it if you are interested in Liberian politics.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:41 PM | Comments (0)

Britain to Compensate Africa for Medical Professionals Lured to UK

"Britain will seek ways to compensate African countries for the thousands of medical professionals who leave the continent to work in the UK health service, the government said on Friday," according to Reuters South Africa. Here's more..

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:18 PM | Comments (0)

Why Did Mugabe Reject Mediation by Old Friend Chissano?

Former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano, who was appointed by African Union (AU) Chairman, Olusegun Obasanjo to mediate the political dispute in Zimbabwe between Robert Mugabe's ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), said Mr. Mugabe has rejected holding such talks, Joe Konopo, staff writer for Mmegi Online of Botswana reported August 19, 2005.

Mmegi Online quoted Mr. Chissano as saying on August 17, 2005:

This mission won't be a mission until there is a dialogue," "President Robert Mugabe has said there is no need for such talks. He said the Zimbabwean issue is an internal problem which they can handle through mechanisms and institutions available in Zimbabwe. Mugabe said they are fine.

Mr. Chissano, who was addressing a press conference at the 25th Annual Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit at the Grand Palm in Gaborone, Botswana, in southern Africa, added: "Don't ask me what is going on in the Zimbabwean peace talks because there are no talks."

For more, see "Mugabe rejects Chissano."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:10 PM | Comments (0)

Mugabe and Mbeki: Will They Ever Get Along?

Patrick van Rensburg at Mmegi Online opined an August 19, 2005 article that Zimbabwean President "Robert Mugabe's resentment of the ANC [African National Congress] has a long history."

"It probably began with the ANC's support for the Afro-Asian Cairo Declaration that recognized Joshua Nkomo's ZAPU [Zimbabwe African People's Union], not ZANU[Zimbabwean African National Union] , as the authentic Zimbabwe Liberation Movement," he wrote.

For more, see "Will Mugabe ever get along with Mbeki?"

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:08 PM | Comments (0)

Choosing Allies to Fight Muslims in Africa is a Risky Business

Nick Tattersall of Reuters thinks that, "When it comes to fighting militants in Africa, choosing allies is a risky business." Read why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:50 PM | Comments (0)

U.S. Navy Ships Leave Aqaba After Being Fired On

Two U.S. Navy ships,the USS Ashland and the USS Kearsarge, left the Jordanian port of Aqaba on August 19, 2005 after three rockets were reportedly fired at the ships.

According to the Associated Press (AP), the ships had been docked in Aqaba since August 13, 2005, "while they were participating in exercises with the Jordanian military." The ships are part of the U.S. 5th Fleet headquarted at Manama, Bahrain.

"They missed their targets and hit a warehouse and a hospital, killing a Jordanian soldier, and striking the Israeli port of Eilat," according to Al-Jazeera and other publications

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades "claimed responsibility in an Internet statement," according to the AP.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:37 AM | Comments (0)

Photographer Freddy Alborta of "Che" Guevara Fame Dies

"Bolivian photographer Freddy Alborta, famous for his image of revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara lying dead [in Bolivia], has died in La Paz, his family said," according to Reuters.

Mr. Guevara was a member of 26th of July Movement, led Fidel Castro, that came to power in Cuba in 1959. He left Cuba in 1966 to fight in the Congo. Next he went to Bolivia, where he was captured in a CIA-Bolivian Government operation in 1967.

He was allegedly executed by Bolivian soldiers trained,equipped and guided by U.S. Green Berets and CIA operatives.". Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:30 AM | Comments (0)

Gresh: Sanctions on Iraq Greatest U.N. Scandal of All

While commenting on the U.N. oil-for-food bribery scandal in an August 19, 2005 article, Alain Gresh of The Guardian of London noted that "no committee of inquiry has been set up to investigate the most glaring scandal of all: the imposition of sanctions on Iraq in August 1990 and above all their maintenance after the liberation of Kuwait in 1991."

"These have had devastating consequences on the country and will be a burden on it for a very long time to come," he wrote, adding:. "While the media frequently drew attention to Iraq's difficulties in obtaining food and medical supplies - even after the start of the oil-for-food program in 1996 - they neglected the effect sanctions had on Iraqi society." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:35 AM | Comments (0)

Bush May Soon Face a 'Vietnam-style Tipping Point' on Iraq.

Washington Post Columnist David Ignatius thinks "President Bush is saying the right thing about Iraq, which is that there is no easy fix for a war that his defense secretary correctly termed "a long, hard slog." But Bush is conveying this message in a detached way that upsets and angers growing numbers of Americans," he opined on August 18, 2005. "The evaporation of political support at home is palpable. If the administration can't explain its war aims better, it may soon face a Vietnam-style tipping point." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:15 AM | Comments (0)

Cheney Delivers Same Old Message to a Pro-war Audience

U.S. Vice-President Richard Cheney spoke August 18, 2005 at the 73rd National Convention of the Military Order of the Purple Heart in Springfield, Missouri. Amid a growing anti-war movement in the U.S. that has many Republicans worried about re-election in 2006, Mr. Cheney delivered the predictable mantra about the War in Iraq and the so-called war on terror. For example, he said:

Iraq is a critical front in the war on terror, and victory there is critical to the future security of the U.S. and other free nations. We know this, and the terrorists know it as well. Osama bin Laden has said the "Third World War is raging" in Iraq. "The whole world," he said, "is watching this war." He says it will end in "victory and glory -- or misery and humiliation."

Mr. Cheney reminded his friendly audience: "Our mission in Iraq is clear. On the military side, we are hunting down the terrorists, and training Iraqi security forces so they can take over responsibility for defending their own country. And over time, as Iraqi forces stand up, American forces will stand down. On the political side, we're helping Iraqis build a vital, peaceful, self-governing nation that can be an ally in the war on terror."

If American forces are going to stand down when, and if, Iraqi forces can provide security, why is the Administration building 14 so-called "enduring bases" in Iraq? This suggests that the plan is to stay in Iraq for years. If this occurs, Iraq will be a magnet for Mujahiddin for as long as the country is occupied. Here's Mr. Cheney's entire speech.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:07 AM | Comments (0)

August 18, 2005

Bolton Lauds Release of Moroccan Prisoners of War

On August 18, 2005, John R. Bolton, the controversial U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, issued a statement on the release of 404 Moroccan Prisoners of war held by the POLISARIO Front in Algeria, for the past 20 years.

During his contentions confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee in April 2005, Mr. Bolton mentioned his work with Special Envoy James Baker in the effort to bring the Algerian and Moroccan Governments to an agreement on the Western Sahara conflict.

For an excellent account of his testimony on this subject, see John Bolton And The Western Sahara

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:46 PM | Comments (0)

Polisario Front Releases Last of Its Moroccan Pows

The People's Liberation Front of Saguia el-Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario Front), which has fought since the 1970s for the independence of the Western Sahara, released 404 Moroccan prisoners of war August 18, 2005. "The prisoners were the last of the soldiers detained for up to 20 years" notes Al-Jazeera.

For Moroccan reaction to the release, see "Morocco welcomes last POWs from Polisario camps."

To learn more about the Western Sahara and its conflicts see Western Sahara Online. Also see "Western Sahara - a forgotten country!."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:22 PM | Comments (0)

Some 230,000 Jewish Settlers Will Remain in the West Bank

According to Reuters,"while 8,500 settlers are to leave dusty Gaza, only a few hundred will be removed from the West Bank. Reuters called the landlocked Palestinian territory "the cradle of Jewish history."

The wire service said "some 230,000 settlers will remain" in the West Bank territory." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:33 PM | Comments (0)

Canada's Foreign Minister Praises Mature Leadership on Gaza

Commenting on Israel's withdrawal and eviction of Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip, Pierre Pettigrew, Canada's foreign minister, said "I appreciate the very mature leadership on both sides," meaning the Israelis and the Palestinians. According to Canada.com, he made the statement "after a speech to the National Council on Canada-Arab Relations. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:22 PM | Comments (0)

What Next After Israel's Gaza Withdrawal?

"The withdrawal of Israeli troops and the evacuation of Jewish settlers from Gaza, after 38 years of occupation, is the most recent proof of the limits of military power, even when that power is overwhelming," Daoud Kuttab, Director of the Institute of Modern Media at Al Quds University in Ramallah, opines in an article in the August 19, 2005 edition of Daily Times of Pakistan.

"Now is the time to take stock of the lessons learned from the years of occupation and resistance in order to understand what Israelis and Palestinians should do next," he advised. Here's the entire column.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:11 PM | Comments (0)

What's Behind Sharon's Gaza Eviction Policy?

Syndicated Columnist Georgie Anne Geyer, who is often as hard on Israelis as she is Palestinians, contends that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Gaza eviction policy is designed to help him maintain a Jewish majority in Israel. She recalls an article Haaretz Diplomatic Editor Aluf Benn wrote about the policy. She wrote:

Benn recalled how, to a Jewish audience in Paris recently, the prime minister explained further: "The future of the Jewish people depends on the nature of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. In this spirit we initiated the disengagement plan. That would secure the Jewish majority in the land of Israel."

Ms. Geyer said, "The implications for the greater Middle East remain to be seen. But there is more and more evidence that with the relocation from Gaza, Sharon really means to batten down around historic Israel and let the Arabs go their own maddened ways."

See "Gaza Plan Will help Sharon Maintain Jewish Majority in Israel." to read the entire article.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:58 PM | Comments (0)

Many Arabs View Gaza Evictions With Approval, Skepticism

Brian Whitaker at The Guardian of London noted in the paper's August 19, 2005 edition that, "Arab TV viewers in the Middle East have been watching" the eviction of Israeli settlers from "Gaza with a mixture of guarded approval and scepticism."

There are interesting quotes in his article.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:37 PM | Comments (0)

Where is British Prime Minister Tony Blair?

"Prime Minister Tony Blair has left London and gone on holiday, that much the British public knows. But exactly where is Blair, the important world leader with a rather recognizable mug?" asked the Chicago Tribune in an August 18, 2005 article.

Is he in Hiding? Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)

IPCC's Press Release on Talks with de Menezes Family Solicitor

Commissioner Mehmuda Mian Pritchard and senior investigator John Cummins of Britain's Independent Police Complaints Commissioner (IPCC) "held what they consider to be a very constructive meeting this morning with the solicitors representing the family of Jean Charles de Menezes," IPCC said in an August 18, 2005 press release.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:07 PM | Comments (0)

Sir Ian Blair Tries to Defend Himself Against Coverup Charges

Sir Ian Blair, Commissioner of Britain's Metropolitan Police, has responded to charges that he tried to 'coverup' the July 22, 2005 execution of Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes. Mr. de Menezes was killed during the hunt for bombers who attempted to bomb a London subway station on July 21, 2005.

Here is the full text of an interview he gave on the investigation.

The Met's official cover story was blown when a clerk leaked the contents of an investigation by London's Independent Police Complaints Commission to ITV on August 17, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:00 PM | Comments (0)

Independent Police Complaints Commission's Credibility at Stake

Stewart Tendler and Richard Ford at The Times Online reported in the August 19, 2005 edition of the publication that Britain's Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC)'s August 18, 2005 suspension of an IPCC clerk for leaking documents on the execution of Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes "will come as a severe blow to the credibility of the commission, which is handling its first big inquiry since it was opened 18 months ago to replace investigations by police themselves."

"The clerk, who could face serious charges, is alleged to have links with ITV news staff," according to The Times. Here's more..

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:21 PM | Comments (0)

Scotsman.com: De Menezes 'Mole' Suspended

"The source who leaked documents and a photograph" of Jean Charles de Menezes "lying dead on the floor of the Tube train at Stockwell station to ITV News on Tuesday [August 16, 2005] has been suspended, Sky News reported," according to Scotsman.com. Is this 'mole' being punished for exposing coverup or for leaking the documents? Just asking. For more, see "De Menezes 'mole suspended'

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:59 PM | Comments (0)

de Menezes Family Lawyer: 'This Has Been a Chaotic Mess'

"Lawyers representing the family of Jean Charles de Menezes met police officials today [August 18, 2005] to express their frustration at the pace and nature of the investigation into the Brazilian's death," according to Sam Knight at Times Online.

He reported that, "The meeting between the lawyers and the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) took place as a bitter row threatens to grow between the IPCC and the Metropolitan Police over leaked information, which has re-ignited the controversy over the July 22 shooting."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:33 AM | Comments (0)

Russia, India to Hold Joint Maneuvers in September 2005

In September 2005, Russian and Indian troops will hold their first joint maneuvers against potential threats by militants on land and sea in Rajasthan in northwestern India and in the Indian Ocean," says a paragraph in an article in the Taipei Times headlined "Chinese-Russian war games reflect a shaky alliance of sorts."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:23 AM | Comments (0)

A Taipei Times Take on Chinese-Russian War Games

The Taipei Times has a thought-provoking article on the current military exercises that got underway August 18, 2005 in Vladivostok between China and Russia. The publication reported today that, "Moscow and Beijing deny that the exercises involving 8,000-10,000 forces and some 140 ships are a rehearsal for seizing Taiwan."

"They are rather geared to raise the ability of the armed forces to "jointly combat international terrorism, extremism and separatism," the Chinese government said in a recent statement, Taipei Times said, adding: "The war games come amid efforts to establish a Chinese-Russian counterweight to US hegemony in world affairs." This is worth reading.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:19 AM | Comments (0)

Russia-China Wargames Underway in Vladivostok

"Russia and China launched their first joint wargames involving 10,000 troops in a show of military might they insisted was not aimed at any third country after the U.S. voiced concern, agencies reported Thursday," August 18, 2005, noted Mosnews.com.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:09 AM | Comments (0)

Is West Unwittingly Pushing Russia and China toward Rapprochement?

"A wave of criticism from the West has intensified Russia's and China's sense of strategic isolation, which is pushing them toward rapprochement, a Canadian military expert on East Asia told a popular Russian daily Thursday," August 18, 2005, the Russian News and Information Agency (RIA Novosti) reported today.

According to the agency, Yihong Zhang, the expert, spoke to Vremya Novostei about Peace Mission-2005, the Russian-Chinese war games [currently underway] in the Far East." He "said the exercise showed that Russia and China trusted each other more now than they did in the past." Ria Novosti added, Here's more on this important issue.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:33 AM | Comments (0)

August 17, 2005

A Statement From de Menezes' Lawyers

Harriet Wistrich and Gareth Peirce, lawyers for the family of Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian shot dead on July 22, 2005 by British police hunting for those responsible for the July 21, 2005 bombings in London, "have 14 questions" for police who shot Mr. de Menezes, according to The Times Online.

They issued a statement on August 17, 2005 after ITV News aired a report allegedly based on a leaked Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report that contradict London police claims that Mr. de Menezes's was acting suspiciously before he was executed.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:28 PM | Comments (0)

The Telegraph: 'What Did Witnesses Really See?

Duncan Gardham at the Daily Telegraph of London reported in the publication's August 18, 2005, edition that on July 22, 2005, "Frightened witnesses thought they saw Jean Charles de Menezes, wearing a padded jacket, vault the barrier at Stockwell station and run on to a train. But what they probably saw were plain-clothes policemen in pursuit of a man who was walking slowly on to the Tube (subway train)." Here's more

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:06 PM | Comments (0)

IPCC: We Don't Know Who Leaked de Menezes Report

In an August 16, 2005 press release on the leak of a report on their investigation into the July 22, 2005 police shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes , Britain's Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which has "overall responsibility for the police complaints system in England and Wales," said:

We do not know from which organization or from whom the documents shown on television this evening have come.

The IPCC investigation into the shooting of Mr de Menezes is continuing. Our priority is to disclose any findings direct to the family, who will clearly be distressed that they have received information on television concerning his death.

The IPCC made it clear that we would not speculate or release partial information about the investigation, and that others should not do so. That remains the case.

The IPCC operates a very high degree of security for all such investigations which we regularly review. I think the IPCC is trying to say that no one from its office leaked the report that cast aspersion on the London Metropolitan Police's version of how Mr. de Menezes died. Notice that IPCC is not denying the contents of the report.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:58 PM | Comments (0)

When the Establishment Lies, Trust Dies

The Blogosphere is buzzing over what the British press is calling a "leaked" Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report that seems to offer clear and convincing evidence, if not evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, that Brazilian Electrician Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, was executed on July 22, 2005. According to the Associated Press, he "was shot seven times in the head" by a policeman involved in the investigation of the failed, July 21, 2005, bombing of a subway train and a bus London.

When this item was posted on August 17, 2005, Technorati, which boasts that it is tracking 15 million sites and 1.4 billion links, had 7,383 posts about the de Menezes execution. Based on the posts I've read at Technorati, London's Metropolitan Police is not doing too well in the public relations department. As the Times Online notes in an August 18, 2005 editorial:

At the time of the shooting, Scotland Yard said that Mr de Menezes clothing and his behaviour at the [Stockwell] station were suspicious. This claim was buttressed by witnesses who claimed that he was wearing a bulky jacket on a hot day and that he leapt over the ticket barrier at Stockwell station.

Now, it turns out that he was wearing only a light denim jacket at the time of his death: perfectly appropriate garb for the time of year. Nor was he carrying a bag or rucksack. There is apparently CCTV footage that shows him walking normally into the station, picking up a free newspaper and using his Oyster card to pass through the barrier. He allegedly began to run only when he saw a train pulling into the station, after which he boarded it and sat down in an ordinary fashion.

After I'd read similar accounts in about a dozen British publications, I found myself being thankful that some one at London' Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) was honorable enough to leak their findings to ITV News, to prevent a coverup and someone getting away with murder. I wish people in the U.S. State Department, the Pentagon, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and the White House had the courage to leak documents about the lies, policy disputes and coverups surrounding the decisions to invade and occupy Iraq and Al-Qaida's September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. On that the issue of leaking for the public good, the British have shown for more courage to challenge the propaganda and coverups than have we Americans.

On the other hand, if documents were leaked in the U.S., the question is: would the owners of American media conglomerates allow their editors to publish articles based on the documents?

Finally, as I checked the Blogosphere to see how bloggers took the latest de Menezes news, I came across a post at A North American Patriot headlined "I owe Jean Charles de Menezes an apology." The writer, who describes herself as "A Canadian conservative atheist with a passion for justice," wrote, in part:

News reports are now indicating, that the stories being told, about the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes, were greatly exaggerated, or worse, patently false.

I have rarely been one to refuse to admit, when I've been wrong, so I am obliged to do so, now.

In a previous post, I made reference to these false reports, and came to the conclusion that his death was justified, under the circumstances. I will say now, that if these new reports are true, then there was absolutely no justification, for the deadly force, used against him.

Detailed in the reports, is a refutation of the original claim, that he ran from police, when confronted -

They now suggest the Brazilian had walked into Stockwell Tube station, picked up a free newspaper, walked through ticket barriers, started to run when he saw a train arriving and was sitting down in a train when he was shot.

"I can certainly understand the tenterhooks, on which the British police had been hung, following the bombings, in London, but this kind of action, will only serve to boost the opposition, to any manner of policing the threat," the writer added.

Let's see if the British police will apologize for seeming engaging in a coverup of an execution.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)

Leaks Raise Provocative Questions About UK Police Tactics

The Guardian of London reported today that the "inquiry" into the killing of Charles de Menezes "shows he was sitting down when shot" by a British policeman.

The Guardian answers a number of important questions about the July 22, 2005 execution on a London train. Mr. de Menzes was killed a day after a second bombing wave hit London. The first was July 7, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:35 AM | Comments (0)

Leaked Report Leads Family to Say de Menezes Was Murdered

Sam Knight of The Times Online reported August 17, 2005 that:

The family of Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian shot dead by police officers hunting the July 21 bombers, called his death "murder" today after reading leaked witness statements about his final moments.

Mr. Knight said, "Documents and photographs gathered by the Independent Police Complaints Commission which is investigating the shooting have suggested that Mr de Menezes, 27, was behaving normally when he was seized by police officers and shot eight times on a Tube train on July 22."

I've often wondered whether British policemen executed Mr. de Menezes. I also asked: "Why was this man killed before he was interrogated? Here's More.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:30 AM | Comments (0)

Series of Bombings Hit Bangladesh

The Deccan Herald of Dhaka, Bangladesh, reported August 17, 2005, that "A series of blasts rocked government offices and courts across Bangladesh today, but no casualty was immediately reported. The authorities issued red alert across the country and tightened security at all vital installations." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:24 AM | Comments (0)

A Face is Put on Able Danger Unit That Identified Atta Before 9/11

The Associated Press wire service, citing Fox News and New York Times reports, said today that Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer "said the small [Pentagon] intelligence unit, called "Able Danger," had identified Mohamed Atta and three of the other future September 11, 2001 hijackers as al-Qaida members by mid-2000. He said military lawyers stopped the unit from sharing the information with the FBI" in 2000 and 2001. "The commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks left the Able Danger claims out of its official report," the AP noted. Here's more. Here are additional links to reports on Mr. Shaffer's claim.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:16 AM | Comments (0)

Clinton Global Initiative's Inaugural Meeting is Sept.15-17, 2005

Former President Bill Clinton's Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) will hold its inaugural meeting September 15-17, 2005 in New York at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers. According to CGI's website:

This nonpartisan conference will bring together a diverse and select group of current and former heads of state, business leaders, noteworthy academicians, and key NGO representatives to participate in a series of dynamic interactive workshops. The group will strategize on the best methods to reduce poverty; use religion as a force for reconciliation and conflict resolution; implement new business strategies and technologies to combat climate change; and strengthen governance.

"The goal for NYC 2005, the inaugural meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, is to develop an agenda for action that all the participants can help implement during the coming year," according to the CGI website. .

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:15 AM | Comments (0)

60 Years After War, Japan Still Split Over War Responsibility

"Sixty years after the end of World War II, the Japanese still have not come to a general consensus as to who was responsible for that dark chapter in their nation's history," reports Kwan Weng Kin of the The Straits Times in an article reprinted in China Daily. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:02 AM | Comments (0)

Japan's Image in Asia 60 years after World War II

In an August 17, 2005 editorial headlined "60 years after the war," Asahi.com of Japan asked:

Is nationalism of one country forever irreconcilable with that of another? Why must Japan be criticized so scathingly by China and South Korea? Anti-Japanese demonstrations in China in spring this year were so violent that it aroused resentment in the minds of the Japanese

Asahi.com predicts that, "Japan will never become a big military power and invade other countries again. Japan has had enough of being blamed for its past acts," the publication added. "This sentiment, which is mixed with anger, causes people in Japan to view China and South Korea in a critical light or harbor feelings of discontent against them."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:52 AM | Comments (0)

Will Accord Really Bring Peace to Aceh?

"With the signing of an accord on Monday [August 15, 2005] that paves the way for an end to nearly three decades of conflict in Aceh, the government [of Indonesia], rebels, foreign monitors and residents of the tsunami-devastated province face what could be the most difficult step in achieving peace: implementation," contends Eric Unmacht in an August 17, 2005 news analysis in the Bangkok Post.

For more, see "Accord signed, but peace far from a done deal."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:40 AM | Comments (0)

Sri Lanka Embarks on World-wide Isolation Campaign Against LTTE

Sugeeswara Senadhira, bureau chief in Colombo, Sri Lanka for the Asian Tribune, reported August 17, 2005 that, "Sri Lanka has initiated a major campaign to mobilize international support against acts of terrorism perpetrated by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)." Here are the details.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:22 AM | Comments (0)

August 16, 2005

Former AIPAC Analysts, Larry Franklin Plead Not Guilty

"Steven Rosen, 63, the former foreign policy director for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and AIPAC's former senior Middle East analyst, Keith Weissman, [today] pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to communicate national defense information provided by [U.S. Defense Department] analyst Lawrence Franklin," according to Reuters and other news outlets. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:46 PM | Comments (0)

Reuters: New Poll Reflects Growing U.S. Worry Over Iraq

A new poll, "to be published in next month's edition of Foreign Affairs, the journal of the Council on Foreign Relations, found nearly six in 10 Americans were worried about the outcome of the war in Iraq," according to Reuters AlertNet. See "How Americans View U.S. Foreign Policy."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:25 PM | Comments (0)

Is Hugo Chávez Latin America's Rising Superstar?

Venezuelanalysis.com calls Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Latin America's Rising Superstar. Read why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:14 PM | Comments (0)

Latin America, Caribbean Close to Universal School Enrollment

"Latin America and the Caribbean are among five regions that are said to be close to universal primary school enrollment," according to the Jamaica Observer. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:04 PM | Comments (0)

Jermaine Lindsay and the Debate on 'Race, Islam and Terrorism'

Robert Beckford, a lecturer in African diasporan religions and cultures at the University of Birmingham in England, reveals in an August 16, 2005 commentary in The Guardian of London:

The Jamaican origins of Jermaine Lindsay, one of the July 7 suicide bombers, has prompted some to ask why a disproportionate number of black males are attracted to extremism. Lindsay, 19, had spent the vast proportion of his life in England, which made tenuous the tabloid obsession with his place of birth. Intriguingly there was less of a clamour over the ethnicity of Richard Reid, the notorious "shoe bomber", who had a white mother and a black father. In the case of David Copeland, the white, racist, homophobic nail-bomber, there was no analysis of a potential relationship between ethnicity, extremism and terror

"Black men converting to Islam should be placed within the religious context of their communities, where religion still matters," Mr. Beckford added. "African-Caribbean men and women continue to turn out in large numbers for religious activities. But Islam is able to do what the black church cannot - attract black men."

I highly recommend Mr. Beckford's article, which is headlined "Race, Islam and terrorism." He continues a discussion begun "As long ago as 1888, [when] the Caribbean educator Edward Wilmot Blyden argued that Islam was more respectful of black culture and easier to translate into Caribbean culture than Christianity." See Blyden's "Christianity, Islam and the Negro Race."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)

HRW Wants Libya to Free Journalist Abd al-Raziq al-Mansuri

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said "The Libyan government should release journalist and Internet writer `Abd al-Raziq al-Mansuri and drop the charges against him or grant him a prompt and fair trial."

HRW said, "Libya's internal security force has detained al-Mansuri since last January in an apparent effort to silence a writer with critical views." He was arrested on January 12, 2005, in his hometown of Tobruk," for writing articles critical of the Libyan Government, HRW noted. He often wrote for the U.K.-based website, www.akhbar-libya.com. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:20 PM | Comments (0)

African, Latin Nations Seek to Reactivate Relations

Africast Global African Network reported August 16, 2005, that, "In the framework of the Egyptian foreign policy interest in reactivating relations with the African and Latin America countries, the Egyptian and Mexican Foreign Ministries have agreed to hold a round of bilateral dialogue in Cairo next October under the rubrics of "dialogue in the 21st century." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:05 PM | Comments (0)

Egypt's Presidential Election

August 17, 2005 "marks the start of Egypt's first ever competitive presidential election campaign, more noteworthy for the slight novelty of the process than for any uncertainty about its outcome," notes The Daily Star of Lebanon in an editorial in the August 17 issue.

The influential daily said,

Egyptians and international analysts see little likelihood that the opposition will be able to challenge President Hosni Mubarak in any meaningful manner, for key aspects of the process remain deeply flawed or constricted. The 77-year-old incumbent marks his 24th year of rule by having nine challengers run against him, making the exercise akin to an array of Egyptian beetle scarabs lined up next to the Sphinx.

The Daily Star said, "All this need not have been. Mubarak could have held a truly open and fair election, knowing that he would win because of the overwhelming advantage of familiarity and tradition in this ancient land that adores both." For more of the editorial see, "Imagine what Egypt's presidential election could have been."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:55 PM | Comments (0)

The Guardian: How Safe is Algeria?

On August 12, 2005, the Guardian of London asked: "How Safe is Algeria?"

In an attempt to answer the question, the publication took "a look at official reports by the Home Office, Amnesty [International] and other bodies into the safety, torture and human rights records of Algeria, where Britain plans to deport up to nine foreign nationals."

See "Home Office Report 2004" for one view on the subject.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:43 PM | Comments (0)

Britain, Algeria Close to Agreement on Deportation Pact

"Britain and Algeria are close to agreement on deporting Algerian nationals [thought to be a security risk in Britain] back to their country," according to United Press International (UPI), citing a Financial Times report.
Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:33 PM | Comments (0)

Algeria, Pakistan to Sign 11 Agreements

Sajid Chaudhry reported in the August 17, 2005 edition of the Daily Times of Pakistan that, "Pakistan and Algeria are all set to ink 11 important agreements and MoUs [Memoranda of Understanding] in a crucial inaugural meeting of the Pak-Algeria Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC)."

The meeting is scheduled for September 19-20, 2005, in Islamabad." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:25 PM | Comments (0)

World Bank Urges Morocco to Speed Up Economic Growth

"Morocco must speed up economic growth and create more jobs if it is to avoid social problems that would be hard to deal with, the World Bank said in a report titled Strategy for Cooperation 2005-2009," and released in Rabat, Morocco, August 12, 2005, according to Middle East Online.

Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)

Radio Sawa Asks forNew Broadcasting Deadline in Morocco

Morocco Times.com reported August 16, 2005 that , the Broadcasting Board of Directors (BBD) of the United States "asked the Moroccan government to inform the HACA [High Authority of the Audio-visual Communication] that Radio Sawa has the status of a governmental agency."

The request was made "in a letter to the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, sent through the US embassy in Rabat," the Moroccan capital, the publication said.

Morocco Times. com also said, "The BBD, which also manages the radio service Voice of America and the Arabic language channel Al-Hurra, asked for the necessary radio-diffusion licenses to be delivered to present BBD programs in Morocco, in accordance with an agreement signed by Morocco and the United States in 1984, and a broadcasting authorization, dating back to 2003." Read more here.

By the way, Radio Sawa was established by the Bush Administration in an effort to propagandize "the youthful population of Arabic-speakers in the Middle East by providing up-to-date news, information and entertainment on FM and medium wave radio stations throughout the region."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:59 PM | Comments (0)

U.S. Opens Talks With New Mauritanian Leaders

"The US government has opened talks with the leaders of a military coup in Mauritania days after condemning them for toppling the previous government, which was an ally in the US-backed war against terror," according to FT.com.

For more see, "Washington opens talks with Mauritania coup leaders.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:38 PM | Comments (0)

Mauritania Assures Oil Companies Contracts Will Be Honored

Mauritania`s ruling Military Council for Justice and Democracy (CMJD) will respect all agreements, which the regime of deposed President Maaoya Sid`Ahmed Ould Taya signed with oil companies operating in the country, according to the new Oil and Energy Minister Sidi Ali Ould Sidi Mohamed," Angola Press reported August 15, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:10 PM | Comments (0)

Qatar Reportedly Offers Taya Asylum

"Qatar has offered asylum to Mauritania`s ousted President Maaouya Ould Sid`Ahmed Taya almost two weeks after he was overthrown in a bloodless coup, a Gambian official" said on August 16, 2005, according to Antara News of Qatar and other publications. Read why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:58 PM | Comments (0)

It's Time to Ask Bush About Permanent U.S. Military Bases in Iraq

Dan Froomkin, deputy editor of the Nieman Watchdog Project and writer of the White House Briefing column for washingtonpost.com, noted on August 16, 2005 that,

Intelligent observers of the situation in Iraq are increasingly calling attention to the hugely contentious issue of permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq.

"And they are calling on the press to ask some key questions," he said. Here's a link to some of the questions some observers want answered.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:11 PM | Comments (0)

Frank Rich Says Bush Doesn't Know the Iraq War is Over

New York Times columnist Frank Rich published a biting column in the August 14, 2005, issue of his paper headlined "Someone tell the president the war is over."

Mr. Rich, whose article has generated considerable debate in the blogosphere, attempts to show that the political-military-media-academic machine that constructed, and sold, the rationale for the invasion and occupation of Iraq to the American people is bankrupt, and has left President George W. Bush still believing "we will stay the course" in Iraq.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:20 PM | Comments (0)

Sri Lankan Minister: Newspaper Exposed Kadirgamar's Security Details

ColomboPage, a Sri Lankan Internet newspaper, reported Aughust 15, 2005, that Mangala Samaraweera, Sri Lanka's Ports and Aviation Minister, said they [government officials] had strong reasons to believe certain newspapers in Sri Lanka, especially 'The Sunday Leader' and the LTTE were having links which he claimed had exposed security details of the slain [Sri Lankan] Foreign Minister," Lakshman Kadirgamar.

Mr. Kadirgamar was assassinated August 13, 2005, in Colombo, the capital. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:55 PM | Comments (0)

Magdy al-Nashar is No 'Terrorist'

"I have been dealing with fundamentalists and terrorists for 20 years," Egyptian Interior Ministry spokesperson Hisham Eddin al Amr told Christian Science Monitor Contributor Charles Levinson. "And there was no way this guy was one of them."

He was referring to "the accusations against Magdy al-Nashar, the 33-year-old Egyptian chemist who was briefly the focus of the investigations into the July 7 [2005] London bombings," that "confounded his Egyptian interrogators."

Mr. Levinson noted in an August 15, 2005, dispatch from Cairo, Egypt, that: "Even as British newspapers were reporting that explosives had been found in his apartment, and other tabloids branded him "Dr. Evil," the neatly groomed, and smiling Dr. Nashar appeared the most unlikely of terrorists." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:45 AM | Comments (0)

Sending Them Back to Hell

The British "Home Office has defended its decision to begin forcibly returning failed Iraqi asylum-seekers [to Iraq] even though the country is still suffering from insurgency," correspondent Daniel McGrory noted in the August 16, 2005 edition of Times Online.

"Scores of Iraqis have been taken to detention centres in the past week and the first are expected to be sent back within days," Mr. McGrory reported.

For more, see "Forcible removal of illegal Iraqis to start soon."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:22 AM | Comments (0)

Why Has Russia Hardened its Position on Japan?

"As Russia has failed to secure any significant economic commitments from Tokyo, notably on a Japan-bound Pacific oil pipeline, the Kremlin has lost all interest in resolving its long-standing territorial dispute with Tokyo any time soon," journalist Sergei Blagov writes in the August 17, 2005 edition of Asia Times Online,a publication he has contributed to since 1996.

Mr. Blagov, who "covers Russia and post-Soviet states, with special attention to Asia-related issues," according Asia Times, said, "Indeed, "Russia has removed Japan from its Asian diplomacy priority list."

For more, see "Moscow hardens towards Tokyo."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:13 AM | Comments (0)

Japan Times Interviews a Scholar Troubled by Japan's Direction

Nobuko Hara, "Tokyo correspondent for The Times educational supplement in London," has an article in the August 15, 2005 Japan Times Online in which he declares:

Few intellectuals in Japan today are as deeply committed to peace and democracy as Rokuro Hidaka is. The 88-year-old sociologist is a witness to Japan's aggression in China and, during the war, even went as far as proposing that Japan withdraw its troops from China, return its colonies and lay down foundations for democracy at home. In the subsequent 60 years, he has continued to strive for peace, justice and democracy as an academic.

"Today, " Correspondent Hara wrote, "Hidaka, who lives in Paris but recently paid a rare visit to Japan, raises alarm bells about what is happening in Japanese society and politics, and questions where the country is heading. "It reminds me of what it was like before the Manchurian crisis: It's almost as if we've gone back to where we were 60 years ago," says Hidaka. "Freedom of the individual is in danger."

"He speaks energetically and with a clarity of mind that belies his years," Hara noted. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:36 AM | Comments (0)

August 15, 2005

Sharon Tells Israelis 'Gaza Cannot be Held on to Forever'

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told Israelis today that, "the changing reality in this country, in this region, and in the world, required another reassessment and changing of positions" regarding the Israeli occupied Palestinian territories..

"Gaza cannot be held on to forever," he said. "Over 1 million Palestinians live there, and they double their numbers with every generation."

"They live in incredibly cramped refugee camps, in poverty and squalor, in hotbeds of ever-increasing hatred, with no hope whatsoever on the horizon."

Mr. Sharon knows that this Israeli-created condition is a time bomb that, when it explodes, will overwhelm Israel. Better to try to diffuse it now rather than later, when Palestinians will vastly outnumber Jews in Israel.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:30 PM | Comments (0)

Can a U.S.-Brokered Constitution Bring Unity to Iraqis?

Dexter Filkins, one of The New York Times' Baghdad correspondents, stated in a news analysis in the August 14, 2005 edition of The Times:

Zalmay Khalilzad, the new U.S. ambassador here, has publicly prodded the Iraqis to finish the constitution by tomorrow [August 15, 2005], the date they set for themselves. On several occasions Khalilzad has described the constitution as a national compact, a document symbolizing the consensus of the nation.

"And there's the rub," the correspondent added. "When the Americans smashed Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, what lay revealed was a country with no agreement on the most basic questions of national identity. The Sunnis, a minority in charge here for five centuries, have not, for the most part, accepted that they will no longer control the country. The Shiites, the long-suppressed majority, want to set up a theocracy. The Kurds don't want to be part of Iraq at all. There is only so much that language can do to paper over such differences."

This reminds me of what happened in Yugoslavia in the decade-and-a-half following President Josip Broz Tito's May 4, 1980 death.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:18 PM | Comments (0)

The Constitutional Disintegration of Iraqi

Ehsan Ahrari at Asia Times Online contends that, "The new Iraqi constitution risks beginning an era of the virtual carving up of Iraq. The Kurds and the Shi'ites are operating on the basis of a zero-sum game, whereby any one group's gains would approximately equal another group's losses," he wrote in an August 14, 2005 article, adding:

The Kurds are determined to get the autonomous oil-rich northern section. Not to be outmaneuvered by the Kurds, the Shi'ites want an autonomous southern portion. That would leave the Sunnis with the impoverished central section. They are watching, in horror, a process that might be the beginning of the end of a unified Iraq that was created between 1921 and 1932.

Mr. Ahrari said, "With all its intentions of democratizing and stabilizing the "new Iraq", the Bush administration may be presiding over the process of the disintegration of Iraq." Here's more of Mr. Ahrari's analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:48 PM | Comments (0)

Will U.S. Pressure on Iraqi Politicians backfire?

"The United States is pushing Iraqi leaders hard to reach agreement on a draft constitution but U.S. experts on Iraq warned on Monday [August 15, 2005] that too much pressure could backfire and undermine the leadership's credibility," according to Reuters correspondent Sue Pleming.

"Iraq's parliament agreed on Monday [August 15, 2005] to allow an extra week for negotiations on the constitution after politicians asked for more time to reach a deal and postponed a Monday deadline," she noted, adding:.The delay is seen as a blow to efforts by U.S. diplomats who have been shuttling between the sides in the hope that a deal could help weaken the insurgency among the Sunni minority in Iraq."

Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:37 PM | Comments (0)

Bush: 'I Applaud the Heroic Efforts of Iraqi Negotiators'

The Iraqi Parliament's 'postponement of the delivery of a constitution "until August 22 is a blow to Washington, which had pushed hard for an agreement to be struck, to keep the political process on track," contends Times Online correspondents Catherine Philp in Baghdad and Bronwen Maddox.

I thinks President George W. Bush's statement on Iraq's Draft Constitution is rather placid in tone and does not hint at disappointment. For example, he said,

Iraqi leaders have announced that they have made substantial progress toward a draft constitution. They have indicated that their deliberations will continue beyond today to refine the text and build an enduring consensus. I applaud the heroic efforts of Iraqi negotiators and appreciate their work to resolve remaining issues through continued negotiation and dialogue.

Mr. Bush said, "Their efforts are a tribute to democracy and an example that difficult problems can be solved peacefully through debate, negotiation, and compromise. We wish the Iraqi leaders and the Iraqi people well as the negotiators complete the constitutional drafting process."

Interestingly, Mr. Bush's announcement makes it seem as if the U.S. occupation force and the U.S. Embassy in Iraq have no hand in drafting the constitution, which they knew would not be ready at the end of the day on August 15, 2005.

Here is the Times Online analysis..

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:27 PM | Comments (0)

Is Iraq a Litmus Test for Democratic Success in the Middle East

Times Online Guest contributor Amir Taheri, an Arab News correspondent, said in an August 16, 2005 commentary that:

The Iraqi constitutional debate has, thanks to the modern media, over-spilt into the whole of the Middle East and familiarized millions of people with terms and concepts regarded as taboo until the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. People are now talking about human rights, democracy, multiparty politics, federalism, gender equality, the place of faith in society, consensus, governmental accountability and, of course, parliaments and elections.

He said, "New words have been invented to express concepts excluded from the Arab political lexicon by the despots." Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:01 PM | Comments (0)

Buying Time in Iraq's Constitution Drafting Game

"Minutes from the midnight deadline for the first draft of Iraq's new constitution, the Iraqi delegation responsible for writing the charter asked for more time, effectively admitting it remained far from compromising on the country's most contentious issues," contends Dan Murphy, a Christian Science Monitor correspondent in Baghdad

He noted that, "Iraq's transitional assembly voted to extend the deadline by one week, to Aug. 22. The constitutional delegation wanted 10 days."

"But whether more time will help Iraq's Kurds, Shiite Arabs, and Sunni Arabs--all of whom have dramatically different ideas about what the structure of the state should be--to reach consensus is uncertain at best. Under the country's transitional law, the parliament would have been dissolved at midnight Monday [August 15, 2005] without a draft constitution or the agreed upon extension. To avoid having to hold new elections, Iraq's parliament amended those rules."

Sounds familiar to me. politicians are the same everywhere. For more see "Deep divisions remaining, Iraq's constitution delayed."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:35 PM | Comments (0)

Will a New Constitution Change the Political Cimiate in Iraq?

Rory Carroll a Guardian Unlimited correspondent in Baghdad, reported August 16, 2005 that, "From the swirl of political drama in Baghdad last night one stark fact emerged: the new constitution, if and when it is finally agreed, will not settle the question of what is Iraq."

"Even if a draft constitution is agreed in seven days' time," he added, " the document will mark another stage, not the end, of the answer to that question." Read why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:26 PM | Comments (0)

Indonesia Free Aceh Movement Sign Peace Pact

The Jakarta Post noted in its August 15, 2005 edition that, "The Indonesian government and Aceh rebels on Monday [August 15, 2005] signed a peace treaty to end nearly 30 years of fighting in the oil-and gas-rich province [of Aceh] that has killed 15,000 people." Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:25 AM | Comments (0)

Finnish Observers First Into Aceh to Monitor Peace Accord

Helsingin Samomat of Finland reported August 15, 2005 that

A group of Finns are the first of a group of international observers of the peace treaty between the Indonesian government and the separatist movement in the province of Aceh. The 12 Finnish observers arrived in the province on Friday [August 13, 2005] . The treaty was signed in Finland on Monday [August 15, 2005]. The European Union and five Asian countries are sending a total of 220 civilian observers to Aceh.

The publication said, "A number of the Finns have moved on to more remote areas to set up offices and to take care of other practical preparations."

For more, see "Finnish observers to be first into Aceh to monitor peace."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:08 AM | Comments (0)

A New Jersey Columnist Interviews Able Danger Spook

Thanks to Bluto at The Dread Pundit Bluto for pointing us to an article in the August 14, 2005 issue of the Bergen Record of Bergen County, New Jersey, USA, in which columnist Mike Kelly "lays out the details of the Able Danger investigation as told to him by an Able Danger team member."

Bluto notes that, "Kelly's phone interview was given on the promise of anonymity and arranged by Representative Curt Weldon's (R-PA) staff." He also notes that, "Oddly, Kelly's report doesn't mesh with the 9/11 Commission's official response to Representative Weldon's allegations."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:17 AM | Comments (0)

IntelliBriefs: The LTTE Emulates The Jackal

IntelliBriefs has a thought-provoking analysis of the August 13, 2005 assassination of Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar. It's headlined "The LTTE Emulates The Jackal."

The Jackal was the code-name of the fictional professional assassin in Frederick Forsyth's novel The Day of The Jackal." He was hired by the OAS or Secret Army Organization to kill Charles de Gaulle, the President of France. The OAS was established in 1961 to resist Mr. de Gaulle's decision to grant independence to Algeria, after more than 130 years of French colonial rule.

The group tried several times to assassinate him.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:37 AM | Comments (0)

Gaza Settlements Story Getting a Lot of Blog Play

As of this posting, Technorati has 41,882 posts about Gaza. Many of them are on the eviction of Jewish settlers from a portion of the occupied territory.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:08 AM | Comments (0)

The 'Gaza Withdrawal and Prospects for a Future Palestine'

Justin Delabar at Digital Dissent has a very informative analysis of "The Gaza Withdrawal and Prospects for a Future Palestine."

By the way, Mr. Delabar is "a senior student of Political Science and History, with an emphasis in International Relations, at the University of Central Florida in Orlando." He's good. I recommend his blog for regular reading.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:00 AM | Comments (0)

The Washington Times Reviews Richard Haass' New Book

Christopher Wavrin, Online Editor of The Washington Times who also writes at CommentaryPage.com, reviewed "The Opportunity: America's Moment To Alter History's Course," a new book by Richard N. Haass, "the president of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Mr. Haass "served as a key member of the State Department during much of President Bush's first term," according to The Times.

Here's the review.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:44 AM | Comments (0)

Soldiers Blogs 'Give New View From War'

If you are interested in news and stories from the battlefield in Iraq written by soldiers, see Frontline Blogs.Com. Also see "Blogs Give New View From War."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:21 AM | Comments (0)

Does President Bush Lack the Courage to Confront Cindy Sheehan?

Jason Miller, a 38 year old activist writer, argues in commentary at Tom Paine's Corner that:

America's "strong and resolute" Commander in Chief is safely enjoying a five week vacation on his Texas ranch. Yes, that would be the ranch he owns by virtue of that silver spoon that was dangling out of his mouth as he passed down the birth canal. Following his example from Vietnam, his daughters remain stateside as Bush pontificates the nobility of the cause for which 2,000 Americans have died in Iraq. Despite his unflinching conviction, Mr. Bush lacks the courage to confront Cindy Sheehan and explain to her why her son really died.

Mr. Miller said, "Ultimately George Bush bears the responsibility for the death of Casey Sheehan, yet he refuses to take a few minutes of his precious "R&R" to impart his wisdom to Cindy about the noble reasons for which he is putting our troops in harm's way. He owes her and the rest of America an answer, but this Evangelical crusader cannot summon the mettle to meet with her on his own doorstep. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:14 AM | Comments (0)

Red State.Org: 'Are We Losing the War' in Iraq?

Red State.Org, a prominent "Republican community weblog" in the United States, wants to know: "Are we losing the war" in Iraq?

Yes, we are. However, our illustrious leaders and some pundits don't want to admit it. In fact, to win in Iraq, the country will have to be totally destroyed. If that's done, the U.S. becomes the pariah of the world, not just in the Muslim Ummah.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:59 AM | Comments (0)

The Mirror Says Blair Government to Deport Iraqi Asylum Seekers

Mirror.com.uk reported in an August 15, 2005 exclusive that, "Failed asylum seekers are to be forced to return home to Iraq despite continuing terror attacks by insurgents."

"The Home Office has already had scores of Iraqis rounded up and sent to detention centres ready for repatriation," the Mirror said. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:48 AM | Comments (0)

'Discontent Over Iraq War Now at Bush's Doorstep

"Cindy Sheehan has succeeded where many politicians have failed," contends Ronnie Agnew, Executive Editor of the Clarion-Ledger newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi, USA.

"She's put a face on the war in Iraq. A mother's face. A face that grieves for a casualty of war her 24-year-old son."

Not only that, she is the powerful symbol that the anti-war movement in the U.S. has been waiting for. She's white, middle-aged, determined and comes across well on television.

Here's more of Mr. Agnew's poignant column.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:40 AM | Comments (0)

Columnist: 'Is Bush Losing the Iraq War Before Our Very Eyes?'

Chad Selweski, columnist for the Macomb Daily of Mount. Clemens, Michigan in the United States opined in an August 14, 2005 column that, "Some years from now, political analysts may look back on this time, when the president [of the United States] was in the midst of a 5-week vacation in the summer of 2005, and say: That's when George Bush lost the war in Iraq." Here's the entire column.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:28 AM | Comments (0)

A Survey for Western Consumption?

Associated Press Correspondent Hamed Ahmed reported in a dispatch from Baghdad that, "A survey conducted by Iraq's constitutional drafting committee showed that the majority of those responding supported full rights for women - as long as the freedoms are in accordance with Islam."

What would one expect them to say? By the way, I think this survey was conducted for western consumption. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:17 AM | Comments (0)

Iraqi tribunal Says Only Saddam Hussein Can Fire His Lawyers

News.com.au of Australia reported August 15, 2005 that, "The Iraqi tribunal trying Saddam Hussein on war crimes charges has blocked a bid by his family to fire his vast team of defence lawyers, saying only Saddam can make such a move, the family said today." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:10 AM | Comments (0)

Algerian President Unveils Draft Charter for Peace

"Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has unveiled a draft charter for peace and national reconciliation that will be put to a referendum on September 29," 2004, according to News.com.au of Australia. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:06 AM | Comments (0)

August 14, 2005

SADC Leaders to Meet in Botswana August 17-18, 2005

"The Heads of state of the 13-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) meet August 17 and 18, 2005 in Botswana under growing pressure on Africa to address Zimbabwe's woes," reports the Reuters news service. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:58 PM | Comments (0)

Some Mauritanians Want Ex-President Taya to Face Trial

ArabicNews.Com reports that, "Some Mauritanian opposition organizations abroad called on the new ruling military council to try the toppled President Mu'aweya Weeld Seidi Ahmad al-Taye, and deal with all pending issues immediately including comprehensive political pardons." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:43 PM | Comments (0)

Rifaat Assad Reportedly 'Staging a Comeback to Syria'

Rifaat Assad, Syrian President Bashar Assad's exiled uncle, is "staging a comeback to Syria" according to an August 15, 2005 Ya Libnan (O Lebanon) report based on an article in An Nahar.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:25 PM | Comments (0)

Aoun Rules Out Dialogue With Hezbollah

Lebanon's "General Michel Aoun told the Beirut daily Al Balad that there was no possibility of any dialogue between his Free Patriotic Movement and Hezbollah, which has established a state within the state and imposed certain political dictums about which it rejects any debate," Ya Libnan (O Lebanon) reported August 14, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)

Scholar Urges Bush to Stay the Course in Iraq

Frederick W. Kagan, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C., claims that, "Despite what you may have read, the military situation in Iraq today is positive far better than it ever was when we were fighting guerrillas in Vietnam, or when the Soviets were fighting the Afghan mujahedin, or in almost any other major insurgency of the 20th century."

I wonder if Mr. Kagan really believes his own pronouncements. I certainly don't. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:03 PM | Comments (0)

Are Iraqi Insurgents Ignoring Traditional Guerrilla War Rules?

"As Iraq's insurgents score one success after another, they are rewriting the rules of modern guerrilla warfare," contends Mohamad Bazzi, Middle East correspondent for the American newspaper Newsday. For more, see "Insurgents ignoring guerrilla war rules."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:44 PM | Comments (0)

Iraqi, Lebanese Officials See Hezbollah Tactics Used In Iraq

Mohammad Bazzi, Middle East Correspondent for Newsday, noted in an August 12, 2005, dispatch from Beirut that,

Iraqi insurgents are using battlefield tactics pioneered by the Lebanese group Hezbollah during its 18-year guerrilla war with Israel, according to Iraqi and Lebanese officials.

"Since early this year," Mr. Bazzi wrote, "the guerrillas in Iraq have been copying Hezbollah's techniques in building roadside bombs and carrying out sophisticated ambushes, the officials said. They are also studying how Hezbollah learned to improve its effectiveness, strategy and weaponry. And the Iraqis are starting to videotape their attacks and distribute them to the media, a tactic used by Hezbollah to great effect."

For more, see "Borrowing Hezbollah's tactics."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:31 PM | Comments (0)

Analyst Say A Third Caucus War is Likely

"Observers, security officials, and journalists across Russia are all talking about the possibility of another big war in the North Caucasus," reports Andrei Smirnov in the Eurasia Daily Monitor. "This conflict is already known as "the third Caucasus war," as there have been already two military campaigns in Chechnya," he wrote in an August 11, 2005 report.

Here's more. It's worth reading and pondering.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:16 PM | Comments (0)

Is Pakistan Still Aiding the Taliban?

A. Jamali at the Eurasia Daily Monitor reported August 11, 2005 that, "As Afghanistan's September 18 [2005] parliamentary elections draw closer, there are new allegations about Pakistan's involvement in that country's domestic politics. Read it here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:08 PM | Comments (0)

Police Still Don't Know Mastermind Behind July 7 Bombings

Daniel McGrory of The Times Online of London reported August 15, 2005 that, London "police admitted last night [August 14, 2005] that they are no nearer to finding a mastermind behind the July 7 [2005 London] bombings as Scotland Yard faced a new threat from terrorists driving hijacked fuel tankers into petrol stations." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:38 PM | Comments (0)

Sunday Times Publishes 'Leaked U.S. Intelligence Document'

The Sunday Times of London published in its August 14, 2005 edition a "leaked US intelligence document" warning of Al-Qaida "attacks on London and America using fuel tankers." Here is the document.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:00 PM | Comments (0)

SAARC Meetings Postponed Out of Respect for Sri Lankan Minister

The South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Standing Committee and the 26th session of the SAARC Programming Committee were scheduled to meet in Islamabad, Pakistan, August 16 to18, 2005. But according to the Daily Times of Pakistan, they have now been "canceled out of respect " for the late Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, who was assassinated on August 13, 2005.

The meetings have not been rescheduled. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:50 PM | Comments (0)

'They Will Get Me. How Can I Go On Hiding myself?'

DEW Gunasekera, Sri Lanka's Constitutional affairs minister, told the BBC Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, who was assassinated August 13, 2005, had a premonition of death.

"They will get me. How can I go on hiding myself?" Mr Kadirgamar asked Mr Gunasekera recently, according to the BBC. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:31 PM | Comments (0)

Will Sri Lanka Ceasefire Survive Kadirgamar’s Assassination?

"The murder of Sri Lanka's foreign minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, is a reminder that the island nation is yet to emerge from the spiral of violence that had it in its grip, these past two decades and more," The Indian Express opines in its April 15, 2005 edition.

The publication said, "The pause in hostilities that came in the wake of the peace process had always appeared a tentative one, more so since April 2003 when the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) indicated that it had temporarily suspended participation in peace talks with the Sri Lankan government. But Kadirgarmar's assassination is clearly the most serious threat to the ceasefire thus far." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:13 PM | Comments (0)

Christian Science Monitor: 'Antiwar Sentiment Gets Champion'

The Christian Science Monitor asserts in its August 15, 2005 edition that, "In her high-profile vigil outside President Bush's Texas ranch, Cindy Sheehan has brought the face and the heart of the antiwar movement to the world."

I totally agree. And short of bringing the troops home from Iraq, there is nothing Mr. Bush and his supporters can do that will stem the anti-war sentiment that Ms. Sheehan symbolizes.

On second thought, there is something Mr. Bush can do;he can meet with her as she has requested. But a meeting won't change the dynamic in play. There are simply been too many deaths of U.S. soldiers and Iraqis caused by the invasion and occupation of Iraq under false pretenses for us to pretend that the status quo remains. The invasion unleashed one the most lethal insurgencies in modern times and the beginning of a visible anti-war movement in the United States. Insurgencies and opposition to war at home is a combination that usually leads to withdrawal from foreign adventures.

For more, see "Antiwar sentiment gets champion."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:17 PM | Comments (0)

Meet the Press Transcript for August 14, 2005

Here is NBC's Meet the Press Transcript for August 14, 2005. Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, was one of the guest along with U.S. Senator Joseph Biden of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:51 PM | Comments (0)

IRNA Says Tehran Times Calls for Oil Boycott

The Islamic Republic News Agency of Iran reported August 14, 2005 that, The Tehran Times "suggested in its editorial that the world oil-rich states should form a united front in order to confront "Western neocolonialist countries."

It won't happen because the leaders of oil producing nations, with the exception of Iran and Venezuela, don't have the balls or the interest to do launch an oil boycott.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:40 PM | Comments (0)

The Australian: 'Bush Must Oil Latin Cogs'

David Nason, the New York correspondent for The Australian, told his readers in an August 15, 2005 article that, "A question now being asked is what would happen" if Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez "suddenly decided to stop supplying the US with oil or, worse, if he did a Saddam Hussein and stopped oil exports altogether?

"Venezuela is the world's fifth largest supplier of oil. It provides almost 17 per cent of US oil imports and the anti-Americanism espoused by Chavez seems to be escalating," Mr. Nason wrote.

The article raises other interesting points and notes that, "the world [is] guzzling oil at the rate of 83.7 million barrels a day and [that there is] no spare capacity in the market."

He told readers "a political upheaval that disrupted the world's finely balanced oil supply could be catastrophic."

"For Bush," he concluded, "getting to know Chavez - or at least getting to understand him a little better - ought to be on his list of oil priorities, along with some kind of meaningful national policy on alternative energy."

For more, see "Bush must oil Latin cogs."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:30 PM | Comments (0)

Will Oil Diplomacy Bring Peace to Central, Southeast Asia?

On August 14, 2005, WebIndia123.com published an article headlined "Oil diplomacy to bring peace in Southeast and central Asian countries: experts."

I wonder how that can be predicted with certainty, while Muslim populations are oppressed and denied political and religious expression in much of south and central Asia. That's what sparked the armed rebellion in the region that threatens to spread.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:52 PM | Comments (0)

Bakiyev Sworn in as Kyrgyzstan's New President.

Kurmanbek Bakiyev was sworn in August 14, 2005 as Kyrgyzstan's new president. According to Reuters, he is "the first leader in ex-Soviet Central Asia to be elected in a vote judged fair by foreign observers." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:37 PM | Comments (0)

Should America Ditch Its Tyrant Friends?

T.K. Vogel and Eric A. Witte, described by the International Herald Tribune (IHT) as "senior fellows of the Democratization Policy Council, a trans-Atlantic initiative for accountability in democracy promotion," thinks "America should ditch its tyrant friends." Should it?

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:29 PM | Comments (0)

India and Pakistan's Two-nation Arms Race

The Pak Tribune of Pakistan has an interesting article headlined "India rejects Pak proposal for early warning of cruise missile tests." The two country arms race itself is quite interesting. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:15 PM | Comments (0)

"Foolproof Security' Planned for SAARC Conference

The Press Trust Of India (PTI) reported August 15, 2005 from Dhaka, Bangladesh, that, "Foolproof security would be in place for the upcoming, "twice-postponed," South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) summit, now scheduled for November 12-13, 2005.

According to PTI, the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers will get "special attention". Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:09 PM | Comments (0)

IHT: 'Rising India Remains Torn Between East and West

In an August 15, 2005 article headlined "Rising India remains torn between East and West," Anand Giridharadas, the International Herald Tribune's (IHT) South Asian business correspondent headquartered in Mumbai, India, raises this important question:

Should India's rising fortunes be hitched to Asian solidarity or to a partnership with Western countries that would pit Asians against Asians?

He said "India's dilemma now concerns not Japan, (as it did during World War II) but China. And the Western power is no longer Britain, but the United States," he added. "Yet the questions this time echo an earlier choice over whether to look east or west: Will India and China partner in ways that crowd out U.S. influence in Asia? Or will India take part in an American strategy to contain China's rise by helping India advance as a world power?"

China (manufacturing) and India (software and service) would be an awesome economic combination if they could see the value of working together to make Asia a more powerful player in international commerce and politics. Not only that, their militaries could easily protect their and Asia's interests should they encounter belligerence from the West.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:56 PM | Comments (0)

Two Sources of News on Tamil Affairs and Sri Lanka

TamilNet is a good source of "reporting to the world on Tamil Affairs" and Sri Lanka. For a more traditional source of news, see the BBC's Sinhala.Com.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:23 PM | Comments (0)

Tamil National Alliance's Statement on the Kadirgamar Assassination

On August 14, 2005, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said, "The killing of Honorable Lakshman Kadirgamar,[Sri Lanka's foreign minister] MP, PC has caused shock and consternation." "We strongly disapprove of the killing," TNA said in a press release. "We convey our deep condolences to Ms. Kadirgamar, the children and all other members of the Kadirgamar family." The TNA also urged that "the peace process be recommenced in a meaningful way. That would be the only way to sustain the Ceasefire Agreement and discourage all forms of violence," TNA concluded

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)

Sri Lana Police Question Owners of Assassin's Lair

TamilNet, which reports to "the world on Tamil Affairs, has an informative article on the "Tamil couple, Mr. Lakshman Thalaiyasingam, 58, and Mrs. Vipiyan Selvalogini Thalaiyasingam, the owners of the house located at 42, Bullers Lane [Colombo, Sri Lanka] where the sniper had taken position to strike at Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar," on August 13, 2005.

The couple said they were not aware that anyone was using the upstairs part of the house, which they rarely visited. They reportedly are under house detention

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:57 AM | Comments (0)

August 13, 2005

'The Political Downfall of a Canadian in Baghdad'

Dr. Alaa at-Tamimi, the ousted Canadian mayor of Baghdad, "is calling it quits and coming home after 15 frustrating months on the job, a wild ride that included everything from incessant complaints about trash collection and looters stealing key parts at the sewage plant to attempts on his life and an armed coup,"notes the Globe and Mail of Toronto.

The Fallujah-born engineer's ordeal is chronoicled in an informative, August 13, 2005 article headlined "The Political Downfall of a Canadian in Baghdad."

The Globe and Mail said, "Under cover of a sandstorm, heavily armed Shia militia marched into Baghdad City Hall on Monday [August 8, 2005] and announced a change in civic administration.

"I don't think I will return to office. I'm finished," Dr. Alaa al-Tamimi said yesterday [August 12, 2005]. the publication noted.

I think that's a wise decision, sir.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:05 PM | Comments (0)

Where is Ala' At-Tamimi?

As'ad at The Angry Arab News Service has a chiding post on Ala' At-Tamimi, "one of the Iraqis who was living abroad and was installed as mayor of Baghdad by Paul Bremer, and who was profiled by the New York Times too."

"This Tamimi was recently ousted by angry armed Iraqis loyal to the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq," he noted.

As'ad used the occassion to chide "right-wing propagandist Christopher Hitchens," who "bragged about the case of `Ala' At-Tamimi" in a recent article.

Also see "Ousted Baghdad mayor says gun, not vote, rules Iraq.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:37 PM | Comments (0)

Why, Ariel, Why?

Elizabeth Davies of The Independent Online of London concluded in an August 13, 200 article that, "The planned Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip will bring the most sweeping changes the area has witnessed since Jewish settlements were first established in the aftermath of the 1967 Six-Day war."

"But what many hardline Israelis find hard to understand," she wrote, "is how the architect of settlement construction, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, has become the main reason for their dismantling. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:20 PM | Comments (0)

Palestininians Begin Israeli Pullout Celebrations

Mideast.jpost.com has an insightful article headlined "Pullout celebrations begin in the Palestinian Authority."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:05 PM | Comments (0)

Ayalon Vows There Will be No Scorched Earth Policy in Gaza

Danny Ayalon, Israel's ambassador to the United States, told the National Press Club in Washington on August 12, 2005 that there will be "No scorched earth policy in Gaza," according to Ynetnews.com

I wonder how he knows for certain.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:59 PM | Comments (0)

Jews Confronting Jews

Marty Merzer, who served in Jerusalem as The [Miami] Herald's Mideast correspondent from late 1983 until December 1985, and "returned to help cover the first Palestinian intifada, the Scud attacks during the Gulf War, the assassination of then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, the wave of suicide bombings in 2002 and now this, disengagement" of Jewish settlers from Gaza, says

"thousands of soldiers and police officers will confront thousands of Jewish civilians in 21 ''settlements'' in Gaza and four on the West Bank."

The pull-out officially gets underway August 15, 2005.

Mr. Merzer said Knight Ridder, The Herald's parent company, assembled a reported team that will remain in Gaza, in a "new auxiliary bureau, in a kibbutz on the edge of the Gaza Strip" for the rest of the summer.

For more, see "Uprooting of settlers is tearing Israel apart."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:49 PM | Comments (0)

Fanning the Flames in Gaza

The Boston Globe, a prominent U.S. newspaper, editorialized on August 13, 2005 that:

Some Israelis protesting the planned pullout from Gaza settlements are using scare tactics that are too common in the Mideast. ''A Jew-free Gaza welcomes Al Qaeda," shouted one banner at a massive rally in Tel Aviv on Thursday [August 11, 2005].

The publication noted that, "Even some political leaders who should know better are fanning the flames." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:14 PM | Comments (0)

Mohammed Fadhil's 'Message to Cindy Sheehan'

On August 12, 2005, Mohammed Fadhil at Iraq The Model, the favorite Iraqi blog of many conservative bloggers in the United States who want American soldiers to die for Iraqis, sent "A message to Cindy Sheehan."

She is the American woman who has gained international attention with her effort to speak with U.S. President George W. Bush, by camping-out near his ranch in Crawford, Texas. She is demanding a meeting with him. Her son, Casey, was killed in Iraq. So far, he has refused to meet with her.

However, on August 6, 2005, he did send Stephen J. Hadley, his National Security Adviser, and Joe Hagin, Deputy White House Chief of Staff, to meet with her. They talked for 45 minutes, according to news reports.

"I want to ask the president, why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?" Ms. Sheehan has repeatedly told reporters.

Mohammad Fadhil's post was written to convince her that he died for a good cause. When this item was posted, he had drawn 343 comments. I doubt his lament will have much influence on Ms. Sheehan.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:05 PM | Comments (0)

Free Iraq Comments on 'The American Iraqi-Constitution"

Imad Khadduri at Free Iraq has an interesting post headlined "The American Iraqi-Constitution." How dare he call it that? After you read the post you will understand why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:31 PM | Comments (0)

Is Iraq's Constitution Writing Deadline a U.S. Political Issue?

Professor Juan Cole at Informed Comment says "a perceptive reader" wrote him "to say that the short deadline for the parliamentary acceptance of the constitution" in Iraq " means that most members of parliament probably won't have time to read or study it carefully before the vote, and there will certainly be no proper debate on it.

"Is it right to expect parliament to approve a constitution it has barely read, which is highly controversial, without time for study and debate?" Mr. Cole asked in an August 13, 2005 post.

"Isn't that making parliament a mere rubber stamp? The deadline is a U.S. political issue, not an imperative of Iraqi politics,": he noted.

The parliament will be a rubber stamp with a short or long deadline for approving the constitution.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:22 PM | Comments (0)

'Iraqis Want Water, Electricity as Much as Constitution'

Alisha Ryu at Christian Iraq.com says "Iraqis Want Water, Electricity as Much as Constitution. Here's her post.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:08 PM | Comments (0)

Today in Iraq's War-Dead Roundup

Today in Iraq has posted its roundup of "War News" from Iraq for Saturday, August 13, 2005

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:02 PM | Comments (0)

No! Not you, Mr. Cuthbertson

Peter Cuthbertson at the highly regarded Conservative Commentary blog admits in an August 11, 2005 post, that, "Even those of us who were very supportive of the Iraq War have been a little sceptical of suggestions that the country is on course towards Western liberal democracy."

You should be sceptical, Mr. Cuthbertson. Democracy as you know it will never take root in Iraq. Read why he made the statement.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:53 PM | Comments (0)

The Cross-Atlantic Debate on Blair's Anti-terror Laws

Tom Baldwin, a Times Online Washington correspondent, told that publication's readers on August 13, 2005, that "Civil liberties campaigners opposed to [British Prime Minister] Tony Blair's planned anti-terror laws are discovering some unlikely allies across the Atlantic among the leading lights of the American Right."

Is that so? Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:36 PM | Comments (0)

Times Online: 'Tsunami Aid Trapped Out of Reach'

"Almost eight months after the Asian tsunami wreaked devastation in Sri Lanka and Indonesia, millions of pounds of British aid remains stranded in foreign ports," according to Times Online correspondents Thair Shaikh and Sam Forsdike. Here's why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:24 PM | Comments (0)

Sri Lanka to Probe Security Failure in Kadirgamar Assassination

Agence France Presse (AFP) reported August 13, 2005 that, assassinated Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar "had over 100 bodyguards assigned from the military as well as the elite Ministerial Security Division."

"They were backed up by intelligence units of the police and the army," AFP said. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:10 PM | Comments (0)

The Australian: 'New Facts Back Tale of Brush With Atta'

David Nason, New York correspondent for The Australian, reported August 13, 2005 that:

New intelligence reports suggesting that 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta arrived in the US [United States] in late 1999 or early 2000 - six months earlier than previously thought - are likely to spark a reassessment of public servant Johnelle Bryant's incredible story of a face-to-face meeting with the terrorist.

For more of Mr. Nason's report, see "New Facts Back Tale of Brush With Atta.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:39 PM | Comments (0)

Passions High in the U.S. Over Cindy Sheehan's Anti-war Stance

When this item was posted on August 13, 2005, Technorati, which promotes itself as "the authority on what's going on in the world of weblogs, had 5,455 posts about Cindy Sheehan, who is camped out near President George W. Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, in an attempt to talk to him about the Iraq war. She is the mother of Casey Sheehan, who was killed in Iraq.

Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, Ms. Sheehan has been vilified and extolled for her anti-war efforts.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:58 PM | Comments (0)

Will Photos of Caskets of U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq Show Cost of War?

Former UPI White House Correspondent Helen Thomas, who now gets on the White House's nerves as a columnist for Hearst Newspapers, wrote August 12, 2005, that,

The American people, sheltered for the last two years from some photos of the grim reality of the war in Iraq, are beginning to see more pictures of the kind that had previously been suppressed.

Ms. Thomas said "As the result of a freedom of information lawsuit," by former CNN broadcaster Ralph Begleiter, who is now a journalism professor at the University of Delaware, "the Pentagon has now agreed to release "as expeditiously as possible" some photographs of the caskets of American servicemen and women.

Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:38 PM | Comments (0)

Ken Bode: Signs of Anti-war Sentiments Grow Harder to Ignore

Former Washington Week in Review host Ken Bode, who is also a former senior political analyst for CNN, , noted in an August 12, 2005, opinion piece at IndyStar.com that military "recruiters are spending this critical summer canvassing rodeos, fairs, X Games, NASCAR races and rock concerts."

The Pulliam professor of journalism at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, added: "The Army recruiting chief for the Chicago area is Sgt. Major Ozell Johnson. He recently told the Lehrer Newshour that young men and women are persuadable:

However, when they get home and tell Mom and Dad, 'Hey this is something I want to do,' then that's where the resistance starts.

"Of course it does," Mr. Bode wrote. "War reverses the natural order of things and forces parents to bury their children. See "Signs of anti-war sentiments grow harder to ignore" for more of his from-the-heartland analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:19 PM | Comments (0)

It's the Same Old Song on Iraq and Terrorism

During his August 13, 2005 weekly radio address, U.S. President George W. Bush continued his theme of justifying the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. The address reads like a weak attempt to convince an increasingly doubtful public of the efficacy of his venture as opposition to the war, led by military families who've had loved ones killed in Iraq, slowly picks up speed.

Here's the White House transcript of his address. A link to the audio version is on the White House web page.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:47 AM | Comments (0)

Rafsanjani Calls IAEA Board Resolution on Iran 'tyrannical

During Jumah Prayer on August 12, 2005, former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who led prayers at one Tehran mosque, dismissed the August 11, 2005 resolution of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors on Iran's "peaceful nuclear program" as 'very tyrannical,'" according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

Mr. Rafsanjani was quoted as saying:

It's highly surprising and amazing some countries initially supported us and even superficially delayed the meeting for two days but then through agreement adopted what the three European states and the US wanted and nobody opposed.

The president of the Expediency Discernment Council added: "We are now in the preliminary stage of enriching a substance which exists in our country to use the product for energy generation, medical, agricultural and other scientific purposes."

Question: Why is it ok for European nations, the United States and Israel to have nuclear weapons but not Muslim or non white nations?

Is it racism?

Is it an effort make certain Muslim and non-white nations cannot defend themselves during what appears to be an effort to re-colonize the non-Christian and non-white areas of the world? Just asking.

For more on Mr. Rafsanjani's position on Iran's nuclear program, see "Rafsanjani: IAEA Board resolution on Iran 'tyrannical'."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:22 AM | Comments (0)

BBC Sinhala.com is a Good Source of Sri Lankan News

The August 13, 2005 assassination of Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar will keep the spotlight on Sri Lanka until news editors around the world are compelled by current events to relegate it to small paragraphs and then no coverage at all.

If you want to follow the investigation and political fallout from the assassination, see the English language BBC Sinhala.com. It's a good source of current events in Sri Lanka.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:48 AM | Comments (0)

Did The Tamil Tigers Do It?

While the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) may have assassinated Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar on August 13, 2005, as some in the Sri Lankan Government contend, a preliminary review suggests that the method of assassination does not fit the Tigers' modus operandi. They like to bomb, up close and personal. Their assassinations are usually carried out by the Black Tiger special operations unit.

The Tigers political leader, S.P. Tamilchelvan, denied that they assassinated Mr. Kadirgamar, who was reportedly shot in the head and chest. This hit looks like the work of a hired assassin. Question is: Did the LTTE hire the hitter or hitters? If not, who did?

Another question: Are there elements in the Sri Lankan military, as Mr. Tamilchelvan contends, "operating with a hidden agenda to sabotage the cease-fire agreement" between LTTE and the government?

Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, reported August 13, 2005 that the Sri Lankan government on August 13, 2005 "flatly rejected a Tamil Tiger denial of its hand in the assassination" of Mr. Kadirgamar.

The agency quoted Sri Lankan Health Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva, "who is also the government spokesman," as telling reporters."Government finds it difficult to accept the denial."

As referenced above, LTTE is currently engaged in a tenuous cease-fire with the Sri Lankan government. It is seeking "an independent state" in areas in Sri Lanka inhabited by ethnic Tamils. Mr. Kadirgamar worked diligently to deny them political legitimacy and to have them declared terrorists. Some nations view LTTE as a terrorist organization.

A partial list of assassinations compiled by the Council on Foreign Relations has a few of the prominent politicians who've been the target of Tamil bombs. It gives credence to the use of bombs, not bullets, as a major assassination tool. For example:

Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi , son of former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was assassinated by the Tamil Tigers on May 21, 1991, at a campaign rally in India. His assassin was Thenmuli Rajaratnam See the Jain Commission report for more on this assassination;

On May 1, 1993, Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa was assassinated in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in a suicide bombing;

On July 29, 1999, Neelan Thiruchelvam, an ethnic Tamil, and a Sri Lankan member of parliament, was assassinated by a suicide bomber in Colombo, Sri Lanka;

Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga narrowly escaped an assassination attempt by The Tigers in Colombo, in December 1999. A suicide bomber blew herself up a few feet from the prime minister; and

On June 7, 2000, a suicide bomber assassinated Sri Lanka's Minister for Industrial Development, C.V. Goonaratne, in the northern suburbs of Colombo. See "Ministers wife succumbs to injuries;120 detained; emergency extended.

Here's is an Institute for Conflict Management's list of assassinations reportedly carried out by LTTE. Also see "Prominent Tamil political leaders assassinated by LTTE since the Ceasefire Agreement." This list of "Suicide Attacks by the LTTE" is also interesting.

Meanwhile, Priyath Liyanage, editor, BBC's Sinhala service, said the assassination of Mr. Kadirgamar "comes at a time when the peace process in Sri Lanka is in deep crisis."

Many of the recent killings in the eastern and northern areas of the country have put a heavy strain on the stalled peace process," he wrote August 13, 2005

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:36 AM | Comments (0)

August 12, 2005

Is U.S.' Caribbean, Latin Policy Short-Sighted?

Océane Jasor, a Council on Hemispheric Affairs (CHA) Research Associate notes, in an article August 5, 2005, article on CHA's website that, As the U.S. became increasingly security-driven after 9/11, it turned to the Caribbean for support at the UN concerning the war in Iraq and other Middle East issues."

"To Washington's surprise," he added, CARICOM did not automatically align itself with the U.S. cause, despite President Bush's threat -- passed on to the Caribbean by its then hardline White House Latin America aide, Otto Reich, via Barbados television -- where the latter stressed that the U.S. would always remember those countries that did not give their entire allegiance to the U.S. in its overseas engagements."

"But CARICOMs decision should have come as no shock to a Bush administration that repeatedly has ignored the Caribbean's vital economic problems, centering on trade issues."

For more see "Washington's Short-Sighted Policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean." I found the article very informative.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:30 PM | Comments (0)

Belize Lauded for Efforts to Maintain Regional Stability

General John Craddock, commander of United States Southern Command, commended Belize for its "efforts to maintain regional stability" during an August 11, 2005 meeting with Prime Minister Said Musa.

He was on "a one-day trip to Belize to conduct meetings with government officials," according to Caribbean Net News. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:07 PM | Comments (0)

African Union Clarifies Position on Mauritania

Onwuka Nzeshi Abuja of This Day of Lagos, Nigeria, reported August 12, 2005, that, "The African Union (AU) yesterday [August 11, 2005] denied in its entirety, media reports that the continental body had soft-pedaled on its avowed position to isolate military regimes and all forms of despotic governments across Africa."

For more see "AU Clarifies Position On Mauritania."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:51 PM | Comments (0)

VOA Looks at Muslims of African Descent in the United States

On August 12, 2005, the VoIce of America (VOA) gave its foreign listeners--it is illegal for the VOA to broadcast to Americans since it is a propaganda organ of the American government--a report on Muslims of African descent in the United States. It coincided with a report on Muslims in Sub-Sahara Africa.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:39 PM | Comments (0)

The VOA Looks at 'Radical Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa'

In an article headlined "Radical Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa," the Voice of America (VOA), which can only be heard in the U.S. over shortwave radio since it is illegal for the U.S. Government to openly propagandize American citizens, told its foreign listeners August 12, 2005, that "Sub-Saharan Africa, the region south of the Sahara Desert," "encompasses more than 50 countries and about 250-million Muslims, or one-fifth of the worlds Muslim population."

The VOA added:

Traditionally home to the moderate and more tolerant Islamic Sufi sect, Sub-Saharan Africa is now grappling with pockets of radical Islamists seeking to establish strict Islamic law among some of the regions more disenfranchised communities.

The propaganda organ quoted Kenyan scholar Ali Mazrui [maz-ROO-wi] of the Institute of Global Cultural Studies at New York State University at Binghamton as saying "radical Islam" is spreading in two major forms.

There's the revivalist trend, which is not necessarily politically explosive, and theres the radicalizing trend, which can be politically explosive. The revivalists can be quite conservative and politically accommodating. You'll find aspects of that in some African countries, including on the eastern seaboard. But the radicalizing tendency which is more recent is definitely politically ominous in some respects, although the causes of it have to be sought beyond the borders of the African continent.

The VOA said, "Somalia, Eritrea and Kenya are among the Sub-Saharan countries where people are increasingly leaning toward radicalism."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:29 PM | Comments (0)

U.N.'s Sudan Mission to Help Investigate Garang's Death

The "United Nations Mission in Sudan, headed by Jan Pronk, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special representative there, will join the [Sudanese] government and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) in the investigation into the death of John Garang in a helicopter crash" on July 30, 2005, according to a Sudan Radio Service article in the Sudan Tribune.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:11 PM | Comments (0)

Excerpts Salva Kiir's August 11, 2005 Speech

Sudanese vice-president Salva Kiir addressed the Sudanese people on live television August 11, 2005, shortly after he was sworn. He replaced the late Vice-President John Garang, who died in a helicopter crash on July 30, 3005.

Mr. Kiir is also president of the Southern Sudan, which is semi-autonomous. Here are excerpts from the speech.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:56 PM | Comments (0)

Playing The Oil Card in Sudan

The Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM), "the rebel group that waged a 21-year civil war against the Muslim North" in Sudan and "will soon form the government of south Sudan," owns "50 per cent of its shares of the London-based White Nile Oil company," which will develop "the lucrative Block Ba oil concession in south Sudan," according to The Times Online of London,

"In return," the publication said in an August 13, 2005 report, "the SPLM awarded White Nile a 60 per cent stake in the lucrative Block Ba oil concession in south Sudan, thought to contain up to five billion barrels of oil."

The Times said, "The highly controversial move--the French oil giant Total already claims ownership of the oilfield-- sent White Nile's shares soaring from 10p to 138½p in the days after their market debut in early February."

Are the shares still high in the wake of the July 30, 2005 death of SPLM leader and Sudanese Vice-President John Garang, in a helicopter crash in south Sudan? The answer is here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:33 PM | Comments (0)

George Bush and Cindy Sheehan

Helena Cobban at Just World News has an interesting commentary on U.S. President George W. Bush and grieving war protester Cindy Sheehan.

Ms. Sheehan is camped out near Mr. Bush's ranch in Crawford Texas, and has demanded that he talk to her about the death of U.S. soldiers in Iraq, including her son Casey.

So far, Mr. Bush has refused to see her although he did send aids to speak with her.

By the way, he said August 11, 2005 that he sympathizes with her because of the death of her son. In the same sentence, he said the U.S. must stay the course in Iraq.

Here's is a White House transcript of Mr. Bush's August 11, 2005 chat with the press.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:33 AM | Comments (0)

IFPRI's 'Food Security Outlook in Africa to 2025'

The International Food Policy Research Institute has issued a paper that "explores and evaluates the consequences of various policies related to food security in Africa based on projections for the year 2025, focusing on agricultural production." Here is the August 2005 report.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:50 AM | Comments (0)

Ten Presidential Candidates Set for Egypt's September 2005 Election

"Egypt's electoral commission has approved 10 candidates for the country's first contested presidential election in September" 2005," reports the BBC and other news sources.

Does anyone doubt that President Hosni Mubarak will win?

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:40 AM | Comments (0)

Al-Ahram Weekly Looks at Moorish Politics in Mauritania

Gamal Nkrumah of Egypt's Al-Ahram Weekly contends in the August 11-17, 2005 edition that "...it requires a PhD in politics, sociology and anthropology to understand" Mauritania's "myriad internal disputes, which are invariably intertwined with race, ethnicity and class."

He said, " On the face of it matters are very simple: the Moors of Arab and Berber stock, the fair-skinned lords of the land, have controlled the country since independence from France in 1960. The black- skinned non-Arabs are relegated to the status of second-class citizens. What, however, puzzles outsiders is the proliferation of internal squabbles among the country's ruling Arab-Berber elites."

See "Moorish mayhem" more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:32 AM | Comments (0)

August 11, 2005

Waiting for River Bend

River Bend, Baghdad Burning's Iraqi proprietor, hasn't posted since July 15, 2005. I miss her commentary and hope she's alright.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:58 PM | Comments (0)

Howard Zinn: America, Like Iraq, is Occupied

Howard Zinn, professor emeritus of political science at Boston University in the United States, notes an opinion piece in the August 12, 2005, edition of Guardian Unlimited:

It has quickly become clear that Iraq is not a liberated country, but an occupied country. We became familiar with that term during the second world war. We talked of German-occupied France, German-occupied Europe. And after the war we spoke of Soviet-occupied Hungary, Czechoslovakia, eastern Europe. It was the Nazis, the Soviets, who occupied countries. The United States liberated them from occupation.

Now we are the occupiers. True, we liberated Iraq from Saddam Hussein, but not from us. Just as in 1898 we liberated Cuba from Spain, but not from us. Spanish tyranny was overthrown, but the US established a military base in Cuba, as we are doing in Iraq.Mr. Zinn said, "But more ominous, perhaps, than the occupation of Iraq is the occupation of the US. I wake up in the morning, read the newspaper, and feel that we are an occupied country, that some alien group has taken over. I wake up thinking: the US is in the grip of a president surrounded by thugs in suits who care nothing about human life abroad or here, who care nothing about freedom abroad or here, who care nothing about what happens to the earth, the water or the air, or what kind of world will be inherited by our children and grandchildren."

For more, see "It is not only Iraq that is occupied. America is too."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:46 PM | Comments (0)

Shapiro: 'Why War in Iraq is Right for America'

Columnist Ben Shapiro at townhall.com made this observation in an August 10, 2005 article headlined: "Why war in Iraq is right for America":

No one said empire was easy, but it is right and good, both for Americans and for the world. Forwarding freedom is always important, but it is especially important where doing so ensures America's future security -- as in Iraq. Maintaining American empire will require Americans to recognize the dangers of impatient isolationism.

I wonder if he's going to volunteer to fight in Iraq.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:28 PM | Comments (0)

Rutledge: 'Is Iraq War Fueling the GCC's Economic Boom?

Emilie Rutledge, an economist currently based at the Gulf Research Center in Dubai, contends in an August 10, 2005 article at Al-Jazeera,Net that,

Since the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, the price of oil has steadily climbed upwards. A barrel of oil today costs twice as much as it did on the eve of combat, back in March 2003.

"At the same time," Ms. Rutledge added, "all six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia - have experienced levels of economic growth not witnessed since the 1970s.

For more, see "Is Iraq war fueling the GCC's economic boom?"

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:12 PM | Comments (0)

Who Will Be the Ultiminate Beneficiary of the Iraq War?

Robert S. McElvaine, Elizabeth Chisholm Professor of Arts and Letters and Chair of the Department of History at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, USA, predicts in an August 11, 2005 article in the Jackson Clarion-Ledger that, the "Beneficiary of war in Iraq will really be Iran".

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:57 PM | Comments (0)

What's Next for Foreign Nationals Detained Today in Britain?

If you want to know under what law Britain's Immigration Service detained ten foreign nationals this morning, [August 11, 2005] , see The Times Online's "Q&A: what next for the detainees?"

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:41 PM | Comments (0)

Britain's HLCC Seeks Written Evidence for War-Making Inquiry

Britain's House of Lords Constitution Committee (HLCC) has "decided to conduct an inquiry on the use of the royal prerogative power by Government to deploy the UK's armed forces," according to the HLCC website and press reports.

On August 11, 2005, the HLCC invited "interested organizations and individuals to submit written evidence as part of its inquiry, reflecting the guidance given below." HLCC said "written evidence should reach the Committee as soon as possible and no later than Monday 31 October 2005," the Committee said. Below are the guidelines:

Scope of the Committee's inquiry

In particular, the Committee invites evidence on the following themes:

(1) What alternatives are there to the use of royal prerogative powers in the deployment of armed forces?

(2) Can models, drawn from the practice of other democratic States, provide useful comparisons?

(3) Should Parliament have a role in the decision to deploy armed forces?

(4) If Parliament should have a role, what form should this take?a) Should Parliamentary approval be required for any deployment of British forces abroad, whether or not into conflict situations? b)Should Parliamentary approval be required before British forces engage in actual use of force? Is retrospective approval ever sufficient?

(5) Is there a need for different approaches regarding deployment of UK armed forces: a) required under existing international treaties;b) taken in pursuance of UN Security Council authorization;c) as part of UN peace-keeping action;d) placed under the operational control of the UN or a third State?

(6) Should the Government be required, or expected, to explain the legal justification for any decision to deploy UK armed forces to use force outside the UK, including providing the evidence upon which the legal justification is based?

(7) Should the courts have jurisdiction to rule upon the decision to use force and/or the legality of the manner in which force is used. If so, should that jurisdiction be limited by considerations of justiciability of any of the issues involved?

The committee said, "Under the royal prerogative powers, a government can declare war and deploy armed forces without the backing or consent of Parliament. However, the Government did allow Parliament a vote before the Iraq war in 2003, leading to calls that it should be required to seek Parliaments approval before taking action in future conflicts."

Here is background on the call for an inquiry.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:30 PM | Comments (0)

The Times: 'Blair's Power to Go to War Comes Under Assault'

Rosemary Bennett, Deputy Political Editor of The Times Online of London, reported August 12, 2005 that, "Centuries old powers that allow the prime minister to take Britain to war without parliamentary consent will be challenged this autumn by an influential committee of peers."

"The House of Lords Constitution Committee is to hold an inquiry into the royal prerogative power, which allows prime ministers to deploy the Armed Forces without the backing of MPs," she wrote, adding: "The inquiry will intensify the pressure on Tony Blair to give Parliament the final say over whether troops go into battle. He broke with precedent in March 2003 and offered MPs a vote before committing troops to war in Iraq, although their decision was not binding," Ms. Bennett noted. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:10 PM | Comments (0)

Salman Rushdie's Adds His Two Cents to Debate on Britsh Muslims

Salman Rushdie, a British-Indian author who had an Iranian bounty on his head for many years after he published The Satanic Verses, has an article in the August 11, 2005 edition of Times Online in which he says:

When Sir Iqbal Sacranie, head of the Muslim Council of Britain, admitted that our own children had perpetrated the July 7 London bombings, it was the first time in my memory that a British Muslim had accepted his community's responsibility for outrages committed by its members.

Question: What would one expect Mr. Sacranie and other mainstream leaders to say, when they are under extreme pressure to support British foreign policy on Iraq? They want to remain in the UK. Besides, he's playing the role he's expected to play as "Sir Iqbal." You don't get knighted by advocating Jihad. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:09 AM | Comments (0)

Britain Detains 10 in Preparation for Deportation

Charles Clarke, the British Home Secretary, announced August 11, 2005 that

"In accordance with my powers to deport individuals whose presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good for reasons of national security, the immigration service has today detained ten foreign nationals who I believe pose a threat to national security.
"They will be held in secure prison service accommodation and I shall not disclose their names.

Mr. Clarke added:

Following months of diplomatic work we now have got reason to believe that we can get the necessary assurances from the countries to which we will return the deportees so that they will not be subject to torture or ill-treatment.

Among those likely to deported is Abu Qatada, also known as Sheikh Omar Abu Omar, notes The Times Onlline of London in an August 11, 2005 article headlined "Al-Qaeda cleric' among ten detained."

The publication said Abu Qatada and "the other nine foreign nationals are being held by four police forces, working with the Immigration Service. They are in a prison service facility while the Home Office prepares to deport them."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:49 AM | Comments (0)

August 10, 2005

Iraq To Get Its First Independent News Agency Run By Iraqis

"Iraq is to get its first independent news agency run and staffed by Iraqi journalists and backed by Reuters and the United Nations," according to Guardian Unlimited.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:54 PM | Comments (0)

'Only Half of London's Financial Firms Prepared for Attack'

"Only half the businesses in London's financial district have contingency plans in place despite a terrorist attack being inevitable, the commissioner of the City of London police warned yesterday," notes reporter Laura Smith in the August 11, 2005 edition of Guardian Unlimited.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:39 PM | Comments (0)

Britain Will Attempt to Deport Abu Qatada to Jordan

Daniel McGrory and Richard Ford of The Times Online of London reported August 11, 2005 that, "Britain's promised crackdown on the preachers of hate will begin today [August 11, 2005] with a move to deport Abu Qatada, described as al-Qaida's spiritual ambassador in Europe."

"The attempt to send the cleric back to Jordan comes just hours after Britain signed a controversial deal with the authorities in Amman for them to take undesirables thrown out of Britain," The Times reported, adding: "The order to remove Abu Qatada will be seen as a test of the Governments determination to deal with militants who allegedly stir up hatred."

Abu Qatada will likely be thrown in prison as soon as he lands in Jordan since he was sentenced in absentia in 2000 on bombings charges and for plots against American tourists. See "Move to expel 'al-Qaeda cleric' will test Britain's resolve on law."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:32 PM | Comments (0)

Magdy el-Nashar Wants to Return to UK But Is Afraid

Magdy el-Nashar, the Egyptian biochemist freed after being questioned for 25 days about the July 7, 2005 London bombings pleaded yesterday "with the British authorities to clear his name," according to the August 11, 2005 Times Online of London.

The publication said el-Nashar, 33, "said that he wants to resume his work and life in Leeds but fears that the British public still regards him as a terror suspect." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:09 PM | Comments (0)

Chissano Appointed Mediator in Zimbabwe's Political Dispute

On August 10, 2005, African Union Chairman Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria appointed former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano "as mediator in the political crisis between the two main political forces in Zimbabwe," according to Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:00 PM | Comments (0)

Senegal's President Willing to Help Mauritania's New Leaders

President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal on August 8, 2005 said he would support Mauritania`s new regime in its efforts to establish democratic institutions," according to Angola Press.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:50 PM | Comments (0)

African Union Holds Talks With Mauritania's New Leaders

Nigerian Foreign Minister Oluyemi Adeniji, who headed an African Union delegation sent to Mauritania on August 10, 2005 after President Maaouya Ould Taya's oppressive, 21-year old rule was ended in a bloodless coup on August 3, 2005, said:

We are reassured after meeting all the various political parties of the reasons for the change and, some even say, the necessity of the change. There is something of a national consensus... but Mauritania will not be restored (to full AU membership), that is clear, until there are elections, until there is a democratic system.

The AU has urged The 17-member Military Council for Justice and Democracy to restore civilian government. The council said it would do so in two years. Here' more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:43 PM | Comments (0)

A Commentary on Change in Mauritania

Mohamad Al Ashab at the London-based Dar Al-Hayat argued August 10, 2005 that "Neither the Americans nor anyone else have the right to object if a certain regime was overthrown by a coup détat." He is referring to Mauritania. Here's Mr. Ashab's analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:19 PM | Comments (0)

Jallow: Mauritania is an 'An All Too Familiar Story'

Galleh Jallow, founding publisher of The Independent in The Gambia, West, Africa, has a potent commentary on the August 3, 2005 coup in Mauritania. In fact, he contends in an August 9, 2005 post at allAfrica.com that:

The current scenario in Mauritania is all too familiar to observers of African politics. Total disenchantment with an African despot who's been in power for decades provides an excuse for a group of semi-illiterate soldiers to seize power. To appease the world, the soldiers declare that they are only out to root out corruption and return the country to civilian rule within a few years.

The Howard University candidate for a doctorate in African Studies said, "The condemnations continue for some time and then die down, replaced by the sleepy and indifferent silence of the pre-coup days." Here's more of his hard-hitting analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:04 PM | Comments (0)

Court: Castañeda Must Have Party backing to to Run for President

Mexico's Supreme Court ruled on August 8, 2005, "against an appeal by former foreign secretary Jorge Castañeda, who had sought authorization to run in the country's 2006 presidential race without the endorsement of any of the nation's six registered parties," according to El Universal Online.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:20 AM | Comments (0)

Caribbean Court of Justice Hears First Case

Caribbean Net News reported August 9, 2005, that "A bomb threat on Monday [August 8, 2005] threatened to shut down legal proceedings on the first day's sitting of the newly-inaugurated Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in Port of Spain, Trinidad." Here' more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:03 AM | Comments (0)

Cobban: The Steven Vincent Plot Thickens

Helena Cobban at Just World News says the Steven Vincent plot thickens.

Mr. Vincent, an American freelance journalist, was murdered August 3, 2005 in Basra, Iraq. Some commentators say it was for his meddling in, and writing about, local political and cultural affairs, while others suggest it was because of his relationship with a young Iraqi woman who serves as his interpreter and guide.

Some publications have hinted that she was his lover. She was also shot but survived.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:58 AM | Comments (0)

U.S. Drops Demand That Taya Be Restored to Power

The Bush Administration has "dropped its demand that the ousted Mauritanian president be restored" and said on Tuesday [August 9, 2005] it was now dealing with the coup's leaders to persuade them to find a constitutional transition of power," according to Reuters.

State Department spokesman Adam Ereli told reporters August 9, 2005: "The guys running the country right now are the guys we're dealing with because they're the ones making the decisions and we are trying to get them to make the right decision." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:45 AM | Comments (0)

Former Mauritanian President Moves to The Gambia

Mauritania's ousted President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya left Niger for Gambia today, [August 10, 2005] officials said," according to Reuters. Here's more.

Meanwhile, Mr. Yaya has vowed to return to Mauritania. I think he would be wise to stay away. He could lose his life if he returns.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:40 AM | Comments (0)

Mauritania 'Must Gain Confidence of Global Institutions'

Bechir Saade, staff writer for The Daily Star of Lebanon noted in an August 10, 2005 article that, "As Mauritania prepared to produce 75,000 barrels of crude oil a day from its offshore Chinguetti field as of early next year, a military coup displaced pro-U.S. President Maaouya Ould Taya" on August 3, 2005.

He called Mauritania "An Arab country that has maintained close diplomatic ties with Israel since 1999, and one of the few countries in the world where slavery is still practiced. Mauritania is no ordinary political entity, " he added.

"But for the world economy and its influential players," he added, "what matters is that Mauritania reportedly sits on one billion barrels of oil and 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas."

That attracts Westerners the way carrion attracts buzzards and crack cocaine attracts junkies.

See "Government must gain confidence of global institutions" for more of Mr. Saade's analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:30 AM | Comments (0)

U.S. Eyeing 'West Africa's Oil-rich Gulf of Guinea'

"Over the next five years, 1 in 5 new barrels of oil on the global market will come from the Gulf of Guinea, and more than $33 billion will be invested in the region, 40 percent of it from American companies, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates," according to The Associated Press.

The wire service said, the Gulf of Guinea, which stretches "roughly from Ivory Coast to Angola, is relatively unfamiliar to U.S. [military] forces, and tours of the region such as last month's by the Coast Guard are aimed at shaking hands, gaining familiarity and assessing threats to oil access."

I think think this will make Africa a long-term battleground in the war between the U.S. and Al-Qaida. Both have troops in Africa, especially East Africa. Al-Qaida has already attacked U.S. embassies in East Africa.Here's more.

Also see "A Strategic U.S. Approach to Governance and Security in the Gulf of Guinea."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:12 AM | Comments (0)

Qathafi Reflects on Arab-African Cultural Relations

Libyan Leader Muammar al-Qathafi delivered an informative and thought-provoking address at the Arab-African Cultural Relations: Future Vision symposium held in Sirte, Libya, which drew writers groups from Africa and Asia. Here's the entire address.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:53 AM | Comments (0)

At Least Four Suspects in London Bombings Born in East Africa

"At least three of the four suspects in the July 21, 2005, attempted bombings on the London subway and a bus were born in East Africa, where al-Qaida-linked groups still operate and may be growing in strength, according to a new assessment by counterterrorism experts," the Associated Press reported August 8, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:24 AM | Comments (0)

Why Are U.S. Troops in Lamu, Kenya?

Most Americans probably have no idea that U.S. soldiers are on active duty in Lamu, Kenya, in East Africa. In fact, I can imagine people asking: "Where the hell is Lamu, Kenya?"

"It is a strange place to find the US military on active duty," wrote Christian Science Monitor correspondent Mike Pflanz in an August 9, 2005 dispatch. "The soldiers on patrol here are part of the 1,500-strong Horn of Africa Combined Joint Task Force stationed in a former French Foreign Legion base in the tiny Red Sea state of Djibouti."

Of course they are patrolling a predominantly Muslim island as part of the so-called "War on Terrorism." See "US troops keep watch along Kenya's coast." .

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:19 AM | Comments (0)

August 09, 2005

MI6 Looking for Ethnic Minority Spies

"Britain's overseas spy agency, MI6, is breaking with tradition and actively recruiting for spies, especially among ethnic minorities," according to The Washington Times.

Here's a good chance for Al-Qaida to infiltrate the spy agency, if it hasn't already done so,

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:48 PM | Comments (0)

Bakri Tells Why He Left London

Syrian-born Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed, who left Britain last weekend for Lebanon, told theBBC August 9, 2005: "I don't want the British Government to keep using [me] to make a new set of rules to put pressure on the Muslim community, so I decided to go on holiday for four or five weeks to stay with my mother."

I am going to return ... unless this government says you are not welcome."

According to the BBC, he also said if the British Government wanted to charge him with treason, he "would be the first one to return and challenge the allegation."

For more, see "Cleric Bakri 'will return' to UK."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:34 PM | Comments (0)

Britain Thinking About Setting Up Secretive Courts

Britain's Home Office "is considering setting up secretive courts to make it easier to prosecute terror suspects - and to hold them without charge for longer than the current 14 days - as part of the crackdown following the deadly London bombings, officials said Tuesday," August 9, 2005, according to the Associated Press.

This sounds like something from the old Soviet Union.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:13 PM | Comments (0)

Rules May Be Changed to Keep Omar Bakri Mohammad Out of Britain

The Times Online of London reports in its August 10, 2005 edition that British "immigration rules will be changed within days to ensure that" Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammad, the leader of Al-Muhajiroun, "will never be allowed back into Britain." He left the United Kingdom on August 4, 2005, for Lebanon.

For more, see "No way back for extremist cleric as wife packs her (Tesco) bags."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:03 PM | Comments (0)

Why Didn't 9/11 Commission Mention Able Danger?

In the June 27, 2005, edition of the Congressional Record, at (House) Page H5243-H5250, Representative Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania is quoted as saying:

I have to ask, Mr. Speaker, with all the good work that the 9/11 Commission did, why is there nothing in their report about Able Danger? Why is there no mention of the work that Able Danger did against Al-Qaeda? Why is there no mention, Mr. Speaker, of a recommendation in September of 2000 to take out Mohammed Atta's cell which would have detained three of the terrorists who struck us?

Because of critical, August 9, 2005 media reports on "the classified eight-member Pentagon team, code-named Able Danger," the 9/11 commission said it will look into Mr. Weldon's claim that had Able Danger had identified Mr. Atta and three other 9/11 hijackers as part of an Al-Qaida cell as early as 2000.

Mr. Weldon also said he learned that agents in Able Danger had, "in fact, identified the major New York cell of Mohamed Atta prior to 9/11; and I have learned, Mr. Speaker, that in September of 2000, that Federal agency actually was prepared to bring the FBI in and prepared to work with the FBI to take down the cell that Mohamed Atta was involved in in New York City, along with two of the other terrorists."

Here is Mr. Weldon entire Congressional Record insert on Able Danger.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:46 PM | Comments (0)

Did U.S. Blow Chance to Prevent 9/11/ Attacks?

Jacob Goodwin of Government Security News (GSN) reported today that, "In September 2000, one year before the Al Qaeda attacks of 9/11, a U.S. Army military intelligence program, known as Able Danger, identified a terrorist cell based in Brooklyn, NY, one of whose members was 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta."

GSN said Able Danger operatives "recommended to their military superiors that the FBI be called in to take out that cell, according to Representative Curt Weldon, a longtime Republican congressman from Pennsylvania who is currently vice chairman of both the House Homeland Security and House Armed Services Committees."

See "Did DoD lawyers blow the chance to nab Atta?" for more of this explosive story.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:01 PM | Comments (0)

U.N. Oil-for Food Scandal Continues to Follow Annan

It seems that U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan can't catch a break these days in the U.N. oil-for-food scandal. According to the Globe and Mail of Toronto, "an independent inquiry reopened its investigation into his role in the affair" August 8, 2005.

By the way, did you know that Richard A. Clarke was instrumental in getting Mr. Annan installed as U.N. Secretary General? He mentions it it his book "Against All Enemies: Inside America's War on Terror." See page 201.

In fact, he quotes President Bill Clinton as saying, "Get me a crow, I should eat crow, because I said you would never pull it off." What was pulled off was the ouster of Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali and the installation of Mr. Annan.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:15 PM | Comments (0)

The Oil-for-Food Investigation: Are the Returns Worth the Cost?

"After spending about US $35 million probing wrongdoing in Iraq's oil-for-food program, UN investigators have accused" Benan Sevan, "the former head of the humanitarian project, of taking nearly $150,000 in cash bribes, notes Haider Rizvi at Asia Times Online.

I hope the U.N. isn't spending millions just to find thousands of dollars in bribes. It's own accountants probably could have done that for far less. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:28 AM | Comments (0)

August 08, 2005

Iran Rejects Threats and Resumes Nuclear Activities

The Tehran Times reported August 9, 2005 that, "Iran officially resumed nuclear activities at the Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility on Monday, [August 8, 2005]." Mohammad Saeedi , Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Deputy Director, made the announcement at the Isfahan plant shortly after activities commenced.

The Times also reported that, "On Monday, Iran also officially rejected the European Union nuclear proposals, calling them unacceptable, the Foreign Ministry announced."

The EU and the United States are trying to force Iran to abandon its nuclear activities under the threat of sanctions. No such pressure has been put on Israel, which reportedly has several nuclear weapons.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)

Did Sub Crew Rescue Embarass Russia's Military Establishment?

Steven Lee Myers and Christopher Drew of The New York Times have reported that, "While Russia celebrated the rescue of a small submarine and its seven crew members who had been trapped for three days more than 190 meters below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, the happy ending was tinged by embarrassment and recriminations over the state of the country's military." Read why.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:32 PM | Comments (0)

Is Washington Ready to Stop Backing Musharraf?

Wajid Shamsul Hasan of London, a columnist for the Great Falls, Virginia-based South Asia Tribune, contends in an informative, August 8, 2005 article that there are "signs that Washington is ready to stop backing" Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, perhaps the Bush Administration's staunchest ally in its war on Al-Qaida and the Taliban. Here's more of his analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:23 PM | Comments (0)

Pakistan's Prime Minister On Six-Day Visit to Japan, Hong Kong

The South Asian News Agency reported today that, Pakistani "Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz left Islamabad on a six-day official visit to Japan and Hong Kong on Monday," August 9, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:02 PM | Comments (0)

Who Should Receive, Disburse Foreign Aid Money in Afghanistan?

"Who should receive and disperse the foreign aid money flowing into Afghanistan: the government or the legion of domestic and international non-government organizations, NGOs, that have been handling much of the money up to now?" That question is the subject of an informative and thought-provoking article in Kashar News of Pakistan

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:54 PM | Comments (0)

82nd Airborne to Send More Troops to Afghanistan

The United States will deploy between 700 and 800 Paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division to Afghanistan "to bolster security there in advance of the upcoming provincial elections" in September, 2005, according to Major-General William B. Caldwell IV. For more, see "Afghanistan elections spur Paratrooper deployment."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:44 PM | Comments (0)

General: Canada's Afghanistan Mission 'is a 20-Year Venture'

On August 7, 2005, Canadians Major-General Andrew Leslie told attendees at the annual Couchiching Summer Conference in Orillia, Canada, that "Afghanistan is a 20-year venture" for Canadian troops. According to the Toronto Star, he told the conferees:

There are things worth fighting for. There are things worth dying for. There are things worth killing for. Your soldiers have done all three of those activities in the last 50 years.

Mr. Leslie said,"More of that activity is about to take place," because there are "predators ... who wish to kill those whom we are charged to protect."

I guess Canadians should get prepared for bombings in their cities. Here's more on Mr. Leslie's speech.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:26 PM | Comments (0)

Pakistan Says it Has Captured Another 'Important' Al-Qaeda Operative

Daily Times of Pakistan correspondent Mubasher Bukhari reported August 9, 2005 that Pakistani intelligence sources told the publication today that Osama Bin Yousaf, arrested in Faisalabad on Sunday, August 8, 2005, is "an important Al Qaeda operative, a close aide of Abu Faraj Al Libby and Amjad Hussain Farooqi and was in contact with other Al Qaeda operatives in Pakistan and Europe." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:06 PM | Comments (0)

Trade Talks Between India, Pakistan Set For August 10, 2005

"Two-day trade talks between Indian and Pakistani secretaries of Commerce will begin" August 10, 2005, in New Delhi., India, according to the Daily Times of Pakistan.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:47 PM | Comments (0)

Boeing Signs Multi-billion Dollar Contracts With Four Chinese Airlines

On August 9, 2005, "Four Chinese airline companies signed a purchasing contract for 42 Boeing aircraft worth of 5.04 billion US dollars," according to Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency.

According the agency, "Air China will buy 15, China Eastern 15, Shanghai Airlines 9, and Xiamen Airlines 3." They will buy the Boeing 787, also called the Dreamliner. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:41 PM | Comments (0)

New Elections in Japan Set For September 11, 2005

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi "dissolved the House of Representatives on Monday [August 9, 2005] and called a general election for September 11, 2005, a few hours after the House of Councilors voted down the government-sponsored postal privatization bills," according to Tetsushi Kajimoto, staff writer of The Japan Times. Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:26 PM | Comments (0)

Postal Reform Defeat Leaves Japan's Liberal Democratic Party Divided

Reiji Yoshida, staff writer for The Japan Times, reported August 9, 2005 that today's rejection by Japan's "House of Councilors of the postal privatization bills has left the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party sharply divided as it faces a general election in the coming weeks and a possible fall from power." Here's his analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:19 PM | Comments (0)

Will Australia Ban Hizb ut-Tahrir?

The Australian Government is in the process of considering whether to ban Hizb ut-Tahrir, "a radical Islamic group operating in Australia that supports the insurgency movement in Iraq," News.com.au of Australia reported August 8, 2005, noting that, "The Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) is investigating Hizb ut-Tahrir, which has been banned in Britain."

On August 8, 2005, Australian Attorney General Philip Ruddock told Tanya Hall of The World Today's "lunch hour of current affairs, with background and debate from Australia and the world":

I've asked that the banning of this organization by the United Kingdom, which is a new factor, be taken into account in the consideration that we give to these questions in relation to whether or not organizations should be proscribed under the criminal code. We obtained advice from competent agencies when those decisions are made.

Mr. Ruddock said, "The organization, from what I've seen publicly, is an organization that suggests it has some overriding allegiance to a pan-Islamic cause and they are matters in the context of our commitment to Australia first and foremost that would give any Australian concern.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:02 AM | Comments (0)

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Looks at Islam in Central Asia

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty says, "Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Central Asian republics have seen a revival of Islam. The process kicked off quickly as Islam has always had deep roots in the region and missionaries and funds arrived from other Muslim countries to help rebuild schools and mosques," the U.S.-sponsored propaganda station says on its website.

"Nowadays," Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty added, "most Central Asians consider themselves Muslims. Still, many observers say that there are differences between the identity and religious practices of Muslims in Central Asia and those in other parts of the Islamic world."

Here is the first part of a four-part series on Islam in Central Asia. Here is Part II.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:05 AM | Comments (0)

U.S. Intends to Remain in Central Asia

MosNews.Com, citing Interfax news agency reports, reported August 5, 2005 that, "The USA intends to maintain its military presence in Central Asia despite the upcoming closedown of its air base in Uzbekistan." This comes from "a high-ranking Moscow-based military-diplomatic source." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:54 AM | Comments (0)

Is Indonesia a "Perfect Example of Pluralism'?

The Jakarta Post noted in its August 8, 2005 issued that, "Dozens of cultures and beliefs made Indonesia a nation long before it declared Independence on August 17, 1945. The recent edicts issued by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) that, among other things, bans pluralism and joint prayers, and has challenged the nation's "Unity in Diversity" philosophy," The Post said.

The publication recently "asked a few residents their thoughts on this issue."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:44 AM | Comments (0)

Malaysia Plans to Call Meeting of ASEAN Defense Ministers

"Malaysia plans to call for a special meeting of Southeast Asian defence ministers next year to discuss regional security, news reports said today," according to the Bahrain News Agency.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:39 AM | Comments (0)

Malaysia Plans to Call Meeting of ASEAN Defense Ministers

"Malaysia plans to call for a special meeting of Southeast Asian defence ministers next year to discuss regional security, news reports said today," according to the Bahrain News Agency.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:38 AM | Comments (0)

Vietnam to Contribute More to ASEAN

"Vietnam will make more contributions to the success of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and for peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai affirmed," Thanh Nien Daily reported August 8, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:32 AM | Comments (0)

Vietnam's 'Textile Exports are Losing Steam'

Vietnam's Thanh Nien.Com reported August 7, 2005 that, "After two years of dizzy growth, Vietnam's textile exports are losing steam and appear set to fall way short of the target this year." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:25 AM | Comments (0)

U.S. Marines to Implement Vietnam-Era War Program in Iraq

The United States Marines plan to implement in Iraq a training program that it employed in Vietnam. It's called the Combined Action Platoon program, which, according to the the Copley News Service, the Marines operated "from 1965 to 1971, despite U.S. Army opposition, in an effort to secure their sector in the northern region of South Vietnam."

Signon SanDiego.Com reported August 6, 2005 that, "Lieutenant General John Sattler, commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, said that when his Camp Pendleton-based Marines return to Iraq next year, their primary mission will switch from hunting down insurgents to training and mentoring Iraqi security forces. To that end, he intends to "embed" small Marine teams in Iraqi army or police units for extended periods."

The publication noted that, "In preparation for the mission, the Corps examined a program in which Marines were sent into Vietnamese villages to help train local militias."

"We went back and read through the history, read the after-action (reports) on CAP," Mr. Sattler was quoting as saying. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:20 AM | Comments (0)

Critics Chide World Bank For Giving Loans to China

"Critics of the World Bank are training their fire on the institution's loans to China, a capital-rich country on a buying spree for U.S. bonds and companies, saying the money should go to needy nations," reports Bloomberg News. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:05 AM | Comments (0)

Russia, China to Hold Joint Naval Exercises

"The first-ever joint naval exercises conducted by Russia and China will be held on August 18-25, 2005 and its first phase is scheduled for August 18-19 on territory of the Far Eastern military district," China View reported August 8, 2005.

Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, citing Russia's Itar-Tass news agency, said, "The warships of the Russian Pacific Fleet which will take part in the joint exercises with China left Vladivostok for China on Sunday," August 7, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:01 AM | Comments (0)

'China Releasing Movies to Remind Japan of its Defeat in 1945'

NewsFrom Russia.Com reported August 8, 2005 that, "China is releasing a series of war historic movies to mark the 60th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:54 AM | Comments (0)

Lee Teng-hui Says "China Dare Not Attack Taiwan

The Taipei Times reported August 8, 2005 that, "Former President Lee Teng-hui said yesterday [August 7, 2005] that China would not dare to attack Taiwan, because the US has deployed eight nuclear submarines in the Pacific Ocean carrying about 2,000 nuclear warheads targeted at China, preventing Beijing from taking military action against its democratic neighbor."

Is that really a deterrent?

For more, see "Lee says China dare not attack."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:47 AM | Comments (0)

The Japanese Yen Takes a Slide Against the Euro: Why?

The Japanese yen "slid to a three-month low against the euro, Japanese government bonds fell, and Tokyo stocks hit a one-month trough as a key vote on postal reform approached in Japan amid signs the government might lose it," the Reuters news service reported August 8, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:40 AM | Comments (0)

Japan's Koizumi May Call Snap Lower House Election

"Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Saturday [August 6, 2005] flatly rejected a plea from his predecessor Yoshiro Mori to avert a snap election even if his postal privatization bills are voted down in the House of Councilors," according to the August 7, 2005 edition of the The Japan Times.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:34 AM | Comments (0)

Thousands Marked 60th Anniversay of the Hiroshima A-bomb

The Japan Times says "Hiroshima marked the 60th anniversary of the 1945 atomic bombings Saturday [August 6, 2005] with calls for more international grassroots activism to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons and harsh criticism of the nuclear powers for blocking such efforts." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:27 AM | Comments (0)

China, Japan Have More in Common Than They Realize

Syndicated columnist Tom Plate, a professor of Communication and Policy Studies at UCLA, who is widely published in Asia, said in an August 5, 2005 column in Asia Media that,

In two recent decisions involving the two major powers of East Asia, the United States revealed that it is still ungenerous about sharing power, even with a close ally like Japan, and that it is still so paranoid about China that it is willing to risk antagonizing it by acting as if it bore an infectious disease.

For more, see "China and Japan: More in common than they realize."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:20 AM | Comments (0)

August 07, 2005

Condolences to the Family of ABC News Anchor Peter Jennings

The Diplomatic Times Review offers condolences to the family of ABC News anchor Peter Jennings. He passed away tonight. May his soul rest in peace. Here is ABC's statement on his death.

Munir Umrani, editor and publisher.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:12 PM | Comments (0)

Keeping Eye on Homegrown, Right Wing Extremist in U.S.

USNews.Com reports that, "In the decade since the 1995 bombing of Oklahoma City's Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, local police and federal agents have foiled roughly 60 right-wing extremist terrorist plots [in the United States], according to the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:32 PM | Comments (0)

Chávez Says DEA 'Supports Narco-Trafficking' in Venezuela

The Narcosphere's Al Giordano reported August 7, 2005 that Venezuela President Hugo Chávez, "after voting today in municipal elections (5,999 municipal council seats, plus one regional governor's post are at stake)..., explained, in more detail, why Venezuela has launched an investigation into the conduct of officials of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)" operating in Venezuela.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:07 PM | Comments (0)

A Scholar Analyzes 'Deaths on the US-Mexico Border'

"This summer has been especially deadly in Arizona as migrants are perishing - most frequently from heatstroke and dehydration - at what appears to be a record pace," notes Joseph Nevins, an assistant professor of geography at Vassar College, in the August 8, 2005 edition of The Christian Science Monitor..

The author of "Operation Gatekeeper: The Rise of the 'Illegal Alien' and the Making of the US-Mexico Boundary" said, "Over the July 4 [2005] weekend, at least 10 lost their lives. During a four-day period in late July, authorities discovered 14 bodies, including one of a 13-year-old boy. With more than 190 documented migrant deaths in the state since the Oct. 1 start of the current federal fiscal year, the grim toll is on pace to surpass last year's record of 221."

For more, see "Beyond the season of death on the US-Mexico border."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:54 PM | Comments (0)

Subcomandante Marcos Criticizes Mexico's National Politicians

Zapatista leader Subcomandante Marcos' August 6, 2005 criticism of Mexico's political parties as "a bunch of shameless scoundrels" who will "pay for everything they have done to us" is being reported all over the world.

Vanessa Padilla of Reuters reported August 7, 2005 that, Marcos' "appearance at a meeting of activists in southern Mexico's Chiapas state seemed to be aimed at reclaiming a political role for the rebels before the election next July."

She said he "emerged from the jungle for the first time in four years.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:40 PM | Comments (0)

U.S. Students Studying in Latin America Reportedly Increasing

The Minnesota Daily in the United States says, " The Southern Hemisphere is looking a little more attractive to students looking for adventure."
"According to the Institute of International Education, the number of U.S. students studying abroad in Latin America increased by 14 percent from 2002 to 2003," the publication said at mn.Daily.com, it's website.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:26 PM | Comments (0)

Are Latin America's Democracies Dysfunctional?

Denise Dresser, professor of political science at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico, contends that,

Democratic Latin America limps sideways because it can't run ahead. There are too many entry barriers to the poor, the innovative, and those without access to credit. There are too many walls erected against social mobility, competition, and fairness in politics and business.

"As a result," she says in an article published August 6, 2005 in the Taipei Times and other publications,

Although Latin Americans can vote in a more democratic environment, they can't compete in a globalized world. Standards of living fall, incomes stagnate, hopes are dampened. So people start to march in the streets in Bolivia. Or believe the promises of the populist President Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Or think about a return to the one-party past in Mexico. Or yearn to toss all the bums out -- a sentiment that now seems to be taking root in Brazil. Or to vote with their feet, as in Mexico, where one of every five men between the age of 26 and 35 lives in the US.

For more, see "Latin America's dysfunctional democracies."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:16 PM | Comments (0)

The Independent: Is There More to Come?

"Could it really happen again?" The Independent Online posed that question to its readers on August 7, 2005, as Londoners grapple with speculation whether there is a third suicide bomber cell poised to strike London's transportation system.

The Independent noted that:

The four bombers of 7 July are dead and those alleged to have tried to replicate their murderous assault two weeks later are in custody. Six people have been charged under terror laws with failing to disclose information about them, and several more are still being interrogated at the high-security Paddington Green police station in London. But the Government, the security services and the public need an urgent answer to the question: is there more to come?

I would say yes. There is more to come. See "Could it really happen again?"

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:47 PM | Comments (0)

Vand Zaandt: 'Loose Lips Aid Bombers'

MSNBC analyst and former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt stated in an August 6, 2005 article on the Microsoft/NBC owned cable network's website that,

The BBC revealed that NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly did not have the permission of the London Metropolitan Police (the Met) to talk about sensitive information to hundreds of people, and in reality the world, concerning the construction of the bombs used in the London attacks. At a briefing in New York City this week, Kelly described, in detail, how the bombs deployed by suicide bombers--ones that killed 52 and wounded hundreds--were easily constructed from common household items. He also provided information concerning the need to keep such devices in a stable condition.

Mr. Van Zandt said, "British law enforcement officials were angered by Kellys unauthorized disclosure of their investigation on the 7/7 London bombing and the 7/21 attempted bombing of trains and double decker-buses." Here's more of his commentary on the issue.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:35 PM | Comments (0)

The Sunday Times Reviews the 'Death of an Idealist'

The August 7, 2005 edition The Sunday Times Online has a fascinating review of the "Death of an idealist." It's a long piece on American freelance journalist Steven Vincent, who was found murdered August 3, 2005, in Basra, Iraq.

While Mr. Vincent is touted as a hero by Democracy fundamentalist who want to impose their values on Iraqis and Muslims all over the world, he comes across in The Sunday Times as a man with a death wish. His persistent criticism of Basra politics and cultural mores almost assuredly marked him for death. This was compounded by, and may have been the tipping point, the flouting of his relationship with "Nooriya Tuaiz, an unusual 31-year-old Iraqi woman who had become both his Basra interpreter and close friend," according to The Times.

There is a hint in the story that Nooriya may have been Mr. Vincent's lover although his widower, Lisa Ramaci of New York, doesn't think they were intimately involved.

Meanwhile, Nooriya is recuperating under armed guard in a Kuwaiti hospital. Ms. Ramaci wants her brought to the United States after she is released.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:17 PM | Comments (0)

Times of London 'Undercover in the Academy of Hatred'

The Times of London's "Insight Team" said August 7, 2005 that, "While London reeled under attack [ in July 2005], the teachers of extremism were celebrating and a Sunday Times reporter was recording every word."

See "Focus: Undercover in the academy of hatred" for the Insight Team's report.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:30 PM | Comments (0)

Outlawing Hizb-ut-Tahrir Won't Stop It's Message

On August 5th, 2005, British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that Hizb-ut-Tahrir Britain and Al-Muhajiroun would be outlawed in the United Kingdom. Since then, much has been written, pro and con, about the banning, which is part of new security measures imposed in Britain since the July 7 and July 21, 2005 bombings in London by British Muslims, whose parents were born in former British and French colonies in Africa and Asia. Some were born there themselves.

One view I found particularly interesting is in the August 7, 2005 edition of for The Conservative Voice online. It is headlined "Hizb-ut-Tahrir is a Scary Group That Needed to be Outlawed," and was written by Texas Attorney and law instructor Joseph Gutheinz, Jr, who contends that:

Today, much of the threat to the West comes from the Moslem world, a world which increasingly is becoming global. That is not to say Moslems are inherently evil, of course their not, but within the Moslem world are many radical organizations which are actively at war with the West. One organization which offers an anti-West philosophy is Hizb-ut-Tahrir. Hizb-ut-Tahrir has advocated the overthrow of Moslems countries friendly to the West, and this organization supported Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. They were parties to the creation of PLO, and can be found throughout Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia.

Mr. Gutheinz also said:

Of specific concern to the United States and Great Britain is that they have a major presence in Syria and Pakistan, a strategic ally. While no outsider knows exactly how many hard core members exists within Hizb-ut-Tahrir, it is estimated that they could have as many as 100,000 members, each working within three man cells to help conceal their identity.

If this issue concerned me, the way it does Mr. Blair and Mr. Gutheinz, I would be worried about people who are not organized. I suspect there are thousands of angry Muslims, perhaps millions, seething over the U.S. and Britain's arrogant, high profile roles in the invasion and occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the stationing of U.S. forces in Muslim countries. The question is how long before a "lone actor," with ties to none of the known Mujahid groups, step onto the world's stage with a spectacular bombing or high profile assassination, to be followed by a succession of others. It's bound to happen.

As for stopping the message of Hizb-ut-Tahrir and other Muslim groups that scare many in the west, it can't be stopped. There are millions of cassettes, videos and DVDs in circulation around the world that contain their messages. The lectures of some Muslim leaders are traded by Muslims the way some kids trade video games. Others are duplicated and distributed in communities and prisons. And with the Internet, speeches and articles are sent around the world in minutes, if not seconds. Others are posted online, for anyone to hear.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 03:17 PM | Comments (0)

'Britain is Right in Combating Extremist Threat'

The Daily Times of Pakistan said in an August 7, 2005 editorial that Leaving aside for a while the controversial aspects" of British Prime Minister Tony Blair's "new laws, which have already invoked debate in Britain, it is important to see whether Mr Blair is essentially right in his statement" of August 5, 2005, outlining "new security measures" in the wake of the July 7, 2005 and July 21, 2005 bombings in London.

"All told," the publication added,

The answer to that can only be in the affirmative. Britain, as also other European countries, has been allowing émigrés from developing countries including Muslim states for a long time. Unlike the Middle Eastern Muslim states, Europe offers complete integration and legal rights to immigrants. Most families have stayed on and thousands more want to go to Europe for better work opportunities and upward social mobility. Neither of these is available in mother countries in most cases. Britain's outrage at the recent bombings is, therefore, understandable.

The Daily Times also said, "Mr Blair's emphasis on integration cannot be faulted. Anyone who wants to stay on as a British citizen must respect the duties that come with the rights of citizenship."

For more of the editorial, see "Britain is right in combating extremist threat."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:41 PM | Comments (0)

Netanyahu's Jerusalem Post Interview

On August 5, 2004 The Jerusalem Post published an interview that reporter Caroline Glick conducted with former Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This was "several days prior" to his August 7, 2005 resignation from the government of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon over Mr. Sharon's determination to withdraw Israel forces and settlers from some portions of Gaza, which is 99 percent Palestinian out of a population of about 1.4 million. The interview is quite revealing.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:18 PM | Comments (0)

Why Netanyahu Resigned As Israeli Finance Minister

Diana Bahur-Nir and Ilan Marciano at Ynet News.com has the contents of the letter that Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu submitted to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon "during Sunday's [August 7, 2005] government session. Mr. Netanyahu, resigned because:

Its becoming clear that the unilateral withdrawal under fire is not giving us a thing. The opposite is true, it undermines the security of Israel, splits the nation, entrenches the principle of withdrawal to the 1967 borders, which are not defensible, and is not the way to achieve peace, Netanyahu wrote in his letter.

What do we get in exchange for the withdrawal? Bibi asks in his resignation notice. What do we get in return for the uprooting of families and their children, homes, and graves? Well get an Islamic terror base. "In recent months," he added, "I hoped the government would open its eyes in the face of this clear reality and change course, but the opposite happened."

The resignation did not stop the government from approving "the first phase of the Gaza evacuation by a 17-5 margin," according to YnetNews.com.

As the intrigue in Israel over the withdrawal continues. I wonder how many more cabinet members will resign before the withdrawal ends.

I also wonder how many more soldiers will go berserk and kill Arabs rather than uproot their fellow Jews from Palestinian land. Finally, who's going to protect Mr. Sharon from his former allies?

For more from Mr. Netanyahu resignation letter, see "Bibi announces resignation."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:35 PM | Comments (0)

'They're Just Like the peace activists...I've Reported On'

In August 7, 2005 "Correspondents Report" dispatch for ABC Radio National of Australia, Matt Brown noted that,

The Gaza disengagement plan has divided the nation and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Likud party.And the protests against it are a decent case study of how the language and tactics of protest transcend the agendas of those who employ them.The settlers, who will be removed from their homes, complain that the state intelligence service has been sending provocateurs to infiltrate their ranks and stir up trouble.Those protesting against disengagement link arms, they chant slogans, they photograph journalists.

In this way," he added, "they're just like the peace activists, unionists and anarchists I've reported on in Australia.But this is a group of people the Israeli newspapers call right-wingers even right-wing extremists." Here's a transcript.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:02 AM | Comments (0)

Why Weekly Standard Editor is on Donald Rumsfeld's Case

William Kristol, editor of The Weekly Standard, an influential, conservative publication that strongly supported, and still does, the invasion and occupation of Iraq, takes a shot at U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for proposing that the word "war" be dropped from the so-called "war on terror." Mr. Kristol wrote:

These advisers had been, as the New York Times reported, going out of their way to avoid "formulations using the word 'war.'" The great effort that we had all simplemindedly been calling a war was now dubbed by Rumsfeld the "global struggle against violent extremism." And the solution to this struggle was, according to Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaking here as Rumsfeld's cat's-paw, "more diplomatic, more economic, more political than it is military."

"Now," Mr. Kristol added, "it is of course true enough that the "war on terror" isn't simply a military struggle. What war is? There is a critical political dimension to the war on terror--which the president, above all, has understood.That's why he has placed such emphasis on promoting liberal democracy. But there is also, to say the least, a critical military dimension to this struggle. And President Bush sensed that this Rumsfeldian change in nomenclature was an attempt to duck responsibility for that critical military dimension."

"The president would have none of it."

If things keep going the way they are in Iraq, and American mothers and fathers get tired of seeing their children dying in a war launched under false pretenses, it may not matter what the war is called. Mr. Bush may get carried along by events beyond his control and declare an end to to the debacle. I don't think the American people will tolerate too many more multiple losses of soldiers from the same battalion in one week.

For more of Mr. Kristol's argument, see "Bush v. Rumsfeld."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:26 AM | Comments (0)

Mr. President, 'Why Did You Kill My Son?'

If more American mothers with sons and daughters in Iraq do what Cindy Sheehan of Vacaville, California did on August 6, 2005, U.S. President George W. Bush and the Republicans might be in political trouble. Ms. Sheehan, whose son "Casey, 24, was killed in Sadr City, Iraq, on April 4, 2004, marched on Mr. Bush's ranch in Crawford Texas, and demanded to see him. She was "supported by more than 50 demonstrators, according to the Associated Press.

"I want to ask the president, 'Why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?' " the AP quoted her as telling reporters.

Ms. Sheehan, 48, "didn't get to see Mr. Bush, but did talk about 45 minutes with national security adviser Steve Hadley and deputy White House chief of staff Joe Hagin, who went out to hear her concerns," the AP noted. After they explained why the U.S. was in Iraq, which she didn't buy, she again demanded to see Mr. Bush, and vowed to remain in the area until she saw him. On August 4, 2005, after the deaths of 14 troops from an Ohio battalion, Mr. Bush said:

The violence in recent days in Iraq is a grim reminder of the enemies we face. These terrorists and insurgents will use brutal tactics because they are trying to shake the will of the United States of America. That's what they are trying to do. They want us to retreat. They want us, in our compassion for the innocent, to say we are through. That's what they want.

If Ms. Sheehan is granted an audience with Mr. Bush, it will be a miracle. Based on the his statement above, troops will continue to die in Iraq until mothers and fathers by the thousands demand that their sons and daughters come home from a war launched under false pretenses. Of course, for some it's too late. They are already six feet under or crippled for life.

Then there are thousands of Iraqis who died as a result of the war, whether killed by the U.S. and its so-called coalition allies or insurgents resisting the occupation. But who cares about them? They're just Arabs and Muslims.

For more on the Ms. Sheehan's demonstration, see "Fallen GI's mom leads protest near Bush ranch."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:28 AM | Comments (0)

August 06, 2005

Cook's Biographer Says He was One of the Greats, Out of Office

John Kampfner, editor of the New Statesman and Robin Cook's biographer, said "In government" the former British foreign secretary "struggled to meet his own and others expectations. Out of office he was truly one of the greats."

He said, Mr. Cook, "who died yesterday [August 6, 2005] , will most be remembered for his passionate but always practical opposition to Tony Blair's war in Iraq. Both in resigning on the eve of the invasion and in his conduct that followed he restored a sense of principle to a political world that had lost its moral compass."

I, too, admired Mr. Cook for resigning rather than going along with a war he did not think was justified. I thought former Secretary of State Colin Powell would follow his lead but it was not to be.

For more see, "Robin Cook was one of the greats out of office."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:51 PM | Comments (0)

Who Will Bury Eden Natan-Zada?

The Voice of America (VOA) reported August 6, 2005 that, "no one wants to take responsibility for burying" Eden Natan-Zada, 19, the Israeli soldier who murdered four Israeli Arabs on a bus August 4, 2005.

He was " labeled a "bloodthirsty terrorist" by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the VOA noted, adding:."The army, the young man's home town and the settlement where he stayed are all refusing to hold a funeral. The parents plan to appeal to Israel's Supreme Court so their son can be laid to rest."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:35 PM | Comments (0)

Why Aren't Mr. Bush's Daughters in Iraq?

Why doesn't President Bush send his daughters over there [to Iraq]?"

That question, according to the Globe and Mail of Toronto, was asked by 39-year-old ex-marine Darrell Stewart, "who was paying his respects [in Ohio] to his fallen comrades and now regrets voting for Mr. Bush."

"I love America, and I love our armed services. I just don't like the way things are being handled over there," he said.

Mr. Stewart's statement, and numerous others that should worry President George W. Bush and the republicans, if true, is in an article by Globe and Mail Correspondent Alan Freeman, who writes:

Ohio, the battleground state that sealed Mr. Bush's second term as President the morning after the November, 2004, election, is grieving as it prepares to bury 14 of its soldiers killed in a particularly lethal week of ambushes, roadside bombs and suicide attacks.

For more see, "United in grief, yet divided by war."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:02 PM | Comments (0)

Oil Exploration Expected to Continue in Mauritania

The Oil & Gas Journal says, "International oil companies working in Mauritania have expressed confidence about operations in the country despite a bloodless military coup that toppled the government of former President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya while he was abroad on August 3, " 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:46 AM | Comments (0)

Taya Says Prospects Were Promising Under His Rule

During an August 5, 2005 interview with Radio France International, former Mauritanian President Maaoya Sid'Ahmed Ould Taya, who was ousted in an August 3, 2005 coup, while returning home from the funeral of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, said his government "had done much more than one could have reasonably expected."

"Prospects were promising economically, socially and culturally," he said. "The country was run smoothly as a pluralist democracy."

If that's true, why did so many people celebrate his downfall. Why were opposition leaders in Prison? See "Ex-Mauritania leader defends record."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:29 AM | Comments (0)

Was Garang Preparing to Evict Joseph Kony From Southern Sudan?

On August 5, 2005, Sudanese Online.com republished a Washington Times article that makes an interesting observation for anyone investigating the death of Sudanese First Vice President and southern leader John Garang

The August 4, 2005 Times article, written by Blake Lambert, led off with this:

The mind of Joseph Kony, the self-styled messianic leader of the Lords Resistance Army [of Uganda], remains elusive terrain, but he probably celebrated the death of Sudanese First Vice President and southern leader John Garang.

"Few doubt that Mr. Kony viewed Mr. Garang, the founder of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Army, as a nemesis hostile to his interests

The Times quoted Ugandan army spokesman Lt. Col. Shaban Bantarizaas saying:

Garang was opposed to [the LRA] as a freedom fighter and a liberator, and now in his final days as president of southern Sudan, whose people were also under LRA terror.

The publication, noting that, "The rebels killed nine Sudanese in a camp for internally displaced people near the town of Juba last month, said, "Before the crash in a Ugandan presidential helicopter killed Mr. Garang and 13 others on board along the Uganda-Sudan border on Saturday [July 30, 2005] he vowed to expel from its sanctuary in his region."

"Kony won't be hiding there for long. It is not only Kony, but also all the militias who have been operating in the area," he told the majority government-owned New Vision daily in his final interview," the paper said. "We need to provide peace, security and stability."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)

Uganda Calls for Emergency IGAD Summit on Sudan

The United Nations' Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) reports that, "Uganda has called for an emergency summit of the member-states of the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) following the death of Sudan's First Vice President, John Garang."

IRIN, citing "a senior [Ugandan] foreign ministry official," said, "It was announced August 3, 2005 that, "Invitations had been issued to heads of IGAD member-states to a summit proposed for a date around 20 August [2005]."

"IGAD mediated the peace process that culminated" in the January 9, 2005 "Comprehensive Peace Agreement" signed in Kenya by by Mr. Garang and Sudanese President Umar el-Bashir, "ending over two decades of civil war that killed close to two million people," IRIN said.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:30 AM | Comments (0)

SPLA Urges Christian Leaders to Help Restore Call in Sudan

Catholic World News (CWN) reported August 5, 2005 that, "The Sudan Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) is urging Christian leaders in Africa to redouble their efforts at reconciliation in Sudan, in order to stem the violence that has swept that country following the death of Dr. John Garang.

Mr. Garang, "a leader for the SPLA for 21 years, died on July 30 when the Ugandan military helicopter he was flying in crashed in southern Sudan, killing all the 17 people aboard it," CWN noted, adding:.

There has not been a clear explanation of the cause of the crash, and many residents of southern Sudan are convinced that the accident was staged in order to kill Garang, the former rebel leader who had become Sudan's vice-president after negotiating a peace pact with the Khartoum government.

If Mr. Garang's death was the result of sabotage, two important questions are: Why would someone kill him? Second, Who wanted him dead?

For more see, "Sudanese urge Church leaders to help restore calm."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:08 AM | Comments (0)

Is U.S. Planning For Long-Stay in Iraq?

Ashraf Fahim, described by Asia Times Online as "a freelance writer on Middle Eastern affairs based in New York and London," reported August 6, 2005 that, "Persistent reports that the U.S. is constructing permanent bases in Iraq lend credence to the view that the Bush administration plans to stay."

"The Chicago Tribune reported in March 2004 that the U.S. was building 14 "enduring" bases in Iraq, and the Washington Post reported in May that U.S. forces would eventually be consolidated into four large, permanent air bases," he added.

See "Basic questions about bases" for more of Mr. Fahim's report.

By the way, does anyone really believe the U.S. won't stay in Iraq for years?

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:09 AM | Comments (0)

Islam Online: 'Anti-terror Measures Split UK Press'

Islam Online opined August 6, 2005 that, " British media seemed split down the middle Saturday, August 6, [2005] on the new sweeping measures declared [August 5, 2005] by Prime Minister Tony Blair in the wake of the [July 7, 2005 and July 21, 2005] London bombings." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:39 AM | Comments (0)

Editor: 'Hizb ut-Tahrir Should be Marginalised But Not Banned'

Sunny Hundal, editor of Asians in Media, made this observation about British Prime Minister Tony Blair's August 5, 2005 announcement that Hizb ut-Tahrir of Britain was one of the groups he intends to proscribe:

This is so annoying - last week I was condemning Hizb ut-Tahrir, now I'm forced to defend them with the government ban. Today's announcement has exposed serious flaws in the way Labour deals with Muslim and non-Muslim groups.

"I am no fan of HT as it has always been clear on these pages," the editor added, "but there needs to be a sense of perspective and equal rights for everyone."

For the entire commentary, see "Hizb ut-Tahrir should be marginalized but not banned."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:13 AM | Comments (0)

Hizb ut-Tahrir Condemns Blair's Banning Plan

Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain (Party of Liberation), one of the Muslim organizations British Prime Minister Tony Blair intends to ban, responded August 5, 2005 with a statement that said:

Today's announcement at the PM's press conference to impose a ban on Hizb ut Tahrir, the well established non violent Islamic political party has clearly exposed this PMs and governments fanaticism and extremism to curtail legitimate Islamic political debate in Britain, for their own political ends. This is a clear proof of the governments failure to face the political opinions of the party through rational debate and discussion and a desperate attempt to prevent the British public hearing the opinions of the Muslim community.

Hizb ut-Tahrir has a record of over 50 years of following a method of non-violent political activity against imperialism and dictators and despots who rule the Muslim world with the Wests approval. In its work to establish the Islamic Caliphate, Hizb ut-Tahrir has never resorted to any sort of armed struggle and nor has it ever incited people to kill innocent civilians. It has throughout its history worked through intellectual and political means while its members have been tortured and killed in the thousands. Hizb ut-Tahrir also said,

Hizb ut-Tahrir has in explicit terms stated that Islam forbids the killing of innocent civilians and expressed its denunciation of the killing of 58 innocent individuals on 7th July 2005 in London.

"To place a ban on a political party that has criticized the war in Iraq which Mr Blair and Mr Bush launched after blatantly lying to the world, the illegitimate occupation of Palestine, the desire for the Muslims to see the end of dictators and despots and live by the Islamic government, the Caliphate, in their own lands has proved that all the talk about freedom of speech, tolerance, people power and democracy, are only acceptable as long as one agrees with the policies of 10 Downing Street," the organization added."

For the entire statement, see "Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain Condemns Tony Blair's Announcement to Ban the Party."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:51 AM | Comments (0)

Some Muslim Reaction to Blair's New Anti-Terrorism Policies

An August 6, 2005 by article by Sean O'Neill at Times Online has interesting reactions and observations from some Muslim leaders in Britain to Prime Minister Tony Blair's "anti-terrorism package." Those interviewed by The Times "predicted that the measures would alienate the young people most vulnerable to extremists." Read it here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:22 AM | Comments (0)

August 05, 2005

A Transcript of Tony Blair's Media Briefing on New Security Measures

On August 5, 2005 British Prime Minister Tony Blair issued new security measures in response to the July 7 and July 21, 2005 bombings in England.

Here is an August 5, 2005 transcript of his monthly media briefing, at which he outlined the new security measures. The transcript was released by No. 10 Downing Street.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:58 PM | Comments (0)

Taya: 'I Was Stunned by the Coup d'etat'

Former Mauritanian PresidentMaaouiya Ould Sid Ahmed Taya, who was ousted in a bloodless coup on August 3, 2005, told Radio France Internationale from Niger, where he is in exile: My situation reminds me of the old adage: 'God, save me from my friends, I'll take care of my enemies.

"I was stunned by the coup d'etat [...] and even more so when I heard who were the authors," Mr Taya said, according to an August 6, 2005 BBC report on the Radio France Internationale interview.

Did he think he was invincible and loved by most Mauritanians? Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:56 PM | Comments (0)

Uganda Wants Bodies of Ugandans Killed in Copter Crash

The Monitor Online of Uganda reports that Uganda's "Minister of Internal Affairs, Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda, is in Sudan to ask the Sudanese government to immediately release the bodies of the seven Ugandans who died in the plane crash with [Dr. John] Garang last weekend."

The publication said, "The government spokesman and Minister of Information, Dr Nsaba Buturo, yesterday [August 5, 2005] told journalists at the weekly press briefing that the government wants the bodies released immediately so as to ease the agony of the bereaved families.

"We have agreed that everything should be done quickly to reduce the agony of the families," the minister said, according to The Monitor. "We want the country to move on." .

The Monitor said, "Rugunda on Wednesday [August 3, 2005] led a team of forensic experts from Uganda to Juba to help in the investigations into the cause of the presidential chopper crash." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:36 PM | Comments (0)

Mr. Museveni's Speculation on John Garang's Death

"Uganda's president [Yoweri Museveni] said today the chopper crash that killed Sudanese vice president John Garang may not have been an accident, dropping a bombshell on thousands mourning the death of the ex-rebel leader in south Sudan," the East Africa Standard of Kenya reported August 6, 2005.

"His comments came as thousands of southern Sudanese volunteers descended on a former military training ground in Juba to help prepare Garang's burial site ahead of his funeral on Saturday [August 6, 2005] that is expected to draw some 500,000 people," the publication said.

If the Ugandan leader made the statements attributed to him, he chose an inopportune time to do so. Many southern Sudanese already believe he was assassinated. Upon hearing of his death, many took to the streets of Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, in protest. Dozens died as a result.

See "Uganda says Garang death may not be an accident for Mr. Museveni's statement

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:17 PM | Comments (0)

A Yoweirei Statement on Plane Crash Disturbs Sudan's Leaders

The Sudan Tribune reported August 6, 2005 that, "The Sudanese government said today that it was extremely disturbed by the Ugandan president, Yoweri Museveni's statement regarding the plane crash that killed the late first vice-president and Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) leader, John Garang, after his visit to Kampala." The paper added:

Speaking to Sudan News Agency (SUNA), the minister of information and telecommunication, who is also the official government spokesman, Abd-al-Basit Sabdarat, said that the cause of the disturbance was that President Museveni was the one who informed the government that the plane was missing after more than 12 hours from its take off from Kampala and he also knew that the plane was Ugandan and the plane crew was also Ugandan, and it also departed from his country.

The publication said, "Sabdarat added that President Museveni also knew that the Sudanese government had set up a technical fact finding committee to investigate the plane crash and that the committee would begin its work after the deceased was buried" on August 6, 2005.

For more, see "Sudan "extremely disturbed" by Ugandan president's comment."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:59 PM | Comments (0)

John Garang and Sudanese Oil

In an August 6, 2005 editorial headlined "After Garang," Arab News said Sudan Vice-President John Garang's

"death within three weeks of becoming vice president under an East African-brokered peace deal may well have been an accident, though yesterday [August 5, 2005] Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni, in whose crashed helicopter the SPLM(Sudan People's Liberation Movement) leader perished, said he himself was still unsure. Angry supporters who rioted in Khartoum and Juba believed the worst and unfortunately their intemperate response caused over 100 deaths.

The SPLM leader had reportedly granted oil exploration rights in southern Sudan to British interests, in defiance of concessions previously granted to French concerns. Maybe outside hands were indeed at work. It seems impossible, however, that Sudan's President Omar Bashir could be linked to any conspiracy theory. He and his government have worked intensely to bring about a peace that had eluded all of his predecessors.Arab News said, and I concur, "It was clearly not in his [Bashir's} interests to see such hard-won success thrown away with the death of Garang. The president, clearly shocked, has called for calm and insisted that the peace deal must stay in place."

For a look at the role oil plays in Sudanese politics and war, see Human Rights Watch's overview of oil in Sudan. Also see "Sudan, Oil, and Human Rights."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:46 PM | Comments (0)

African Union Suspends Mauritania

The African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council has suspended Mauritania from participation in all AU activities until "the restoration of constitutional order," in the Northwest African nation.

That is likely soon unless a foreign element backs a countercoup. The Military Council for Justice and Democracy, said in a statement released August 4, 2005: blockquote>"The armed forces and security forces have unanimously decided to put a definitive end to the totalitarian activities of the defunct regime under which our people have suffered so much over recent years.

"This council pledges before the Mauritanian people to create favorable conditions for an open and transparent democracy. Meanwhile, Joseph LeBaron, the U.S. ambassador to Mauritania, his French counterpart, and "ambassadors from African, Arab and western countries"met August 4, 2005 with Colonel Vall, according to the Voice of America and other publications.

In a statement issued at its headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia August 4, 2005, the AU said, the "Council decides to suspend Mauritania's participation in all AU activities until the restoration of constitutional order in the country."

Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, said, "The 53-nation group reiterated its firm condemnation of the August 3 [2005] coup d'etat, in which military officers led by national police chief Ely Ould Mohamed Vall ousted President Maaouyia Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who was in Saudi Arabia attending the August 2, 2005 funeral of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. The king died August 1, 2005

On August 3, 2005, the AU said:

The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Alpha Oumar Konaré, is following with concern reports about a coup attempt in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

The Chairperson of the Commission, recalling the solemn Declaration on unconstitutional changes of Government of Lomé, reaffirms the total rejection by the AU of any unconstitutional change of government and its commitment to the respect of constitutional order. He firmly condemns any seizure or any attempt to seize power by force.

While the AU, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, The United States, France and other nations have condemned the coup, it seems popular with many Mauritanians, who had suffered since 1984 under President Taya. According to the Associated Press,

Thousands rallied Thursday [August 4, 2005] to support the military junta that toppled Mauritania's pro-Western president a day earlier, as the African country's top leader met with the U.S. and French ambassadors,

Mr. LeBaron reiterated the U.S. position on the coup. That position, according to acting State Department Spokesman Thomas Casey, is that, "We oppose any attempts by rogue elements to change governments through extra-constitutional or violent means. As I understand it, the situation on the ground is still fluid but the Military Council for Justice and Democracy as it is calling itself, appears to be in control in the capital. Certainly we intend to work closely with the African Union and the U.N. and other regional and international partners to restore constitutional rule to Mauritania as quickly as possible."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:03 AM | Comments (0)

August 04, 2005

GAO Issues Report on Use of 'Private Security Advisers' in Iraq

The Government Accountability Office in the United States has issued a July 2005 report titled "Rebuilding Iraq: Actions Needed to Improve Use of Private Security Providers."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:45 PM | Comments (0)

Was Vincent's Death Retaliation for An Op-Ed Piece?

The Los Angeles Times reports that, some of murdered American Freelance Writer Steven Vincent's colleagues blame an article he wrote for the July 31, 200 edition of The New York Times for his death.

According to the LA Times, "Bruce Wolmer, editor in chief of Art & Auction magazine, wrote in an open letter: "Our longtime staff writer, colleague and dear friend Steven Vincent was brutally murdered in Basra, Iraq, yesterday by what is assumed to be a local religious/criminal militia. The cause was apparent retaliation for Steven's op-ed piece in the New York Times on Sunday."

The publication said, "Mitchell Muncy, editor in chief of Spence Publishing Co. in Dallas, which published Vincent's book "In the Red Zone" last year, said the journalist had succeeded in keeping a low profile until the article appeared. "He was not a household name, at least until this piece was published on Sunday," Muncy said. "Unfortunately, I guess the bad guys read the New York Times."

Apparently, they do.

See "Slain Writer Was Investigating Graft" for more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:19 PM | Comments (0)

Steve Vincent Stayed Too Long

Timothy M. Phelps, Washington Bureau Chief for Newsday of New York, USA, spent three weeks in Basra, Iraq, in July 2005. Basra is where American freelance journalist Steve Vincent was killed on August 2, 2005, after he published a critical article in the July 31, 2005 edition of The New York Times describing the political and social climate in Basra. Mr. Phelps describes the danger encountered by a foreigner who stays too long:

There are three levels of danger to a foreigner in Basra. The smallest threat there is the biggest one to people elsewhere in Iraq: the Sunni insurgency tied in with the former regime. Sunnis are a fearful - not feared - minority in Basra now, and their terrorist activities are limited.

A greater threat is from the criminal gangs that roam Basra almost unhindered, kidnapping Iraqis for ransom and hijacking their cars.

The greatest threat here for those with any political connections, past or present, are the religious militias that work for the political parties governing Basra - and Iraq - and overlap with the police force. They have undertaken a campaign of assassinations against former members of Saddam Hussein's regime, as well as intellectuals, secular politicians and women who work for the U.S. or British governments or companies.Vincent wrote about this - not just last weekend, but over several months - and stayed to face the consequences. For more of Mr. Phelps' analysis, see his August 3, 2005 article headlined "NYC journalist killed in Iraq: Newsday reporter recalls meeting with Steve Vincent in Iraq."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:58 PM | Comments (0)

Al-Jazeera: 'Jordan Foils Plot to Attack US Troops'

"Jordan has arrested 17 suspects linked to al-Qaida network in Iraq and an affiliated Saudi group who have been plotting to attack US military personnel in the kingdom," Al-Jazeera.net reported August 4, 2005. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:34 AM | Comments (0)

Why is Israel Closely Monitoring Mauritanian Coup?

Al-Jazeera.net reports that, "Israel is closely watching developments in Nouakchott [the Mauritanian capital] after Wednesday's [August 3, 2005] military coup that has overthrown President Maaouya Sid'Ahmed Taya.

The publication said, "An Israeli Foreign Ministry official told Aljazeera.net on Thursday [August 4, 2005] that Israel was watching "how things were unfolding in Nouakchott."

"Israel has an embassy there, like many other countries. We are waiting to see how things will unfold," said Mark Regev, a senior Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman.Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:29 AM | Comments (0)

Mauritania's Oil: Who Will Exploit It?

Jonathan Clayton of Times Online reported August 4, 2005 that, "Mauritania, one of the few countries in the world where slavery is openly practised with semi-official endorsement, is reportedly sitting on one billion barrels of oil and 30 billion cubic metres of natural gas."

Mr. Clayton's article is headlined "Oil wealth triggers army coup."

"Critics say that Mr. Taya was using the threat of Islamic militancy to clamp down on any opponents while preparing to share the spoils among his close associates, mainly fellow Moors, a tiny minority of the country's 2.8 million people," Mr. Clayton wrote, noting that, "In June 2003, just as Western oil companies began to move into the country, there was a bloody uprising against Mr Taya. It was suppressed after several days and was followed by repression of all critics, sparking two more coup attempts last August and September." See

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:20 AM | Comments (0)

August 03, 2005

A Look at Forty years of Politics in the Sudan

Mohammed Othman Habibullah, writing in a special issue of Al-Siyassa Al-Dawliya said:

Although Sudan was one of the first Arab and African countries to achieve independence, in early 1956, the period that followed has been characterized by instability and civil war in the south of the country has led to a series of military coups.

"Since independence," he noted, "the country has passed through six different eras of rule." He describes them in "Forty years of Politics in the Sudan."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:06 PM | Comments (0)

Yemen Times Looks At The Mauritanian Coup

Hassan Al-Haifi of the Yemen Times reported on the August 3, 2005 coup d'etat in Mauritania and gives a brief account of events that finally led to the ouster of President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, after many attempts over the years.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:56 PM | Comments (0)

The Mauritanian Dilemma

The African Union, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the United States have, along with other leaders around the world, condemned the August 3, 2005 coup in Mauritania.

However, if news reports emanating from the African nation are accurate, many "Jubilant Mauritanians celebrated the overthrow" of President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who was attending the funeral of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia when he was ousted by a group calling itself the "Military Council for Justice and Democracy. The coup makers say they want "transparent and fair democratic institutions" and will rule for two years.

The council is headed by Colonel Ely Ould Mohammed Vall, Mauritania's director of national security.

Questions: Will the Bush Administration try to restore to power President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who, at this writing, is currently in Niamey, the capital of Niger?

Will France intervene in its former colony?

There are no definitive answers, yet, only speculation, which we will avoid in this instance. Stay tuned.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:48 PM | Comments (0)

Nick Clooney: 'I Think We've Just Heard an Iraqi Timetable'

Nick Clooney at The Cincinnati Post says, "Don't look now, but I think we have just heard an Iraqi "timetable." He makes pertinent observations on the question of withdrawal from Iraq, where over three dozen U.S. troops have died within the last 10 days, according to various reports.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)

Bush: Good Intelligence Needed to Defeat Killers Who Hide

During an August 3, 2005 address at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas, in which he discussed his "Second Term Accomplishments and Priorities," U.S. President George W. Bush said, among other things:

To win this war on terror, we will use all elements of national power. We will use our military. For those of you who have got loved ones in the military, I want to thank you -- tell them to thank -- you thank them for me, on behalf of a grateful nation.

We'll use our diplomatic corps. In other words, we're working with friends and allies. Part of winning this war on terror is to remind others of what's at stake, and to work diplomatically to get people to keep pressure on the enemy. We've got our Treasury Department working with our friends and allies to cut off money. One way to defeat the enemy is deny them access to money. And when we find money being spent illegally, or funding these terrorist organizations that funnel money to these killers, we do something about it.

We're beefing up our intelligence here in America. We want to make sure that the FBI and CIA can share intelligence. We want to make sure that we not only get the best intelligence, we analyze it properly, and we share it with our friends and allies and vice versa.

See, it's a different kind of war. In the old days you'd have armies that were funded by states. You knew where they were, you could trace them. This war is against killers who hide, and then they show up and kill innocent life, and then they retreat. And so you've got to have good intelligence in order to defeat them. We're working hard to coordinate law enforcement around the world. In other words, we're using all assets of this great nation in order to defeat this enemy.It's call guerilla warfare, sir, and has been used for centuries by smaller forces to defeat larger, more conventional forces such as those you have in Afghanistan and Iraq. This is not a police action, as you imply, but a war that will go on until one side is defeated or retreats from the battlefield.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:03 PM | Comments (0)

Bush: Insurgents in Iraq Trying to Shake Our Will

Commenting on the deaths of more than three-dozen U.S. troops in Iraq during the last 10 days, President George W. Bush said,

The violence in recent days in Iraq is a grim reminder of the enemies we face. These terrorists and insurgents will use brutal tactics because they are trying to shake the will of the United States of America. That's what they are trying to do. They want us to retreat. They want us, in our compassion for the innocent, to say we are through. That's what they want.

Of course they want you to retreat, Mr. Bush, and you will. Why? Because Americans will not continue to endure the futile loss of their children in a war initiated under false pretense. You picked the battleground, sir, and Iraqi insurgents and Mujahids from abroad brought it on, as you invited them to do.

As for "our compassion for the innocent," when did invading a country and creating conditions that caused thousands to die become equated with compassion?

For more see, "Bush Says Iraq Deaths Will Not Shake US Resolve."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:43 PM | Comments (0)

Forty-Three U.S. Troops Killed in Iraq During Last 10 Days

CNN.Com noted August 3, 2005 that, "In the past 10 days, 43 U.S. troops have been killed in Iraq. That brings the number of U.S. troops killed in the war to 1,820, according to U.S. military reports," CNN said.

The Los Angeles Times reported August 3, 2005, that, "At least 25 American service members have been killed in Iraq in the past 10 days - all but two in combat."

Six of them were snipers killed August 1, 2005 "in a firefight near Haditha," Iraq, along the Euphrates River.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:11 PM | Comments (0)

Antiwar.Com's Take on Steven Vincent

Antiwar.Com informative article on murdered American journalist Steven Vincent is headlined "Death of a Hawk: Steven Vincent, RIP." Mr. Vincent was killed in Basra, Iraq on August 2, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:01 PM | Comments (0)

AP: Vincent Wanted To Be The Next Jack Kerouac

Verena Dobnik of the Associated Press reported August 3, 2005 that American freelance Journalists Steven Vincent, who was killed August 2, 2005 in Basra, Iraq, "apparently had feared the worst. In July, his New York friend, Steven Mumford, heard from Vincent, who had been his roommate in Baghdad last year," she wrote.

Ms. Dobnik quoted Mr. Mumford as saying: "He wrote me an e-mail that he had a lot of information which, if published in a major venue, he could get killed for it."

And so he did, after publishing a piece in the July 31, 2005 issue of The New York Times headlined "Switched Off in Basra." It was published August 1, 2005 in the International Herald Tribune (IHT), which is owned by the New York Times Company. The IHT headline is "The Islamists who police Basra's streets".

For more, see "Journalist killed in Iraq modeled himself after Jack Kerouac." Mr. Kerouac was an American writer, novelist and poet of the "Beat Generation," a term he reportedly introduced into the American lexicon.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:56 PM | Comments (0)

Mr. Vincent's Last Month in Iraq

Dan Murphy, a Baghdad correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor, said, In three articles" for The Monitor "over the past month, Steven Vincent deftly captured the criminal-induced confusion of post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, the jockeying for power between rival militias within government departments, and the growing use of political assassination that foreshadowed his own murder Tuesday," August 2, 2005 in Basra, Iraq.

Mr. Murphy's account of Mr. Vincent's last days alive in Iraq is quite interesting. I was struck by this:

In a city like Basra - where members of the city's most notorious kidnap-for-ransom gang are now major political players, and Shiite gangs have taken to ad hoc beatings and harassment of women to enforce their views of Islamic law - there is a long list of possible suspects in the Vincent murder: The police, or a faction within the police; a Shiite militia either angry at his reporting or for his association with an Iraqi woman; or common criminals, who run kidnap-for-ransom rackets.

As I read this, the following questions entered my mind: If you know the above to be true, and you are a foreigner living in a city thousands of miles from home with no protection, why poke your nose into situations that could get you killed?

Was it hubris? Was it the thought that the Iraqis wouldn't dare harm a white American journalist no matter what I write about them? Was it a death wish? Was it none of these? Just asking.

See "Tragic end to a war reporter's bracing story" for more of Mr. Murphy's vivid account of Mr. Vincent's work in Iraq.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:30 PM | Comments (0)

Why Was Journalist Stephen Vincent Killed?

Jenny Booth at Times Online notes that, "There is speculation" that Steven Vincent, the "freelance American journalist" and blogger who was killed in basra, Iraq on August 3, 2005,

was murdered in an attempt to silence him. Four days before his death he had written an opinion piece in The New York Times in which he said that the police force in the British-controlled city had been infiltrated by Shia Muslim extremist militias, who were responsible for carrying out hundreds of murders of prominent Sunni Muslims. He criticized the British, whose 8,000 troops in the area are responsible for security in Basra, for turning a blind eye to abuses of power by Shia extremists. The whole city was "increasingly coming under the control of Shia religious groups, from the relatively mainstream... to the bellicose followers of the rebel cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

"In his final blog," Ms. Booth said, Mr. Vincent wrote:

The British stand above the growing turmoil, refusing to challenge the Islamists’ claim on the hearts and minds of police officers.

I suspect the British know this is a battle they will never win.

See "Basra blogger is abducted and murdered" for another reason why Mr. Vincent may have been killed.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 05:08 PM | Comments (0)

N. Korea Keeps Negotiators Waiting on 9th Day of Talks

Chosunilbo of South Korea reported August 3, 2005 that, "Initial high hopes gave way to frustration on the ninth day of six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program on Wednesday [August 3, 2005], as the Stalinist country's delegation head failed to show for discussion of yet another draft statement of principles submitted by China overnight."

"The six chief negotiators were scheduled to meet at China's request at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse for talks to decide on the statement, but North Korea failed to show," the publication said. "After waiting over two hours, the negotiators withdrew from the meeting venue, and as of 6:00 p.m. the parties had not reconvened." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:18 AM | Comments (0)

Tesfamichael: Just Help Africa Help Herself

Gebreselassie Yosief Tesfamichael, a former Eritrean finance minister now living in Washington, D.C., notes in an August 2, 2005 guest commentary in the Union Leader of Manchester, New Hampshire , that:

Since the 1950s, when most of Africa achieved independence, billions of dollars have been spent on aid and development. So why is the gap between the continent and the rest of the world widening instead of narrowing?

The problem is that the aid community has been determining how Africa should go about development. Thirty 30 African governments have produced national development programs from the same externally designed template: the World Bank/International Monetary Funds so-called poverty-reduction strategy papers. All are aimed at obtaining the most aid possible.
"We continue to ignore the stark lesson that externally imposed development models haven't gotten us far," Mr. Tesfamichael wrote. "The only way forward is for Africa to drive its own bus and for the driver and passengers to be in full agreement about where they're going. That said, we do need help filling up the tank."

See "In Africa, just help us to help ourselves" for more of his commentary.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:48 AM | Comments (0)

Rebecca Garang Rules Out Foul Play in Husband's Death

The Standard Online of Kenya reported August 3, 2005 that Rebecca Nyandeng Garang, "The widow of Sudan vice-president Dr John Garang, yesterday [August 2, 2005] said she did not suspect foul play" in her husband's July 30, 2005 death in a helicopter crash in Southern Sudan.

"I don't agree (with the foul play theory)," she is quoted as saying. "God creates people for a purpose. Garang had done it and had finished his mission. It was time for my husband. It had come and I will take it like that."

Some of his followers aren't taking it like that, since rumors swirling around some parts of Sudan say he was assassinated. A Ugandan team and investigators from other hations reportedly have launched an investigation into Mr. Garang's death. For more, see "Garang widow rules out foul play."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:27 AM | Comments (0)

Condolences to the Family of Journalist Steven Vincent

The Diplomatic Times Review offers condolences to the family of Steven Vincent, the American freelance journalist "found shot to death in the Iraqi city of Basra" on August 3, 2005. According to the blog In The Red Zone, Mr. Vincent had an article "on Basra in the July 31 New York Times."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:44 AM | Comments (0)

Richard North Sees a Police State Coming to the UK

In an August 3, 2005 post headlined "The Police State Cometh," Richard North at EU Referendum noted that, "Following Home Secretary [Charles] Clarke's proposals last month for an EU law on data retention, it seems the EU commission has been hard at work preparing a new directive."

Mr. North said, "According to the on-line magazine Infoeconomy a leaked commission document has revealed its plans which, if anything, are worse than expected."

"The proposed directive will force telecommunication companies to store logs of all fixed and mobile telephony traffic for one year while Internet traffic will have to be kept for six months," he wrote, adding: "The proposal requires the identity and addresses of both the sender and receiver be stored."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:32 AM | Comments (0)

France Wants Turkey to Recognise Cyprus Before EU Talks Start

Honor Mahony at EU Observer.com reported August 3, 2005 that, "French prime minister Dominique de Villepin "has questioned whether it is conceivable to open EU membership talks with Turkey if it does not recognize Cyprus.

According to EU Observer, the prime minister told French radio on August 2, 2005: "It seems to me inconceivable that such a negotiation process can begin with a country which does not recognize every one of the members of the European Union, that is to say the 25". Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:16 AM | Comments (0)

Russia Threatens to Punish ABC For Interviewing Shamil Basayev

On August 1, 2005, MosNews.Com reported that, "The Russian Foreign Ministry has said it does not intend to deprive the U.S. channel ABC of accreditation" for broadcasting an interview with Chechen resistance fighter Shamil Basayev.

On August 2, 2005, the publication reported that, the "Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday [August 2, 2005] it will not resume accreditation for employees of ABC television company after it expires. The ministry called the company undesirable for contacts with any Russian state organization or agency."

"On July 28," MosNews.Com noted, "ABC broadcast an interview with the Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev who called himself a terrorist and promised to commit more attacks against Russian civilians."

I would think the Russians would want to know what Mr. Basayev was thinking, although they would not necessarily know when he plans to strike or where.

Could it be that they are upset because ABC has been able to find Mr. Basayev and they haven't?

I recalled the same thing with Osama bin Laden. Journalists could always get to him but intelligence agents couldn't. I wonder why?

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:03 AM | Comments (0)

Puzzling Over 'The Mystery of British Muslims'

Washington Post Columnist Anne Applebaum says in an August 3, 2005 column that, "Since the bombing attacks in London last month, a welter of columnists, writers, talking heads and ordinary people have puzzled over the mystery of British Muslims, one in four of whom recently told pollsters that they sympathize with the July 7 suicide bombers."

She added:

The idea that British Muslims, whose parents received asylum, found jobs, and made lives in Britain, could be so deeply affected by the "oppression" of Muslims in countries they have never visited seems incomprehensible. The notion that events in distant deserts should lead the middle-class inhabitants of London or Leeds to admire terrorists seems inexplicable. But why should this phenomenon be so incomprehensible or inexplicable, at least to Americans? We did, after all, once tolerate a similar phenomenon ourselves.I am talking about the sympathy for the Irish Republican Army that persisted for decades in some Irish American communities and is only now fading away

It's not really a mystery. Every Muslims, whether he or she voices it, generally has sympathy for Muslims under siege, wherever they are in the world. And whereas most would never pick up a gun or become suicide bombers, there is an admiration for those who strive to drive the U.S. and England out Iraq; the Russians out of Chechnya; the Israelis from Palestinian lands; the Chinese out of East Turkmenistan; the U.S. out of Afghanistan, etc.

For more of Ms. Applebaum's analysis, see "The Discreet Charm of the Terrorist Cause."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:36 AM | Comments (0)

Oil Exploration in Southern Sudan Hinges on Peace Process

A Reuters article in the August 3, 2005 edition of the Sudan Tribune says "Sudan's fragile peace process will determine the fate of a major oil exploration deal following the death of the country's first vice president John Garang, analysts said on Tuesday," August 2, 2005.

Reuters said the British firm "White Nile still plans to drill for oil" in [the Block Ba oil deposit] in the south of Africa's largest country and says Khartoum has given assurances that it is "business as usual" after Garang was killed in a helicopter crash at the weekend."

"But doubts linger," the wire service said. Block Ba reportedly holds up to five billion barrels of oil. For more, see "Sudan peace process crucial to White Nile oil deal."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:05 AM | Comments (0)

Salva Kiir Reportedly Will Inherit Garang's Vice-President's Post

According to an Agence France Press report in the Sudan Tribune, "Salva Kiir, who has been appointed the new leader of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) following the death of John Garang, is assured of inheriting Garang's other job as first vice president [of Sudan] as well, diplomats said Tuesday," August 2, 2005.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:49 AM | Comments (0)

Who Is Salva Kiir Mayardit?

The BBC has a profile of Salva Kiir Mayardit, the man the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) has "chosen as successor to Dr. John Garang, Sudan's vice-president who was also president of southern Sudan.

Mr. Garang died in a helicopter crash on July 30, 2005. An investigation has been launched to determine if foul play was involved.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:38 AM | Comments (0)

Is It Back To The Brink For Sudan?

The Times Online of London contends in its August 3, 2005 lead article that, for Sudan, the death of Sudanese Vice-President John Garang in a July 30, 2005 helicopter crash "comes at the worst possible moment, adding:

The peace accords that ended 21 years of civil war have barely begun to take root. The fractious politics of an area riven by commercial and tribal rivalries have not yet been assuaged by the promised oil wealth. Sudan's own unity, vigorously championed by Dr Garang after his reconciliation with Khartoum, will come under strain again, not only in the south but also in Darfur where the brutal ethnic-cleansing campaign has been neither halted nor reversed. Suspicion runs deep in Africa's largest country, which itself harbours rebel groups from neighbouring states.

"There will be many," the publication said, "remembering the shooting down of the presidents plane that triggered the genocide in Rwanda, who will refuse to believe that there was not a conspiracy to kill Dr Garang, making reconciliation all the more difficult."

See "Back to the brink" for more of The Times' analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 12:22 AM | Comments (0)

August 02, 2005

South Sudan Leaders Moved Fast on Garang Successor

China Daily has interesting photographs of Rebecca Nyandeng, widow Sudanese vice president John Garang, who died July 30, 2005 in a helicopter crash, and other relatives and supporters mourning his death.

There is also a photograph of Salva Kiir, deputy leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), who was chosen August 1, 2005 to replace Mr. Garang as leader of the southern Sudanese. The Reuters article accompanying the photos is quite informative. See "South Sudan leaders move fast on Garang succession."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:26 AM | Comments (0)

Can U.S. Prevent Sudanese Peace Pact From Unraveling?

Robin Wright at The Washington Post reported August 2, 2005 that, "The Bush administration yesterday dispatched two senior State Department officials for talks with rival factions in Khartoum and southern Sudan to prevent Sudan's fragile peace from unraveling after Vice President John Garang's death in a helicopter crash."

Can the U.S. work miracles in this situation? We shall see. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:11 AM | Comments (0)

Ramzy Baroud: 'Don't Blame the Mosque' for Terrorism

Veteran Arab American journalistRamzy Baroud,, who teaches Mass Communication at Curtin University of Technology in Australia, explains in an August 1, 2005 Khaleej Times Online article that:

Cultural and religious intolerance is certainly not unique to the Middle East, nor is terrorism itself. If madrassas supposedly elucidate the motives behind the militancy of Al Qaeda and the Taleban, what will one make of terrorism in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Spain (prior to the train bombing) and Northern Ireland? It is not as if the list ends there. To the contrary, it barely begins. The truth is that Middle East terrorism became a globalized phenomenon after many regions around the world that are neither Arab nor Muslim experienced their share of deadly terror.

It goes without saying that the rise of Al Qaeda and its support networks worldwide have not in any way contributed to the decline of terrorism elsewhere. In fact, many innocent people continue to fall victim to terrorism in many other regions and in large numbers.

Mr. Baroud said, "The quandary is that the victims are often not Westerners, thus their plight is either entirely neglected or hastily stated by the world media and then quickly forgotten."

See "Don't blame the mosque" for more of Mr. Baroud's analysis of certain western trends of thought on the causes of terrorism.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:37 AM | Comments (0)

August 01, 2005

What is the Egypt, Algeria Dispute About?

ArabicNews.Com reported August 1, 2005 that, "The secretary general of the Arab league (AL), Amr Moussa, admitted that there are differences between Egypt and Algeria over the urgent Arab summit due to be held on Wednesday [August 3, 2005] in Sharm el-Sheikh." It has been postponed due to the death of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia.

On July 28, 2005, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stated in a televised address:

I call for an extraordinary Arab summit on Wednesday 3 August in Sharm al-Shaikh, which will be preceded by a meeting of Arab foreign ministers ... with a view to reviewing the situation in the Arab world.

I am fully confident that this coming extraordinary summit will be capable of crystallizing a strong Arab position that reflects the determination of the Arab states and peoples to overcome the current challenges, and to achieve the peace and stability that all Arabs long for.

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the current president for the Arab League. When Mr. Mubarak called the meeting, it apparently irking the Algerians, who said they would not handle the logistics of such a meeting since the Egyptians called it. Here's more on the dispute.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:30 PM | Comments (0)

Hamdani: Egypt is Where Islamic Revival, Radical Islam Started

Pakistan Tribune columnist Yasser Latif Hamdani argues in an August 1, 2005 news analysis that:

The rise of organizations like Hizbut Tahrir and Al Muhajiroun in the United Kingdom and elsewhere was viewed with alarm but no solid intellectual movement was organized within the Islamic sphere to counter them. Their connection to seminaries in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad and Peshawar was also to be expected. Most British Muslims happen to be of South Asian origin and we as Pakistanis had allowed the American sponsored Jehad against Godless Soviet Russia to flourish from our heartland. So London bombing and the connection to Pakistan was logical. However what was not logical was that the Egyptian government would turn around and blame the terror attacks on its soil on Pakistan as well.

He added: "It would therefore be worthwhile to dwell on the history of Islamic revival and radical Islamism in the Muslim world" because "Egypt is where it all started as early as 1928."

See "Egypt's homegrown terrorists" for more of Mr. Hamdani's insightful analysis

Posted by Munir Umrani at 11:04 PM | Comments (0)

Why Did John Garang's Death Cause Riots, Loss of Life in Sudan?

Why did the death of Dr. John Garang lead to rioting and the deaths of 36 people in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, on August 1, 2005?

The Ugandan Government said poor weather caused the July 30, 2005 helicopter crash that Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir said "resulted in the death of John Garang and six people accompanying him as well as seven members of the crew" of the Ugandan MI-172, Russian-built, executive helicopter returning him to his New Site base in Southern Sudan.

He had been in Uganda for talks with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and US and European diplomats about the progress in implementing the January 9 peace deal to end the long-running war between the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army and the Sudanese Government, according to Agence France Presse (AFP).

Could it be that some of Mr. Garang's followers thought the crash was caused by "sabotage or terrorism?" Was it?

It's too early to tell. However, AFP reported August 1, 2005 that, President Museveni "told Ugandan lawmakers that he had ordered a probe into the crash and said his government had contacted an unspecified foreign power to confirm it had been an accident and not the result of "sabotage or terrorism." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:48 PM | Comments (0)

Salva Kiir is Southern Sudan's New Leader

Salva Kiir is the new leader of southern Sudan, according to an Agence France Presse article in the Sudan Tribune. He replaces Sudanese Vice President John Garang, who died in a helicopter crash on July 30, 2005.

AFP said he "should also become vice president under the peace deal signed in January [2005] to end the 21-year civil war between SPLM/A [the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army] rebels and the Khartoum government."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 10:11 PM | Comments (0)

The Resilient Saudi Dynasty

Michael Binyon at The Times Online contends that the "secretive, conservative and cautious" House of Saud "is one of the most resilient dynasties in the world." He added:

It has suffered numerous shocks that would have toppled less agile monarchies: the assassination of King Faisal in 1975, the occupation of the Grand Mosque in Mecca by extremists in 1979, pitched battles with Iranian pilgrims, war with Iraq and a terrorist campaign by al-Qaeda that has brought the country to the brink of civil war. Yet its rulers have used appeasement, guile and brute force to thwart all enemies and remain, precariously, in power.

True, but important question are: How much longer will it work?

How much longer will the public tolerate rule by the House of Saud? If most Saudis continue to tolerate the dynasty, when will younger members of the House of Saud demand that the old guys step aside?

What happens if they do make such a demand? If the old guys step aside, will the young rulers do the bidding of the United States like the old guard?

I don't have the answers.

For more of Mr. Binyon's commentary, see "Riddles in the sand kingdom."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)

Abdullah Unlikely to Change Saudi Arabia's Foreign Policy

"Saudi Arabia's new king, Abdullah, is unlikely to steer the worlds largest oil exporter away from its longtime alliances, despite his Arab nationalist views," reports the Reuters wire service.

Abdullah is no fool. He knows what the U.S. is likely to do if he does. Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:54 PM | Comments (0)

Analysis: 'Things Are Not as Calm as They Seem in Saudi Arabia'

Patrick Bishop notes in an August 2, 2005 opinion piece at Opinion.Telegraph that "Things are not as calm as they seem in the sands of Saudi Arabia." He raises many interesting points, among them:

The West needs Saudi Arabia at least as much as Saudi Arabia needs the West. In the immediate term, the Saudi security authorities are a vital link in the anti-terrorist intelligence network. It is greatly to our advantage that Prince Turki al-Faisal, the outgoing ambassador to London, is on his way to Washington. As former chief of Saudi intelligence, Turki is credited with knowing more about al-Qa'eda than almost anyone outside its ranks. His arrival is expected to invigorate co-operation between Washington and Riyadh which has slackened as a result of America's Iraq preoccupation.

Mr. Bishop said, "In the long term, it is essential for us to retain the kingdom's goodwill as energy supplies become a pressing strategic issue, a source of increasing competition which some pessimists predict could lead to the next big international conflict."

Here is more of his thought-provoking analysis.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 08:45 PM | Comments (0)

Can John Bolton Be Diplomatic?

Howard LaFranchi, staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor, says now that U.S. President George W. Bush has made John R. Bolton U.S. Ambassador to the United nation, "The question now is whether Bolton, who has caused even U.S. allies like the British to express private concerns in the past about his diplomatic skills, will be impaired in his ability to press the US case for UN reform."

Some observers predict that he will be a disaster, while others say he is the kind of man the U.S. needs at the U.N. Time will tell. See "Bolton's next hurdle: spurring UN reform" for more of the Monitor'sanalysis

Posted by Munir Umrani at 04:50 PM | Comments (0)

SPLM Says Southern Sudanese Will Stick to Peace Deal

Speaking frm Nairobi, Kenya, Salva Kiiri, deputy commander of the former rebel Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A), took the "opportuniy" August 1, 2005, " to assure the southern Sudanese in particular and the Sudanese people in general, that we in the SPLM/A leadership will continue the vision and the objective of the movement that Dr. John Garang de Mabior has articulated and hoped to implement."

"We also want to assure everyone that the leadership and cadres of the SPLM/A will remain united and strive to faithfully implement the comprehensive peace agreement."

For more see, "Sudan's SPLM says Garang death wont hurt peace deal."

Posted by Munir Umrani at 07:26 AM | Comments (0)

Garang's Body Taken to Former Rebel Headquarters

Agence France Presse reports that, "The body of Sudanese Vice President and southern leader Dr. John Garang, who died in a weekend helicopter crash, was brought to his former headquarters in the town of New Site." The wire service cited "an official" as its source." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:50 AM | Comments (0)

What If Saudis Don't Pledge Allegiance to New King?

Arab News, citing a government statement, said "Saudi citizens will start pledging their allegiance to King Abdullah and Crown Prince Sultan at the Government Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday afternoon," August 3, 2005.

And what if they don't pledge their allegiance? I don't think it will matter. Things have already been decided. Unless something drastic happens, Abdullah will be king and Sultan will be crown prince. It's a family affair. Here is the bland Arab News report

Posted by Munir Umrani at 06:42 AM | Comments (0)

MP George Galloway Visits Syria

"British Member of Parliament George Galloway, who has acquired an international status on issues such as arguing against the US-UK lead sanctions that crippled Iraq during the 1990s where Galloway contributed humanitarian help to Iraqis, arrived Damascus" the night of July 29, 2005 "in a visit to Syria to deliver a lecture at al-Assad Library on justice in the new world order," according to Arabic News.Com.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:20 AM | Comments (0)

Arizona Guardsman Punished For a Blog Post on Iraq

The Army Times reported July 29, 2005 that, "An Arizona National Guardsman who had been openly critical of the war in Iraq on his Web log has been punished for violating operational security and for 11 counts of disobeying orders, according to Multinational Coalition Force-Iraq." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:15 AM | Comments (0)

More Insight Into Blair's Decision to Help U.S. Invade Iraq

Robert Winnett, the Whitehall Correspondent for The Times of London, reported July 31, 2005 that, "The split over the Iraq war, which ran through the Labour party, reached into Tony Blair's innermost circle, according to an updated biography of the prime minister."

The Winnett article is quite revealing and touches on efforts by the Blair Government to keep certain insiders from revealing what transpired in the inner circle leading up to the war.

See "Key No 10 aides were split over war" for more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 02:05 AM | Comments (0)

Rudd: Howard Should Come Clean on Iraq War

"I think people are getting a bit grumpy about the fact that the prime minister is not levelling with them about the consequences of the war in Iraq in this particular area," Kevin Rudd, the Australian Labor Party foreign spokesman, said August 1, 2005, according to News.com.au.

The particular area is the bombing of the Australian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, in September 2004. News.com.au noted that, "The Australian newspaper said a man called Rois, also known as Iwan Dharmawan, told police the Australian embassy in Jakarta had been deliberately chosen as a bomb target because of Australia's support for the United States in Iraq.

Mr. Rudd told ABC radio, according to News.com.au: "I think it is time for the PM (Prime Minister John Howard) just to level with the Australian people on that. It is a commonsense question."

"The PM, I think, wants to persuade everyone that Iraq, and our involvement in Iraq has had no impact whatsoever on Australia as a terrorist target." Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:48 AM | Comments (0)

Ruddock Questions Rois' Claims About Jakarta Embassy Bombings

Australian "Attorney-General Philip Ruddock has questioned claims from a key conspirator [Rois, also known as Iwan Dharmawan] that the bombing of Australia's embassy in Jakarta [in September 2004] was launched because of Australia's involvement in Iraq," reports ABCNews Online of Australia.

Surely Mr. Ruddock isn't expected to admit that the actions of the government he represents sparked the bombing of the embassy because of its war policies. That would be admitting that Australia was wrong to help the U.S. occupy a Muslim nation.Here's more.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:22 AM | Comments (0)

Rois: Australian Embassy Bombed to Protest Australia's Role in Iraq

Tim Palmer, ABC News Online of Australia's Indonesia correspondent reported in an August 1, 2005 dispatch that, "The key conspirator arrested for the bombing of Australia's embassy in Jakarta last September says the attack was launched because of Australia's involvement in the invasion of Iraq." He added:

The claim has been made to police by 30-year-old suspect Rois, who will face a verdict later this month for his role in the attack.
The transcript of the police interrogation of Rois, which took place just two months after the bombing killed 11 people outside Australia's Jakarta embassy, shows the suspect being asked the purpose of the attack.

Rois told police it was because "the Australian Government is one of America's allies that gives most support to the American policy of slaughtering Muslims in Iraq".

He said that the bombers' goal was "for Australia to stop repressing Muslims especially in Iraq".
Mr. Palmer said, "Rois criticized Australia's interference in other Muslim countries, including Indonesia" Read more here.

Posted by Munir Umrani at 01:12 AM | Comments (0)