Reports are swirling that nearly $ 7 billion of Iraq’s oil money, siphoned into the country to rebuild critical infrastructure, may have simply been lifted by some enterprising crooks
Reports are swirling that nearly $ 7 billion of Iraq’s oil money, siphoned into the country to rebuild critical infrastructure, may have simply been lifted by some enterprising crooks
In his farewell tour of greater Mesopotamia, the Defense Secretary remarked that the US and Iraq would have to negotiate the terms of any American presence, while admitting that he had dreamed up at least a couple scenarios that might keep American forces in Iraq, perhaps indefinitely.
There’s currently a spirited debate shaping up on the Washington Post’s Post Partisan blog between heavy-weight commentators Charles Krauthammer and Anne Appelbaum. Their discussion sheds light on a provocative contention some conservatives are now promoting; namely, that the Bush Doctrine set precedent for the Middle East’s demand for democracy.
In the spirit of self-reflection on mistakes made during the Iraq War, former Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld is busily promoting his 800 page new memoir, “Known and Unknown,” while defending the Bush administration’s most critical decisions. Appearing on the public circuit for the first time since stepping down in 2006, Rumsfeld has stated that none of the top officials lied about weapons of mass destruction as a pretext for the war.
I admire the patience and perseverance of the Iraqi people, but I must wonder how long until they join their fellow Arabs in Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia to say “Kifaya!”
Given the sad state of affairs, I often feel that it’s my responsibility to locate some silver lining that threads through the Iraqi experience. Now, in the midst of crisis, concern and carnage, Iraq’s national soccer team is making another run at the Asia Cup.
In a developing story, Reuters is reporting that firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has returned to Iraq after years of self-imposed exile in Iran. The radical nationalist visited the holy city of Najaf where his father is buried. The source said Sadr had left Iraq at the end of 2006. Sadr, whose Mehdi Army fought U.S. troops after […]
In an effort to preserve a nation’s humanity after decades of dictatorship and war and in a modest tribute to the enduring spirit of the Iraqi people, I have decided to ring in the New Year with a brief study of the unique and compelling poetry of Iraq.
By this time next year, the United States should have withdrawn all of its troops from Iraq. We can hope that this long, bloody chapter in American military history may be at an end.
A run of coordinated attacks that spanned the length of the country killed at least 56 people today in assaults aimed at Iraqi army and police forces, one day after the U.S. announced that its combat troops had fallen below 50,000.
We all know the broad strokes. The state of Iraq has been politically rudderless since March 7 elections for the Council of Representatives failed to produce a clear coalition winner. Although former PM Ayad Allawi’s Iraqiya slate won a two-seat victory over Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition, they didn’t score with sufficient […]
Here’s a brief outline of news and views from some of the major news outlets regarding the end of the US combat mission…taken from major media both in the States and abroad.
More than 50 people were killed and some 115 wounded when a suicide bomber struck a Baghdad recruiting center for the Iraqi Army.
We’ve hit an emotional milestone in Iraq. The end is in sight. Major combat is over and the troops are coming home. And we can expect many more of these talks, with appearances planned throughout the month by the president, Vice President Biden and other senior administration officials as they wax eloquent on Obama’s steadfast commitment to ending the war.
President Obama has given formal assurances that U.S. forces in Iraq will drop to 50,000 by the end of the month – a reduction of 94,000 troops since he took office 18 months ago. The remaining troops will form a transitional force until a final U.S. withdrawal from the country by the end of 2011. […]