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2005 Iraq News History Archives

2005 Iraq News:

20051231

US - International - Iraq - Secret - GOV - Terrorism - Intelligence - Telecommunications - E-Mail - Privacy - Politics - Media - Enforcement - "US investigates leak of spy program: Prosecutors focus on disclosure to New York Times." ... "The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into recent disclosures about a controversial domestic eavesdropping program that was secretly authorized by President Bush after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, officials said yesterday." ... "Justice Department prosecutors will focus on whether classified information about the program was unlawfully disclosed to The New York Times, which reported two weeks ago that Bush had authorized the National Security Agency to monitor the international telephone calls and e-mails of people in the United States without court-approved warrants, officials said." ... "The case is the latest in a series of clashes between the media and the Bush administration, which has aggressively enforced restrictions on classified information and has frequently complained about media disclosures related to terrorism or the war in Iraq." -By Dan Eggen -WashingtonPost via -BostonGlobe

20051229

Iraq - "Iraqi protests continue in Kirkuk." ... "About 350 Arab and Turkmen demonstrators took to the streets of Kirkuk on Thursday, protesting preliminary results of the Dec. 15 parliamentary election and condemning what they claim are Kurdish attempts to control the city, according to Kirkuk Police Chief Torhan Abdul Rahman." ... "The protest is only the latest of widespread demonstrations across the country, including one on Wednesday in Samarra, north of Baghdad in the Sunni heartland." ... "There has also been uproar among Sunni Arabs, secular Shiites and others over what they say is fraud in the polling process." -Contributed to by Mohammed Tawfeeq -CNN

20051227

US - Iraq - Police - "U.S. Seeks To Escape Brutal Cycle In Iraqi City: 3rd Try at Pullout Depends on Police." ... "On one of his last days in Iraq, Sgt. Dale Evans looked out over the turbulent city from a rooftop tower piled high with sandbags, manning a machine gun. Below him, rows of Bradley Fighting Vehicles stood at the ready. Dusty streets were lined with coiled barbed wire and abandoned houses pockmarked from gunfire -- a protective no-man's land around a base that U.S. commanders describe as their "battleship" in downtown Samarra." ... "This month, Evans and his company from the 3rd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, will leave Patrol Base Uvanni, beginning a third attempt in as many years by U.S. forces to hand this Sunni city over to Iraqi police. It's a major test for the U.S. military in Iraq, and one U.S. commanders here say they can't afford to fail." ... "Since 2003, Samarra has come to symbolize the trials and errors of U.S. strategy in Iraq -- a cycle of military offensives, lulls and new waves of lethal insurgent attacks." (1, 2) -By Ann Scott Tyson -WashingtonPost

20051226

Iraq - Politics - "Iraq Contingent May Grow if Attacks Persist, Pace Says." ... "Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace said Sunday that the number of U.S. troops in Iraq could increase next year, not decrease, if the insurgency continued." ... "The four-star Marine general said that any decision to withdraw or deploy additional troops in Iraq would depend mostly on whether the insurgency continued to launch deadly attacks against U.S.-led forces and friendly elements of the fledgling Baghdad government." -By Josh Meyer -LAtimes
Iraq - Terrorism - Police - Politics - "Gunmen kill Iraqi forces, bombs shake Baghdad." ... "Guerrillas killed 10 Iraqi policemen and soldiers in attacks north of Baghdad on Monday, while the capital itself was rocked by five major explosions that left at least eight dead." ... "It was one of the bloodiest days in Iraq since the largely peaceful election on December 15, when rival ethnic and sectarian groups took part in a vote for a new parliament. By nightfall, at least 20 were killed and over 40 injured." -By Deepa Babington with contributions by Faris al-Mehdawi in Baquba, Aseel Kami and Gideon Long -Reuters.co.uk

20051225

US - Iraq - "A look at U.S. military deaths in Iraq." ... "As of Sunday, Dec. 25, 2005, at least 2,168 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count." ... "Since May 1, 2003, when President Bush declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended, 2,029 U.S. military members have died, according to AP's count." -AP via -SeattlePI.NWsource

20051223

US - Iraq - "Rumsfeld suggests some U.S. troops will be heading home from Iraq." ... "The reductions would bring U.S. troop levels down from about 158,000 to slightly under 130,000. But Rumsfeld warned that "until it's announced, the government's decision hasn't been announced. Therefore it's not final."" -By Richard Sisk -MercuryNews

20051222

Iraq - "Objections to Iraq vote grow louder: Sunnis, secularists join forces in call." ... "Sunni Arab and secular political groups joined forces yesterday to decide whether to call for a repeat of parliamentary elections that gave the Shi'ite religious bloc a larger than expected lead." ... "The main Sunni coalition has said the elections were tainted by fraud, including voting centers failing to open, shortages in election materials, reports of multiple voting, and forgery." ... "The election commission, known as the IECI, has said it received 1,250 complaints about violations during the Dec. 15 elections, 25 of which it described as serious. But the commission says it does not expect the complaints will change the overall result, to be announced in January." -By Patrick Quinn -AP via -BostonGlobe

20051220

Iraq - Religious - "Shiite Alliance Leads In Partial Iraq Count: Secular Parties Failing to Win Broad Support." ... "The first results from Iraq's national parliamentary election showed powerful support for the leading Shiite Muslim religious alliance, and suggested that the country's splintered politics have coalesced into a few large political groups divided along ethnic and religious lines." ... "Election officials announced unofficial results Monday from 11 of Iraq's 18 provinces and Baghdad, the largest city, showing the Shiite alliance leading overwhelmingly in central and southern Iraq. As expected, a coalition of Kurds dominated the north, while votes from the mainly Sunni Muslim western provinces have not been reported." ... "The results, which elections officials said were incomplete and subject to challenge, appeared to dash the hopes of secular parties that voters would reject the religious and ethnic-based groups." (1, 2) -By Doug Struck with contributions by Jonathan Finer and Omar Fekeiki and K.I. Ibrahim -WashingtonPost

20051216

Iraq - US - Intelligence - "Official: Al-Zarqawi Caught, Freed." ... "Iraqi security forces caught terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in the Fallujah area last year but released him because they didn't realize who he was, the deputy interior minister said in an interview broadcast Friday." ... "CNN broadcast a similar report late Thursday, but it could not be confirmed. But a U.S. official said in Washington that American intelligence believed it was plausible." -AP via-CBSNews

20051215

US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - "Bush Admits Mistakes but Defends War: He accepts responsibility for acting on flawed intelligence but says the invasion was justified. Aides hope his candor will boost his ratings." ... "President Bush said Wednesday that he accepted responsibility for deciding to wage war in Iraq in part on the basis of faulty intelligence, but that he remained convinced history would conclude he had done the right thing." ... "Speaking hours before Iraqis began arriving at the polls to elect a new government, Bush acknowledged miscalculations and mistakes before and after the U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq in March 2003." ... ""It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong," Bush told a group of political leaders and scholars at the nonpartisan Woodrow Wilson Center. "As president, I'm responsible for the decision to go into Iraq, and I'm also responsible for fixing what went wrong by reforming our intelligence capabilities."" -By Warren Vieth -LAtimes
Iraq - "With delight and fervour, Iraqis cast ballots." ... "There may not be the same sense of history this time round, but the joy and determination of Iraqi voters emerging from dictatorship is still evident." ... "Young and old, able-bodied and infirm, they streamed to polls for the third time in 11 months on Thursday, this time to elect a four-year parliament." ... "While not as novel as the first post-Saddam Hussein election in January, participation was more widespread. Sunni Arabs, who boycotted the earlier poll for an interim assembly, flocked to vote this time, determined not to miss out on power again." -By Luke Baker -Reuters via -AlertNet.org/Newsdesk

20051214

US - World - Iraq - Death Penalty - UN - "Rice Scolds Holdouts on Iraq Trial: Nations not aiding the Hussein proceedings are ducking duty to law and human rights, she says." ... "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sharply criticized other nations Tuesday for failing to provide support for the trial of Saddam Hussein, saying that the world community's "effective boycott of Saddam's trial is only harming the Iraqi people."" ... "U.S. officials have differed with many other governments almost from the outset of the war on how to conduct trials of Hussein and top aides. The U.S. and its Iraqi allies wanted the trials to be overseen by national authorities in Iraq, whereas officials with the U.N. and from many other countries favored hybrid proceedings with a larger international component." ... "Officials of other governments, including many in Europe, have said they would avoid a proceeding they feared could be seen as an American-run show trial. They also have been put off by the possible death penalty, which is legal in Iraq and the United States but banned in much of the world." -By Paul Richter with contributions by Richard Boudreaux -LAtimes
Iraq - TV - "Iraqis Grasp the Art of TV Debate, With Gloves On: The airwaves are rife with candidate forums featuring polite speech in a nation torn by war." ... "For the first time, the televised campaign debate has come to Iraq, and it has brought with it a level of civility and political discourse far different from that found on the nation's often bloody streets." ... "Across Iraq, politicians of all stripes moved with fear as they campaigned for Thursday's parliamentary election. On Tuesday, a Sunni Arab candidate was slain in Ramadi, the fourth office-seeker to be assassinated in recent weeks." ... "But in Iraqi TV studios, it's a different story." ... "Politicians are now free to use the medium of televised debates to expose voters to their styles, images and rhetorical flourishes. And here, the tone has been polite." (1, 2) -By Louise Roug with contributions by Shamil Aziz, Saif Rasheed and Asmaa Waguih -LAtimes
Iraq - Prison - "Fatal Torture of Inmates Suspected: Security forces may have physically abused or starved two detainees, the head of an inquiry says. In Ramadi, a Sunni Arab candidate is slain." ... "Detainees told investigators that the two inmates were tortured or starved to death, but prison officials say the pair died of natural causes." ... "U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad told reporters Tuesday that in all, at least 120 prisoners had allegedly been abused by Iraqi security forces, more than previously disclosed by the government of Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari. As many as 18 may have died at a Baghdad detention center that was first identified last month in a Los Angeles Times report." -By Borzou Daragahi and Louise Roug with contributions by Richard Boudreaux -LAtimes

20051212

US - Iraq - World - Intelligence - Politics - "Peace-making a core mission in new Pentagon policy." ... "After years of internal debate, the Pentagon has embraced a fundamental change in policy which calls for the U.S. armed forces to be equally adept at waging war and making peace." ... "The new course, announced in a Pentagon directive, follows widespread criticism of the conduct of the war in Iraq, where U.S. forces scored a swift, decisive victory over conventional opponents but found themselves ill-equipped to deal with post-combat chaos and an increasingly effective insurgency." ... "The directive says that establishing order and security, restoring essential services and meeting the humanitarian needs of the population of a vanquished country were a "core U.S. military mission.""" ... "The directive specifies the need for better language skills, more regional expertise, better intelligence and counterintelligence, more emphasis on studying foreign cultures and more coordination with foreign governments, international organizations and nongovernmental organizations." (1, 2) -By Bernd Debusmannn -Reuters

dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/html/300005.htm

US - Iraq - Military - Politics - "Bush Estimates 30,000 Iraqis Killed in War." ... "In a rare, unscripted moment, President Bush on Monday estimated 30,000 Iraqis have died in the war, the first time he has publicly acknowledged the high price Iraqis have paid in the push for democracy." ... "``I would say 30,000, more or less, have died as a result of the initial incursion and the ongoing violence against Iraqis,'' Bush said. ``We've lost about 2,140 of our own troops in Iraq.''" ... "The U.S. military does not release its tally of Iraqi dead, but there is some consensus from outside experts that roughly 30,000 is a credible number. White House counselor Dan Bartlett said Bush was not giving an official figure but simply repeating public estimates." -By Nedra Pickler -AP via -Guardian.co.uk
Iraq - Law - US - Military - "Early Voting Begins in Iraq; Nine Killed." ... "Thousands of Iraqi forces will be protecting polling stations, with U.S. and other coalition troops ready to help in case of a major attack." ... "Most attention has focused on Sunni Arabs, who largely boycotted the Jan. 30 election to protest the continued U.S. military presence. That enabled the Shiites and Kurds to dominate parliament, a move that sharpened communal tensions and fueled the Sunni-dominated insurgency." ... "This time, more Sunni Arab candidates are in the race, and changes in the election law to allocate most seats by province instead of based on a party's nationwide total all but guaranteed a sizable Sunni bloc in the next assembly." -By Qassim Abdul-Zahra -AP via -Guardian.co.uk

20051209

Books - US - Iraq - Military - Religion - "Iraq war debate enters new phase." ... "You might not expect a West Point graduate, Vietnam vet and career soldier to come out with a book titled "The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Addicted to War." But that's what Andrew Bacevich, who now directs the program in International Relations at Boston University, has done." ... "A self-described conservative, Bacevich argues that Americans have fallen prey to a "military metaphysic." By that he means all international problems are seen as military problems and the likelihood for finding a solution except through military means is discounted. The result is war as a permanent condition with the only acceptable plan for peace a loaded pistol. One has only to consider the relative weight given to the Pentagon and the State Department to get the point." ... "As a pastor what most interested me is Bacevich's careful tracing of the role of leading religious conservatives in promoting a "crusade theory of warfare," to replace the more long-standing and cautious doctrine of just war. A crusade theory of warfare provides the mindset and justification for offensive military action, for so-called preventive wars like the current war in Iraq. The just war ethical tradition mandates the use of force for defensive, not offensive, purposes." -By Anthony B. Robinson -SeattlePI.NWsource

20051208

US- Iraq - "A tale of 2 scarred cities: Najaf and Mosul." ... "Although President Bush said Wednesday that residents in Najaf and Mosul are "gaining a personal stake in a peaceful future," critics in the two Iraqi cities cite corruption, undemocratic institutions, persistent violence and stalled reconstruction." ... "Najaf is a largely peaceful Shiite city 100 miles south of Baghdad that has not suffered from the sectarian attacks ravaging other parts of the country. But rivalries between Shiite factions have occasionally become violent, and many complain that militant political parties and militias dominate city government and security forces." -By Alaa al-Morjani and Sindbad Ahmed -AP via -ChicagoTribune
US - Iraq - Politics - Police - "Bus bombing kills 30 in Baghdad: A suicide attacker has detonated a bomb on a bus in Baghdad, killing at least 30 people, Iraqi police said." ... "The vehicle was leaving al-Nahda bus station heading south for the Shia town of Nasiriya when the attack occurred." ... "Witnesses said the bus was gutted and left in flames by the explosion. Another 25 people are reported injured." ... "Iraq has been bracing for an increase in violence by anti-US insurgents ahead of the election next Thursday for the first full-term post-Saddam parliament." ... "Police believe the attacker waited until the bus was pulling away slowly from the station and jumped on board to avoid security checks." -BBC /News

20051207

Japan - Iraq - "Japan extends Iraq troops mission: Japan has extended its military deployment in Iraq for another year." ... "The decision, announced after a meeting of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's cabinet, means the troops can stay until 14 December 2006." ... "Japan has about 500 troops in Samawa in southern Iraq, training Iraqi security forces and helping with reconstruction, but not engaging in combat roles." ... "However, there was media speculation that the troops could be pulled out before their new mandate is fully up." ... "The Japanese troops could be pulled out before the new expiration date if conditions change, either on the ground, or in the make-up of the coalition forces, Kyodo news agency said on Wednesday."-BBC /News
US - Iraq - Military - Terrorism - Intelligence - Opinion - Economy - "Poll: Bush's Ratings Bump Up." ... "The President’s overall approval rating has risen from 35 percent in October to 40 percent now, and his ratings on handling the economy and the war in Iraq have also improved." ... "The Bush Administration continues to face criticism from many Democrats and other war opponents about the way pre-war intelligence was handled, and whether there truly was a compelling connection between Iraq and the terror threat to the United States. Fifty-two percent of Americans think the Bush Administration deliberately misled the public in making the case for war, while 44 percent say it did not." ... "An overwhelming majority of Americans think this Congress should be asking questions about pre-war intelligence. Fifty-six percent call it a very important line of questioning, and another 24 percent call it somewhat important." -CBSNews
Iraq - "Hussein Trial Resumes in Ousted Dictator's Absence (Update1)." ... "The Baghdad trial of Saddam Hussein resumed today without the ousted Iraqi dictator after a four-hour break caused by his refusal to attend." ... "``The court will continue the proceedings and will inform the defendant about procedures during his absence,'' Chief Judge Rizgar Mohammed Amin told the tribunal trying Hussein and seven codefendants." ... "The statutes of the court trying Hussein entitle defendants to be tried in their presence, while Iraq's 1971 law on criminal proceedings allows a trial to continue in a defendant's absence if the person violated court rules." ... "Amin cited the criminal proceedings law, saying it permitted the judges to continue the trial in Hussein's absence." -By Alex Morales -Bloomberg

20051206

US - Iraq - Niger - Lewis Libby - Dick Cheney - Military - Politics - Law - "Plame Is Set to Leave the CIA." ... "[Valerie] Plame, 42, worked undercover for the CIA tracking weapons proliferation but saw her clandestine career imperiled after she was identified as an agency operative in the summer of 2003 in a syndicated column by Robert Novak." ... "Plame is married to Joseph C. Wilson IV, a former ambassador, who was sent by the CIA to Africa in February 2002 to evaluate claims that Saddam Hussein was trying to buy weapons-grade uranium in Niger. Wilson found the claims unverifiable and publicly criticized the intelligence used by the administration to justify the war against Iraq." ... "Administration officials began a campaign to discredit Wilson and identified Plame in conversations with several journalists, potentially violating a law against unmasking undercover agents. A federal grand jury recently indicted former [Vice President Dick] Cheney aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby on charges that he repeatedly lied to investigators." -By Richard B. Schmitt -LAtimes
Japan - Iraq - "Japan Should Keep Troops in Iraq, Al-Jaafari Says (Update1)." ... "Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al- Jaafari said Japan should extend its deployment of troops in his country." ... "Japan has about 600 troops in Samawah helping rebuild hospitals and schools and their term ends on Dec. 14. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi intends to extend the mission for another year, Kyodo News reported today, citing a copy of the government's new deployment plan." -By John Brinsley -Bloomberg
Iraq - Political - History - "Hussein faces victims amid shouts, chaos: As trial's first witnesses take the stand, ex-Iraqi leader 'not afraid to be executed'." ... "The first witnesses took the stand Monday in Saddam Hussein's trial and gave gripping accounts of torture and mass executions as the defiant ex-president and other defendants tried to intimidate those testifying." ... "The outbursts punctuated an extraordinary eight-hour session in which Hussein faced victims of his government's massacres in court for the first time. The first witness, Ahmad Hassan Muhammad, 38, riveted the courtroom with the scenes of torture he had witnessed after his arrest in 1982, including seeing a machine that "looked like a grinder" with hair and blood beneath it." ... "Standing 10 feet from Hussein, he described Baath Party officials hurling a young boy out a window to his death. At one point, Muhammad briefly broke down in tears as he recalled how his brother was tortured with electrical shocks in front of their 77-year-old father." ... ""There were mass arrests of men and women and children," Muhammad said. "Even if a child was 1 day old, they used to tell his parents, 'Bring him with you.' "" -By Robert F. Worth -NYTimes via SFGate.com
Iraq - Political - History - "Accounts of Brutality Roil Hussein Trial: The deposed leader is confronted by witnesses who tell of torture and attacks on their village. He threatens and spars with them and the judge." ... "The first witnesses to take the stand against Saddam Hussein confronted him Monday with chilling testimony about an aerial assault on their village, mass arrests, torture by electric shock, and executions after the Iraqi leader survived an assassination attempt there." ... "Two witnesses, men now in their 30s, stood glaring at the deposed leader a few feet away as each outlined his memory of the horrors suffered in their youth. Hussein and some of his seven co-defendants being tried in the slayings of 146 villagers repeatedly disrupted the proceedings and furiously disparaged the charges." ... "Hussein and his co-defendants are accused of ordering or carrying out the roundup, interrogation and torture of about 1,500 villagers in Dujayl after a small group of gunmen opened fire on the presidential motorcade July 8, 1982. They are also charged with criminal destruction of tens of thousands of acres of village land." (1, 2) -By Richard Boudreaux with contributions by Borzou Daragahi -LAtimes

20051205

US - Iraq - Politics - "Saddam's defense team walks out of resumed trial." ... "The court in the Saddam Hussein trial allowed former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark and another foreign defense lawyer to address the session Monday, reversing a ruling that had led the defense to walk out." ... "After a 90-minute recess, Chief Judge Rizgar Mohammed Amin allowed Clark and ex-Qatari Justice Minister Najib al-Nueimi to speak on the questions of the legitimacy of the tribunal and safety of the lawyers." -AP via -USATODAY

20051202

US - Iraq - Politics - "10 Marines killed near Falluja: Marines conducting 'counter-insurgency' operations in Falluja, Ramadi." ... "A roadside bomb Thursday killed 10 Marines while they were on "foot patrol near Falluja," the Marine Corps said Friday." ... "Eleven Marines were also wounded in the incident, and four of them have not yet returned to duty." ... "Marines have been conducting "counterinsurgency operations" in the Falluja and Ramadi areas ahead of the December 15 elections." ... "This brings the number of U.S. military deaths in Iraq to 2,123." -Contributed to by Arwa Damon and Mohammed Tawfeeq -CNN

20051130

US - Iraq - Prison - Politics - "General: Americans Must Stop Iraqi Abusers." ... "The nation's top military man, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, said American troops in Iraq have a duty to intercede and stop abuse of prisoners by Iraqi security personnel." ... "When Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld contradicted Pace, the general stood firm." ... "Rumsfeld told the general he believed Pace meant to say the U.S. soldiers had to report the abuse, not stop it." ... "Pace stuck to his original statement." ... ""If they are physically present when inhumane treatment is taking place, sir, they have an obligation to try to stop it," Pace told his civilian boss." -By William C. Mann -AP via -WashingtonPost
US - Iraq - Military - GOV - Secrets - "U.S. Military Covertly Pays to Run Stories in Iraqi Press: Troops write articles presented as news reports. Some officers object to the practice." ... "As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in Iraq." ... "The articles, written by U.S. military "information operations" troops, are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers with the help of a defense contractor, according to U.S. military officials and documents obtained by the Los Angeles Times." ... "Many of the articles are presented in the Iraqi press as unbiased news accounts written and reported by independent journalists. The stories trumpet the work of U.S. and Iraqi troops, denounce insurgents and tout U.S.-led efforts to rebuild the country." ... "Though the articles are basically factual, they present only one side of events and omit information that might reflect poorly on the U.S. or Iraqi governments, officials said." (1, 2, 3) -By Mark Mazzetti and Borzou Daragahi -LAtimes
US - Iraq - Police - Politics - "Bush Offers 'Strategy for Victory' in Iraq: The president again rejects a timetable for troop withdrawal." ... "Moving to deflect criticism of the war in Iraq and lay out new conditions that would allow the departure of U.S. troops, President Bush said today he would settle for "nothing less than complete victory" there, and defined that success as creating an Iraq in which Iraqis could live in peace protected by their own security forces." ... "The president devoted much of the roughly 35-minute speech to presenting a picture of Iraqi police and military units increasingly being able to carry on the campaign against those he called "rejectionists, Saddamists and terrorists."" ... "But he did not address three ongoing concerns about the security forces: their de facto division into three segments made up separately of Kurds, Shiites and Sunni; the fact that some Sunnis are accepting the U.S. training and then joining the insurgency; and the infiltration of the Iraqi government's security forces by members of ethnic militia loyal to leaders other than those of the government." -By James Gerstenzang, Tyler Marshall and Mark Mazzetti -LAtimes

20051125

Texas - Thanksgiving - US - Iraq - Military - Politics - Cindy Sheehan - "Sheehan Back in Texas for War Protest." ... "The mother of a fallen soldier whose vigil against the war in Iraq outside President Bush's ranch returned to Texas, saying she is "heartbroken" that the troops are not home." ... "[Cindy] Sheehan asked protesters to return to Crawford this week during Bush's family Thanksgiving gathering. She was unknown when she set up camp outside Bush's ranch during his August vacation, but as the vigil drew thousands, she attracted national attention." -AP via -CBSNews

20051119

US - Iraq - Religion - Military - "Series of blasts kills nearly 100 in Iraq: Mosques, hotel area targeted." ... "Suicide bombers killed nearly 100 people yesterday in one of the deadliest days of Iraq's insurgency, bringing houses down on sleeping families in Baghdad and blowing up Shi'ite Muslim worshipers in two mosques in the eastern part of the country just as the victims turned their faces up to the preachers to hear their Friday sermons." ... "Nationwide, the attacks were the deadliest since Sept. 14, when at least 14 insurgent bombings in Baghdad killed more than 160 people. Al Qaeda in Iraq was believed to have been involved in at least the Baghdad blasts yesterday. The insurgent group said in a statement that the bombings represented retaliation for a US military offensive still underway in far western Iraq." ... "As in the September attacks, most of the victims yesterday were civilians." ... "" -By Ellen Knickmeyer and Naseer Nouri -WashingtonPost via -BostonGlobe
US - Iraq - Military - "House rejects Iraq pullout." ... "In a maneuver to strike at Iraq war critics, the Republican-led House of Representatives engineered a vote on Friday on a resolution to pull U.S. troops immediately from Iraq, which was defeated nearly unanimously." ... "Democrats denounced it as a political stunt and an attack on Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania, a leading Democratic military hawk who stunned his colleagues on Thursday by calling for troops to be withdrawn from Iraq as quickly as possible." ... "Unlike Murtha's proposal calling for troops to be withdrawn "as soon as practicable," which he expected would be about six months, the Republican resolution said deployment of the U.S. forces should be "terminated immediately."" -Reuters

20051118

US - Iraq - GOV - Business - North Carolina - Prison - "Ex-Convict Took Bribes in Iraq, U.S. Says." ... "A North Carolina man who was charged yesterday with accepting kickbacks and bribes as a comptroller and financial officer for the American occupation authority in Iraq was hired despite having served prison time for felony fraud in the 1990's." ... "The job gave the man, Robert J. Stein, control over $82 million in cash earmarked for Iraqi rebuilding projects." ... "Along with a web of other conspirators who have not yet been named, Mr. Stein and his wife received "bribes, kickbacks and gratuities amounting to at least $200,000 per month" to steer lucrative construction contracts to companies run by another American, Philip H. Bloom, an affidavit outlining the criminal complaint says." (1, 2) -By James Glanz -NYTimes

20051117

Iraq - Oil - Business - UN - Legal - History - "Scope of oil-for-food fraud 'overwhelming'." ... "It began with the best of intentions and achieved its major goals: feeding the Iraqi people while keeping dangerous weapons out of Saddam Hussein's hands." ... "Along the way, the United Nations' oil-for-food program metastasized into the worst corruption scandal in U.N. history." ... "Three weeks after a scathing report detailed the scope of the fraud — implicating governments, former diplomats, businessmen and corporations — a relatively small number of criminal investigations and other probes have begun." -By Barbara Slavin -USATODAY

20051116

US - Iraq - Prisons - Military - "U.S. Troops Discover 173 Abused Detainees In Iraq Basement: Sunni Arab prisoners were allegedly tortured by Iraqi captors." ... "The same day that the [US] Senate passed a resolution barring cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of detainees in the war on terror, the Iraqi government said Tuesday that it has ordered an investigation into the alleged abuse of 173 detainees discovered by American troops over the weekend in the basement of an Interior Ministry building in the Baghdad suburb of Jadriya." ... "For many Iraqis, the revelation of the secret torture center brought back painful memories of the brutality of the Sunni-dominated Saddam Hussein regime, blamed for killing hundreds of thousands of Shiites and Kurds[.]" ... "American officials were quick to condemn the treatment of the prisoners with the American Embassy and U.S. military command calling the situation "totally unacceptable," agreeing with Iraqi officials that "mistreatment of detainees will not be tolerated."" -By Gil Kaufman -MTV.com /News

20051115

US - Iraq - Military - Politics - Alaska - "Greenfield: Bush trying to turn the table on Dems: Campaign-style rhetoric comes during eroding support for Iraq war." ... "President Bush has gone on the offensive, stepping up his political rhetoric in the face of the Iraq war's growing unpopularity." ... "In an address Monday at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska, President Bush accused war critics of "playing politics with this issue and ... sending mixed signals to our troops and the enemy."" ... "CNN Senior Analyst Jeff Greenfield talked with anchor Wolf Blitzer after the speech, analyzing the Bush administration's fresh strategy to target opponents of his Iraq policies." -CNN
US - Iraq - Military - "Senate Urges Bush to Report Progress on Ending War (Update2)." ... "The Senate today called on President George W. Bush to explain his strategy for ending the war in Iraq and report every three months on progress until all U.S. troops stationed there are redeployed." ... "The measure calls on the administration to make 2006 a year of significant political and military transition in Iraq that will allow a phased reduction of U.S. forces." ... "None of these measures are in the House version of the defense authorization bill, which means they'll be the subject of negotiation when the two chambers hammer out compromise legislation." -By Jeff St.Onge -Bloomberg
US - Iraq - Vietnam - Military - Political - History - "Poll: American attitudes on Iraq similar to Vietnam era." ... "There are enormous differences between the war in Iraq and the one in Vietnam that defined a generation. The current conflict hasn't lasted as long, taken nearly as many American lives or sparked the sort of massive protests that became common in the '60s and '70s." ... "But when it comes to public opinion, Americans' attitudes toward Iraq and the proper course ahead are remarkably similar to public attitudes toward Vietnam in the summer of 1970, a pivotal year in that conflict and a time of enormous domestic unrest." ... "Some political scientists and Vietnam War historians predict the Iraq war, like the one in Southeast Asia a quarter-century ago, will shape American attitudes long after it's over." -By Susan Page with contributions by Andrea Stone -USATODAY

20051113

US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - Politics - "The Right Way in Iraq." ... "I was wrong." ... "Almost three years ago we went into Iraq to remove what we were told -- and what many of us believed and argued -- was a threat to America. But in fact we now know that Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction when our forces invaded Iraq in 2003. The intelligence was deeply flawed and, in some cases, manipulated to fit a political agenda." ... "It was a mistake to vote for this war in 2002. I take responsibility for that mistake. It has been hard to say these words because those who didn't make a mistake -- the men and women of our armed forces and their families -- have performed heroically and paid a dear price." ... "The world desperately needs moral leadership from America, and the foundation for moral leadership is telling the truth." ... "While we can't change the past, we need to accept responsibility, because a key part of restoring America's moral leadership is acknowledging when we've made mistakes or been proven wrong -- and showing that we have the creativity and guts to make it right." -By John Edwards-WashingtonPost

20051112

US - Iraq - Secret - Military - Terrorism - Politics - Law - "Asterisks Dot White House's Iraq Argument." ... "President Bush and his national security adviser have answered critics of the Iraq war in recent days with a two-pronged argument: that Congress saw the same intelligence the administration did before the war, and that independent commissions have determined that the administration did not misrepresent the intelligence." ... "But Bush and his aides had access to much more voluminous intelligence information than did lawmakers, who were dependent on the administration to provide the material. And the commissions cited by officials, though concluding that the administration did not pressure intelligence analysts to change their conclusions, were not authorized to determine whether the administration exaggerated or distorted those conclusions." ... [Furthermore] "... Bush does not share his most sensitive intelligence, such as the President's Daily Brief, with lawmakers. Also, the National Intelligence Estimate summarizing the intelligence community's views about the threat from Iraq was given to Congress just days before the vote to authorize the use of force in that country." ... "In addition, there were doubts within the intelligence community not included in the NIE. And even the doubts expressed in the NIE could not be used publicly by members of Congress because the classified information had not been cleared for release. For example, the NIE view that Hussein would not use weapons of mass destruction against the United States or turn them over to terrorists unless backed into a corner was cleared for public use only a day before the Senate vote." -By Dana Milbank and Walter Pincus-WashingtonPost

20051111

Jordan - Iraq - "Jordan official: Suicide bombers belong to al-Qaeda." ... "Three "non-Jordanian" suicide bombers belonging to al-Qaeda in Iraq carried out Amman's triple hotel attacks that killed at least 57 people, Jordan's deputy premier said Saturday." ... "Marwan Muasher said the three were males and that no females were among them, replying to claims by Jordanian-born militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's terror group that four Iraqis — including a husband and wife — carried out the bombings." ... ""The conclusion has arrived. al-Qaeda is behind the attacks and specifically Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's people," Muasher told a packed press conference in Amman [Jordan]." -AP via -USATODAY
US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - Religious- Politics - "Poll: Majority questions Bush administration ethics." ... "Most Americans say they aren't impressed by the ethics and honesty of the Bush administration, already under scrutiny for its justifications for an unpopular war in Iraq and its role in the leak of a covert CIA officer's identity." ... "Almost six in 10 — 57 percent — said they do not think the Bush administration has high ethical standards and the same portion says President Bush is not honest, an AP-Ipsos poll found. Just over four in 10 say the administration has high ethical standards and that Bush is honest. Whites, Southerners and evangelicals were most likely to believe Bush is honest." -AP via -HoustonChronicle.com
US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - Opinion - History - Pennsylvania - "Bush assails Iraq critics as skewing war history." ... "President George W. Bush lashed out at critics of his Iraq policy Friday, accusing them of trying to rewrite history about the decision to go to war and saying their criticism was undercutting U.S. forces in battle." ... ""While it's perfectly legitimate to criticize my decisions or the conduct of the war, it is deeply irresponsible to rewrite the history of how that war began," the president said in a Veterans Day speech in Pennsylvania." ... "Bush delivered his speech as part of an effort to shore up his credibility as he faces growing public skepticism about Iraq and accusations by Democrats and others that he led the nation into war on false pretenses." ... "Those accusations seem to be making a dent in public confidence in him, as public opinion polls show more people questioning the president's honesty about Iraq and about whether American troops should remain in the fight." -By Maria Newman -NYTimes via -IHT.com
US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - Political - History - Pennsylvania - "Newsview: Bush Returns to Campaign Playbook." ... "President Bush seems to be turning the clock back to Election Day 2004, parrying with ex-rival John Kerry and harshly questioning his critics' commitment to U.S. troops." ... "You can't blame him for being nostalgic for better political times, when most Americans felt he was a strong, honest leader and gave him the benefit of the doubt on Iraq." ... "That's certainly not the sentiment these days. With his approval ratings plunging, even some Republican leaders are showing signs of abandoning Bush's listing ship." ... ""Mistakes were made," Republican Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania said Friday of the war effort." ... "When the president visited Pennsylvania to defend his Iraq policies on Friday, Santorum kept his distance, literally and rhetorically. He was 120 miles away, telling reporters the war in Iraq has been "less than optimal" and that "maybe some blame could be laid" at the White House." -By Ron Fournier -AP via-WashingtonPost
US - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - History - "Bush Fires Back at Critics of Iraq War." ... "Knocked on the defensive over allegations that he launched the Iraq war based on faulty intelligence, President Bush accused his critics today of trying to rewrite the history of how and why the war began." ... ""Some Democrats and anti-war critics are now claiming we manipulated the intelligence and misled the American people about why we went to war," he added. "These critics are fully aware that a bipartisan Senate investigation found no evidence of political pressure to change the intelligence community's judgments related to Iraq's weapons programs. They also know that intelligence agencies from around the world agreed with our assessments of Saddam Hussein."" ... "The bipartisan Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction the panel headed by Judge Laure