These are the archives for the week ending 25th August 2006
British base looted on handover
The first British camp to be handed to the Iraqis was looted almost bare within days of the army's departure. The transfer last month was widely heralded as a signal that Iraq would soon be ready to run itself. A British soldier said that, as the last men drove away, they saw pick-up trucks being filled with equipment worth tens of thousands of pounds. Most items that could be removed were taken, including air-conditioning units, water-filtration systems, chairs, bedding, and kitchen utensils.
When the commander of British forces in southeast Iraq, Brigadier James Everard, discussed the matter with the province's governor, he was told that the camp had "largely gone." Military sources believe off-duty Iraqi soldiers and government officials did much of the looting. British officers privately say they blame the governor for much of the looting and believe some of the air-conditioning units are now in his private office.
The Iraqi and British governments had described the transfer of Camp Smitty on July 30, a base outside the southern city of Samawah, as a key step in handing control of security back to Iraqis. Defense Secretary Des Browne said it was a step toward "building a stable and democratic future for their country." The Iraqi prime minister, who attended a handover ceremony in Samawah, had called it a "great national day."
New York Sun, 23/8/06
Oil companies prepare for bonanza
The world's top oil companies are maneuvering intently to win a stake in their oilfield of choice when Iraq finally opens to multibillion dollar investment. From a safe distance, multinationals are poring over data from Iraq's most promising oilfields and some of its older workhorses to gain the edge when the bidding begins.
Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani has signaled the race for oilfield deals worth $20 billion could start this autumn. But oil men, noting a lack of security and investment law, are under no illusion that drilling is imminent. Those scouring the globe for oil are willing to wait patiently for an opportunity in Iraq, home to 115 billion barrels of proven reserves.
Each company is out for itself, but alliances are expected to emerge. "Most likely there will be consortia chosen to take care of the big oilfields," said Shamkhi Faraj, Director General of Marketing and Economics. "And the majors, because of their expertise and investment capability, stand a better chance of leading some of them."
Reuters, 23/8/06
Former minister arrested for corruption
Iraq's former electricity minister, a member of the transitional government set up after the 2003 US-led invasion, was arrested today on corruption charges after he surrendered, an official said.
Ayham al-Samarie, a dual Iraq-US citizen and Sunni Arab political figure, is one of the five ministers in the former government against whom arrest warrants were issued for massive corruption. The others - the ministers of labour, defence, transportation and housing - remain at large.
Irish Examiner, 22/8/06
Don't mention the civil war
The British deputy to the top U.S. commander in Iraq said Tuesday the country's sectarian conflict is not a full-blown civil war but could be described as a "civil war in miniature."
"In my judgment, we are not in a situation of civil war," British Royal Marine Lt. Gen. Robert Fry told reporters at the Pentagon in a video-teleconference from Baghdad. He added, "I know what a civil war looks like."
Fry is deputy commander of Multi-National Force-Iraq, headed by U.S. Army Gen. George Casey, and is the senior British representative in the country. The role of U.S. and coalition forces now is to "hold the ring" and wait for the Iraqis to reach a political settlement that will end the sectarian strife and build the foundations for economic recovery, Fry said.
Fry said it was important that the conflict not be described as "civil war." "It is inflammatory language," he said. "It is implying that the situation is worse than it is. It therefore encourages - among other things - adventurous media reporting" and "could encourage a certain degree of despondency in the political constituencies of both of our countries. But above all, I simply don't think it's an accurate statement of the situation that we're currently involved in."
Washington Post, 22/8/06
Oil workers on strike
Hundreds of oil company employees went on strike Tuesday for higher pay, officials said. The job action cut supplies to power stations and factories as Iraq faces its worst fuel shortage since Saddam Hussein's 2003 ouster.
About 350 workers from the Iraqi Pipes and Lines Company in the southern city of Basra and another 200 in Nasiriyah, about 200 miles southeast of Baghdad, walked off the job Tuesday morning, according to the head of the workers' union. The workers want higher salaries, paid holidays and a share of the profits. Monthly salaries at the company currently range from $130 to $280.
Houston Chronicle, 22/8/06
Less British troops, but a long stay
The number of British troops in Iraq could be halved within the next nine months, military chiefs indicated yesterday. But the remaining mission of between 3,000 and 4,000 soldiers is likely to remain for several years to bolster the Iraqi army and police.
After more than three years of fighting, with more than £3 billion spent and the loss of 115 British lives, the country has an "obligation to protect our investment", say senior defence sources.
Daily Telegraph, 23/8/06
No support for Labour terror policy
An amazing 72 per cent of people think Tony Blair's foreign policy has made Britain more of a target for terrorists such as the 7/7 bombers, says a new poll. Just one per cent believe the Government's policy towards the hotspots of Iraq and the Middle East have improved our safety.
The ICM survey - carried out in the wake of the alleged jet bombs terror plot - also found voters are suspicious of what ministers tell them about the security threat. While a fifth believe the Government is telling the truth, 21 per cent say it has exaggerated the danger. And 51 per cent are convinced ministers are not telling the public the full story. The poll also shows support for Labour down four points to 31 per cent - a 19-year low.
Daily Mirror, 22/8/06
US opposition to war at new high
Opposition among Americans to the war in Iraq has reached a new high, with only about a third of respondents saying they favor it, according to a poll released Monday. Just 35 percent of 1,033 adults polled say they favor the war in Iraq; 61 percent say they oppose it -- the highest opposition noted in any CNN poll since the conflict began more than three years ago.
Despite the rising opposition to the war, President Bush said the U.S. will not withdraw from Iraq while he is president. "In this case, it would give the terrorists and extremists an additional tool besides safe haven, and that is revenues from oil sales," the president said. "Leaving before the job is done would be a disaster," he said.
CNN, 21/8/06
Colombian mercenaries threaten strike
Dozens of former Colombian soldiers deployed in Baghdad as security guards are engaged in a pay dispute with their employer Blackwater, a US private military company contracted in Iraq by the State Department. The dispute erupted in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone after 35 Colombians learned that their salaries amounted to a quarter of the $4,000 they allege they were offered by recruitment agents in Bogotá acting for Blackwater.
Mostly seasoned counter-insurgency troops, the Colombians allege that they were given their contracts barely hours before departing Bogotá or en route to Iraq and only then realised that they would be paid $34 per day. Because Americans and Britons usually earn salaries in the order of $10,000 in Iraq, the much lower pay offered to Colombians is likely to prompt accusations of exploitation and discrimination, one US security consultant said.
In the past three years, hundreds of Colombians, Chileans and Ecuadoreans have gone to Baghdad, Kirkuk and Hilla to work for private military companies.
Financial Times, 21/8/06
Lawyers killed for defending women's rights
Since October 2005, some 38 lawyers in Iraq have been killed, many of whom were defending women's rights. IRIN News, a United Nations humanitarian news and information service, reports that at least 120 lawyers have fled to surrounding countries since January because of the threats to their safety.
Lawyers at special risk for death threats and murder are those who take cases involving violations of Islamic law, such as adultery, so-called honor killings, and cases of women asking for custody of their children. In July, Iraqi lawyer Salah Abdel-Kader was found murdered in his office with a note that read, "This is the price to pay for those who do not follow Islamic laws and defend what is dreadful and dirty," according to IRIN. He frequently took on cases involving custody disputes and honor killings.
The threat of violence has had a chilling effect on lawyers willing to take these cases. "We are afraid and terrified by such killings, and many of my colleagues have stopped accepting such cases - even if it could bring good money - because our lives could be in serious risk," said Iraqi lawyer Qusay Ahmed, according to IRIN News.
Feminist Daily News Wire, 21/8/06
The to-hell-with-them hawks have a plan
Recently Bush has been wondering why the Shi'ites in southern Iraq have displayed such ingratitude to the man who liberated them from Saddam. It doesn't seem to have occurred to him that a populace terrorised by sectarian murder, nonexistent government and near anarchy might feel angry at the man who rid them of dictatorship but then refused to provide a minimal level of security for the aftermath. And so, the frustrated born-again neocon in Bush may be ceding to the caucus of those dubbed the "to-hell-with-them" hawks.
This conservative caucus never liked the neocon argument for removing Saddam. They didn't like nation building and didn't believe that Iraqis were capable of democracy. They wanted to remove a WMD threat but, most of all, they wanted to strike terror into the heart of the enemy by showing what US military might could do. Depose Saddam, remove the weapons, install a client dictator and leave as much rubble behind: that was the game plan. It would deter the Iranians and leave a light military footprint. It had Donald Rumsfeld written all over it and it helps explain a lot about the Bush administration's dogged refusal to add more troops in the first few months after the invasion.
If the Republicans are to recover by November 2008, let alone November 2006, they have to get Iraq behind them. They have to show progress or provide some credible strategy for victory that is not simply more of the gruelling same. Bush doesn't have one. The to-hell-with-them hawks do. And they're gaining traction. Before too long a compliant US-backed dictator may not seem like such a bad option in Mesopotamia.
Sunday Times, 20/8/06
Children interned for no reason
Children who have never been charged with a crime are being held in juvenile prisons in Iraq, a State Department official stated in a report he posted on the Internet this week. Some of the children are in the detention centers simply because there is no one to pick them up and take them home, said Marshall Adame, an official with the National Coordination Team based out of Camp Victory in Iraq.
"These are not hardened criminals or terrorists," said Mr. Adame in a personal detailed report he published on an Internet log. He added that there had been reports of "physical and other abuse" in the detention centers but that the U.S.-led coalition considered the issue "not our urgent business."
Mr. Adame said he went ahead and published his report because he wanted it to be part of the public record. "I'm not talking about those arrested or captured in the process of fighting against the coalition. I'm talking about children who were rounded up for no particular reason, who have not been charged but have been put into detention," he said.
Washington Times, 19/8/06
Gunmen fire on pilgrims
Gunmen have opened fire on Shia Muslim pilgrims in Baghdad, killing at least 20 and injuring 300, officials say.
Tens of thousands of Shias are making the annual pilgrimage to the tomb of revered Imam Musa Kadhim in the Kadhimiya neighbourhood.
Officials said the gunmen were thought to be Sunni extremists. Shia militiamen are guarding some of the pilgrims.
At the pilgrimage last year almost 1,000 people died in a stampede sparked by rumours of suicide bombers.
BBC News 20/8/06
Afghanistan - the forgotten war
Afghan police backed by NATO aircraft killed 71 suspected Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan, while separate clashes left four U.S. troops dead and six wounded, officials said Sunday.
U.S. and NATO forces are facing a re-energized and increasingly powerful Taliban. "There are people today, particularly Afghan journalists and Pakistani journalists who monitor this very closely, who say Afghanistan is a lost cause," said CBS News consultant Jere Van Dyke.
As the violence escalates, so too has the American troop presence. There are now 22,000 U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan - the highest number since the 2001 invasion. But, all of it has happened in the shadows of the world stage.
"People feel that the war in Afghanistan is a forgotten war," Van Dyke said. "What people really have to know is that more U.S. soldiers die in Afghanistan per capita than die in Iraq."
Currently about 22,000 U.S. forces are in Afghanistan along with 20,000 NATO-led troops.
CBS News 20/8/06
Record year for opium cultivation
Opium cultivation in Afghanistan has hit record levels - up by more than 40 percent from 2005, Western officials say.
The increase could have serious repercussions for an already grave security situation, with drug lords joining the Taliban-led fight against Afghan and international forces.
A Western anti-narcotics official in Kabul said about 370,650 acres of opium poppy was cultivated this season - up from 257,000 acres in 2005 - citing preliminary crop projections. The previous record was 323,700 acres in 2004, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
"Unfortunately, it is a record year," said a senior U.S. government official, who like the other Western officials, would speak only on condition of anonymity.
The State.com 20/8/06
July was worst month yet for civilians
The Iraqi Health Ministry yesterday released new figures that underscore the spike in warfare plaguing Iraq: July was the deadliest month for civilians since the war started in March 2003, figures show. During the month, 3,438 Iraqis were killed -- 1,855 because of sectarian or political violence and another 1,583 from bombings and shootings. Nearly 3,600 Iraqis were wounded, the official said. The release of these figures comes on the heels of a U.N. report that said nearly 6,000 people were killed in Iraq in May and June.
CNN, 17/8/06
Resistance at strongest since invasion
Data compiled by American military authorities in Baghdad show that violence in Iraq is at its highest level since the U.S. invasion in 2003, despite the assassination of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in June. The number of roadside bombs planted in Iraq rose in July to the highest monthly total of the war, while the number of daily strikes against American and Iraqi security forces has doubled since January. Almost 2,000 bombs exploded in July and that the majority of the bombs were directed at American-led military forces.
While the number of Americans killed in action per month has declined slightly bomb attacks are now the largest killer of American troops. A senior Defense Department official told the New York Times that the insurgency is more capable now and has more public support than at any other point in time.
Voice of America, 17/8/06