52 Killed in Karbala Bombing;
Bombing in Karrada Wounds 8;
Cheney and McCain in Baghdad
A massive bomb in the Shiite holy city of Karbala killed 52 persons and wounded 75 on Monday according to AFP. Shiites' feelings are raw over the attack, threatening further civil war violence.
(Courtesy Jafariyanews.com).
Sawt al-Iraq/ AFP report in Arabic that the explosion occurred only 100 meters from the shrine of Imam Husayn, among the holiest in the Shiite world. It scattered body parts widely. Had the bombing inflicted severe damage on the shrine, the security situation collapsed again.
The Shorja market that John McCain visited in spring of 2007 to prove that Iraq is safe was not very safe then, since he had to have a lot of protection. But it is even less safe today, being policed by the Mahdi Army militia, according to CNN.
In general, I would discourage McCain or anyone else from deciding on how good a security situation is by seeing whether the markets are bustling. Markets usually bustle, since people have to buy staples, even in the midst of a low intensity war. Indeed, since people stock up, in perilous situations the markets may bustle artificially.
Saigon in 1970.
McClatchy's headline says it all: "Cheney cites 'phenomenal' Iraqi security progress as bombing kills 40". Cheney even needed a complicated security routine and lots of bodyguards just to move around the Green Zone where Iraqi and US offices are. The heavily fortified Green Zone actually took incoming mortar fire on Monday, during Cheney's visit there. If the Vice President of the United States can't visit the most fortified place in Baghdad, the capital of the country he militarily occupies, without risking a mortar strike, then things are still not all the great. I don't believe Gen. MacArthur in Tokyo suffered any similar humiliation.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has issued a new report on the humanitarian crisis in Iraq (pdf). It says in part:
' Five years after the outbreak of the war in Iraq, the humanitarian situation in most of the country remains among the most critical in the world. Because of the conflict, millions of Iraqis have insufficient access to clean water, sanitation and health care. The current crisis is exacerbated by the lasting effects of previous armed conflicts and years of economic sanctions.
Despite limited improvements in security in some areas, armed violence is still having a disastrous impact. Civilians continue to be killed in the hostilities. The injured often do not receive adequate medical care. Millions of people have been forced to rely on insufficient supplies of poor-quality water as water and sewage systems suffer from a lack of maintenance and a shortage of engineers.
Many families include people who have been forced by the conflict to flee their homes, leaving those left behind with the daily struggle of trying to make ends meet. A sustained economic crisis marked by high unemployment further aggravates their plight. '
Some five hundred Iraqi political personalities with attend a two-day conference for the purpose of working out a national reconciliation plan. Prime Minister al-Maliki wants to reconstitute his cabinet, from which several parties withdrew last summer. The Kurds have already announced that they will not give up any of their security-related seats.
McClatchy reports political violence in Iraq for Monday:
' Baghdad
- Around 7 am, a roadside bomb targeted a police patrol at Mansour neighborhood at Ameerat street near teachers training institute .One policeman was killed and one was injured.
- Around 7 am, a roadside bomb exploded at Seid Al-Haleeb intersection(near Mr.Milk grocery shop) .One civilian was injured in that incident.
- Around 9 am, a roadside bomb exploded at Hamah-Zayuna intersection near Shaab stadium in Zayuna neighborhood. Three civilians were killed in that incident.
- Around 9 am, Katyusha missile hit the green zone(IZ).No casualties reported.
- Around 11 am, one mortar shell lobbed on the green zone(IZ) .No casualties reported.
- Around 1 pm, a car bomb exploded at Uqba bin Nafia intersection in Karrada neighborhood. Eight people were injured in that incident.
- Around 2 pm, a roadside bomb targeted an American patrol at Al-Fudhailiyah intersection (east Baghdad). No casualties reported, Iraqi police said and we have no MNFI reply to confirm the incident.
- Around 2:30 pm, a roadside bomb targeted an American patrol at Rashidiyah neighborhood (north Baghdad) .No casualties reported, Iraqi police said and we have no MNFI reply to confirm the incident.
- Around 5 pm, Iraqi army and police found four dead bodies buried in a garden of a deserted house in Wardiyah village of Medaen town (south of Baghdad).
- Around 6:30 pm, two mortar shells hit a soccer field at Ghadeer neighborhood of New Baghdad(east Baghdad) near Ibn Saad school .Five people were killed and 7 were injured .Those people were playing soccer when the mortars landed on the field.
- Police found (3) dead bodies in Baghdad today. (2) were found in east Baghdad in Risafa bank; 1 in Ubaidi and 1 in Jisr Diyala. While (1) was found in Bayaa in west Baghdad (Karkh bank). . .
Kirkuk
- Around 7:30 am, a roadside bomb targeted one of the 77 company’s vehicle ( 77 is a construction company) in Arafa neighborhood in Kirkuk city.One guard (an employee of the company) was injured with a civilian who was in the area.
- Police found three dead bodies in Al-Uthayem district (south Kirkuk) today .Police also added that the three dead bodies were for three men who were kidnapped two days ago in Tuz Khurmatu (south Kirkuk).
Salahuddin
- Sunday night, gunmen opened fire on a supporting committee check point (Sahwa council) at Al-Alam town (25 km north east Tikrit).The Captain of the check point was injured in that incident.
Basra
- In the morning, gunmen opened fire on a policeman in old Basra (downtown Basra city).He was killed at once.
- Basra morgue received today a dead body for a woman who was found in Zubair city (35 km west Basra) having some bullets on her body. Also the morgue had received three dead bodies on Sunday for an officer and two policemen who were found in Qibla neighborhood (south Basra) Sunday morning. '
Labels: Iraq
posted by Juan Cole @ 3/18/2008 06:30:00 AM
7 Comments:
I suppose there are actually dimwitted humans among us who still listen to Dick Cheney and believe what he blabbers on about. His definition of "phenomenal" comes from a brain so twisted and delusional, it defies description. He klings to his insistance that the invasion of Iraq was correct, because he cannot admit nor own up to error. He doesnt want to trouble his crazed mind about death tolls, refugees, destroyed cities, wounded civilians, and devastation at every turn. All that this madman cares about is being "right". Keith Olbermann calls him crazy, and that sums it up in a nutshell. Cheney will go down in history as a demagogue, a charlatan, and a true monster. It will be a better day for humanity when Cheney exits the stage; and hides himself in his castle in Dubai.
As much as a wing of the sunni sect of Islam hates the shias, what moron tries to rile 70% of the country up so that they re-start their 'cleansing' practice?
Either the Salafis are very stupid or the americans are doing this for their divide and conquer aims.
Hirohito watch: I sure miss Billmon
These three brave and courageous people are True American Patriots and should be honored and rewarded as such.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080318/pl_nm/usa_iraq_diplomats_dc_1
In 2003, three senior US diplomats abruptly ended prestigious careers and gained international attention by noisily resigning in protest over the US invasion and occupation of Iraq.
In interviews on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the invasion, the three said they have lived more modestly without government salaries but the chaos that has followed president george w. bush's Iraq policy shows their actions were justified.
"The decision I took was the best decision I've ever made in my life," said John Brady Kiesling, 50, who had served as a political officer in Greece, Armenia and Morocco.
Kiesling was the first diplomat to go public with his dissent, publishing his resignation letter to then-Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell's reputation was to be tarnished by his public embrace of the war, while Kiesling became a rare diplomat whose private opinions garnered public attention.
"Our fervent pursuit of war with Iraq is driving us to squander the international legitimacy that has been America's most potent weapon of both offense and defense since the days of Woodrow Wilson," Kiesling wrote in his resignation letter.
The war did lead to the hanging of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein but officials never found weapons of mass destruction that the Bush administration had cited as a key reason for the invasion and many nations denounced the US-driven war.
Now a resident of Athens, Greece, Kiesling and two others that followed him in resigning, John Brown and Mary Ann Wright, said leaving their diplomatic careers had been hard.
"I've had to tighten my belt," said Brown, 59, who served in London as well as Moscow, Prague and Belgrade. "I have to be very careful about my budget."
Wright, 61, who helped reestablish the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2001, has become active in the anti-war movement. She relies on the hospitality of others as she travels to rallies and events.
Kiesling says he lives in a modest one-bedroom apartment and relies on a bicycle and walking to get around.
us vice president Richard B. "Dick" Cheney played the part of backroom power broker for two days and came away with pledges from Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds to firm up a new blueprint for US-Iraq relations that will stretch beyond the bush presidency.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080318/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney_44
wonder if he shot anybody in the face ??
"On Valentine's Day 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt met with Saudi King Abdul Aziz ibn Saud on the USS Quincy at Egypt's Great Bitter Lake along the Suez Canal. Roosevelt was on his way home from Yalta, where he, Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill had settled the contours of the post-World War II world."
"The compact that Roosevelt and the king reached on the USS Quincy -- American friendship and support for secure access to oil -- was no less significant. It has been the foundation of stability in the Persian Gulf, a troubled but vital region, in the 63 years since."
"The Quincy compact has survived three full Arab-Israeli wars and continuing low-intensity conflicts between Arabs and Israelis. Saudi Arabia has played a responsible and moderating role in OPEC and has contributed to stability in world oil prices and to global prosperity."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/07/AR2008030702429.html
This is an article by the first and longest running prime minister of Singapore. He is a lot smarter than American polititians. By his decision, Singapore doesn't tax corporations. They tax individuals who are employed by corporations. In America we tax the corporations. The corporations move facilities to Singapore and we lose the corporate tax base and the income tax base.
"US Vice President Richard Cheney's visit to Iraq on the fifth anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom was given scant coverage in the media. And yet it may go down in history as a pivotal moment in the transformation of post-Saddam Iraq into a beacon of democracy and freedom in the Arab world."
"Hours after Cheney's departure, the Iraqi presidency council announced that it had approved the Iraqi parliament's provincial elections law. This long-awaited act will facilitate Iraq's development into a federal state and so cement the grassroots-level political progress that has made such strides in the last year as a result of the revised US counter-insurgency or "surge" campaign."
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1205420743238&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
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