The Bush administration talking points on the Iraq War are that the troop escalation has reduced violence and made Iraq safer for Iraqis, that the major threat in Iraq is self-avowed al-Qaeda devotees, and that Iran and the Shiites are just as deadly a threat as the Sunni Arab guerrillas. The facts? The Associated Press […]
Cole on Air America with Sam Seder, Sunday
Catch my interview at Air America with Sam Seder on Sunday, August 26 at 6 pm, regarding my new book, Napoleon’s Egypt: Invading the Middle East.
Troops on Ground tune out "Happy Talk" from Bush
Tina Susman of the LAT finds that the privates and specialists among US troops in Iraq are dismissive of the ‘happy talk’ they hear from Bush and some of their commanders about the way the war is going. They see the realities on the ground, they lose friends to roadside bombings, they see evidence that […]
Ahmed on Sharif Decision, Pakistan
Don’t miss Manan Ahmed’s important comment at our Global Affairs group blog on Pakistan’s Supreme Court decision that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif may return to Pakistan. See also Sameer Lalwani’s comments at the Washington Note on the same issue.
C-Span covers Cole at New America Foundation
This talk will be broadcast on C-Span at some later date, but will be available later on Friday at the web site of the New America Foundation. New America Foundation Juan Cole: Lessons from Past Western Incursions in the Middle East Friday, August 24, 200712:15 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. New America Foundation1630 Connecticut Ave, NW, […]
Iranian Troops Come into Kurdistan
Iranian troops came into the Iraqi territory of Kurdistan, seeking revenge on the PEJAK faction of Kurds that has launched terror attacks on Iranian soil. Senator John Warner called Thursday for Bush to take out 5,000 US troops from Iraq before Christmas Day. Although Warner protrayed the move as symbolic,, insofar as it would signal […]
OSC Press Roundup Maliki visit to Syria
The USG Open Source Center rounds up Iraqi media reaction to the visit of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to Damascus. Iraq-Syria: Media, Officials Call Al-Maliki Visit ‘Success’ Despite Differences Iraq, Syria — OSC Report Friday, August 24, 2007 Document Type: OSC Report Word Count: 749 Iraq-Syria: Media, Officials Call Al-Maliki’s Visit ‘Successful’ Despite Differences […]
Napoleon, Bush & the Republic Militant
My piece on “Pitching the Imperial Republic,” comparing Napoleon’s fiasco in Egypt to Bush’s quagmire in Iraq (since he likes historical analogies) is now available at Tomdispatch.com. Please link back to Tom’s site if you reference it.
Military Coup Planned for Iraq?
A rumor is circulating among well-connected and formerly high-level Iraqi bureaucrats in exile in places like Damascus that a military coup is being prepared for Iraq. I received the following from a reliable, knowledgeable contact. There is no certitude that this plan can or will be implemented. That it is being discussed at high levels […]
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