Juan Cole

Golden Oldies – IC from before the Iraq War, 2003 No comment. – JC ——————- Thursday, February 27, 2003 A poster to one of the lists I am on wrote: “US policy is to allow no sanctuaries anywhere on the globe for anti-American terror groups. No training camps. No organizations, no fronts. No funding. No […]

Salon: Iraq’s worst week — and Bush’s Cole in the Chronicle My essay at Salon.com this week is: Iraq’s worst week — and Bush’s As Americans finally begin to grasp the magnitude of the Iraq catastrophe, Bush’s popularity hits a new low. By Juan Cole Here is an excerpt: “The catastrophe in Iraq, the scope […]

Deadly Sectarian Violence kills 76, Wounds 179 Talabani Condemns Jaafari for Turkey Visit The Los Angeles Times estimates the dead in various attacks throughout Iraq on Tuesday at 76, with 179 wounded. Details are below. In the meantime, the glacial political process among top Iraqi politicians was roiled on Tuesday by a confrontation between President […]

Bush Ignored own National Intelligence Estimate on Danger, Nature of Iraq Insurgency Or, Ozymandias and Empire Knight Ridder reports that US intelligence agencies warned Bush in the summer and fall of 2003 that the guerrilla war was growing in strength, was mostly local, and was fueled in part by the big US military footprint in […]

Over 1300 Dead in Sectarian Violence Mortar Strike on Sunni Mosque Kills 4 Violence Subsides Ellen Knickmeyer and Bassam Sebti of the WaPo reports that since last Wednesday rioters and militiamen have killed over 1300 Iraqis on a sectarian basis. They add, ‘ Hundreds of unclaimed dead lay at the morgue at midday Monday — […]

Violence Kills 29 Despite Curfew in Iraq British Embassy in Tehran Torched Despite the daytime curfew, violence killed 29 in Iraq on Sunday and wounded dozens. A series of eight mortar shells slammed into Shiite neighborhoods, killing 16 persons and wounding some 45. Many women and children were among the victims. There was other violence […]

Afghanistan Prison Riot 25000 Protest in Pakistan The Bush administration cannot even control the al-Qaeda operatives it has in prison! Much less the many walking around free because Bush wasted our resources on an Iraq War instead of polishing off al-Qaeda. Meanwhile, the furor over the Danish caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad has not died […]

Muqtada calls for Sunni-Shiite Marches, Prayers Wants Pan-Islamic Resolution for US Withdrawal Al-Zaman / AFP report that [Ar.] young Shiite nationalist leader Muqtada al-Sadr, having arrived at Basra on Sunday from Iran, called for a joint peaceful demonstration involving both Shiites and Sunnis that demands the departure of US, British and other foreign troops from […]

More Shrines Destroyed, 60 Killed Sistani forms Militia KarbalaNews.net reports that [Ar.] guerrillas blew up a Shiite shrine in Bashir, south of Tuz Khurmato. This Turkmen region near Kirkuk is largely Shiite. It was not clear how much damage was done to the shrine. The people of the region formed units to guard the shrines […]