Juan Cole

Future of the Book The Institute for the Future of the Book is having a gathering soon to which I am invited, as an academic blogger. They thought it would be useful to poll my readers about some issues. The brief poll is at a comments page at their web site. I’d be most grateful […]

Dennis O’Flaherty Reader Comment on Qaim Campaign Cole: [Al-Zaman: Sunni Arab leaders accused the US of conducting a campaign of genocide and ethnic cleansing in their sweep of the Western cities. (This allegation is, needless to say, not correct.] Dennis O’Flaherty writes: ‘… you raise a point that has troubled me — and I hope […]

Blair Could have Delayed Beginning of War: Meyer; Sadrists Will Boycott Cairo Conference Sir Christopher Meyer, former British ambassador in Washington, blames Prime Minister Tony Blair for not slowing the Bush administration’s rush to war in 2003. Meyer implies that he could see that the Bush team was poorly prepared for the aftermath, and says […]

Bush and the 7 Deadly Sins The Washington Post reports a new poll that shows that the public’s approval of Bush in the realms of trust, honesty and values has declined even in his base: “Bush’s approval ratings have been in decline for months, but on issues of personal trust, honesty and values, Bush has […]

Sunni Constitution Drafter Killed; Chalabi in Iran Fakhri al-Qaisi of the National Dialogue Council was assassinated in Baghdad on Saturday. The Sunni politician had helped draft the new Iraqi constitution and was running for parliament. His group is part of a Sunni religious coalition that is running in the December 15 elections, a move opposed […]

Al-Libi Tagged as Liar by US Intelligence Bush Alleged Saddam-al-Qaeda Tie Douglas Jehl of the NYT reports that the Defense Intelligence Agency and other intelligence professionals strongly suspected that Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi was lying when he alleged, after his capture in Pakistan in 2001, that Iraq was training al-Qaeda in use of chemical weapons for […]

Sunni Cleric Calls for Participation in Elections NATO Rules out Iraq Role Al-Sharq al-Awsat/ AFP: The Sunni religious leader in the Association of Muslim Scholars, Shaikh Mahmud Mahdi al-Sumaidaie has called on Sunni Arabs to vote in the December 15 elections. The preacher at the Umm al-Qura Mosque in Baghdad said, “I call on you […]

Former UK Ambassador in Washington: Iraq War brought Terror to UK Sir Christopher Meyer, former UK ambassador in Washington, DC, admits that the war he supported increased the risks of terrorism in Britain, according to The Guardian. ‘ So what, two-and-a-half years after the invasion, do the president and prime minister have to do now? […]

Sectarianism Dominates Iraq in Run-up to Elections The December 15 elections are shaping up as a sectarian affair. The United Iraqi Alliance groups four of the five main Shiite religious parties: Dawa, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the Muqtada al-Sadr branch of the Sadrists, and the Islamic Action Organization, along with many […]