Juan Cole

US Military Death Toll in Iraq Reaches 900 Some Two Dozen Iraqis Killed in Baghdad, Ramadi, Baquba, Samarra Violence AP reports that a roadside bomb killed a 1st Infantry Division soldier in Duluiyah, 45 mi. north of Baghdad when his Bradley fighting vehicle struck it. He was the 900th US soldier to die in Iraq […]

Naylor on Iran/al-Qaeda Red Herring Professor Thomas Naylor of McGill writes: This is certainly not the the first time these tales about Iran cooperating with al-Qa’idah have surfaced. About two years ago US spooks floated via the Washington Post and other outlets some silly stories about al-Qa’idah involved in the underground traffic in gold. Since […]

4 US Servicement Killed Bombing in Baqubah leaves 6 dead AP reports that guerrillas killed two US Marines and two US soldiers in Anbar province on Monday and Tuesday. The two Marines were killed Tuesday. One soldier was killed and another wounded on Monday, and the wounded soldier died on Tuesday. The total toll for […]

Deputy Governor of Basra Assassinated AFP reports that guerrillas shot and killed Hazem Ainachi in Basra on Tuesday morning as he got in his car to go to work. Ainachi, acting governor of Basra and a member of the governing council in the southern city, had earlier held the posts of coordinator of the Basra […]

Iran in Bush’s Sights The same techniques used to get up the Iraq war are now being applied by the political Right in the United States, including President Bush, to Iran. These include innuendo, guilt by association, vague fears, and hyped capabilities. If Bush gets a second term, it seems very likely that his administration […]

Fresh Wave of Violence in Iraq Leaves 10 Dead, 62 Wounded Reuters reports that a suicide bomber set off a massive explosion by targeting a fuel tanker near a police station in Baghdad on Monday, killing 9 and wounding 62. There have been five such bombings of police or national guards in recent days, and […]

Guest Editorial: Pressman on The Wall Today we feature two guest editorials on the Israeli security wall, which is being built largely on Palestinian territory and involves a de facto unilateral annexation of that territory, hurting innocent Palestinian townspeople and farmers who see their property bifurcated. The World Court at the Hague has now ruled […]

Beinin Guest Editorial: The US Congress Defies the World Court Our second guest editorial on the issue of the Wall is by the distinguished academic Joel Beinin of Stanford University. The US Congress Defies the World Court on Israel’s Separation Barrier by Joel Beinin Today the United Nations General Assembly is likely to vote to […]

Muqtada’s Newspaper Reopens Al-Hawzah, the newspaper of the radical young Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, will be allowed to publish again. The decision was taken by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi after the newspaper’s staff approached his government. The Americans had closed the newspaper in March, as a prelude to their failed attempt to arrest Muqtada and […]