Juan Cole

Heavy Fighting in Karbala AP is reporting heavy fighting in Karbala between Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army and US forces, with the Shiite militiamen taking heavy casualties, some 25 estimated dead. The US used heavy firepower in the sacred Shiite city, destroying half of the historic al-Mukhayyam Mosque not so far from the shrine of the […]

Heavy Fighting in Karbala AP is reporting heavy fighting in Karbala between Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army and US forces, with the Shiite militiamen taking heavy casualties, some 25 estimated dead. The US used heavy firepower in the sacred Shiite city, destroying half of the historic al-Mukhayyam Mosque not so far from the shrine of the […]

Taguba and Cambone Clash on Prison Torture Responsibility No one is a better friend to historians than a military or civilian official who doesn’t know he is supposed to lie about some things. The WP reports, “Taguba said that when control of the prison was turned over to military intelligence officials, they had authority over […]

Taguba and Cambone Clash on Prison Torture Responsibility No one is a better friend to historians than a military or civilian official who doesn’t know he is supposed to lie about some things. The WP reports, “Taguba said that when control of the prison was turned over to military intelligence officials, they had authority over […]

Signs of a Negotiated Settlement in Najaf But Clashes Continue at Kufa, Karbala az-Zaman: The Coalition and Muqtada al-Sadr exchanged letters via mediators during the past thirty-six hours, which may be fateful. Signs of flexibility were apparent in Muqtada’s response to ending the crisis, assuming that the American side would accept negotiations on the basis […]

Signs of a Negotiated Settlement in Najaf But Clashes Continue at Kufa, Karbala az-Zaman: The Coalition and Muqtada al-Sadr exchanged letters via mediators during the past thirty-six hours, which may be fateful. Signs of flexibility were apparent in Muqtada’s response to ending the crisis, assuming that the American side would accept negotiations on the basis […]

Sistani Favors Brahimi Plan Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, according to UN sources, approves of the transition plan of Lakhdar Brahimi for Iraq, which consists of establishing a caretaker Iraqi government on June 30 and then holding elections no later than January of 2005. Sistani at this point fears social chaos above all else, and wants […]

Sistani Favors Brahimi Plan Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, according to UN sources, approves of the transition plan of Lakhdar Brahimi for Iraq, which consists of establishing a caretaker Iraqi government on June 30 and then holding elections no later than January of 2005. Sistani at this point fears social chaos above all else, and wants […]

Sadrists Launch Wider Insurgency in South az-Zaman Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his followers Monday to widen the scope of their military operations against the Coalition to the entirety of Iraq, in an attempt to escalate the military situation after the breakdown of negotiations aimed at mediating between Muqtada and the Coalition. They foundered on the Coalition […]