20/12/07

Turkey says US intelligence led to Iraq raids
Reuters – USA
By Sue Pleming WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US intelligence shared with Turkey led to the weekend raids in northern Iraq on Kurdish militants, Turkey’s ambassador …
www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1961029220071219

At least 12 killed in Iraq bombing attack
Al-Bawaba – Amman,Jordan
A suicide bomber struck a recruiting station for neighbourhood patrols in Iraq’s Diyala province, killing 12 volunteers and injuring 10 on Thursday,…
www.albawaba.com/en/countries/Iraq/220193

Let’s Seize the Momentum in Iraq
Wall Street Journal – USA
By BARRY R. MCCAFFREY I recently spent a week touring Iraq, meeting with American servicemen and women and interacting with Iraqis. …
online.wsj.com/article/SB119812270
599741711.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Iraq’s on the Pentagon’s track
Asia Times Online – Kowloon,Hong Kong
By David Isenberg WASHINGTON – The US “surge” strategy in Iraq has“considerably improved overall levels of security during the past quarter”, according to …
www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IL21Ak05.html

Hope for Iraq
By theofarrell
Today’s Guardian reports on the ‘awakening’ in Baghdad – on ordinary Iraqis, sick and tired of the violence, taking up arms and taking back their streets. These are neighbour patrols of local men, albeit armed and paid by the Americans. …
kingsofwar.wordpress.com/2007/12/20/hope/

Iraq’s Sunnis celebrate holiday with a renewed vigor
Los Angeles Times – CA,USA
US commanders say violence across Iraq is at its lowest level since the first year after the 2003 American-led invasion. They credit the deployment of …
www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-ir
aqeid20dec20,0,5914673.story?coll=la-home-center

Mirage Of Improvement In Iraq By Dahr Jamail + Iraq set to slash …
By dandelionsalad
To place an inconsequential fact on record, since the beginning of the US “surge” earlier this year, the number of people displaced from their homes in Iraq has quadrupled, and the number of detentions carried out by both Iraqi and US …
dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2007/12/20/mirage-of-improve
ment-in-iraq-by-dahr-jamail-iraq-set-to-slash-food-rations/

US lawmakers send Iraq war funds bill to Bush
AFP –
WASHINGTON (AFP) — US lawmakers Wednesday passed a major bill including funding for the Iraq war for President George W. Bush to sign, after Democrats …
afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jSeFeB0qQjNvZc-6fbJBbt1c3xTw

20 Hidden Ways the Iraq War is Affecting the US Dollar
By dandelionsalad
The Iraq war has affected the personal and political lives of many people around the world, but its influence doesn’t stop there. The Iraq war has had a profound effect on the dollar, too. Here, we’ll take a look at 20 reasons why. …
dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2007/12/19/20-
hidden-ways-the-iraq-war-is-affecting-the-us-dollar/

Six AWB executives face Iraq charges
Financial Times – London,England,UK
The inquiry into contracts between AWB and the Iraqi Grain Board revealed that in the four years leading up to the Iraq war Australia’s largest wheat…
www.ft.com/cms/s/3e003d28-ae9d-11dc-97aa-0000779fd2ac.html

Iranian Qods Force still active in Iraq
With a sharp reduction in the deadly landmine attacks used by the Iranian-backed Shia terrorists known as the Special Groups, a debate has raged over whether Iran has worked to reduce the number of attacks inside Iraq. …
www.longwarjournal.org/archives/
2007/12/iranian_qods_force_s.php

News & Views 12/19/07
By dancewater(Cervantes)
“To survive in Iraq under US occupation, there are only two jobs; police and garbage collection,” Baghdad journalist Mohammad al-Dulaymi told IPS. “Unemployment is leading many Iraqis to join the security forces despite the risk …
warnewstoday.blogspot.com/2007/12/news-views-121907.html

19/12/07

US Congress sends Bush budget bill with Iraq money
Reuters – USA
Anti-war Democrats protested the new round of Iraq money, which they said gave Bush a “blank check” to run the war. House Appropriations Committee Chairman …
www.reuters.com/article/featuredCrisis/idUSN19596736

Richardson sticks to Iraq message
Baltimore Sun – United States
“Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama have repeatedly said they’ll leave thousands of troops in Iraq indefinitely, even beyond 2013.…
weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/
2007/12/richardson_sticks_to_iraq_mess.html

More Women Report Sex Assaults in Iraq
The Associated Press –
WASHINGTON (AP) — A woman who claims she was raped by a fellow employee while working for a US contractor in Iraq told House lawmakers Wednesday that her …
ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jSljVWkG
bW8pTmFMhIdc0B6qCgagD8TKQ2Q00

Editorial: Lessons in Turkey’s action in northern Iraq
Daily Times – Lahore,Pakistan
As the war in Iraq led to the death of more innocent citizens on Tuesday,
Turkish troops entered the Kurd homeland in northern Iraq in pursuit of
Kurd …
www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=
2007%5C12%5C20%5Cstory_20-12-2007_pg3_1

Pentagon report: Iran keeps funding militias in Iraq
Christian Science Monitor – Boston,MA,USA
WASHINGTON – A new Pentagon report says violence is down across Iraq but notes that Iranian influence on Iraq’s security continues, despite some assurances …
www.csmonitor.com/2007/1220/p25s03-usmi.html

Congress poised to give Bush $70 billion for Iraq and Afghanistan wars
International Herald Tribune – France
By Brian Knowlton WASHINGTON: Congress was poised Wednesday to give President George W. Bush the funding he sought for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, …
www.iht.com/articles/2007/12/19/america/cong.php

AP IMPACT: Despite signs, suicidal soldier not taken out of Iraq
International Herald Tribune – France
AP SANFORD, NC: Private First Class Jason Scheuerman nailed a suicide note to his barracks closet in Iraq, stepped inside and shot himself. …
www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/
19/america/A-Soldiers-Suicide.php

Walking Beats Bombs in Iraq
By Noah Shachtman
In June, when PBS’ News Hour asked DANGER ROOM pal and Iraq vet Owen West how the IED problem could be solved, he said: Have the troops get out of their Humvees, start walking the streets, and get to know the locals. …
blog.wired.com/defense/2007/12/new-iraq-report.html