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“America’s moment in the Middle East is about to end”
Mike Whitney
There are no “accidents” in Middle East politics. This week’s assassination of Lebanese Industry Minister, Pierre Gemayel can only be understood in the context of the ongoing struggle between the competing political forces in the region. Presently, the United States is the big loser in this regard due to its failed campaign in Iraq. The war has severely damaged the perception of US military invincibility and triggered a stunning rejection of Bush’s policies in the in the midterm elections. Now, the political-paradigm in America has shifted and a phased withdrawal of American troops could begin in a matter of months. Needless to say, this is not the outcome that the hawks in Washington or Tel Aviv had in mind. Could the assassination of Gemayel be an attempt to forestall the impending withdrawal of American forces? Yes…
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Baath Party Statement
The Iraqi Resistance declares that the US forces are hostages in its hands.
The Arab Baath Socialist Party
…Our Party, which has completed all the necessary and the fundamental steps to achieve the decisive victory, announces to all Iraqis that the Occupation era is setting down and that the shining sun of a united, Arab, secure, and stable Iraq is rising upon us! Moreover, Iran stooges specially, Ali Al Sistani, the gangs belonging to Badr, Muqtada al Sadr, and those who were given Iraqi citizenship should leave Iraq immediately because they will be judged as spies tomorrow after the liberation. Our Party declares now and for the first time to the Iraqi public opinion that the official civil acts registers for all Iraqis, before the Occupation, are available and in scores of copies in many places inside and outside Iraq, for there will be an Iraqi checking up for every individuals staying in Iraq according to these registers. Our Party asserts again that any harm, his Excellency the President Saddam Hussein and his comrades might suffer will be met in a decisive manner and in many ways, including taking the radical decision to never negotiate even if the US accepts our conditions…
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Iraqi Resistance Report for events of Friday, 24 November 2006.
Translated and/or compiled by Muhammad Abu Nasr, member, editorial board, the Free Arab Voice
…Pro-Iranian cleric Muqtada as-Sadr issues ultimatum to Sunni leaders, demanding that they declare Iraqi Resistance, Saddam Husayn, Baath Party all “infidels.” In a dispatch posted at 2:40pm Makkah time Friday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that pro-Iranian Shi’i sectarian cleric Muqtada as-Sadr had delivered a sermon in the city of an-Najaf in southwestern Iraq in which he issued three demands that Harith ad-Darri, the chief of the Association of Muslim Scholars of Iraq – the highest Sunni Muslim religious authority in occupied Iraq. Ad-Darri must carry out these three demands, as-Sadr said, if he wants to end sectarian fighting in the country. The an-Najaf correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported as-Sadr as telling the press that ad-Darri must declare the armed Iraqi Resistance movement and all those who attack Shi’ah to be “infidels.” As-Sadr also demanded that ad-Darri declare Iraqi President Saddam Husayn and Baathists to be “infidels.” Finally as-Sadr demanded that the Sunni religious leader declare himself “innocent” of any attacks on Shi’ah and call for the killing of all those who carry out such attacks, whom the Shi’i sectarian cleric described as “Takfiriyin” (fundamentalists) and “Wahhabis.” Muqtada as-Sadr made clear that his statement was in the nature of an ultimatum when he declared that if ad-Darri agreed to the three demands of as-Sadr then “the s! ituation in Iraq could incline towards calm and we [in the Sadr movement] will denounce the arrest order issued against ad-Darri” by the US-imposed puppet regime “and demand that it be anulled.” Mafkarat al-Islam noted that for a long time Muqtada as-Sadr pretended to be interested in the unity of the Iraqi people and in avoiding sectarian bloodshed. But today with this statement he clearly revealed his true and entirely sectarian identity, observers note, one in service to the regional hegemonist regime of Iran that is striving to step into the shoes of US imperialism in Iraq…
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Bloodbath in Baghdad (Updated)
Zeyad, Healing Iraq
…Shi’ite militiamen fired dozens of mortar shells at the Sunni districts of Adhamiya, Sulaikh and Fadhl, just south of Sadr City. A few shells hit the dome of the Imam Abu Hanifa shrine in Adhamiya. On the other side of the Tigris, the Umm Al-Qura Mosque, headquarters of the Association of Muslim Scholars, at Ghazaliya was also attacked with mortar fire. Other districts that were targeted were Amil, Dora, Yarmouk and Jami’a. There were brief clashes at several areas of the city for the rest of the day. My family in Baghdad huddled inside their bedroom while they listened to the whistling sound of mortar shells flying above their roof. A source from Baghdad’s Kindi Hospital stated that up to 500 people may have been killed in the bombings and the following violence Thursday and that there are still corpses on the streets in many parts of the capital. Attacks against several Sunni mosques were also reported from Basrah and Zubair. Both the headquarters of the Association of Muslim Scholars and the Islamic Party in Basrah were targeted with rocket-propelled grenades…
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Just One U.S. Soldier Outweighs ‘Tens of Thousands’ of Iraqis
Basaer News – Iraq
The life of an American soldier is more important than the lives of tens of thousands of Iraqis. This is not a personal opinion, but one based on facts and truth. Simply put, everyone knows what was done by American forces after one of their soldiers was kidnapped in central Baghdad’s Karada district (…) But that’s just one side of the equation we are discussing. The other side is the issue of the kidnapping of tens of thousands of Iraqis over the past few months. They are tortured and killed, and their corpses are thrown into waste dumps, rivers and onto sidewalks. And although the occupation forces know the areas where the kidnappings take place and know that torture and murder is occurring, they take no action. Out of the tens of thousands of Iraqis that have been affected by this blind violence, the Americans haven’t moved a muscle to search for a single one. But when one U.S. soldier is at stake, the Americans mobilize all of their energies and resources to find him, since he is more important, better and more refined than all of the Iraqis who died and are still dying from the wave of kidnapping and murder that is claiming Iraqis by the thousands…
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Stuck at a Red Light.
Layla Anwar
…I saw the Red Zone and the Green Zone in Baghdad. The red zone was very red. As red as the sun that sets on the Tigris. Red as blood, red as fire. The green zone was a green as the palm trees that embrace the river, as green as spring. The red zone is filled with limbs , scorching heat, immolated bodies with Iraqi kerosene (oil). The green zone has healthy men and women walking about, playing bowling and billiard. The red zone is screaming with burns,pain and anguish. The green zone is playing disco music and drinking beer and whiskey. The red zone is bursting into flames , its markets reduced to ashes, its women pulling out their hair. The green zone is where secret love affairs flourish, where three meals a day are served and where electricity is available. The red zone has demolished houses , mosques and targeted churches. The green zone with its palaces is bathing in blessings handed out by the American parish priest. The red zone is burning in flames…
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The US Empire –Beginning of the End Game
K Gajendra Singh
…News stories are appearing about the US contacts with the Iraqi Resistance , including Baker telling a Saddam Hussein lawyer that Tariq Aziz, former deputy prime minister, would be released from detention by the end of this year, hoping that he will negotiate with the US on behalf of the Baath Party leadership. Condi Rice has appealed to the Gulf Cooperation Council to serve as intermediaries between the US and armed Sunni resistance groups (…) Leaks of talks with the Resistance have been common since even 2003, There is no reason to disbelieve that these US measure are nothing more than the historic tactics of divide-and-rule…
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Did you know?
Sabbah’s blog
Did you know that Israel didn’t allow Palestinian football team to travel to Asian Cup match? Ironically, even though this Reuters’ story was distributed through the wires on Nov. 11th, four days later, FOX Sports was taken by surprise that the Palestinian team was a “no-show.” Did you know that Israeli soldiers stole money from Beit Hanoun households? The total value of things stolen from private persons and households amounts to over US$ 200,000. Did you know that U.S. says it has removed 50,000 unexploded bombs in Lebanon? The bombs pose a huge danger to displaced civilians trying to return to their villages after the 34-day Israeli war against Lebanon. The State Department is investigating whether Israel violated U.S. rules in its use of U.S.-made rockets armed with cluster bombs in Lebanon. A State Department spokesman said the investigation was ongoing…
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Reclaiming America: Democrats Must Truly Change Course
Ramzy Baroud
The Democrats’ ascendancy within the US Congress could signal the regaining by the public, of its country’s direction. The astounding results of the US Congressional elections of 7 November were undoubtedly a welcome sign of change, not in the American political apparatus, inasmuch as it is in the unmistakable reclamation by the public of its role as the driving force which shapes the nation’s political posture. This having been said, one must not confuse the redefining of the public relevance to political discourse and processes, with the political machination and platforms entrusted with translating the people’s will, grievances or aspirations into action. The early signs are not promising however, and suggest that for any practical change to be achieved and consolidated, public awareness and engagement must, for their part, be neither marginalised nor relegated…
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Internecine Squabble Between Neolibs and Neocons Over Lebanon Makes for Turgid Reading in the Los Angeles Times
Kurt Nimmo
According to Nathan Brown, a plodder for the neoliberal Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the United Nations, the Bushian “vision” for the Middle East has failed. “The assassination Tuesday of Pierre Gemayel, a Cabinet minister and scion of one of the countries’ leading Maronite Catholic families, has renewed fears of civil war and raised suspicion that Syria is again asserting itself in the affairs of its restive neighbor,” reports the Los Angeles Times. “Lebanon’s ‘Cedar Revolution,’ which gave power to anti-Syria forces, was heralded along with the 2005 elections in Iraq, Egypt and the Palestinian territories as part of a new movement that was going to be ‘as important as the fall of the Berlin Wall,’ Brown said.” Never mind that Lebanon’s “Cedar Revolution” was but another intelligence operation gussied up in the vestment of so-called democracy…
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DAILY WAR NEWS FOR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 24, 2006
Today in Iraq
The death toll from a string of Baghdad bombings in the past 24 hours rose to 202. In addition to the 202 fatalities, the six car bombs and a missile wounded more than 250 residents in the deadliest coordinated attack since the onset of the war in March 2003, the BBC reported. Shiite mortar teams quickly retaliated to the Sadr City onslaught on Thursday, firing 10 shells that badly damaged the Abu Hanifa mosque in the Azamiya neighborhood and killed one person. As funeral processions were held in Sadr City on Friday, several mortar rounds hit the Um al-Qura mosque, headquarters of Association of Muslim Scholars in west Baghdad’s Ghazaliyah neighborhood, wounding four of the guards, said police Capt. Jamil Hussein…
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Al-Sadr group threatens to quit
Aljazeera.net
Faleh Hasan Shanshal, a political aide of Moqtadr al-Sadr, said on Friday: “We have asked al-Maliki to cancel his meeting with Bush as there is no reason to meet the criminal who is behind terrorism in Iraq. “We will suspend our membership in parliament and the cabinet if he goes ahead.” Nuri al-Maliki, the Shia prime minister, is scheduled to meet with George Bush, the US president, in Jordan on November 29. “This is a sign of an alliance between Saddamists, takfiris (Sunni extremists) and the occupation forces,” the statement said…
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The New York Times and the Gemayel assassination
Chris Marsden
The November 23 editorial of the New York Times, “Another Killing in Lebanon”, begins with the assertion: “It is too early to know who ordered this week’s assassination of the Lebanese cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel, but there are many reasons to suspect Syria.” Indeed, there are many reasons to suspect all sorts of people for being responsible for Gemayel’s death—and quite a few of them enjoy the editorial support of the New York Times. He was killed amidst an intense internal and international conflict to decide who controls the Lebanon. The assassination took place in the aftermath of a multi-million dollar military offensive by Israel that was fully backed by the United States, and which cost more than 1,500 lives. When such high stakes are involved, there will be many parties for whom the life of a relatively insignificant government minister is small change…
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Iraq events: 24 Nov 2006
Roads to Iraq
I thought the attack on the Health Ministry connected to last report that the Ministry stealing Sunnis dead bodies, but its much worst than this. Health Ministry turns out to be a detention center, alarabalyawm reported that attack on the Ministry took place after militia members abducted people from Adhamiya and took inside the Health Ministry, people from the neighborhood attacked the Ministry to free the hostages. Number corpses of the kidnapped employees of Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research found in garbage gathering places. Ministry official who refused to give his name said: The fate of the hostages is unknown, and we have no information about the kidnappers…
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Militiamen burn 6 Sunni worshippers alive, army does not intervene
The Associated Press
Militiamen grabbed six Sunnis as they left worship services today, doused them with kerosene and burned them alive as Iraqi soldiers stood by, and seven Sunni mosques came under attack as Shiites took revenge for the slaughter of at least 215 people in the Sadr City slum. Members of the Mahdi Army militia burned four mosques and several homes while killing 12 other Sunni residents in the once-mixed Hurriyah neighborhood until American forces arrived, said police Capt. Jamil Hussein. Gunmen loyal to radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr began taking over the neighborhood this summer and a majority of its Sunni residents already had fled. The gunmen attacked the four mosques with rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and automatic rifles. Residents said the militiamen prevented them from entering the burned buildings to remove the dead, and they and Hussein said Shiite-dominated police and Iraqi military stood idly by…
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ZIONISTS EXTEND THEIR FIGHT TO INCLUDE ALL MUSLIMS
DesertPeace
It is not enough for the zionists to rampage and destroy every Palestinian village within their reach. It is not enough for them to have literally declared genocide against an entire nation, starting with the elimination of the women and children.
No… now the agents of this evil ‘ism’ must create lies and start attacking all Muslims. This tactic is not a new one, it has been used in the States for decades. But now the zionists in Britain are taking up the ‘torch’ and literally going after Muslim organisations that speak out against the injustices in Israel/Palestine. Their guiding force has been their magazine Engage. This is the type of crap they present in their pages…
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GI Special 4K23: The Stick Men – November 24, 2006
Thomas F. Barton
(…)
The stick men walk in public
as the wind blows against
their 2 inch stick legs
letting everybody know
that they have no real legs.
So they isolate and die
thousands of times more
for the rest of their lives
waking up at 3 in the morning
terrorized but
all alone now.
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Olmert on truth serum
Xymphora
Olmert’s just a ton o’ laughs these days. First, he confirms the existence and massive power of the Israel lobby, thus putting the last nail into Chomsky’s intellectual coffin (btw, it is not an exaggeration to note that Venezuela lost its bid for a security council seat the minute Hugo Chavez mentioned Chomsky’s name in his UN speech). Then, he informs us that the Iraq war was good for Israeli security, which, when coupled with his acknowledgment of Lobby power, means the attack on Iraq was about Israeli security (the Americans will now have something for which to give thanks)…
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Sunni leader must stop bloodshed, says Sadr
ABC Regional Online
A day after seeing his Baghdad power base devastated by explosions, radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has called on Iraq’s most prominent Sunni religious leader to tell his followers to stop killing Shiites. Sadr, who on Thursday blamed Sunni Islamist Al Qaeda militants and Saddam Hussein loyalists for the blasts which killed 202 people, made the call during a Friday sermon in Kufa, just outside the Shiite holy city of Najaf, south of Baghdad. It was directed at Harith al-Dari, the head of Iraq’s influential Muslim Clerics Association, an umbrella group for Sunni religious leaders, who is wanted by Iraqi authorities on suspicion of links to terrorism charges. Dari, who lives abroad, denies the accusations…
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