The
star item this week is of course von Sponeck's letter to the Guardian,
the
comprehensive demolition of the usual FO arguments (in the 'Iraqi
supplement')
* Saddam, Firing Shots in Air, Greets Big Army
Parade
* Saddam suffers 'severe stroke' [note that
the report comes from the
Supreme
Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the Iran backed Shi'i
opposition
group which refuses to accept any financial support from the US.
This
inclines me to take what they say seriously.]
* Iraq Says Reports of Saddam Illness Are
Absurd
* Saddam TV footage 'may have been doctored'
* Gulf Arabs Sign Defense Pact, Soften
Anti-Iraq Words [Gulf Co-operation
Council
meeting]
* Gulf security pact [a commentary from the
Pakistani paper, Dawn, which
concludes
that 'the GCC cannot hope to become in the near future an
economic,
political or security force to be reckoned with in the Middle
East,
let alone in world politics']
* Presence of foreign troops irks Arabs: poll
[this contains the
interesting
information that 'leading religious scholars' are organising an
apparently
quite effective boycott of US goods in Saudi Arabia. Fast food
chains
are particularly badly hit]
* Kuwait can pump oil for 132 years [so, other
things being equal, it will
be 132
years before the west throws it like a gnawed bone into the hands of
Iraq]
* British sanctions-breaking group leaves for
Iraq
* Buyers say Iraq oil sales still dogged by
problems
* India in touch with UN on Iraqi deal [This
article may help to explain
current
Iraqi strategy, perhaps even including their refusal to restore
'normal'
oil sales. The UN allows for exceptional direct deals outside the
'Oil
for Food' structure, such as the deal with Jordan. The Iraqis would
like to
multiply deals of this sort which are also in the interest of the
other
partner who thereby, in this instance at least, becomes an ally]
* Iraq Slams UN for Delaying Decision to Aid
Palestine
* Iran to release Iraqi POWs
* UN-Iraq Talks Seen Starting in Feb
* Egypt's exports to Iraq up
* Iraqi official seeks expansion of trade
relations with Iran
* Iraq Sanctions Pose 'Moral Problem' Says
Chirac
* Syria Removes Restrictions on Travel to Iraq
* Saddam's son attacks Russian firms [does
Uday's recent burst of activity
hint at
the likelihood of a succession struggle?]
* Norway elected to head the UN Committe on
Sanctions Against Iraq
* UAE envoy may visit Baghdad shortly
* Iraqi [sic. Should be Saudi PB] pilot
remains found in the Iraqi desert
* Turkey appoints first ambassador to Iraq
since Gulf War
* Iraq wants to boost trade with Pakistan
* History Is the Best Proof [an article from
the Tehran Times about the
recent
criticisms of Ayatollah Khomeini made by his one-time designated
successor
Hossein Ali-Montazeri. The article is interesting here for what it
says,
rightly or wrongly, about the role played by the Mojahedin Khalq
Organization
in the Iraqi attack that launched the Iran-Iraq war]
* The great survivor [long Guardian article on
the triumph of S.Hussein]
* Syria joins Iraq, Iran against Israel [on
Bashar Assad's foreign policy]
* 'It is an outrage that you repeat fabricated
disinformation' [letter to
the
Guardian from Graf Hans von Sponeck on Peter Hain's defence of
sanctions]
* UK defends Iraq sanctions [Hain's reply]
* Iraq has a rich cultural heritage
URL
ONLY:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk_politics/newsid_1096000/1096054.stm
* Bush faces Iraq dilemma
by
diplomatic correspondent Barnaby Mason
BBC,
1st January
[This
article is just an attempt to spin some words out of Powell's
're-energise
sanctions' phrase]
* U.S. Signs Treaty on War Crimes Tribunal
* Global justice? Haider has heard that story
before ['Under the proposed
court's
rules, the United Nations Security Council (of which the US is one
of five
permanent members) can authorise a court prosecutor to investigate
claims
of crimes.This allows the US to have it both ways - avoid its
citizens
ever being tried, but ensuring it can initiate attempts to
prosecute
the war crimes of others.' The 'Haider' in question isn't Jorg,
but an
Iraqi refugee called Haider Aljuboory]
* Peace is the wrong strategy [Jerusalem Post
article auggesting that
Israel
should emulate the US and abandon the failed strategy of 'employing
peace
as an element of strategic defense']
* Peacekeepers [sic - PB] face radiation
testing as more deaths reported
[of
soldiers serving in Kosovo, where depleted uranium was used]
* First British Victim Of 'Balkan War
Syndrome' Revealed
* Nato urged to clean up its uranium debris in
Kosovo
* Back to the Future: Globalization Grows Up
and Gets Political [by Fareed
Zakaria,
who has been appointed to become editor
of Newsweek International]
* Targeting Muslim countries [Pakistani former
general compaining about the
demonisation
of Islam.]
* Profile of the week: Osama bin Laden [as,
for example ...]
* 5 nations take turn on UN Council [Colombia,
Ireland, Mauritius, Norway
and
Singapore are to be permitted on occasion to sit in the same room as the
rulers
of the world]
* Briefing of the week: Bosnia [short extract
on US deployment overseas.
The
article as a whole is interesting on Bush's policy with regard to
withdrawing
from the Balkans.]
* Holbrooke Leaves His Mark at U.N. [mainly on
Holbrooke's success in
getting
the US debt to the UN rescheduled]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.dawn.com/2001/01/04/op.htm#1
* Will the UN sanctions on Afghanistan work?
by Dr
Ayesha Siddiqa-Agha
Dawn,
4th January
[Interesting
article on one of the next horrors that is developing in the
world]
Lots
still happening. These reports seem to be getting way out of hand at
the
moment. Most obviously, the world seems at last to have noticed the
scandal
of depleted uranium. I have given it a separate supplement, but
don't
claim that my selection is exhaustive or even that I've managed to
assemble
the best pieces. In particular, there were important articles in
the
Guardian and the Independent which I haven't given here.
At the
same time, with much less publicity, Turkey has sent 10,000 (perhaps)
troops
into northern Iraq, without the consent of the Iraqi government.
Which I
imagine is an illegal act, but 'international law' as we know, is a
rather
selective affair. As usual, I've turned to the Kurdistan Observer and
produced
a selection of articles from that.
Otherwise,
there's the tomato, Ramsey Clark arriving in Iraq, Clinton
handing
over a large sum of money to the INC, more ambiguity over Iraq's oil
policy,
which is very difficult to follow, and continuation of the Hain/von
Sponeck
confrontation ,which I've put in the 'Iraq supplement' together with
various
reminiscences of the Gulf War.
* Mortars Explode in Iranian Capital
* What's wrong with Saddam? Sore feet
* Iraq Demands U.N. Man's Withdrawal
* Galloway seeks answers on phone tapping
* Britain seeks u-turn over Iraq bombing
* Security Council Designates Chairpersons Of
Sanctions Committees
* U.N. panel split over Iraqi offer to
Palestinians
* Iraq Withdraws from India Tournament
* Iran, Iraq exchange bodies of soldiers
* Tomato hits Blair in protest about Iraq
sanctions
* Two in court over Blair tomato
* India hopes to buy 1 mt crude from Iraq
* Iraq resumes normal exports from Gulf port:
Press
* [Egyptian] Aid flight to Baghdad stopped
* Routine Syrian Jan oil exports cloud Iraq
pipeline issue [not clear if
the
Syrians are 'illegally' receiving Iraqi oil]
* Iraq oil exports still well below average:
UN
* Iraq still out of market
* Peace Action to march against Iraq sanctions
[protests in Oakland County,
in
Metro Detroit, particularly interesting because it seems to be largely an
Iraqi
largely Iraqi Christian immigrant community]
* Shot-Down Flier Could Be Alive, Says Navy
* Iraqi defector reported U.S. pilot in Iraqi
hospital
* Iraq Rejects Reports US Pilot Lived
* UK Iraq policy 'bonkers' [account of BBC
interview with George Galloway]
* Iraqi Airways reopens Beirut office
* Iraq starts distributing ration cards for
2001
* Iraq Blames UN Committee for Shelving
Humanitarian Contracts [1,762
contracts
altogether, worth some US$4billion]
* Iraq Says Two People Injured in Air Raid
* Nuclear watchdog to inspect Iraqi nuclear
material [Annual IAEA
inspection]
* Iraqi vice-president to visit Egypt
* US gives go-ahead to Iraqi opposition
* Iraq wants OPEC oil output cuts of three
million bpd by March
* U.S. activists land in Baghdad airport
URL
ONLY:
http://www.timesofindia.com/110101/11euro2.htm
* Russia urges US, Britain to end strikes on
Iraq
Times
of India, 11th January
URL
ONLY;
http://www.economictimes.com/today/12comm02.htm
* Iraq asks for certified fungus free wheat
Economic
Times (India), 12th January
[Not an
unimportant item since the India/Iraq wheat for oil deal seemed to
indicate
a possible way by which the Oil for Food arrangements could have
been
made redundant]
DEPLETED URANIUM
SUPPLEMENT, 7-14/1/01 (sent separately)
* Allies 'told in 1991 of uranium cancer
risks' [Felicity Arbuthnot et al]
* Tests reveal weapons dust danger to British
soldiers
* British safety claims wilt as uranium panic
grips Nato
* Iraqi paper likens US to Dracula
* Iraq Demands U.S., British Compensations for
Depleted Uranium
* These children had cancer. Now they are
dead. I believe they were killed
by
depleted uranium [by Robert Fisk]
* DU fears are baseless [so that's all right]
* Protests against depleted uranium weapons
planned [quite interesting on
the
troubled state of the factories that made the stuff]
* U.N. and NATO differ on depleted uranium
risk
* 10 years on, Iraq feels vindicated by
Balkans Syndrome
* NATO's Use of Depleted Uranium Munitions a
'Crime Against Humanity', Says
China
[Yes, well. So is turning Tibet into a nuclear dumping ground]
* MoD backtracks on cancer report: Advice on
shells came from senior
officers,
ministry admits
IRAQ SUPPLEMENT, 714/1/01
(sent separately
* I fought apartheid. I'll fight Saddam [Peter
Hain's reply to Hans von
Sponeck's
letter to the Guardian, which was in last week's news digest]
* Admit you have failed, Mr Hain [H.von
Sponeck's reply, and other replies,
to
Peter Hain (selection sent to list by Seb Willis)]
* Fighting Talk [This is quite an interesting
short account of the present
state
of the Iraqi economy, of the impossibility of trying to run an oil
industry
when one is only allowed to spend money on food and medicine]
* Saddam Threat Looms, Thanks to Papa Bush [On
the difficulties of being an
upright,
straight in the eye American living in a world full of devious and
self
serving Europeans and Arabs. Includes some intriguing gossip on the
subject
of economic relations between Iraq and Syria]
* Albright regrets passing on Iraq problem
[short extract complaining about
the UN
allowing Saddam some money to refurbish the oil industry]
* Quiet...Then the Sky Caught Fire [account of
what it was like in Iraq on
the
first day of the Gulf War]
* Dunes of Glory [Scottish hero of the Gulf
War. Only for readers for
strong
stomachs but the hero in question did see the aftermath of the
massacre
on the road to Basra: "When you see the carnage of the Basra road,
it
leaves a mark on you."]
* 10 years after Gulf War Kuwait opens up [but
is still wholly dependent on
foreign
assistance for its defence]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/et?ac=000579381554028&rtmo=wenKfMAb&atmo=99999999&pg=/et/01/1/10/nblur310.html
* Britain and US isolated over Iraqi sanctions
by
Anton La Guardia
Daily
Telegraph, 10th January
[Daily
Telegraph's mournful reaction to the tomato]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/news.asp?ArticleID=6786
*
Link survives between Iraq, Arab-Israeli conflict
KURDISH SUPPLEMENT, 7-14/1/01
(sent separately)
News
report editor's introduction
* Turkish army enters South Kurdistan
[December 19]
* A PUK Official confirms [reports] of Turkish
troops in Suleymania-region
[December
20]
* HADEP [People's Democracy Party]: Mediator
in war in northern Iraq
* Report: Turkish Troops Sent in Iraq [6th January]
* Iraqi Kurdish leader [Jalal Talabani,
of the PUK] in Ankara as PKK
assault
gathers steam
* Iraqi Kurd Chief Denies Seeks Turkish
Military Aid
* Kurdish leader urges Turkish investment in
northern Iraq
* Talabani To Ask For Money And Weapons [a
pro-PKK account]
* Talabani Has Put The South Up For Sale
[another pro-PKK account]
* Interview-Iraqi Kurd Leader [Talabani] Says
U.S. Tough Talk Not Helpful
[apparently
preparing a Turkish Iraqi Kurd Iraqi rapprochement]
* An unwelcome cuckoo in the nest -- Part 1
[an informative article
supporting
a US/Turkish alliance to achieve the final suppression of the
Turkish
Kurds]
* An unwelcome cuckoo in the nest [presumably
part 2, mainly about the PKK
and the
support it supposedly receives from Iran. I haven't seen a part 3]
* KDP keeps distance from Ankara
NOTE:
Some background material on the confrontation between the PUK and PKK
can be
got from the earlier Kurdish Supplements sent in these news reports
for 17/10/00
and 2229/10/00
NEW WORLD ORDER
SUPPLEMENT, 7-14/1/01 (sent separately)
* Opec proposes output cuts, but US
disapproves
* Pentagon Cites Germ Weapon Threats [How all
the money that has been spent
on
conventional and nuclear weapons is useless against a teaspoonful of
anthrax.
They don't, however, come to the conclusion that it would be better
to save
on the expenditure and stop trying to reorganise the rest of the
world
in their own image ...]
* Emerging agenda: The world according to
Helms ['nuff said]
* Holbrooke: EU blocking Council reform [I
found this very difficult to
follow
not clear what the 'reforms' in question are but more
knowledgeable
people may find it interesting]
* Analysis: Bin Laden's Witness [for those who
are curious to know what
evidence
the US have to support their policy of imposing sanctions on
Afghanistan.]
* Cheney, Powell Face Old Nemesis Saddam [an
extract giving the new Bush
team's
record of demanding tough action against Saddam, when they weren't
actually
responsible for policy]
* Rogue states and terrorist threats
identified in attempt to boost
spending
[The Guardian beginning to sound quite radical for a change]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/ajc/epaper/editions/friday/news_a3f5140ea57a705100c0.html
* Yemen questions Cole security, paper says
Atlanta
Journal, Friday, January 12, 2001
URL
ONLY:
http://www.iht.com/articles/7481.htm
* Zoellick [Bush's appointment as chief trade
representative] Was Key
Player
In Both NATO and WTO
New
York Times Service, January 13, 2001
[He seems
from the article to be profoundly uninteresting. But very
brilliant,
of course. Was he the model for Woody Allen's film 'Zelig'?]
* Saudi firm to start direct exports to Iraq
* Iraq says oil exports will soon return to 2
million barrels a day [press
conference
by Iraqi oil minister, Amer Mohammed Rashid]
* Iraq will not let U.N. inspectors return,
minister says
* Iraq: U.S. attempting to 'cover the truth'
with missing Gulf War pilot
* Egyptian FM Rejects "Indefinite"
U.N.-Imposed Sanctions on Iraq
* Iraqi fishermen say they [are] harassed by
Iran, Kuwait
* Iraqi oil smuggled out on train via Syria
* Saudi, Iraqi ministers discuss upcoming haj
plans
* Iran Group Claims Mortar Attack [in
Teheran by Iraqi based Mujahedeen
Khalq]
* [Indian] PM writes to Saddam ['conveying
India's interest in the
reconstruction
of Iraq']
* Aziz Finds Friendly Audience [in US
activists]
* Iraq gives $9m to intifada [actually 900m,
though not clear that its
actually
or will actually change hands. PLO rep in Baghdad to discuss
modalities]
*
Iraqi Feb Kirkuk oil prices approved by U.N
* British oil firms in talks with Iraq
* 'Stop the war' with Iraq, Canadian churches
urge
* Water and sanitation kills Iraqis: British
activists [Voices in the
Wilderness
visit to Iraq]
* Minister says Iraq has right to sell oil
freely
* London traffic stopped by Iraq sanctions
demo
* Hunt supporters sanction rival protest
* Aziz blames West for Gulf War [Extract
giving account of Voices protest
in NY]
* Syrian mediation between Iraq and the Arab
Gulf states
* Iraq denies mediation for reconciliation
with Saudi Arabia
* Jordan forms committee for building oil
pipeline from Iraq
* Australian Government Urged to Change Policy
Towards Iraq [by group
including
ex-PM, Malcolm Fraser]
* Baghdad lavishes riches on elite [short
article has a bit more nuance
than
the headline]
* US air strike in southern Iraq
* End To U.N. Sanctions Sought [Fellowship of
Reconciliation in New York
targetting
Richard Holbrooke]
* Britain promises flexibility on Iraq
inspections [Hain trying to sound
reasonable.
Unfortunately the Iraqi experience of weapons inspectors from
1991 to
1998 argues against him]
* Palestinians march for Iraq on Gulf War
anniversary
* Hussein Calls for Arab Unity [account of
SH's 10th anniversary TV speech]
* UN Complains Iraq Neglecting Health, Oil
Sectors [Report from Benon Sevan
criticising
Iraqi purchasing policy]
* Saddam may hold the key to West's prosperity
[by making up the gap
created
when OPEC reduces its oil quotas]
* Egyptian - Iraqi relations beyond diplomatic
representation [and related
URLs]
* Iraq shoots self in foot again [Uday
reasserting claim to Kuwait and
reaction
among Arab and Gulf states. With related URLs]
* Some 11,000 Iraqis die in December, 2000 of
the siege
* Vietnam flouts Iraq air embargo
* Iraq, Kurds still in dialogue despite break:
Baghdad
* Dr. Barham Salih becomes the new
Prime Minister of the PUK-controlled
region
of Southern Kurdistan
* Iraq Says Airstrike Kills Six
* Israel investigates its envoy in Atlanta for
alleged Iraqi link [He is
accused
of having an Iraqi friend, a very serious offence, it appears]
* Iraq seeks UN permission to aid 'wretched
Americans'
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.nypostonline.com/news/worldnews/21297.htm
* Saddam's vicious sons to fight it out
by
Niles Lathem
New
York Post,January 14,2001
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk_politics/newsid_1119000/1119736.stm
* Call to end Iraq sanctions
BBC,
16th January
[Account
of BBC interview with Tony Benn. Also starring Peter Hain and the
Kuwaiti
ambassador to London. Summary of well established positions]
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010117/wl/iraq_leadall_dc_1.html
* Iraq Marks Gulf War with Eye on New U.S.
Leader
by
Nadim Ladki (Reuters, 17th January)
[Account
of Baghdad rally attended by Ramsey Clark's International Action
Center]
http://www.dawn.com/2001/01/19/ebr3.htm
* Wheat export to Baghdad, Kabul, Tehran
targetted
by
Aamir Shafaat Khan
Dawn (Pakistan)
19th January
* In the wake of the high-tech 'storm' [NY
Post. A US-eye view from high
tech
wizardry to regret not pushing on to Baghdad to Gulf War Syndrome. Not
much on
how the Iraqis may have lived it]
* Female POW: I wasn't a hero [Seattle Times.
An account of imprisonment in
Iraq by
Gulf War POW, Michelle Koidin who was, as it happens, treated
correctly]
* Gulf War didn't stop Hussein [Sunday Times. I haven't bothered with the
article
but I include a chronology given at the end of it]
* A time for celebration [Jerusalem Post. The
Arabs have been kept down,
which
is good, but they still have delusions of grandeur, which is bad]
* A war without end [Observer. John Nichol,
the Gulf War prisoner. While
justifying
the war he argues against the postwar bombing and sanctions]
* Kuwait bears scar of war [suggests that
Kuwait has suffered a moral
collapse
since the Gulf War]
* Gulf War Tied Israel's Hands [Life in Israel
during the Gulf War]
* Saddam sent hitman to kill London foes [A
defector's tale, by Marie
Colvin,
who seems to specialise in this sort of thing. Sunday Times]
* Iraqi deserter prospers in US [an extract
describing a huge 'tent city'
in the Saudi
desert full of Iraqi refugees]
* Kurds Still Dependent on Outsiders [useful
account of present situation
of
Kurds. More informative than Peter Hain as to why they're presently
better
off than the rest of Iraq. But it does pose a question as to whether
we in
the anti-sanctions movement should be opposing the existence of the
no-fly
zone over Iraqi Kurdistan]
* Iraq's Basra now a far cry from its past
glory [tragedy of Sinbad's
birthplace]
* Kuwait's crossroads [Western liberties or
faithfulness to tradition?]
* Gulf War lesson: how the peace was lost [The
Age, Australia: 'instead of
the
success of post-World War II West Germany, Iraq has been more like a
post-World
War I Germany: alienated people seeking revenge against the
victors.'
Quite a good critique of the post war policy from a
pro-Imperialist
standpoint]
* Links between FF and the Iraqi regime
[Article by Fintan O'Toole in the
Irish
Times suggesting that the opposition to sanctions by leading Fianna
Fail
representatives, though wholly honourable, is, or may be, or we will
insert
into the ear of our readers that it is, motivated by greed. This is
one
nasty little piece of work]
* Let's finally end the Gulf War [a strange
article using the arguments
that
are usually used in favour of sanctions, eg the bold assertion that
'Western
intelligence indicates that Iraq has rebuilt its arsenal of weapons
of mass
destruction', to argue against them]
* Eyewitness: Iraq stuck in timewarp [BBC.
Account of life in the
University
of Basra]
* Ten years after the Gulf War, UN should stop
punishing people of Iraq
[very
good statement of basic argument]
* Saddam ready to put Bush to test [Extract
giving some not very
encouraging
quotes from Bush aides Rumsfield, Rice and Wolfowitz]
* Over a barrel: Abandoning sanctions now
would simply strengthen Saddam
[Nasty
little editorial from the Times]
* First Night of Gulf War Detailed [What
S.Hussein was doing. Extracts from
The
Secret Battle, Its Leader, The Events And Facts That Preceded It by
Iraqi
Lt. Gen. Abed Hammeed Mahmoud]
* Powerful, moving pictures in the wake of war
[account of some films made
about
the Gulf War and its aftermath]
* Saddam is aiming for a regional war [it
seems that, thanks to that woolly
minded
liberal Madeleine Albright, Saddam is now more heavily armed, at any
rate he
has more tanks, than he was at the start of the Gulf War]
* Standing firm against Saddam [Nasty little
editorial from the London
Evening
Standard]
* If Saddam doesn't get you the UN sanctions
will [I used to think Saddam
was
vicious until I realised what Tony Blair was up to ...]
* Ten years after the Gulf War, Saddam smiles
again [Ha'aretz worried at
Saddam's
success in the Arab world]
* Defying misery caused by the UN embargo [on
the thriving art scene in
Baghdad,
and they aren't all pictures of S.Hussein ...]
URLs
ONLY:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1118000/1118923.stm
* Agony of Kuwait's missing
by
Frank Gardner in Kuwait
BBC,
15th January
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1118000/1118539.stm
* Gulf War: Iraq's legacy of pain
by
Barbara Plett in Basra
BBC,
15th January
[mentions
road to Basra]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1118000/1118611.stm
* Flashback: Desert Storm
by
Tarik Kafala
BBC,
15th January
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1118000/1118812.stm
* Lessons of the Gulf War
by
Defence Correspondent Jonathan Marcus
BBC,
15th January
http://www.cnn.com/chat/transcripts/2001/01/16/sadler/
* CNN's Brent Sadler looks at Iraq since the
Gulf War
CNN,
16th January
[Nothing
here we don't know but it seems to be quite a reasonable account of
the
present state of Iraqi public opinion]
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010116/wl/kuwait_iraq_dc_1.html
* KUWAIT WANTS OIL-FOR-DEMOCRACY PLAN FOR IRAQ
by
Ashraf Fouad (Reuters, 16th January)
http://www.news24.co.za/News24/World/Middle_East/0,1113,2-10
35_967330,00.html
* Saddam's sons cultivate power
News
24, 18th January
[Does contain
the following: 'Odai also has a paramilitary force called
"Saddam's
Commandos", though it's better known for bizarre antics than
military
prowess. Members wear black masks and have been shown on television
butchering
cats, dogs and wolves and then eating the raw meat.' Is this well
attested?
Is it very likely from a group which has pretentions to being
'Muslim'?]
http://www.worldnews.com/?action=display&article=5348766&template=worldnews/
search.txt&index=recent
* TURK, IRANIAN RIVALRY IN IRAQ
UPI,
Thu 18 Jan 2001
[Account
of the situation in Iraqi Kurdistan. Not particularly enlightening]
http://www.dawn.com/2001/01/18/op.htm#2
* IRAQ: TEN YEARS OF CRUEL SANCTIONS
by Asma
Rashid
[Sympathetic
article from the Pakistani paper Dawn, but it more or less
restates
the case using the same sources we do eg von Sponeck v Hain]
SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT OF
NEWS ITEMS RELATING TO DEPLETED URANIUM, 14 21/1/01
* West's DU ammunition worries ring hollow in
Iraq
* Gulf war file gave uranium warning.
[Includes the following interesting
little
bit of information that I haven't seen anywhere else: 'Ray Bristow, a
Gulf
war veteran, was last night prevented from travelling to Iraq when the
Foreign
Office refused to allow his chartered plane to leave Britain.
Bristow
wanted to see the alleged effects of DU on children in the south of
Iraq.']
* Four nations took brunt of toxic shells
[gives details, from military
sources,
on where and when it was used]
* Facts overruling DU emotions [Cool headed,
reflective, objective
researcher
Mark Laity calms our fears]
* Are the governments of Nato guilty of
committing a heinous war crime?
[but
not those of R.Fisk, who quotes NATO documents on the need to do what
M.Laity
is doing 'until something better comes along']
* DU admission stokes Gulf war health row [traces of plutonium in DU
shells]
* I see no evidence of harm: The Ministry of
Defence's chief scientific
adviser
attacks the press [He says there is no danger if the correct
procedure
is adopted. He does not say if the children of Basra adopted the
correct
procedure or were informed as to what the correct procedure is]
http://www.worldnews.com/?action=display&article=5375532&template=worldnews/
search.txt&index=recent
* GERMAN OFFICIAL CITES URANIUM PAPERS
BERLIN
(Associated Press, Fri 19 Jan 2001)
Incidents
involving DU in Germany in the eighties
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/national/010120/5031433.html
* 'I'M SURE WE'VE BEEN EXPOSED' TO DEPLETED
URANIUM, SOLDIERS SAY
by
Douglas Quan, with files from David Pugliese, Christopher Guly and Ryan
Baker
Ottawa
Citizen, 20th January
[Canadian
soldiers involved in clearup on road to Basra. One might have
hoped
they would have had still more shocking things to report]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1118000/1118306.stm
* IRAQI ALARM OVER DU AMMUNITION
by
Barbara Plett in Basra
BBC,
15th January
NEW WORLD ORDER
SUPPLEMENT, 14-21/1/01
* The questionable future of NATO [by Henry
Kissinger. The veteran
mass-murderer,
responsible for the bombing of Cambodia and Laos, see Simon
Jenkins'
piece later on, suggests that, under Bush, Europe will just have to
come to
terms with America's greatness]
* We must fight the good fight for jingoism
[by Michael Gore in The Times.
Another
attempt to give credibility to the Bush conception of foreign
affairs.
Which has also all of a sudden become the Hague conception, though
in
Bush's absence we didn't hear much about it]
* West claimed moral high ground with air
power [by John Keegan of the
Daily
Telegraph, a classic article that everyone should have framed on their
wall as
a reminder of the depths to which we fall when we give free reign to
our
propensity for moral self righteousness]
* U.N. Sanctions Keep Iraqis Poor, Hopeless
[The title is very misleading.
The
article is actually about the nature of modern weaponry and ends up with
a brief
description of the best known items in the American arsenal]
* Bombs that turn our leaders into butchers
[Simon Jenkins' powerful
description
of the Plain of Jars in Laos. After which let no-one think that
we and
our allies are in any position to accuse anyone of 'war crimes']
* Condoleeza Rice comments Iraq sanctions,
Balkans [Nothing's gonna change
our
world ...]
* Deadly blast from the past [an account of
the virtues and shortcomings of
'fuel
air' weapons. Concludes that cluster bombs are a more effective way of
killing
people, though fuel air bombs are good for dispersing the evidence
of a
chemical weapons attack]
* Analysis: Khalilzad and Bush's Afghanistan
policy [Account of the Afghani
who may
guide the process of sanctions against Afghanistan. He favours
pitting
the Pashtun against the Talibani. Since the Talibani are themselves
the
present day representatives of the Pashtun, this may be difficult.]
* Diverse faith groups at prayer lunch [A self
indulgence on my part. But
I'm
intrigued by the apparent respectability of Sun Myung Moon who, as I
knew,
controls the Washington Times and also, as I didn't know but was
beginning
to guess, the United Press International. Both these two organs
seem to
be very anti-Iraq]
URLsONLY:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/commentary/printedition/article/0,2669,SAV0101160080,FF.html
* DISPUTE REFLECTS DEEPER CONFLICTS, RIVALRIES
BETWEEN EUROPE AND U.S.
by
William Pfaff
Chicago
Tribune (probably from Los Angeles Times), 17th January
http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/01/17/afghanistan.us.threats.reut/index.html
* U.S. OFFICIAL SAYS AFGHANISTAN CENTER OF
TERRORISM
CNN,
January 17, 2001
Owing
to lack of time this is a modest mailing compared to previous efforts.
Main
items are probably the oil ones, and the possibility that Iraq is
succeeding
in imposing its surcharge; the likelihood of a visit by the Pope;
the WHO
inspection of the effects of DU on civilians (potentially a much
more
important development than the enquiries into the effects on soldiers
in the
Balkans); and the excuse that factories capable of producing chlorine
may
provide for new bombing raids.
IRAQI
LARGESSE
* U.S. nationals seek Iraqi financial aid,
Iraq says
* U.N. council kills Iraqi plan to aid
Palestinians
BOMBING
RAIDS
* 6 Iraqis die in Western air attack
* Iraq: Allied Warplane Confrontations
BRITISH
POLICY
* Britain Shows Flexibility on Iraq Arms
Inspections
* Calmer tone on Iraq from MoD
REVIEW
OF SANCTIONS POLICY
* 'Sanctions on Iraq only benefited Baghdad's
ruling elite'
* Kuwaiti FM backs call to lift sanctions on
Iraq
* Iraq demands 'action' from Kuwait to lift
sanctions
* Ankara Supports Lifting U.N. Sanctions
Against Iraq
* UN panel head Norway wants review of Iraq
sanctions
* Powell asks staff to look at Iraq, other
sanctions
UN et
al INSPECTIONS
* An End to the Impasse? U.N. Seems Ready to
Appoint Weapons Inspector for
Iraq
* WHO plans Iraqi uranium study
* Nuclear Inspectors Praise Iraq
* Iraq: UN technical team to visit next month
* UN, Iraq ready aid distribution plan
OIL
STORY
* Iraq sells to obscure companies as exports
remain patchy
* UN not pursuing illegal oil surcharges paid
to Iraq
* U.S. firms play key role in Iraq export
revival
* Poor refining margins obstacle to Iraq crude
sales
FACTORIES
OF DEATH
* Pressure on Iraq over 'new weapons'
* Iraq dismisses N.Y.Times report on arms as
groundless
* London and Washington fear revival of Saddam
[See
also, in Iraqi supplement: * West Must
Answer Saddam's Threat]
OTHER
* Iraq to sign free trade agreement with Syria
* Pope defies West with Iraq visit
* Iraq, Syria to invite Turkey to
water-sharing meeting in Baghdad
* Iraqi asylum seekers treble in a year
* Baghdad settles war scores on celluloid
* Iraq Protests over World Cup Qualifier Venue
Change
* Reno Lifted Restrictions on Iraqis
* Chantal Kreviazuk Offers Peace And Hope In
Iraq
* Egypt cautious over Iraqi flight request
* Turkey and Iraq for developing trade and
economic relations
* Ten Years after the Gulf War [Naive and
apparently innocent article
'the
'Arab solution for an Arab problem' advocated by Egypt failed because
of the
differences of opinion among Arab countries on Iraq's invasion to
Kuwait'
which ends up naively invoking SC resolution 687 which calls for
the
removal of ALL weapons of mass destruction from the Middle East, not
just
Iraqi ones]
* Baghdad booms as Saddam turns sanctions into
gold [' The road from the
Jordanian
capital of Amman may be crowded, bumpy and narrow, but once across
the
border, and past a recent statue of a sword-wielding Saddam on a rearing
horse
flanked by four flaring Scuds, you hurtle along a new six-lane
motorway
complete with laybys and picnic spots.']
* Baghdad wolf woos Arab fold [Surprisingly
moderate article from Ha'aretz
in
which an 'American diplomat' argues convincingly that Israel has nothing
to fear
from Iraq. Is he going to keep his job?]
* West Must Answer Saddam's Threat [and, by
way of contrast, a hysterical
piece
from the New York Daily News which suiggests that the US has
everything
to fear from Iraqi factories capable of manufacturing chlorine]
Although
these are not divided into supplements as previously, I'm sending
them in
two batches on the possibility that some people's computers may have
problems
with large mailings.
Titles
of items I would recommend are given in CAPS:
IRAQI
RELATIONS WITH THE US/UK
* Iraq Says Gulf War Bomb Kills Four Children
* Iraq: Airstrikes Injured 7 People
* U.S., British jets bomb Iraqi missiles
* Iraq seeking reconciliation [extract, giving
more details on missiles
bombing]
* Iraq's bitter British rift [an interesting
article flawed by the
assumption
that Iraq's memories of Britain prior to the Gulf War were all
favourable]
WEAPONS
OF MASS DESTRUCTION
* Saddam has made two atomic bombs, says Iraqi
defector
* Cheney Accuses Iraq of Seeking Deadly
Weapons
* Ex-UN inspector says Iraq had Brucella
biological agent
IRAQI
RELATIONS WITH THE UN
* Iraq accuses UN over oil payments
* OIL-FOR-FOOD PLAN WON'T OFFSET LOSSES:
SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAQ [a very
important
article which gives an explanation as to why the Iraqis have been
so slow
in recent months in putting in orders for food and medicine]
* Iraq asks damages for its children for UN
sanctions [it appears the
Iraqis
will never learn the basic principle of the New World Order: that
there
are people who get compensation and people who don't get
compensdation]
* UN Council Mulling Sanctions Plans [French
proposals to introduce a
carrot
along with the stick]
* WHO Seeks Fund for Forward Work on DU in
Balkans, Iraq
IRAQI
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
* Iraq, Syria plan to build new pipeline
[positive view of Iraqi/Syrian
rapprochement]
* Iraq plots anti-Israel alliance [negative
view of Iraqi/Syrian
rapprochement]
* Iraq invites Arab countries for mutual free
trade zones
* Iraqi refugees return back home from Saudi
Arabia
* Iraq seeking reconciliation with Kuwait,
Saudi Arabia: Mubarak acting as
mediator
by Syed
Rashid Hussain
* Saddam about to bomb Israel?
* Jordan: Time to change U.S. policy on Iraq
* Iraqi conditions to establish a free trade
with Jordan
* Iraqi- Eritrean agreement on diplomatic
representation
* Indonesia calls for sanctions on Iraq to be
lifted
* U.S. Regrets Return of Turkish Envoy to Iraq
OIL
SUPPLY
* Russian energy minister flies to Baghdad
* Russia submits list of firms to lift Iraqi
oil
* IRAQ FINDS NEW WAYS TO GET OIL REVENUES
NEWS,
28/12/2/02 (2)
[sent separately]
HIJACK
INCIDENTS
* Britons see mid-air hijack attempt fail
* Trial of Yemen Hijacker Starts in Sanaa
* Yemen Hijacker Testifies in Trial
* Yemeni hijacker gets 15-year prison term
[Yemeni justice doesn't hang
about
PB]
IRAQI
OPPOSITION
* Iraqi Foes To Get Aid From U.S.
* Powell Expects Mideast, Iraq to Dominate
U.S. Agenda [or maybe they won't
get aid
from US]
* IRAQI INTELLECTUALS ESTABLISH PARLIAMENT
[indicates the possibility of an
Iraqi
opposition interested in something other than large handouts from the
murderers
of the Iraqi people]
* U.S. gives $4 million to dissidents for
legal case against Hussein [the
$4m is
the sum already promised by Clinton. And does it really cost $4m to
prove
Mr Hussein guilty of crimes against humanity? We were under the
impression
that the case was already pretty well established. Are we wrong?]
NEW
WORLD ORDER
* Facing Up to Iraq [the Clinton legacy of
softness has left a heavy burden
on
America's future]
* POWELL FACES DANGEROUS ALBRIGHT LEGACY [the
Albright legacy of toughness
has
left a heavy burden on America's future]
* THE
NEW ORDER THAT SPLITS THE WORLD [excellent article by Simon Jenkins
defending
the principle of national sovereignty]
* Cook Wants to Cement British Ties with U.S.
* It's Now the Smaller Arab States That Lead
the Way
MISCELLANEOUS
ITEMS
* 'Saddam has blood cancer, war for succession
open'
* From Russia with love: 5,000 copies of 'The
Big Breach' [short extract on
MI6
proposal to infiltrate UNSCOM. But would that have been necessary?]
* Hyundai Eng. soars on Iraqi payout
* 'Convicting Kuwaiti govt head will please
Saddam' [trial of the Kuwaiti
head of
state under the Iraqi occupation]
* Iraqi girl to leave US after treatment
* MuchMusic & War Child in Iraq
STATE
OF SANCTIONS
* Iraqi sanctions crumble to dust (Financial
Times)
* Sanctions Against Iraq Should Be Lifted
(WorldNews special)
* Speaker of Moroccan parliament leads Arab
delegation to European
parliament
over lifting anti-Iraq sanctions
* Iraq Sanctions Effective, Insists UK
* Britain and US look for a way to hurt
Saddam, not his people (Cook's
visit
to the US)
US
POLICY
* Iraq's Saddam Hussein: He Never Went Away
(an old article from January by
a
Former Vice Chairman of the National Intelligence Council at the CIA)
* Saddam Has Won the Propaganda War, So Change
Tactics [by Thomas Friedman.
Perhaps
the most interesting article of the bunch, already circulated by
Drew
Hamre]
* A Risky No-Fly Zone Over Iraq [a risky
operation sending it out since it
comes
from the Washington Post. But note that I am invited to 'E-Mail This
Article'
and that's what I'm doing]
IRAQI
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
* Iraq-Egypt flights under way
* Iraq defends minister's handshake with Saudi
counterpart
* Kasi [federal minister of Pakistan] calls on
Saddam, delivers CE[Chief
Executive]'s
message
* Washington opposes a Jordanian, Iraqi [free
trade] agreement
* Iraqi prevents anti- Syrian political practices
in its territories
* Egypt rejects Iraqi 'escalation' against
Kuwait
* Iraq thwarting peace attempts: Kuwait
* Saddam forms army "to liberate
Jerusalem"
* [Egyptian/Kuwaiti] Talks in Kuwait dealt
with lifting suffering of the
Iraqi
people
* Pope Shenouda visits Jerusalem only at
Arafat's invitation [extract
saying
that 'The Middle East Council of Churches has plans to convene an
upcoming
meeting in Baghdad']
* Iraqi paper renews warnings over Kuwait
* Iraq appoints a new representative at the UN
IRAQI
NATIONAL CONGRESS
* Iraqi opposition says sending in agents this
month
* Iraqi Leader Praises U.S. Gov't
* Iraqi Opposition Faces Major Credibility
Hurdles [worth reading]
KURDISTAN
* Ethnic Cleansing in Kirkuk
* Baghdad To Replace Currency In Kurdistan
NEW
WORLD ORDER
* CIA: China, Iran, Terrorism, pose worst
threats ["Never in my experience
has
American intelligence had to deal with such a dynamic set of concerns
affecting
such a broad range of U.S. interests. Never have we had to deal
with
such a high quotient of uncertainty," CIA Director George Tenet said.
Come
back, Stalin. All is forgiven]
* Interpreting the new Bush [Israeli account
of Arab hopes and fears]
* UK-US joint front against Iraq, Libya
MISCELLANEOUS
* Iraq Says It Can Prove No More Mass
Destruction Arms
* Gulf War bombs kill Iraqi child, injure 6
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/meast/02/07/us.iraq/index.html
* U.S.-Iraq policy may hinge on Mideast peace
by
Andrea Koppel, CNN, 7th February
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51182-2001Feb9.html
* Iraq Imperils OPEC Plan
Washington
Post, Saturday, February 10, 2001
[on
success of Iraq's smuggling and surcharge operations. Its all appeared
before
in one form or another]
http://news.ft.com/ft/gx.cgi/ftc?pagename=View&c=Article&cid=FT36J3CPTIC&live=true&tagid=ZZZINS5VA0C&subheading=middle%20east%20and%20africa
* UN sanctions on Iraq attacked
by
Jimmy Burns, Financial Times, 5th February
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/20010209/t000011941.html
* New Leads Emerge on Missing Flier
by PAUL
RICHTER
Los
Angeles Times, 9th February
[we're
not actually told what the new leads are]
http://www.individual.com/story.shtml?story=d0209113.100
* U.S. calls on U.N. panel to curb Iraqi oil
surcharges
by
Bernie Woodall
http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,3605,435833,00.html
* Hain's world
by
Kevin Toolis
The
Guardian, 10th February [this might have gone in but its an epic-length
soap
opera]
This
mailing is late and a bit scrappy, produced under difficult
circumstances.
I'm sure the raids on Friday must have produced more
intresting
comment than I was able to pick up. I have put the material on
the
raids in a separate mailing.
WESTERN
POLICY
1.
Sanctions
* Rethink Iraq Sanctions (San Francisco
Chronicle)
* Powell: U.S Won't Toughen Sanctions
2. The
Iraqi National Congress
* Bush's Foreign Policy Team Is Split on How
to Handle Hussein
* More talks needed before US pays Iraqi
opposition
3.
General US policy
* Powell asks ME nations to 'keep tabs' on
Baghdad
* Powell Outlines New Policy in U.N. Visit
IRAQI
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
* Romania Sends 3 Lawyers to Iraq
* Nastase [Romania] is Trying to Diminish the
"Iraq Scandal"
* Sick children leave Iraq for treatment in
Cairo
* Iraq conference discusses depleted uranium
* Iraq flights to Syria require UN clearance,
says US
* Iraq doesn't need Syria oil line under UN
programme, says envoy
* Chief of the Iraqi intelligence visited
Damascus, the two Baath party
wings
froze differences
* Saddam entertains 'ethnic cleanser' on
secret visit to Baghdad [Vojislav
Seselj
of the Serbian Radical Party. A surprising piece of hysteria from
Robert
Fisk]
* Iraq-Arab states trade reaches $6.2b in 2000
* Iraqi, Jordanian MPs to hold border rally
* Jordanians back Iraqis, urge end to UN curbs
* First Iraqis leave Baghdad for Mecca
pilgrimage
* Iraq says UN monitors sought U.S. Gulf War
pilot
GENERAL
INTEREST
* Iraqi Airways retires five helicopters
* Ingenious thieves ransack ancient Nineveh,
other sites in troubled Iraq
[includes
this piece of information I didn't know: 'Bombs from allied
aircraft
left large craters at Ur of the Chaldees in the south, the site
reputed
to be the birthplace of Abraham. A ziggurat was blasted with more
than
400 rounds of machine-gun fire.']
* Saddam praises Sabaeans, pledges to build
temple
* Iraq to mark 5,000th anniversary of writing
[though the Times of India
thinks
the Egyptians were in there first]
* Civilians and allied troops died [a brief
history of collateral damage
during
the Gulf War]
CHRONOLOGIES
* Chronology of Strikes Against Iraq
* History of the 'no-fly' zones in Iraq
* Airstrikes offer first test for 'special
relationship' [end of article
which
gives a brief chronology of the conflict]
* Iraq says Western planes wound seven in
south
* Iraqis blast "criminal" Bush after
15 injured in air raid
* US planes strike Iraqi missile site
* Iraq Says Cluster Bomb Injures Two Children
* Pentagon: Iraq Air Strike Effective
* Abrupt end to Britain's quest for
conciliation
* Teenager Dies in Western Strikes-Iraq Papers
REACTIONS
AND EXPLANATIONS
* Allies attacked due to 'Iraqi threat', UK
says [extract giving reactions
of the
British "opposition parties"]
* Iraqi opposition supports no-fly zones
* Was It Justified?Experts Criticize U.S.
Strike on Baghdad
* Britain Says Iraq Raid 'Humanitarian'
* Experts unsure if Iraq attack is sole volley
* Nations Criticize Air Attacks on Iraq
* Palestinians show support for Hussein [also
quite interesting on Israeli
reactions]
* Russia condemns U.S.-British air strike on
Baghdad ["We are shocked by
the
actions taken, relying on military force". Yes. Well ....]
* We bombed Iraq! What else is new?
[interesting reaction from John Pike,
director
of Globalsecurity.org: 'The main thing that distinguished Friday's
action
from the strikes that occurred under the previous administration,
Pike
said, is publicity.']
* Australia backs US and UK air strikes
on Iraq
NEWS,
18-24/2/01 (1)
Special
bumper edition this time owing to the reaction to the raid on 16th
February.
I've divided it in three parts the first two parts are all to do
with
the raid, the third with other affairs. Note in the International
section
the items concerning little dramas in Poland, Serbia, Germany and
New
Zealand. Note also that all the Middle East powers, except Kuwait but
including
Saudi Arabia, condemned the raid (which however was only a logical
extension
of the no fly policy). I personally recommend as being of
particular
interest the articles *Airstrike on Iraq seeks wrong goal, in
section
7; and *Kurds despair under west's leaky umbrella, in section 10.
1.
RAIDS, (including details of targets and success or otherwise of raid on
Friday
February 16)
* Bombs destroyed Iraqi command centre
* MP hits out at 'pitiful' defence of air
offensive [short extract giving
details
on the number of bombings last year]
* US and British aircraft not fired on since
raids [thus proving success of
raid.
But ...]
* Iraq Resumes Fire on Allied Planes
* Modernization of Iraq's air defence led to
air strike: US [see also below
on
Chinese involvement]
* Iraq says Western planes drop 'flare bombs'
* Iraq Reports Western Air Patrols, But No
Attacks
* Serbia aided planning of air raids on Iraq
[main part of article is in
the
international section. This is an extract in which the British claim the
raid
was a great military success. But ...]
* Many Smart Bombs Off Target in Iraq Attack,
Defense 'stunned' by bad
showing
* New Strikes on Iraq After Weapons Faults
[detail on nature of bombs.
They're
cluster bombs]
* US warplanes strike Iraq again
* Iraq reports higher death toll from
airstrikes [further details on areas
hit]
2.
CHINA AND ITS POSSIBLE ROLE IN DEVELOPING IRAQ'S DEFENSIVE CAPACITY
* China fortifying Iraq's air defense system
* Claims China Aiding Iraq a Diversion, Says
Beijing
* Bush Says Chinese Respond to Complaint on
Iraq Aid
3.
BRITAIN'S ROLE IN THE RAID ON FEBRUARY 16
* Britain urged Bush to launch raids on Iraq
* Claims that US pushed UK into Iraqi
airstrike
* MoD and Cook at war over Iraq [I have put
in capitals a passage that
seems
to me to be very important suggesting that there is no point in the
patrols
over southern Iraq because the Shia have already been
comprehensively
beaten by Saddam. I would like to know more about this, and
about
what it means for our suposed concern for and desire to defend them]
* Blair Defends U.S.-British Strikes on Iraq
* UK's secret Iraq diplomacy [it seems Peter
Hain was a good guy after all]
URL
ONLY
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,440333,00.html
* Allies ready to ease Iraq sanctions
by
Richard Norton-Taylor and Jon Henley in Paris
The
Guardian, 20th February
Not
much more than what it says in the headline
4.
REACTION TO THE RAID IN THE MIDDLE EAST & ARAB WORLD
* Mideast powers condemns Bush
"adventurism" in Iraq
* Qatar says air strikes on Iraq regrettable
* Jordan rallies to Iraq's side
* Arab allies deserting Kuwait for Iraq?
* Attacks increase suffering of Iraqi people -
Oman
* Bahrainis condemn bombing of Baghdad
* Lebanese Hurt in Iraq Protest Outside U.S.
Embassy
* Saudi Arabia Joins Denunciation of Iraq
Strike
* Iran flays UK, US strikes
* Moroccan association decries US-British
raids on Iraq
NEWS 18-24/2/01 (2)
sent separately
5.
INTERNATIONAL REACTION
* Western attack on Iraq mars Mexico-U.S.
'fiesta' [Mexican discontent that
the
raid occurred while Bush was visiting Mexico, thus showing how little
importance
he attached to the visit]
* Bombing sharpens US, Europe divisions
* New Zealand government says US and UK
bombings in Iraq threaten peace
* PM raps Robson for Iraq comments [more on
New Zealand]
* Annan: Iraq bombing 'awkward'
* Iraq basks in support after US strikes
[short extract on Malaysia and
Indonesia]
* Germany cautious on reaction to US-British
strikes
* Iraq halts trade with Canada, Poland [more
on Poland below]
* Malaysian leaders demonstrate at US Embassy
* [Irish] Government expresses its 'regret'
over bombing [Congratulations,
Sandeep!]
* Turkish minister calls for Ankara-Baghdad
ties
* France continues criticisms over US-British
air strikes
* Blair Defends U.S.-British Strikes on Iraq
[extract in which Joschka
Fischer
seems to think the raid, in southern Iraq, was all about defending
Kurds]
* German Official Talks U.S. Defense [Fischer, anxious to prove he is not
a
'terrorist', buys the whole American story. Green Party reaction below]]
* Islamic Body Condemns US-British Raids On
Iraq [the Organisation of
Islamic
Conferences meeting in Saudi Arabia]
* Challenge UN sanctions, Duma tells Putin
[Russian parliament tells Putin
to
break the sanctions]
* Mexican Congress Slams US-British Raids on
Iraq
* Adviser to Polish premier submits
resignation [and his resignations was
accepted.
This was because he gave the impression Poland supported the raid]
* Serbia aided planning of air raids on Iraq
* Kostunica: Yugoslavia did not aid in bombing
Iraq [thank heaven for that.
Though
whether or not Kostunica knows what Djindjic's men are getting up to
is
another matter ...]
* Vatican Opposes Latest Bombing of Iraq
* Greens [in Germany] upset by Minister's
support for Iraq raids
* US Muslims slam attacks on Iraq
* Poland Denies Support for U.S. Raid in Iraqi
Paper
* UN concerns over Iraq policy [feeling that
perhaps someone should have
been
told]
URL
ONLY
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/national/010218/5079652.html
* [Canadian] PM not concerned Bush didn't warn
of air strike
by Jack
Aubry
The
Ottawa Citizen, 12th February
[Canadian
support for US/British policy]
6.
COMMENTARY IN FAVOUR OF THE RAID
* 'Eliminating Saddam Hussein is now both
feasible and desirable'
by
Edward Luttwak, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and
International
Studies, Sunday Telegraph
[No
explanation of why its more feasible now than ever before]
* Iraq: Routine or new policy?
by Amos
Perlmutter, Jerusalem Post
[Hopes
for end to 'puillanimous' policy of Clinton]
URL
ONLY
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.html?in_review_id=362213&in
_review_text_id=307377
* Double standards - in Middle East
Evening
Standard, 19th February
[Editorial
supports the bombing but seems to think they should be bombing
Israel
too.]
7.
COMMENTARY OPPOSED TO THE RAID
* Bombing by obsession [Dawn (Pakistan)]
* Locked in an Orwellian eternal war
by
Robert Fisk, Sunday Independent
* Beware bellicose Bush, Mr Blair [The
Observer, February 18]
* If our pilots want to know the way to Iraq,
they need only ask their
fathers
by Mick
Hume, Times [this is a bit disappointing since the title seems to
promise
more of an account of past British policy in Iraq]
* Pummelling malnourished Iraqis is poor
leadership,
by Syed
Badrul Ahsan, Bangladeshi Independent [interesting Bangladeshi view
of
internal US politics]
* Airstrike on Iraq seeks wrong goal
by
Micah Zenko, Baltimore Sun [very interesting article, criticising the
raids
from the point of view of the need to get weapons inspectors back]
URLs
ONLY
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.html?in_review_id=362212&in_review_text_id=307376
* Silent majority don't want war
by A N
Wilson
Evening
Standard, 19th February
[Interesting
to see A.N.Wilson on the side of the angels but the article is
little
more than an expression of disgust (and regret, which I share, that
there
is no substantial opposition in Britain). Note that this goes against
the
London Evening Standard editorial line.]
http://independent-bangladesh.com/news/feb/19/19022001pd.htm#3
* Bush's foreign policy in rough waters
by
Barrister Harun ur Rashid ('The writer is a former Bangladesh ambassador
to the
UN in Geneva.')
Bangladesh
Independent, 19th February
[On
'two incidents' that 'have left the US foreign policy in a quagmire'.
The
accidental sinking of a Japanese training vessel by an American
submarine,
which has emphasised the difficulties of US relations with Japan;
and the
raids which put US middle east relations into disarray.]
8. NEWS
FROM INSIDE IRAQ
* Iraq threatens to hit back at Saudi, Kuwait
* Iraq splits ministry of culture and
information
* Iraq's oil export rebounds from record low:
UN
* Iraq Warns Russia Over Oil Contracts [Russia
might lose them if they
don't
start drilling right away, sanctions or no sanctions]
* Russian oil work in Iraq not UN
approved-diplomats
* Tunisia, Iraq agree free trade pact
9. IRAQ
AND 'WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION'
* No 'direct evidence' of Iraq weapons
[according to the CIA]
* German spy report warns of Iraqi nukes
[according to that sedulous
servant
of the New World Order, the German BND]
10.
IRAQI KURDISTAN
* Gunmen kill Iraqi Kurdish governor in ambush
* Kurds despair under west's leaky umbrella
[on the refugees beached on the
French
riviera and on the plight of Kurds still under Iraqi control. Also
says
there is 85% unemployment in 'the so-called liberated areas' where Mr
Blair
is always telling us eveything is so much better. But then, they're
under
sanctions too, a bizarre fact no-one ever seems to question]
11.
ANTI-SANCTIONS CAMPAIGNING
* 'Iraqi bombing like Hitler's invasion', [on
George Galloway's recent
visit
to Iraq. The substantial quotes are more interesting than the title
suggests]
* Protesters seek to end Iraqi sanctions [on
the 7 day protest outside the
House
of Commons]
* Italy Ministry Blocks Iraq Aid Flight at UN
Request
URL
ONLY
http://www.denverpost.com/news/news0218i.htm
* Group seeks to aid Iraqi citizens
by
Karen Rouse, Denver Post
[National
Organizing Conference on Iraq conference in Denver. Doesn't say
much
other than that they are opposed to sanctions.]
12.
ITEMS OF GENERAL INTEREST
* We are not alone says Blair, as he defends
Baghdad bombing [extract in
which
Cook's figure as to the amount of money the Iraqis aren't spending is
questioned]
* West's Gulf War Chiefs in Kuwait Victory
Party
* No Gulf War regrets for leaders [John Major
doesn't regret not killing
Saddam
Hussein]
URL
ONLY
http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=2/19/01&id=110615
* Saddam's army is obsolete, but the know-how
remains
by
Amnon Barzilai, Ha'aretz, 19th February
[Israeli
estimate of Iraqi military capacity. Very little hard information.]
13.
POWELL'S TRIP TO THE MIDDLE EAST
* Powell Gets Quick Lesson in Arab Mistrust
* Powell, Russian counterpart try to bridge
gaps
14. AND
THE STATE OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER
* Could British pilots face trial for
bombings? [once the International
Criminal
Court is set up?]
* Taliban ready to send Osama bin Laden to
Saudi
* Wearing a T-shirt makes you a terrorist
URL
ONLY
http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=2/19/01&id=110620
* Israel to face Iran alone when U.S. lifts
sanctions
by Aluf
Benn
Ha'aretz,
19th February
[Israeli
expectations that US is going to relax pressure on Iran and in
particular
get rid of 'the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA), initiated by
former
Republican Senator Alfonse D'Amato and passed with the lobbying
efforts
of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)' which is
due to expire
this year. The end of 'dual containment'.]