These
news items are pretty old but I'm just making up the week I
interrupted
when I went off on my travels. Nothing very interesting
except
to note that, probably thanks to the efforts of Mr Wolfowitz's
chums, commentators
are beginning to notice that the hard evidence for
Iraqi
involvement in 'terrorism' is still very slight (terrorism against
Iran of
course doesn't count). Do not fear, though. In the following
week's
articles which will soon appear on your computer screens, Laura
Mylroie
comes to the rescue.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
Europe's Armory For Terrorism [The hatred this time is directed
against
Belarus, accused of helping the Iraqi government to defend itself
against
the illegal - even by the slippy criteria of the United Nations -
US and
British violation of its airspace. It seems, however, that Belarus
is
impregnable because it is already subject to international embargo and
so it
has nothing to lose. The author does not seem to have noticed that
this is
a good argument against the use of sanctions]
*
The Unspoken Case for Toppling Saddam {The author dismisses the usual
arguments
justifying war on Iraq (Iraq doesn't support much terrorism and
probably
doesn't have much in the way of weapons of mass destruction)
then
adds a third even more unconvincing argument, that the fall of Mr
Hussein
will unleash a wave of secularism throughout the Arab and Muslim
world.
Of course, there is secularism and there is secularism. Readers
will be
interested to learn that a 'moderate secular regime' has recently
come to
power in Kabul]
*
Lieberman, McCain hear Turkish concerns about extending war to Iraq
[Counsels
of moderation from Turkey, anxious to keep the Kurds in their
place]
*
Iraq question at centre of 'War of Bush's Ear' [Counsels of moderation
from
Brent Scowcroft who, it seems, is behind Condoleezza Rice]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=B48EF3D7-733D-447F
A57BAD4AA84F752D&Title=Should%20the%20US%20Go%20After%20Saddam%20Hussein%3F
*
Should the US Go After Saddam Hussein?
by
Motabar Shirwani
Voice
of America, 1st January
Graham
Fuller, senior consultant at Rand, and Henry Barkey, professor of
International
Relations at Lehigh University, together fail to contribute
anything
new or interesting to the discussion.
IRAQI/UN
RELATIONS
*
Iraq accuses the UN of obstructing contracts at a cost of 6 billion
*
Weapons Inspections in Iraq [Letter from UNMOVIC defending itself
against
the criticisms of Khidr Hamza and indicating that its potential
for
keeping sanctions in place indefinitely is almost as great as
UNSCOM's]
*
Iraq accuses UN Compensation Commission of mismanagement [It seems
there
have been several cases of payment to different countries being
given
out twice]
*
Syria on Security Council complicates terrorism fight [Horror that a
country
that might timidly on occasion express disagreement with US
policy
(aka 'the international consensus') should have a seat in the
United
Nations Security Council Permanent Five spectators' gallery]
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EASTERN-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Egypt, Iraq discuss spheres of economic, trade cooperation
*
Turkish forces incur into Iraq to chase Kurdistani workers party
members
*
Syria opposes US strike on Iraq: Minister
*
Some 8 Arab journalists were killed because of their career in 2001
REMNANTS
OF DECENCY
*
Ramsey Clark says Iraq war no answer [Includes a brief, rather
disapproving,
account of some highlights in Ramsay Clark's career as a
peace
activist]
*
Teacher to Address Sanctions on Iraq
OIL
*
Iraq hails oil producers cooperation, production cut
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Iraqi minister looks into water, electricity, storage of pollutants in
Ninawa
Some
more out of date news. In this week (last week), the 'Incitement to
Hatred'
section is wilting. Still plenty of hatred of course, but
counsels
of timidity are prevalent (the old hawk/dove dispute in
Washington
has been replaced by a hawk/mouse debate). Perhaps Safire,
Krauthammer,
Kristol et al are still away on their Christmas holidays. On
the
ground, in Turkey, Iran and Iraq, there seems to be a general
assumption
that war is inevitable. Note the two articles on Australia in
the
'International' and 'Refugees' sections. On the one hand they rush to
compound
the misery of the Iraqi people by enforcing the blockade; on the
other
hand, they compound the misery of Iraqis fleeing their misery, or
opposing
S.Hussein, by setting up concentration camps for refugees. Note
also
the apparent increase in holds (up to $5 billion, according to Benon
Sevan) ‚
clearly a crude attempt to make 'smart sanctions' look more
attractive.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
No, a U.S. Attack on Iraq Would Do More Harm Than Good [Leon Fuerth,
former
adviser to Al Gore, argues that al-Qaida is sufficiently complex
to
require all US attention in the near future]
*
Haig: Syria should be next target [Alexander Haig, ex-NATO Supreme
Commander.
Some interesting thoughts, as, for example, that the presence
of
70,000 US troops in Germany is 'the bona fide of our economic success
... it
keeps European markets open to us'. Also he doesn't seem to notice
the
contradiction between his approach towards China ('interventionism
usually
aggravates the improvement in human rights and sets things back')
and his
approach towards Iraq, not to mention Syria]
*
We must attack Iraq and free its people [Geraldine Brooks' article in
The
Guardian]
*
U.S. Hawk Hints Iraq Won't Be Next Target [Paul Wolfowitz sounding
like a
'dove'. Though in the present climate the word 'dove' has to
signify
those who, like Colin Powell, only want to bomb the very easiest
of targets].
*
Stalling in Somalia? [Washington Times panics as the hairlines seem to
shift
away from Iraq. In their desperation to try to impicate Iraq in the
war
against terrorism they've discovered the Iranian Mujaheddin al-Khalq.
But
really their strongest argument amounts to this: 'Iraq has shown no
sign of
opposing terrorism'. And this despite all their efforts against
the
Iranian backed Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution!]
*
Inspectors to Iraq? It's not that simple [Charles Duelfer, UNSCOM's
Deputy
Chairman, says weapons inspections and the UN are no use because
they
allow the regime to continue to exist, thus confirming that his role
as 'UN
weapons inspector' was merely to prolong sanctions until such a
time as
the regime might (somehow) fall.]
*
A smarter way of dealing with Saddam [The 'smarter way' consists of
simply
continuing as before ‚ slow death by starvation, disease and
hopelesssness.
Almost leaves one preferring the advocates of quick death
by
blowing peoples' bodies to bits.]
IRAQI/UN
RELATIONS
*
US criticised over Iraq relief contracts [by the UN Iraq Programme.
Benon
Sevan is about to go to Iraq]
*
UN official sceptical of [Sanctions] Council committee [short extract
adding
some figures to the previous article]
*
Iraq steps up protest on UN oil pricing
*
Diplomats: U.S. Quiet on Iraq Inspections
IRAQI
OPPOSITION
*
Iranian official confers with Iraqi opposition [Iran seemingly anxious
to
establish links with a wide range of opposition groups, not just the
Shi'i Islamist
movement]
*
U.S. Seeks to Restore Funds to Iraqi Group [The title is of course
misleading]
*
Iraqi opposition links funding row to US policy differences [It seems
the
State Department want the INC to build a strong presence inside Iraq
before
they will give them any money to build a strong presence inside
Iraq.
Catch 22?]
*
8 people executed, says Iraqi Oppn [Good to be reminded of the
existence
of the Iraqi Communist Party, presumably the only substantial
opposition
movement that isn't in anyone's pay (one assumes the Russians
aren't
paying them)]
AND, IN
NEWS, 5-11/1/02 (2)
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
*
Iraqi consultant sounds double warning on Bula's oil ambitions [Irish
oil
company. The Iraqi consultant is Riad el Taher, founder of Friendship
across
Frontiers]
*
Diggers run Iraqi blockade [Plucky Australia cheerfully assumes its
share
of the white man's burden]
*
Troop deployment not a sign of anti-Iraq plan: German minister [though
deploying
chemical warfare specialists in Kuwait doesn't sound like part
of a
pro-Iraq plan]
*
Iraq may allow private sector to handle shipment: Wheat exports [to
Pakistan]
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EASTERN-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Diesel fuel transport operations resumed from north Iraq to Turkey
*
Turkish security belt in north Iraq [A very short article but a
sinister
one to do with Turkish moves to prevent a flood of refugees into
Turkey
in the event of a US attack]
*
Daily analyzes hidden part of Iraq in terrorism [Possibly significant
article
from the Iranian Press Agency Irna saying that Iran won't support
Iraq in
its efforts to prevent a US attack]
*
Iraqi revealed as owner of weapons ship
*
Iraq decries Israeli 'piracy'
*
Trial of Iraqi accused of smuggling arms to Palestinians opens in
Amman
*
Arab lawyers condemn American threats against Iraq
REMNANTS
OF DECENCY
*
This is no way to run a foreign policy [by Gavin Esler. I'm not quite
sure it
deserves the 'remnants of decency' tag but it does make some
sharp
points about simplistic good/evil politics. It also includes the
following
astonishing paragraph about the turkey shoot which ended the
war: 'I
was in Washington at the time, and the war lay heavily on the
heart
of Bush senior, who had a firm and decent religious faith. Bush
senior
thought deeply about the morality of sending men into battle to
kill or
be killed, and he did not want any needless killing of Iraqi
soldiers.']
MILITARY
MATTERS
*
US fears Iraq radar can see stealth plane [Strange that an arms
company
able to develop something so very desirable as a means of
detecting
stealth bombers should go bankrupt. Is there a story there?
Felicity?]
*
US may face missile threat from N Korea, Iraq by 2015 [Summary of the
National
Intelligence Estimate. Note the surprising last sentence: '"All
agencies
agree that Iraq could test different ICBM concepts before 2015
if UN
prohibitions were eliminated in the next few years," it said,
adding
"most agencies, however, believe it is unlikely to do so, even if
the
prohibitions were eliminated."'
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Fallen angel's role key in secret ritual [Interesting Kurdish
religious
minority apparently treated better now than it was under
previous
administrations. Finds solidarity with fellow Iraqis in the
army:
'We ... fight the enemy together']
*
New gas field discovery in Iraq
*
Saddam says attacks on Iraq will fail [Short extract which could be
interpreted
as giving support to Al-Qaida, and website address for whole
text,
for enthusiasts]
*
Blocked Contracts Hinder Breeding, Farming, FAO Official Says
*
Iraq's production capacity to rise-MEES
REFUGEES
*
The 'Crime' of Being a Young Refugee [On the conditions in the
concentration
camps of Australia. Its a long article and I cut two
passages
but the whole thing is worth reading.]
*
Hopes grow of a mercy visa for Iraqi mother of sea tragedy girls
This
brings us back up to date. The hawks make a comeback this week led
by
H.Kissinger and Sen. J.Lieberman. But they're still not quite up to
where
they were a few weeks ago when they thought they had a good case
for an
Iraqi/al-Qaida link. Nonetheless the Turks and the Iraqis are
still
plainly worried. It is surely worth noting that in all the
speculation
about whom the US is going to attack next, no-one seems to be
suggesting
that there is a proper procedure for going to war laid down in
the UN
charter to which the United States is supposed to be a signatory.
The US
is being allowed a margin of freedom in this domain which, if it
was
claimed by any other country in the world (if, for example, the UK
had
claimed the right to bomb Dublin in the wake of the Brighton Hotel
bombing)
would immediately provoke international outrage, not least from
the US.
For a wonderful expression of American self delusion see the
article
'America the mighty'. For a rare intelligent assessment of US
interests
with regard to Iraq, see 'No, to answer Iraqi question'.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
Phase II and Iraq [by Henry Kissinger. The old mass murderer is at it
again ‚
inter alia expressing regret that he did not manage to kill
sufficient
numbers of people in Vietnam (he modestly declines to mention
his
triumphs in Cambodia and Laos). However, his 'international
consulting
firm', Kissinger Associates, needs to shake up its research
team a
bit. It has told him that there is a Kurdish minority, a Shia
minority
and a Sunni majority in Iraq. In fact, the Sunnis only have a
majority
if the Kurds are counted as Sunnis (though they tend to be
rather
eccentric Sunni, inclined to Sufism). The basic argument is that
removing
S.Hussein would be such a spectacular piece of terror that
everyone
would fall trembling into line. He may be right.]
*
America the mighty: The U.S. can't lose by taking on Saddam ['The
American
pattern in war is clear. We go there. We kill the bad guys. We
hand
out food and blankets and medicine. Then we go home ... The
civilized
in every nation should cheer whenever our troops take the
field.
But envy rules in hearts where gratitude should reign.']
*
A blind spot called Iraq [Audacious argument based on new book by
Laurie
Mylroie, that the 'loose network of Muslim extremists', including
Al-Qaida,
is really just a cover for the activities of S.Hussein]
*
U.S. seeks al Qaeda link to Iraq [but if any new evidence has been
found
it hasn't been revealed to the Washington Times]
*
Lieberman: Beware Iraq ['the unique threat to American security by
Saddam
Hussein's regime is so real, so grave and so imminent that even if
no
other nation were to stand with us, we must be prepared to act alone'.
All of
which just goes to show that immeasurable wealth and unlimited
military
superiority do not buy peace of mind and a sense of security.]
*
Will George jnr go the same way as his father? [Argues the quite
credible
case that the US can't afford to and don't want to overthrow
Saddam
because it would only strengthen Syria and Iran. Keith Suter
thinks
the US government really wanted to find a means to rehabilitate
Saddam
but Saddam wouldn't play ball. I think they wanted to deal with a
close
associate who would replace him but resemble him closely - though
preferably
not Uday or Qusay (someone resembling the grotesque array of
defectors
that keep popping up every so often). This forlorn hope still
seems
to live on in the State department]
*
No, to answer Iraqi question [Sensible article giving good, right wing
American
reasons for seeking a modus vivendi with Saddam Hussein (the
author,
Doug Bandow, is a fellow of the Cato Institute and former
assistant
to R.Reagan. Perhaps he's still living in the 1980s). Makes the
unusual
point that 'Baghdad is brutal, but no more so than, say, Syria.
Iraq
persecutes its minority populations, but then, Turkey is little more
kind to
its Kurds... ' Was it published anywhere other than in the Japan
Times?]
AND, IN
NEWS, 12-19/1/02
(2)
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EAST/ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Iraqi Minister in Iran for Talks - Radio
*
Iraqi FM: Iraq wants full scale relations with Iran
*
Iraqi FM to visit Bahrain on Sunday: Report
*
Iraqi FM meets Bahrain's emir
*
Iraq Launches Diplomatic Initiative With Saudi Arabia, Kuwait [in
visit
to Bahrain]
*
Turkey Worries Iraq Is Next on U.S. List of Targets
*
Turkish border measures to deter 'Iraq, Iranian missiles' [Building of
a US
'missile shield' in a Southern - presumably Kurdish - province of
Turkey]
*
Barzani and the Kurdish state [Turks accuse Barzani of behaving as if
there
is a Kurdish state in northern Iraq]
*
Jordanian, Iraqi foreign ministers meet in Amman
*
Turkish Leader Softens on Iraq [Includes the following interesting
angle
on the situation of the Kurds in Northern Iraq: Turkish journalist,
Derya
'Sazak said the Turks are floating the idea that alongside the
autonomous
Kurdish region, an autonomous area for Iraq's Turkmen minority
should
be created. Turkey would want the oil-rich area of Kirkuk to be
under
control of the Turkmen, with whom Turkey has close ties.']
*
Dollar-chase for Turkey ['Ecevit will try to get relief for military
debts,
support for more IMF help']
*
Ecevit opposes strikes on Iraq
*
Moroccan business delegation explores investment opportunities in Iraq
*
Kuwaiti- Sudanese parliamentary agreement to strengthen bilateral
cooperation
[This rapprochement between the best behaved Muslim state and
the
international pariah seems less surprising in the light of the
remarkable
news of a US brokered truce between the two sides of the
Sudanese
civil war.]
*
Saudis may ask US military to leave: Report
*
Sources say Saudis want U.S. military presence ended [Extracts giving
some
details missing from the preceding article. Including this: 'The two
governments
never signed an agreement about their presence in the
country.']
IRAQI
NATIONAL DEFENCE
*
U.N. inspectors at arm's length [Account of Hans Blix and UMNMOVIC]
*
IAEA team to visit Iraq, inspect nuclear facilities
*
Saddam has super-gun, report says
*
Iraq At It Again? [CBS news at it again. We've had this story before
('Iraqi
defector says he renovated secret weapons labs' in News,
13-22/12/01)
- defector Adnan Ihsan al-Haideri who claims to have worked
on
heavily protected, sealed chambers. Now, why would a country that is
constantly
under threat of unimaginably terrible attack from the most
powerful
country in all human history want heavily protected sealed
chambers?]
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
*
Iraq to send ambassador to Thailand [This article says Thailand sent
an
ambassador to Iraq early last year]
*
Iraq, Thailand exchange ambassadors [This one says Thailand will send
an
ambassador to Iraq this year]
*
Australia commits, and the navy bears the burden [Michael O'Connor,
executive
director of the 'Australia Defence Association', argues that
imposing
'a new form of colonial rule' in very distant parts of the world
is 'by
any measure ... not an illegitimate use of the right of national
self
defense' and if Australians want to get in on the act they had
better
spend more on their - er, um - 'defence' forces. We learn some
interesting
things, as for example, that three of Australia's nine
frigates
are devoted to 'catching asylum seekers', that new form of
international
criminal. We get a mention too, as ' dupes in the West who
regurgitate
his [S.Hussein's] claims of starvation and greatly increased
infant
mortality. Iraq is perfectly capable of providing adequate
nutrition
and health care provided it diverts money away from its
military
and regime protection programs.' So it seems that Iraq, unlike
Australia,
doesn't need a self defence capacity. Who, after all, is
threatening
it? What sort of threat is it facing from hordes of starving
and
desperate asylum seekers?]
*
Russia Is Top Iraqi Importer [Extract which indicates that the US is
very
blatantly using its power to impose 'holds' on goods going into Iraq
as a
means of exercising political pressure on Russia]
*
Zhirinovsky Cleans Up His Act, Loves America
*
Oil smugglers keep cash flowing back to Saddam
*
Baghdad urges Moscow to foil US plans
*
Russia to press Iraq for inspections
*
Russia introduces new export mechanism [Puzzling item, because the
'new'
mechanism for exports to Iraq seems to correspond to what one
assumed
was Russia's 'legal' obligation under the terms of the UN
embargo]
AND, IN
NEWS, 12-19/1/02
(3)
IRAQI/UN
RELATIONS
*
Sanction deal benefits only UN: Iraq
REMNANTS
OF DECENCY
*
The land of the free becomes the home of the hypocrite
*
Iraq ‚ 11 years on [by Dr Omar Al Taher in the Jordan Times. This
article
has been discussed at some length in the discussion list. I have
left
out the account of Iraqi suffering to concentrate attention on the
political
analysis. Which includes this, the key point that needs to be
made
about the weapons inspections: 'The Iraqi leadership is aware that
if all
its weaponry (from biological weapons to even hand grenades) are
accounted
for and decommissioned, the sanctions are there to stay. So,
why
cooperate?'. The Iraqi government co-operated for seven years to an
extent
far beyond what anyone could reasonably have expected. Then one
day they
realised that there was no point and who, watching the
subsequent
behaviour of such as R.Butler and C.Duelfer could blame them?
One
statement in the article now seems a bit anachronistic: 'After all,
war is
governed by the Geneva Convention'. That was before the US
discovered
the category of 'unlawful combatant.']
REFUGEES
*
Judge Denies Young Iraqi's Bid to Join Family [Case of Iraqi draft
dodger
in US being sent back to join the Iraqi army. His argument that he
would
be killed if he went back was rejected. Is this a sign that the US
doesn't
intend to wage war on Iraq after all? (of course, had he been a
mass
murderer, a specialist in the weaponisation of anthrax or a close
henchman
of Mr Hussein's then he would have been a 'defector' and a
precious
jewel in the crown of Messrs Duelfer, Woolsey et al)]
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Iraqi poll names bin Laden man of year
*
Arabs in Iraq Rally for Palestinians
*
Iraqi Oil Industry In 2002: A Turning Point [This may not really
belong
in the news items (it was summarised in an article in last weeks
mailing
- 5-11/1/02 (2), under 'Inside Iraq') but it appears to be a good
scholarly
account of the present state of the Iraqi oil industry and of
the
steady increase of its productive capacity (contrasting with recent
reports
of a sharp fall in oil sales). One curious detail. The capacity
of the
northern oilfield near Kirkuk appears to be declining but this is
being
concealed by piping large quantities of southern oil up North.
Why?]
*
Iraq won't be caught off guard, Saddam says
NEW
WORLD ORDER
*
Turkey Offers To Lead Peacekeepers
*
CIA memoir tells all [Account of book 'See No Evil' by Robert Baer
about
the CIA which apparently includes what ought to be an interesting
account
of the failed CIA operation in Northern Iraq in 1996. Note that
Martin
Walker expresses astonished disgust that Robert Baer should have
been
criticised for wanting to assassinate President Hussein. He should
have a
word with Senator Lieberman, who would tell him that the attempt
to
assassinate a President is 'the worst kind of terrorism' (see article
on
Lieberman in Incitement to Hatred above. Of course Lieberman has a
different
president in mind ...)]
*
War, part two [Extract, making the obvious point that US reliance on
proxies
to do their fighting for them will often mean - and has often
meant -
reliance on unpleasant proxies]
*
Central Asian nations choose their sides [Some small indications of
Russian
anxiety about the possibility of a massive US military buildup on
their
southern flank]
The
main development is that the air strikes have resumed after a pause
since
November. And aggressively ‚ three strikes in the week. One of the
articles
in the 'Incitement' section ('Turkish security circles and
Iraq',
but its a piece of BBC gossip) suggests that this is part of a
strategy
of provocations leading up to a final war. There are other
indications
that a decision has been made to go to war, but they may just
be
wishful thinking on the part of the authors. From the US point of
view,
S.Hussein is under control whereas the likely beneficiaries of his
overthrow
- Syria and Iran ‚ may not be. We can assume that the US
establishment
knows that the 'weapons of mass destruction' aren't likely
to
amount to very much despite the absurd rhetoric that abounds at the
present
time. And that they probably won't amount to anything at all
unless
Mr Hussein really has his back to the wall. So the only serious
reason
they could have for going to war is that it is the only way (short
of
restoring full control over the Iraqi economy into the hands of the
Iraqi
government) of ending the murderous policy of sanctions. This
should
be borne in mind. Those in the US and British establishments who
are
arguing against military intervention are arguing for the indefinite
prolongation
of sanctions and the continued steady death by starvation
and
preventable disease of hundreds of thousands of people.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
Complexities of Islamic tolerance [Conor Cruise O'Brien, reviewing a
book on
the status of Christians and Jews under Islam, thinks 'the United
States
and Israel' are going to 'launch a joint attack on Saddam
Hussein's
Iraq' and that on the whole it'll all be all right and the
Arabs
won't really mind. In passing he gives a very interesting quotation
from
'Diodoros, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Palestine and Jordan', by
whom he
presumably means Diodoros, Patriarch of Jerusalem.
*
Tribal Lessons for Dealing With Saudis and Iraqis [The central idea of
understanding
these countries in terms of networks of tribal loyalties
rather
than as 'people' or 'rulers' is important, but the article in the
end doesn't
get anywhere.]
*
Secret plan to topple Saddam [Summary of an article in Newsweek which
suggests
that there will be an attack on Iraq within six months. But
nothing
is given that we don't already know]
*
Turkish security circles and Iraq
*
Bush Holding Off on Iraq Decision
*
Don't fumble on Iraq [Jerusalem Post getting nervous that the US
mightn't
seize the time to attack Iraq but instead go running off after
Somalia
and Philippines and other places in the world that are of no
earthly
use for the security of Israel. Madeleine Albright is quoted as
saying
recently that 'It is hard to see that deposing Saddam] is
feasible.'
The article states: 'When the UN inspectors left Iraq, they
believed
that Saddam had enough VX precursors to produce 200 tons of the
poison,
and had 41 sites capable of doing so in a matter of weeks.' Does
anyone
else remember that? or does it perhaps just appear in R.Butler's
book?
*
Rhetoric Fails to Budge Policy on Iraq [Extracts. The core of the
article
is a complaint that the US isn't supporting any terrorist (they
prefer
the word 'lethal', perhaps because it sounds a bit like 'legal')
activity
inside Iraq. It goes on to give details about the auditing
complaints
against the INC. It also mentions a letter to Bush by 'former
senior
military and intelligence officials' arguing against a war on
Iraq]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_
ype1&c=Article&cid=1011481303993&call_page=TS_World&call_pageid=968332188854&ca
l_pagepath=News/World&col=968350060724
*
THE TROUBLE WITH SADDAM
by
Olivia Ward
Toronto
Star, 20th January
Long
rambling article which reads like a not very competent cut and paste
compilation
of all the articles that have been written recently for and
against
the INC, and on the evidence for Iraqi involvement in Sept 11.
Records
the Mohammad Atta/al-Ani meeting in Prague as if it is an
established
fact, and Milos Zeman's statement that they discussed
attacking
Radio Free Europe without mentioning that he later withdrew
this as
a mere speculation.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi
0201210171jan21.story?coll=chi%2Dnewsnationworld%2Dhed
*
U.S. SPLIT ON EXILES' ROLE VS. HUSSEIN
by
Howard Witt
Chicago
Tribune, 21st January
Another
standard account of the INC except that the description of
anonymous,
seedy premises in Knightsbridge here becomes a description of
anonymous,
seedy premises 'in the shadow of the Capitol' in Washington.
MILITARY
MATTERS
*
US can't halt Arabs buying arms: Iraq [though one doubts if the Iraqi
paper,
Ath-Thawra really asserted in so many words a right to acquire
'weapons
of mass destruction' as the article claims.]
*
Citing 'hostile Iraqi threats,' U.S. strikes anti-aircraft site [First
strike]
*
Coalition Forces Strike Iraqi Site, U.S. Says
*
Coalition Warplanes Bomb Iraq Site [Second strike]
*
U.S. warns Baghdad as jets bomb again [Third strike. Note the
statement
- from Reuters - that 'it (Iraq) forced UN inspectors to leave'
and later,
the more slippery formula 'inspectors had to abandon the
country
in 1998'.]
*
Iraq says U.S. planes attacking sites in the south for 3 days [Extract
specifying
where the latest attack took place]
*
Nuclear team [IAEA] heads for Baghdad
OIL FOR
FOOD
*
Iraq got only half of medicines it needs in the frame of oil-for-food
program
*
UK accused of impeding Iraqi oil programme [The emphasis here is on
the
effect of the US/British imposed pricing policy on Iraqi oil sales.]
*
Oil sales rise sharply, below average [Here the emphasis is on those
holds
that sabotage the infrastructure of the oil industry]
*
'Oil-for-food' [Benon Sevan] chief in Iraqi Kurdistan [Although it
seems
fairly obvious, I think this is the first time I've seen it said in
so many
words that, whereas 1,854 contracts are on hold for Southern and
Central
Iraq, only two are on hold for the Kurdish Autonomous Zone. Might
this
not have something to do with the perceived superiority of the KAZ's
performance
under Oil for Food?]
IRAQIS
OUTSIDE IRAQ
*
Bank discriminated in closing account, Iraq-born man says [Closure of
an
account used by Iraqis to wire money to relatives in Iraq. The bank
says it
wasn't done on racial grounds, ie the fact that Hussain Alshafei
is an
Iraqi had nothing to do with it. Um.]
AND, IN
NEWS, 19-26/1/02
(2)
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EASTERN-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Kuwaiti min describes ties with Tehran as rapidly expanding
*
Iraq: Iran to free 697 Iraqi prisoners of war
*
Iraqi call for exchange of visits with Kuwait
*
Saudis and Americans may adjust US presence
*
A chill wind from Teheran [Long Jerusalem Post discussion of
Iran-Palestine-Israel
relations, expressing apprehension about an
Iranian/Arafat
rapprochement. Only extracts given here, mainly on Iran's
nuclear
potential. A worry for Israel. If they succeed in persuading
their
protector to go after Iraq, the beneficiary may prove to be Iran.
Who may
turn out to be worse than Iraq.]
*
Iraq calls on Annan to unblock oil contracts, seeks Tunisia deal
*
Iraq to sign free trade agreements with three Arab states in the first
quarter
of 2002
*
First Iraqi prisoners go home [As is always the case these stories
concern
prisoners being returned to Iraq from Iran, never the other way
round
(Iraq denies that it has prisoners). One wonders what, apart from
the
dead, the Iranians are getting in exchange]
*
Geostrategic gambit nets Turkey little [Some small satisfaction to be
had in
the fact that all Turkey's twisting and bowing and scraping in the
courts
of the mighty isn't doing her any good. For years Turkey has been
on the
verge of EU membership, expected to follow all the fashions of EU
governments'
policy. Now, ending state control over banking, transport
and
communications have become the necessary conditions of entry. They
will do
all that and the chances are they still won't be let in. If they
had any
sense of dignity, they'd tell us to take a running jump and form
an alliance
with their fellow Muslims ...]
*
Mousa says he will visit the US on January 30th
*
Arab League Chief Visits Kuwait
*
Iran Frees Hundreds of Iraqi Prisoners of War
*
Direct Iran-Syria air link via Iraq to start soon: Mazaheri
*
Air flights to be resumed shortly between Iraq, Iran [extract]
*
Arab League chief: A strike against Iraq unacceptable
*
Arab League Comments on Iraq Draw Criticism [from an Egyptian
commentator
who says Moussa is merely reflecting what the Arab people
think,
not what the people that count - the rulers - think]
*
Oil accord signed [with Tunisia]
*
The Arab view: The way Syria sees it [Extract on Iraqi/Syrian
relations.
The article, published in the Jerusalem Post, seems to come
from a
journal published in the United Arab Emirates but is written by
someone
with an Anglo Saxon name.]
*
US anxiety drives Saddam to seek new Arab allies [Financial Times
account
of recent Iraqi diplomatic initiatives, placing them in the
context
of the forthcoming Arab League summit.]
*
Iraqi foreign minister arrives in Tehran
URL
ONLY:
http://atimes.com/front/DA26Aa03.html
*
Syria turns to Iraq in moment of need
by
George Baghdadi
Asia
Times (from Inter Press Service), 26th January
Makes
much the same points about Syria/Iraqi relations as 'The way Syria
sees
it' above.
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
*
India to build railway network for Iraq
*
Iraq to seek Russian support over UN sanctions [Aziz visiting Moscow
and
China]
*
Russia Warns U.S. Against Military Strike on Iraq
*
Iraq defies US 'smart sanctions'
REMNANTS
OF DECENCY
*
Troublesome priest? [The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Rowan Williams, who
was
near the twin towers on Sept 11. He compares what he felt then to
what
people in Baghdad and elsewhere must have felt when the bombs were
falling
on them.]
*
46 Busted in Iraq Protest
NEW
WORLD ORDER
*
Clinton: U.S. policies not to blame for terror by Muslim radicals
[Debate
on 'America and Islam' organised by W.Clinton's own presidential
foundation]
*
Pipelineistan, Part 2: The games nations play [I don't know what this
is
(Part 1 of Part 2 of what appears to be a speech) but its a splendid
bird's
eye view of the geopolitics of oil, centring on Central Asia, but
taking
in China and Kosovo. Its here because I like it, not because it
has
much to do with Iraq, but it does state confidently that 'Saddam will
not be
attacked, because Saddam is the ultimate reason for American
military
bases in the Gulf - a splendid affair because on top of it all
it is a
free ride, the expenses being paid by the ultra flush sheikdoms.'
And
this is a man who seems to know what he's talking about.]
Most obvious
news item this week, Bush's State of the Union speech. The
full
text was recently posted to the list and it reads to me more like a
tightening
of sanctions than a call to war. It called for preventing the
countries
of the 'axis of evil' from having access to weapons rather than
for
their overthrow. Since there is presumably no intention of going to
war
against Iran and North Korea, lumping them together with Iraq seems
to
indicate a withdrawal from the idea of war. And we note also that Bush
intends
to go after Hamas and Hezbollah in 'remote jungles' rather than
in
Palestine and Lebanon.
But the
flurry of Iraqi diplomatic activity shows that they are,
understandably,
worried. It includes two developments that might be
significant
- allowing the UN human rights inspector into Iraq, and
(though
this may not be the first time they've promised it) restraining
the
Iranian Mujaheedin al-Khalq.
The
increasing tension between the US and Saudi Arabia is a hopeful sign.
The one
pleasing thing about Sept 11 and its aftermath has been the
revelation
that Saudi Arabia is something other than a country of
parasitic
libertines hiding under a mask of hypocritical religiosity.
There
is a civil society with a mind other than that of its government
and
with some sort of commitment to its professed ideals. I've always
seen
Saudi Arabia as the one country which has the possibility of
resolving
the Iraqi problem if they would free themselves from dependence
on the
US. So I've given a special section to articles on this
development
even though they're not, for the most part, immediately
relevant
to Iraq.
Don't
miss (under International Relations) the little item 'Mail to Iraq
cleared.'
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
President: Spend more to win war on terrorism
*
U.S. attack on Iraq is not the way to go [Account of a 'debate'
between
Richard Perle, advocating immediate unconditional war on Iraq,
and Al
Gore policy adviser Leon Fuerth advocating continued torture and
murder
by starvation and disease. The general drift is that there is
something
called 'progress' which the US wants to see and that the Iraqis
(and
North Koreans) constitute an obstacle to it. The conclusion, as
given
in the title - that it would be better to help both Iraqis and
North
Koreans rebuild their economy - comes as a surprise.]
*
Bush targets 'axis of evil'
*
No Action Just Yet on Baghdad, U.S. Says
*
Good Economic News at World Forum [Advice against military action
given
at the World Economic Forum.]
*
Bush's Comments Prompt Criticism [Some details of the Iranian and
Korean
response to Bush's speech. Iran pulls out of the World Economic
Forum.
South Korea is very unhappy with the attack on North Korea (you'd
think
these people don't WANT to be liberated)]
*
Tactics may shift vs. other foes [States Iraq's continued WMD
programme
as if it is an established fact (I have no reason to doubt it
but the
'evidence' that has been produced so far in news items is
paltry).
The article also indicates that this possibility - Iraq's
supposed
possession of WMD - is a strong argument against going to war,
which
is surely a good argument for suggesting that Iraq OUGHT to be
developing
WMD. Needless to say, the WMD capacity of other countries
(USA,
Britain, France, Germany, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Pakistan,
India,
China) isn't mentioned. Interesting prospect of heavy sanctions
(rather
than war) being imposed on Iran - bad news for those of us with a
taste
for pistachios. And some defence of North Korea. Though surely
North
Korea has just been mentioned for the sake of having a non-Islamic
enemy.
Funny how Burma/Myanmar never seems to get a mention these days]
*
It's Time to Pin Target On Saddam [New York Daily News tell us that
the
Arab world really want a war on Saddam 'no matter what they say
publicly.'
Quote of the week: 'while the U.S. presumably could continue
to live
with rogue states, as it has for decades, it can't live with
evil'.
*
Give war a chance [Asia Times article editorial quoting Bush on the
values
he seeks to defend and broadly agreeing with him, but pointing out
that
logically the policy leads to a Trotsky-like state of 'permanent
revolution.']
*
No, This Isn't the Way to Change Regimes in Iran and Iraq
*
The Gun Is on the Table, and Iraqis Await Their Liberators [Given that
Mr
Safire wants an Afghan 'solution' to the problems of Iraq, why does he
advocate
'70,000 Kurdish fighters in Northern Iraq and a lesser Shi'ite
force'
- given that the Shi'ites constitute the majority in Iraq? Why,
its
because the main Shi'ite fighting force, and the only army actually
at work
in Iraq (the only real equivalent of the Northern Alliance) is
the
Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution, backed by Iran, which is
next
after Iraq on Mr Safire's list of target nations.)
*
US-Iraq [A brief statement of the amorality of US foreign policy,
contrasting
the response to the invasion of Kuwait with the approval of
Indonesia's
invasion of East Timor]
*
Albright blasts Bush for "axis of evil" tag [Have we really
reached
the stage
at which Madeleine Albright begins to look like a moderate! But
one can
understand her annoyance that the only good thing she ever did in
her
life (the rapprochement with North Korea) should be so casually
thrown
in the dustbin by her successors. And give her credit. She has
broken
the magic spell in which NO prominent American politician dares to
utter a
cheap against Bush's foreign policy notions.]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,198186,00.html
*
Why Saddam Remains a Tough Target
by TONY
KARON
Time,
30th January
Some
reasons for hesitation. I didn't see anything here we haven't seen
before.
AND, IN
NEWS, 26/1-2/2/02
(2)
MILITARY
MATTERS
*
Iraqi forces intercepted British, American warplanes formations
*
Iraq: The Phantom Threat [Scott Ritter pores scorn on the string of
defectors
who provide the 'information' Wolfowitz, Woolsey and Perle are
so
anxious to hear]
*
Iraq Co-Operated with Nuclear Inspection -- IAEA
SAUDI/US
RELATIONS
*
America Goes Into the Energy Business With the Former Evil Empire
[This
should really have been in last week's news. It is an intriguing
argument
that the US is in the process of transferring its affections
away from
Saudi Arabia, as a petrol producer, towards Russia, and that
this
will bring about a new friendly relationship with Iraq, 'Saddam or
no
Saddam'.]
*
Washington-Riyadh chill intensifies [Includes, as an interesting
passing
remark, that Saudi Arabia 'was a close ally during the Cold War,
providing
hundreds of millions of dollars to US-supported insurgents from
Angola
to Afghanistan, to Nicaragua.' It seems that the Saudis have been
into
the business of bankrolling 'terrorism;' for a very long time, and
that
the US owes a lot to them. What interest did the Saudis have in
Nicaragua?]
*
Why We Need Ties With Saudis [Argument for staying in Saudi Arabia
despite
the Saudi lack of enthusiasm]
*
Farewell, Saudi Arabia [Argument for pulling out. Saudi foot-dragging
has
become intolerable. The Saudi authorities 'even resisted for a time
so
sensible and modest a request as to give to American immigration and
law
enforcement authorities basic biographical data about Saudis who
board
the national airlines' flights to the U.S.' Does this mean Ireland
should
have provided basic data on its citizens boarding Aer Lingus
flights
to Britain during the worst of the troubles???]
*
Saudis are saying that 100 of their nationals are among those who are
detained
by the US
*
Saudi ministry of the interior continues receiving inquiries about
Saudis
arrested in USA
*
Crown Prince Abdullah address Saudi attitude towards US policy [Quite
a
pleasingly tough statement in contrast to his Jordanian namesake below]
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EASTERN-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Iraqi refugees to return home voluntarily [from Iran]
*
Syria Accused of Violating Sanctions [The article also mentions the
amount
of oil that is being smuggled into Turkey without explaining why
it is
Syria, not Turkey, that is under attack. Once again this has a
Britain-does-the-jobs-the-US-doesn't-want-to-touch
feel about it]
*
Roundup: Iran, Iraq Edge Closer Before U.S. Shifts Anti-Terrorism
Battlefield
*
Iraq to Permit Direct Flights for Iranian Pilgrims
*
Tehran's Game [Righteous indignation from Time Magazine that Iran
might
be interfering in Afghanistan by giving aid to its allies in the
country.
Of course America would never think of doing such a thing. But
with
two and a half million Afghan refugees in Iran the Iranians could be
said to
have a legitimate interest in the matter]
*
Iraq, Iran agreement to halt Mujahidee Khalq activities
*
Iraq to Honor Female Bomber
*
Jordan's King Backs Bush on Iran, Iraq [Most depressing item of the
week.
Abdullah of Jordan, beside Bush, says: "It is very obvious that
there
are those on the side of good and those on the side of bad ...
There's
some countries in the middle that haven't made up their mind....
And
those countries better make up their minds pretty quickly." No
indication
that he might have a different idea of what constitutes 'good'
and
'bad' than Mr Bush. The article repeats the old lie that, during the
Gulf
Massacre, 'Jordan sided with Iraq'. Jordan, like the Yemen,
condemned
the invasion of Kuwait but attempted to do what the UN Charter
obliges
everyone to do ‚ find a settlement through negotiation. Its
efforts
were systematically sabotaged by the US and it was severely
punished
economically afterwards by the other Gulf powers. Thenceforth
Abdullah's
father behaved himself, co-operated with the embargo, kept his
mouth
shut and all sorts of lofty people turned up to pay him homage at
his
funeral.]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.irna.com/newshtm/eng/08103109.htm
*
Iranian president meets Iraqi foreign minister
Irna,
28th January.
Iraqi
Foreign Minister Naji Sabri's visit to Iran. Just an exchange of
compliments
but that has its own significance at the present time,
expecially
since the Iranian side is represented by the (relatively)
virtuous
(in US eyes) Mohammad Khatami.
http://dawn.com/fixed/subs/dinasub.htm
*
Iraq's diplomacy may ward off US attack
by
Alistair Lyon
Dawn
(Pakistan), 30th January, 15 Ziqa'ad 1422
Summary
of Tariq Aziz's recent travels and initiatives addressed to Saudi
Arabia,
Kuwait and Iran.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/w-me/2002/jan/31/013101924.html
*
Allies More Important for Iraq
Las
Vegas Sun, 31st January
Summary
of Iraq's relations with immediate neighbours.
AND, IN
NEWS, 26/1-2/2/02
(3)
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
*
China advises Iraq to co-operate with UN {Aziz's visit to China]
*
Iraq asks EU for dialogue on UN sanctions
*
Russia Strongly Opposes Using Force Against Iraq: Duma Leader [Repeats
the
figure we saw in last week's news of 1,854 holds on goods for South
and
central Iraq as against 2 for the Kurdish Autonomous zone]
*
Iraqi diplomats leave Sweden amid accusations
*
Iraqi diplomats expelled from Sweden
*
Paris opposes toppling Saddam Hussein by means of force
*
Putin takes tough line on Iraq, nuclear arms cuts
*
Iraq deputy prime minister shortens visit to Russia [This seems an odd
decision,
attributed in the article 'Putin takes a tough line' to a 'fit
of
pique' brought on by Bush's speech. But the Iraqis must know that at
the
present time Russia is very important to them.]
*
Mail to Iraq cleared [From New Zealand. Only two sentences, but the
nicest
piece of news we've had for a very long time.]
IRAQI/UN
RELATIONS
*
U.N. watchdog wants Iraq to engage in rights dialogue
*
UN "oil-for-food" chief ends tour of Iraqi Kurdistan
IRAQIS
OUTSIDE IRAQ
*
Unwelcomed take another spin on a crazy carousel [More on the sad fate
of
asylum seekers in Australia]
*
Businessman from Iraq, bank settle bias suit [Apparent end to saga
that
began in last week's news]
*
Iraq native's business raided day after suit ends [Unexpectedly the
saga
starts up again and becomes very interesting. Like the closure of
the Somali
Barakat Wire Transfer, this seems to be using the 'war against
terrorism'
- very crudely - as a weapon to prevent people helping their
relatives
left behind in countries that have fallen into disfavour with
the US
government]
NORTHERN
IRAQ/SOUTHERN KURDISTAN
*
Baghdad Airs Kurdish TV to Win Over Iraqi Kurds
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Iraqi women's panel presents paper on role in public life [Argues that
Iraq
was a pioneer in the field of women's rights since the beginning of
the
century]
*
Iraqi oil sales resume average levels
IRAQI
OPPOSITION
*
U.S. to give $2.4 million to Iraqi opposition group
*
U.S. Restores Funding for Iraqi Opposition [A couple of weeks ago,
readers
may remember, Ahmed Chalabi was saying there were great
possibilities
because the Iranians were going to back the INC. Now he
says
he's greatly encouraged by Mr Bush's speech even though this
declared
Iran to be part of an 'axis of evil'. He's turned his affections
back to
the Kurds. He says that there are 40,000 of them ready to take up
arms.
Which indicates a modest, cautious approach. William Safire
(Incitement:
'The Gun is on the table'), tells us there are 70,000]
REMNANTS
OF DECENCY
*
Iraqi Dates Sales Make a Symbolic Breach in Sanctions [A heartening
item, all
the more heartening for the role of Plaid Cymry in selling
Iraqi
dates in the Parliament building in Brussels. Next stop the Welsh
Assembly?
Or Westminster?]
In 'US
warns NATO allies' below, George ("Lord") Robertson is quoted as
complaining
about Europe's 'military pygmy' status. So the pressure is on
to
trail after the insane military budget that Bush is proposing for the
US. A
degree of military spending that is alarming even some generally
pro-US
commentators (Robert Scheer: An orgy of defense spending; Anatole
Kaletsky:
Arrogance and Fear, both in the 'New World Order supplement).
Anyone
remember the chatter there was after the fall of the Berlin wall
about
the 'peace dividend'? Most notable tendency in what follows is the
Israeli
anxiety to deflect attention away from Iraq (which is already
crushed)
and on to Iran (which isn't). Oh. And a somewhat cavalier use of
the
word 'evil'.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
Iraq's next, NATO told [Evil Paul Wolfowitz and John McCain enjoy
treating
their evil European allies with the contempt they deserve]
*
Rogue state delusions [Editorial from the evil Washington Times
attacking
articles by one Michael Dobbs - articles we appear to have
missed
- in the evil Washington Post, arguing that the 'threat' posed to
the
evil US by evil Iraq, N.Korea and Iran is very exaggerated, as it
obviously
is. The Washington Times argues that the US must eliminate all
threats,
however small, since a small threat now could be a big threat in
the
future. Evil Germany had better watch out!]
*
Allies Give Little Support on Iraq [Evil George ("Lord")
Robertson
thinks
that the evil US can't take on all the evil in the world without
some
help from its evil allies. Well, if evil NATO proved to be
redundant,
what would he do for a living?]
*
Saddam a smokescreen for the bin Laden fiasco [This article from the
Sydney
Morning Herald has one short paragraph that is spot on. Here it
is:
'Saddam, for all his faults, has acted as an effective balance for
Iranian
power. Having ousted him, the US would have to remain engaged in
Iraq
for as long as it took to rebuild a fully functioning state able to
resume
that role. Iraq's neighbours have always been reluctant for
America
to push Iraq too hard because they fear America would not stick
around
long enough to put Iraq back together again.' The rest of it isn't
much
worth bothering over.]
*
US: Iraq is a strategic threat to implementing US policy in the Middle
East [A
slightly more reasoned, less hysterical statement of the case for
bombing
Iraq than we're used to. Also incidentally a tribute to the
courage,
determination and political skill of the present Iraqi
leadership.]
*
US warns Nato allies they may be sidelined ['The best defence is a
good
offense', says Paul Wolfowitz. Which is a justification for
S.Hussein's
invasion of Iran, if not of Kuwait; the Japanese attack on
Pearl
Harbour; Hitler's invasion of Poland. Do these people ever think
what
they're saying?]
*
U.S. unlikely to launch war on Iraq, Iran [Some surprisingly sensible
remarks
from former CIA director, Robert Gates: for example, this: "My
own view
is that so far the U.S. has not really advanced in combating the
roots
of terrorism ...Hopelessness and despair are two major sources of
terrorism"
(I bet they hated him).]
*
CIA has its own view of Iraq [which is that Iraq isn't, and hasn't
been
for some time, engaged in the business of terrorism. Terrorism
against
evil Iran, of course, doesn't count]
*
Iran poses greater threat than Iraq, Israelis warn [Israeli leadership
perhaps
wondering if its friends in the US haven't been pointing the guns
in the
wrong direction]
*
Sharon and Bush to meet on moves against Iraq [Short extract revealing
existence
of joint Israeli/US exercises against the eventuality of a war
with
Iraq]
*
'Evil Axis' Tests Relationship [Mainly about the probability of a US
attack
against on Iraq. Felgenhauer, who writes as one who knows, thinks
it
likely, but not before the Autumn; and he thinks Russia should get in
on the
act.]
*
Ben-Eliezer: We'll strike back if Saddam attacks us [Another good
reason
for the US to hesitate about attacking Iraq. The article is quite
interesting
on general US/Israel military relations.]
*
Iraq Kurds unconvinced U.S. has Saddam alternative [Tough talking from
Barzani
and Talebani who aren't jumping at the chance to play Northern
Alliance
to Iraq's Taliban. And in wanting to know what the alternative
might
be to Saddam Hussein they make one thing plain. They don't think it
is
Ahmad Chalabani.]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/0202/05/opinion/opinion2.html
*
Rousing the troops to another strike for freedom
Sydney
Morning Herald, 5th February
This
dull article, proposing that evil Australia should join the evil US
in a
war that 'will almost certainly extend beyond Christmas - this
year's,
next year's and more besides' is notable for the surprise
appearance
of evil Newt Gingrich, who, however, doesn't say anything you
wouldn't
expect him to say.'
http://www.iht.com/articles/47204.html
*
Remove Saddam? The Chore Would Have to Be Well Done
by
David M. Malone
International
Herald Tribune, 7th February
'The
writer, on leave from the Canadian Foreign Service, is president of
the
International Peace Academy in New York. He contributed this comment
to the
International Herald Tribune.' but the article could have been
written
by any hack journalist on an off day.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2002/02/08/iraq-main.htm
*
Officials: Afghan-style war might not work on Iraq
by
Jassim Mohammed
USA
Today, 8th February
Not
very interesting musings as to what Iraq might or might not be
capable
of in the event of a 'war'.
AND, IN
NEWS, 2/2/02-8/2/02
(2)
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EAST-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Syria denies British smuggling accusations [This article suggests,
curiously,
that evil Syria's membership of the Sanctions Committee (as a
member,
or rather observer, of the UN Security Council) renders it
diplomatically
immune from the charge evil Britain is levelling against
it of
smuggling Iraqi oil. When asked why he was challenging Syria and
not
evil Turkey, 'Middle East expert, Carne Rosse' replied feebly that
'the
oil travelling to Turkey by road has dropped in recent years'. Has
it? It
declined very recently because the Iraqis stopped sending it to
put
pressure on Turkey. Is that what evil Carne is thinking about?]
*
Turkey to warn Iraq it faces threat of war, paper reports
*
Iraqi Labor Union Sec-Gen calls on Majlis [Iranian Parliament]
deputies
*
Prince says Saudi would help oust Saddam [This isn't as bad as it
appears.
The old torturer, Prince Turki al-Faisal, opposes a Gulf War
style
invasion and argues for a covert operation to instal a new Iraqi
leader,
of the type that has failed consistently over the past ten years.
On
Saudi money going to terrorism he has the temerity to remind an
American
audience of US money going to the IRA. What British politician
would
ever dare to say such a thing?]
*
Iraq, Tunis discuss relations
*
Iraq accuses Turkey of air intrusion over northern Iraq [the article
calls
this 'the first-ever report on alleged air intrusions from the
neighbouring
country'. Really?]
*
Cheney to Visit Mideast, Iraq Neighbours in March
*
Iraqi president warns Turkey
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
AFFAIRS
*
Italian parliamentarian confers with Iraqi minister
*
Russian companies to restore bombed Iraqi power station
*
Coddling Iraq a $40Bln Gamble {On the interest evil Russia has in
ending
sanctions on evil Iraq]
*
Iraqi oil exports to US surged in 2001
*
New Zealanders Allowed to Send Humanitarian Goods Parcels to Iraq [We
had
another version of this last week, but since its the only piece of
good
news we've had, or are likely to have, for many years we might as
well
have it again]
*
EU wants sanctions on Iraq modified
*
Government Says It Owes Iraq Only US $5.8m [Continuing story of
Ugandan
government's debt to Iraq]
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Iraq says sanctions kill 15,000 in December [The figures are of total
numbers
who died from particular illnesses without any attempt to
calculate
what could be attributed to sanctions]
IRAQI/UN
RELATIONS
*
Will Pressure Force Iraq to Admit U.N. Inspectors?
*
Iraq ready for dialogue with UN, says Arab League
*
Powell 'rejects' Iraq talks
*
Solution near for disputed Iraqi oil cargo
MILITARY
MATTERS
*
Four Iraqis Killed in U.S., British Air Strikes
*
SAS 'left soldiers to die in Iraq' [But if British soldiers aren't
willing
to die on the ground, what can they do that the US can't do for
itself?]
IRAQIS
OUTSIDE IRAQ
*
Iraqi native pleads guilty to obtaining fraudulent license
*
Suicidal and angry: Iraqis suffer in PNG detention camp [More
Australian
unpleasantness towards refugees who are fleeing the
consequences
of the sanctions imposed by Australia, among others, on
Iraq]
*
Man Admits Selling Papers to Iraqis
AND, IN
NEW WORLD ORDER
SUPPLEMENT (2/2/02-8/2/02)
*
An Orgy of Defense Spending: Bush's 'axis of evil' rhetoric fabricates
a need
[A splendid article from the Los Angeles Times, summed up in the
title
and in this sentence: 'His astonishing budget makes sense only if
we are
planning to use our mighty military in a pseudo-religious quest to
create
a super-dominant Pax Americana.']
*
'Once It's Quiet, We Can Reach a State of Nonbelligerency' [An
interview
between evil William Safire and evil Ariel Sharon. The article
is
mostly about the need to topple evil Yasser Arafat and install a
puppet
Palestinian regime, but this extract looks at Sharon's anxieties
over
evil Iran]
*
Was the Clinton Administration Soft on Terror? [Short extract from
interview
with evil Madeleine Albright. Less punchy than she was last
week.]
*
Grateful Powell hails Australia's war role [Powell pats Australia on
the
head. And if its VERY good, he might even give it a bone.]
*
Power, counter-power, Part 2: The fractal war [Pepe Escobar again,
writing
in the Asia Times. Who is he? The article doesn't have a lot to
say
about Iraq but its good stuff. This is the sort of writing we need.
It is
prophetic. It says that the future can be seen in in Sao Paolo. And
incidentally
makes the interesting point that we haven't seen any photos
of the
wonderful hi-tech, surely very photogenic caves there are supposed
to be
in Tora Bora.]
*
Arrogance and fear: an American paradox [An intelligent analysis from
a
pro-American viewpoint. Kaletsky thinks the US should be basking in
complacent
self congratulation not working itself up into a state of
paranoid,
mouth-frothing terror: 'By identifying America primarily as a
military
power, by asserting that it will pursue its perceived national
interests
regardless of international laws, coalitions or treaties, by
emphasising
its unchallengeable superiority over every other nation and
global
institution, by claiming an unconditional moral hegemony over any
adversary
he cares to identify, and by acting so blatantly in the
interests
of the US business establishment, Mr Bush is weakening America
and
playing into the hands of its opponents.']
*
Missile Conference Opens in Paris [France proposing an international
treaty
to limit the proliferation of ballistic missiles.]
*
Moscow revitalizes its old priorities in Asia [The other side of
Moscow's
apparent support for the 'International Coalition against
Terrorism']
*
Peremptory tendencies: France fires a warning shot at the US
*
Chavez says he's democrat not communist [This is supposed to be Chavez
backing
down under pressure from Powell. But he hasn't backed down all
the
way: 'Noting that his visit to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in
Baghdad
in 2000 had "irritated some people in the world," Chavez said:
"What
do we care? Let them get irritated. ... We are defending the sacred
interests
of the Venezuelan people."']
*
The quest for balance in Eurasia [Asia Times again, this time in
pro-American
mode. But a cool, rational - ie non American - geopolitical
approach
all the same. Only extracts given here.]
*
Eurasia: An axis of uncertainty [from part two of the same]
URL
ONLY:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36140-2002Feb6.html
*
Questions About the Colossus
by Jim
Hoagland
Washington,
7th February
Evil
Jim Hoagland in awe of evil Bush's proposed military budget.
The
news this week is characterised by a flood of articles designed to
leave
us with the idea that a definite decision has been made to bombard
Iraq,
with or without provocation. If we were only to take notice of
attributable
comments ‚ or comments attributable to anyone other than
Richard
Perle ‚ we would conclude that this decision hasn't in fact been
made
but, as Martin Woollacott points out (and he doesn't seem to mind),
a
situation is being created which obliges the US to go to war or look as
if its
bottling out. Oh, the burdens of great power. The only really
indispensable
article in what follows is one that shouldn't be there
because
its a press release not something actually taken from the news
(it was
sent to me by Felicity): Save the Children UK warns of potential
humanitarian
crisis in Iraq (specifically, and this is what is important,
in the Kurdish
autonomous zone.). Its in the Inside Iraq section. Oh and
of
course, Margaret Thatcher has called for the removal of 'Saddam'.
Mustn't
forget that ...
WARMONGERING
*
Not again, Mr. Annan [This is a Richard Butler-style story of the 1998
weapons
inspection crisis. We are told that: 'the Secretary-General
reached
an agreement that gave legitimacy to Iraq's absurd accusations
about
high-handed inspectors. Mr. Annan compromised the inspection scheme
by
subordinating the deployed scientists to diplomats ... his mission to
Baghdad
was an unmitigated disaster. It allowed Saddam to avoid war with
the
West, and once the crisis had passed, later the same year, Iraq
reneged
on Mr. Annan's plan, too.'. Avoiding a war seems to me to be not
a bad
thing to do but in my memory, the problem was that it was the West
that
reneged on the deal. The inspectors were unquestionably 'high
handed'
- their principle function was to humiliate the Iraqis on every
possible
pretext with a view to prolonging the sanctions regime. They
were
unquestionably straightforward agents of US policy and did not
pretend
to be otherwise. To present the likes of Richard Butler, Charles
Duelfer
or Scott Ritter as dispassionate 'scientists' is to insult the
intelligence
of the reader (though this is something the Toronto National
Post
can probably do with impunity). Somehow, the new, reformed
inspection
teams, in which other countries of the world were to have a
chance
to see the behaviour of these so-called 'UN inspectors', never
materialised.
Annan failed to protest, which is probably why he has been
allowed
a second term in office. Given that the US has succeeded in
discrediting
the whole idea of weapons inspection, and refuses to submit
to any such
thing itself, the only solution seems to be that the Iraqis
should
get their bomb and then, hopefully, we could be assured that our
leaders
would think twice before attacking them]
*
Bush Right, Allies Wrong On Evil Axis [North Korea is evil because it
sells
dangerous weapons to unpleasant people; Iran is evil because it
declares
its enemies to be evil; Iraq is evil because it is (we are told)
manufacturing
dangerous weapons. So who else is doing all these evil
things?]
*
US gives Israel nod to hit Iraq if attacked
*
'Saddam Hussein had more chemical weapons than I could destroy' [The
quote
comes from a USAF commander, talking about bombing during the Gulf
(and of
course not mentioning the consequences of bombing a chemical
weapons
plant for the local population. In fact the quote is quite
revealing.
At the time we were led to believe we weren't bombing these
plants
because of the likely ecological consequences. Ha Ha!). The
article
underplays what was destroyed by the UN weapons inspectors when
they still
had some pretentions to that title but it does make the point
that
chemical weapons, or the fear of them, is the only card Saddam
Hussein
has in the event of a war. The dilemma for the Iraqis goes
something
like this: subject oneself to endless petty humiliations and
reveal
to the world that one doesn't have the means to defend oneself,
thus
leaving oneself open to attack should the mood take America, which
it
surely will. Or keep the inspectors out, create the impression that
one is
capable of doing something nasty, thus at once deterring attack
and
creating a pretext for it.]
*
Franks Says He Didn't Discuss Iraq in Kuwait
*
Holbrooke sees U.S. attempt to topple Saddam
*
'If you need terrorist allies you think Iraq' [Kanan Makiya ('Iraq's
most
eminent dissident thinker') calls on the USA to massively carpet
bomb
his country because S.Hussein destroyed something in the region of
4,000
Kurdish villages. Strange, then, that he doesn't seem to want the
USA to massively
carpet-bomb Turkey, which has also distinguished itself
in the
business of destroying Kurdish villages. Nor does he see fit to
explain
to his American interviewer (who doesn't see fit to ask him) why
S.Hussein
should have wanted to destroy such a large number of Kurdish
villages.
It was, of course, an incident in the Iran/Iraq war, when the
Kurds -
much more unambiguously than the Shi'ites - supported the
Iranians.
I speak with a clear conscience on this one because, at the
time,
my sympathies were with Iran. I had figured out ‚ through the usual
fog of
media disinformation - that it was Iraq that had provoked the war,
and I
thought it would be a splendid thing if the whole area were overrun
by
fanatically anti-Western Islamic fundamentalists in triumphalist mode.
This
was, however, a minority view in British politics at the time
(possibly
a minority of one), and I'm sure it was not shared by Kanan
Makiya
(or if it was, I'm sure he wouldn't like his interviewer to know
about
it). Assuming that Kanan Makiya, like the whole of Western
'civilisation'
wanted Iraq (= 'Saddam') to win the Iraq/Iran war - and he
nearly
didn't - then he, like the whole of Western 'civilisation', is
obliged
to explain how this could be done without destroying a large
number
of Kurdish villages. And once they've figured that out, they would
be
performing a large service to humanity if they would then explain it
to the
Turks]
*
US picks ex-general to lead Iraq: paper [This is the State department
- Colin
Powell (you know, the moderate) perspective. It cropped up in the
news
reports last december ('US strategy, 13-22/12/01 (1) ‚ Searching for
Saddam's
replacement, where we read: 'But some exiles, as well as U.S.
officials,
are queasy about dealing with such figures as Nizar Khazraji,
a
former Iraqi army chief of staff, now under investigation in Denmark,
where
he lives in exile, for human rights violations under his command in
northern
Iraq. The State Department is wringing its hands over whether to
even talk
with Khazraji, an informed source said.' Apparently the hand
wringing
has stopped. Good news for the Kurds?]
*
Allies Should Respect U.S. Leadership -- Powell [with a surprising
little
squeak of dissent from Joschka Fischer]
*
See-no-evil crowd needs to get real [This one is such a concentrated
mass of
nastiness and ignorance its impossible to know where to begin
with
it. Perhaps here: 'terrorists are criminals, but they are in
specific
cases state-sanctioned and supported. The specific cases
involve,
as Bush noted, the states of Iraq, Iran and North Korea.' What
terrorists
are sanctioned by North Korea? Or Iraq, apart from the
anti-Iranian
freedom fighters of the Mujaheedin al-Khalq? Michael Kelly
is
clearly out of the loop and has missed the nuances of the thing. We
don't
accuse these regimes of supporting terrorists. We accuse them of
producing
weapons of mass destruction (which is to say, modern weapons)
which
MIGHT fall into the hands of terrorists. Got it?]
*
US targets Saddam [from the Guardian. This is still a matter of
anonymous
officials and hearsay. But it is delivered with great
confidence.]
*
Iraq may consider some form of arms inspection: Aziz ['but only if
other
countries in the region were subjected to the same', which is
actually
what they've been saying for a long time]
*
To free Iraq: Blair must prepare party and country for military action
[Editorial
from The Times. 'Britain, alone among European countries, is
on Mr
Cheney's itinerary. That honour ...' requires an even greater
degree
of slavish devotion than Mr Blair has been showing up to now]
*
Saddam's destruction is now a matter of honour America's resolve is
hardening
against the Iraqi regime [article by Martin Woollacott in The
Guardian]
AND, IN
NEWS, 9-16/2/02 (2)
WARMONGERING
(contd)
*
US needs boots on ground for Iraq war
*
Cheney: Allies Will Back US on Iraq [In detail this turns out to be
less
definite than the headline would suggest]
*
US split with allies grows [Guardian again]
*
Uncle Sam does not need you [Extracts giving views of John Nye (a
'moderate'),
Charles Krauthammer and Wiliam Kristol (less moderate)]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.theage.com.au/news/state/2002/02/10/FFX4MBGAGXC.htmlCOMMENT
*
Why I'm backing Bush's jihad
by
ROGER FRANKLIN
The Age
(Australia), 10th February
' I
know the animals who would kill us need to be put down. Thank God
that
George Bush has the balls to do it. Then, when the filth is dead and
buried
...' Want to read any more?
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/whitehouse/la
000010465feb10.story?coll=la%2Dnews%2Dpolitics%2Dwhite%5Fhouse
*
Bush's Team Targets Hussein
by
ROBIN WRIGHT
Los
Angeles Times, 10th February
Anonymous
'officials' say this 'n' that. The article starts tough then
increasingly
fritters away into idle speculation, lost in the
complications
of the thing.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,648189,00.html
*
Cheney tour lays ground for military strike on Iraq
by
Duncan Campbell in Los Angeles
The
Guardian, 11th February
This
has some credibility from the fact its written by D.Campbell, but
its
only really a rehash of the LA Times article which I haven't given
you
above.
http://www1.timesofindia.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=601970
*
US planning campaign against Iraq
Times
of India (from AFP), 11th February
Another
version of the LATimes article I decided wasn't worth
reproducing.
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,7-204432,00.html
*
The bio-terror time bomb
by
Robert Harris and Jeremy Paxman
The
Times, 11th February
Actually
its not clear if this is by RH and JP or a review of a book by
RH and
JP. Either way its put me off watching University Challenge. It
does
contain one piece of information I didn't know. Syria is accused (by
Amnesty
International) of using cyanide against the Islamic
fundamentalists
in the massacre of 1982. So 'Saddam' isn't the only one
who has
used chemical weapons against 'his own people'. Among nations
developing
these weapons no mention is made, of course, of Israel, which
has
huge stocks of them, nor of course of the pioneering work done in the
field
by the USA and Britain. Nor is it explained how else a relatively
poor nation
can exercise deterrence power (and we're all believers in
deterrence,
aren't we?) against the means now possessed by the USA and
its
allies (or, as may soon be the case, ally).
http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_518558.html
*
Thatcher calls for 'removal' of Saddam Hussein
Ananova,
11th February
DOUBTS
AND QUERIES
*
Iraq Calls Bush's Bluff on Weapons Scrutiny [by Scott Ritter: 'Baghdad
now has
raised the question as to whether U.S. support for inspectors has
been
merely rhetorical, a verbal foil designed to support the primary
policy
objective of removing Hussein from power.' Though in fact everyone
has
known the answer to this question for a very long time - long before
the
weapons inspections stopped. And after weapons inspections, there's
still
the little matter of reparations to keep the sanctions going (all
these
things that were decided in the truce signed between Iraq and ...
who?
Norman Schwarzkopf, wasn't it? In a bit of a hurry in order to let
'Saddam'
back to the business of suppressing the Kurds and Shi'ites, as I
remember.)
Actually I don't think the Americans actually ever really
cared
very much about removing 'Saddam'. They just wanted to wipe the
grin
from his face. And so far they haven't succeeded. Which is why
they're
going mad.]
*
Use words, not war, to puncture inflated Iraqi threat [also by Scott
Ritter.
He argues that its nonsense to say Iraq's wmd capacity poses a
great
threat to the world in general or America in principle; but it
would be
a good thing if it were checked, so 'Diplomatic engagement
intended
to return U.N. inspectors back to Iraq, in exchange for lifting
economic
sanctions that have punished the people of Iraq but have done
nothing
to hurt the Iraqi regime, offers a path toward peace and
stability
that should be vigorously pursued before any act of war.']
*
Bush has no plans to attack Iraq: Schroeder [So that's OK]
*
Russian Defense Minister Warns U.S. [Compendium of international
opinion
against attack on Iraq. And Ari Fleischer's response. Which is to
say, so
what? And given the generally craven nature of what passes for
'international
opinion', we can hardly blame him.]
*
Bush govt planting seeds of its own undoing [The gist of this is that
the
Americans are no longer even remotely pretending to have any interest
in or
concern for 'international law': '"We all have to start using the
'H'
word - hegemony - now to describe US policy," says Michael Klare, a
national-security
expert at Hampshire College in Massachusetts.']
*
ChrÈtien cautions U.S. against targeting Iraq; Putin backs PM in
seeking
limits to terrorism war ['in international politics, before you
invade
a sovereign country, there has to be a process or else there is
international
chaos," Graham (Canadian Foreign Affairs secretary) said.'
He
doesn't seem to have noticed Panama, Nicaragua, Serbia ...]
*
The Right Has Put W On Wrong Warpath
*
Straw warns against early attack on Iraq
EMBARGO
*
Iran informs UN it tried to intercept contraband Iraqi oil [Shame on
Iran]
*
Ship suspected of running Iraqi oil seized [Shame on Canada]
*
Sanctions discussed [The article makes plain what we all know to be
the
case ‚ that the US is using its power to impose holds on goods to
Iraq, without
having to justify its decisions, as a means of exercising
pressure
on Russia. And no-one complains?]
*
U.S. Avoids Confronting Syrians on Iraqi Oil [This article makes the
observation
- interesting if true - that the US has given up on the idea
of
tightening border controls on Iraq as part of the 'smart sanctions'
deal.
They know that Iraq's neighbours won't wear it. Since this was the
most
objectionable part of the smart sanctions deal it leaves me
wondering
if its still worth opposing it. What is left, though far from
what is
needed, might still be an improvement on the existing system of
sanctions.]
AND, IN
NEWS, 9-16/2/02 (3)
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Iraq Says Over 1,400 Killed in U.S.-British Raids of No-Fly Zones
*
Oil-For-Food Program Needs Adjustments: U.N. Official [This should
have
been an interesting article, but it doesn't give any details]
*
Mass grave found in northern Iraq ['International organisations
estimate
that 182,000 people, mostly men, were forced from the Kurdish
areas
and buried alive in mass graves in the southern deserts.' Wonder if
its the
same southern desert that holds the mass grave of all the Iraqis
we
murdered on the road to Basra in 1991.]
*
U.N. Rights Expert Arrives in Iraq
*
Save the Children UK warns of potential humanitarian crisis in Iraq
[Strictly
speaking this doesn't belong in the collection since I haven't
seen it
anywhere as a news item. Which is of itself scandalous because
only a few
months ago the newspapers were full of the success of the
Kurdish
autonomous zone as proof that it was 'Saddam', not sanctions,
that
was responsible for Iraqi sufferings. But here we learn that:
'According
to the report, large sectors of the Kurdish population in
Northern
Iraq are dependent on relief rations for over 90 percent of
their
food -- with over half of the population living in poverty. Most
have no
household assets, and therefore nothing to fall back on in the
event
of a decrease in their food rations, as they were forced to sell
their
possessions in order to survive in the early 1990s.']
*
Opposition forces target oil installations [Terrorist activities in
Iraq]
*
War brought misery to Iraqi town [Basra. A little glimpse of reality
in the
midst of the fog]
*
In Iraq, cult of Hussein thrives
IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
*
Myanmar sends economic mission to Iraq [Talk of the devil. Was it only
last
week I was wondering where Myanmar had got to in all this talk about
axes of
evil?]
*
Haider trip to Iraq embarrasses Austria [He has a sense of humour: '
according
to his political allies, he is undertaking "mediation in favour
of
Israel" with the Iraqi leadership.']
*
US wants Austrian government to report Haider's Iraq trip to UN
*
Austria's Haider Vows to Pull Back
*
Nakatani [Japanese Defense Agency chief] Disputes Remark Linking
N.Korea
To Iran And Iraq
*
Iraq Threatens to Sue Foreign Firms For Unfulfilling Contracts
IRAQI/MIDDLE
EAST-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS
*
Saudi companies in the exhibition for rebuilding Iraq [Some good news]
*
First Syria production exhibition opened in Baghdad [More good news]
*
Bahrainis wait for missing kin to return from Iraq
*
Iraq, Iran Criticize 'Axis of Evil' Policy [at a conference of
European
and Islamic foreign ministers in Istanbul]
*
Turk PM Says Iraq May Be Ready to Compromise
URL
ONLY:
http://www1.timesofindia.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=592478
*
Saddam to skip Arab summit
Times
of India (from AFP), 10th February
[Hardly
surprising, but worth noting that the speaker of the Iraqi
parliament,
Saadun Hammadi, has been visiting ithe Sudan.]
NEW
WORLD ORDER
*
Iranians Rally Against United States [Good to see there's still some
spirit
left in the world]
*
Afghan, Iraqi refugees renew allegiance with ideas of Islamic
Revolution
URL
ONLY:
http://huknews.hoovers.com/fp.asp?layout=displaynews&doc_id=NR20020210670.2_815
003e4581c534
*
China arms entwined in "axis of evil"
by
Glenn Schloss
Hoover's
(Financial Times), 10th February
[Those
who think that China might provide a useful counterbalance to US
power
might find this interesting]
Perhaps
the only piece of hard news in the following mass of wearisome
nonsense
is the crackdown on efforts of Iraqi refugees to help their
families
at home. This follows on the similar move against Somalia a
couple
of months ago, but this time there isn't the slightest pretence
that
the money was being used to promote 'terrorism'. Its unthinkable
that
the authorities didn't know that this was going on for a long time
and had
decided to ignore it. Why did they suddenly swoop now? Its so
petty
minded you could almost take it as evidence that they've decided
they
don't dare attack Iraq (unforeseeable political consequences) and
this is
a way of venting their frustration. The relevant articles are
under
'Iraqis outside Iraq'. Most were sent to the list, I think by Drew
Hamre,
but I thought it useful to keep them on record here. Oherwise
there's
lots to read and nothing much worth reading: 'Bombing Iraq', in
the
British section; 'Iraq roadtrip' and 'War tensions tough on
Christians'
in the 'Inside Iraq section, together with President
Hussein's
reflections on the benefits of nuclear power. Most abject
article
of the week: David Owen's 'We must stand by Bush' in the British
section.
INCITEMENT
TO HATRED
*
Cakewalk In Iraq [This article really belongs to last week's mailing.
It
argues that it will be easy to demolish Iraq because its pathetically
weak
and has no military capacity; and that it is necessary to do so
because
it is terribly dangerous and armed to the teeth. Only a short
extract
is given so that the reader may savour the contempt with which
the USA
regards its allies. 'Rinky-dink nations' is the memorable term
employed.]
*
Cheney Rattles Saber Against Iraq
*
Facing the Music On Iraq [Jim Hoagland sounding like the cat that got
the
cream. He must be feeling the way Hitler felt when suddenly he
realised
that his wildest ideas were no longer encountering any
opposition.
Suddenly, everyone agreed with him. Extracts.]
*
Gung-ho and alone in Iraq [This article was sent to the list and I
don't
know where it comes from. But its worth including because it refers
to the
fact that UN Security Council Resolution 687 calls for "the
establishment
of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East region",
which,
of course, includes Israel. Which is something that requires to be
said
every time Iraq is accused of violating UN Security Council
resolutions.]
*
The purging of Baghdad [Short extract from a rather long article. On
the
virtues of 'moral clarity'. Hitler would have appreciated this ...]
*
Parsing The Axis Of Evil [A cautionary voice from the US. But the
terrorist
elite is right. The cautionary voices, which don't radically
challenge
the morality of the whole policy on Iraq, are unconvincing and
weak,
defending a policy of slow mass murder through starvation and
disease
against a policy of quick mass murder by massive terror.]
*
Post-Saddam proves to be sticking point [Extracts, giving some quotes
from Al
Gore, Richard Perle and Leon Fuerth]
*
U.S. still hasn't pinned down the best way to deal with Iraq [Will
they?
Won't they? Extracts]
*
It's Time to Exercise Our Veto Power on Iraq [Mr Gibson wants to go to
war to
prevent Saddam getting nuclear wepons. He fails to explain why the
US should
need nuclear weapons if Iraq (in an infinitely more dangerous
part of
the world) doesn't. And of course, while admiring Israel's strike
against
Iraq's nuclear installation at the time when Iraq was defending
Israel
and the rest of the region against the wrath of the Ayatollahs,
there
isn't a cheep about Israel's own nuclear weapons ... ]
*
Missing the target [James Rubin, ex-accomplice of M.Albright, tries to
draw a
distinction between his own position and that of the Pentagon
elite.
But its just a matter of 'spin'. The US is, as always, right. It
should,
however, make a little more effort to explain things to the
dimmer
nations of the world. Interesting to note that Rubin is now
'visiting
professor of international relations at the London School of
Economics.'
Is this a sign of the assimilation of the Universities to the
process
of government, which is already very far advanced in the US, and
may not
of itself be a bad thing?]
*
Bin Laden uses Iraq to plot new attacks [It was inevitable that
someone
would suggest that Bin Laden has taken refuge in Iraq. Not so
inevitable
that it should have been the Asia Times in what seems quite a
well
argued and informed article]
*
Saddam to US: Overthrow my regime but don't strike Iraq [President
Hussein
reminds us that of late the pretence that the war is againt his
regime
not against 'Iraq' as such is becoming a bit thin.]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/cgi
free/getstory_ssf.cgi?g8218_BC_MI--Attacks-Albright&&news&newsflash-michigan
*
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE ALBRIGHT ADDRESSES MICHIGAN STUDENTS
by
Alexandra R. Moses
The
Associated Press, 21st February
[I
would have included it if she'd said anything interesting. Honest I
would. She
expresses distaste for the 'axis of evil' language but there's
no
serious disagreement here on the substance of the matter.]
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020222-56041768.htm
*
WHITE HOUSE WANTS SADDAM OUT OF POWER BY 2005
by
Rowan Scarborough
Washington
Times, 22nd February
[More
'White House officials' and 'senior policy makers' speaking off the
record,
this time presumably to deflate exepctations of immediate action]
AND, IN
NEWS, 16-23/2/02
(2)
RINKY-DINK
NATIONS
(1)
EUROPE
*
Between Two Extremes [Joschka Fischer would like the USA to treat him
with
respect]
*
Patten assails 'unilateralist' U.S. [Another little bleat from a
European
collaborator begging to be treated with respect: "The lesson of
Sept.
11 is that we need both American leadership and international
cooperation
..."]
*
Simplistic Criticism of U.S. Overlooks Complex Realities [The
Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung argues that Europe will only be deserving
of respect
when it has increased its military budget sufficiently to be
able to
make a significant contribution to the fulfilment of US foreign
policy
objectives.]
*
German official predicts growing US-EU differences over Iraq policy
[Germany
pretends to have a mind of its own]
*
Germany urges int'l pressure on Iraq to let in UN inspectors [Germany
gives
up pretending that it has a mind of its own.]
*
Italy Sticks to Policy of Dialogue With Iraq [We're not going to have
to
start liking Silvio Berlusconi, are we?]
*
Patten seeks to calm rift with US [Europe, having uttered its little
yelp of
alarm, settles back into its customary 'good dog' mode of
existence.]
*
France's Constructive Critic [Thoughts of Hubert VÈdrine put in the
best
possible (to American eyes) light. Extracts.]
*
European Union alleges U.S. companies sent black-market cigarettes to
Iraq
[Most of this is about smuggling to Europe but the sting comes in
the
tail when it is suggested that the cigarettes were smuggled into Iraq
through
the good offices of the (recently renamed) Kurdistan Workers'
Party]
*
France won't back U.S. attack on Iraq [Comparatively firm talk from
the
French ambassador to the US]
URLs
ONLY:
http://www.faz.com/IN/INtemplates/eFAZ/docmain.asp?rub={B1311FCC-FBFB-11D2
B228-00105A9CAF88}&doc={D136C16D-3E3E-4CF6-933E-E41A2E18EA32}
*
SOONER RATHER THAN LATER
by Leo
Wieland
Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung, 17th February
[More
worthless ruminations from Germany.]
http://www.unison.ie/southern_star/stories.php3?ca=44&si=692439&issue_id=6914
*
'WAR FOR CIVILISATION'
Southern
Star, 18th February
[The
Southern Star, apparently based in Skibbereen in Co Cork ‚ is it the
successor
to the famous Skibbereen Eagle? ‚ denounces the evil of
Al-Qaida
and weak kneed liberals with impressive, straght-faced
solemnity:
'All the actions in Afghanistan and possibly elsewhere,
represent
a 'fight for freedom' the likes of which the world has never
before
experienced and as our President said at the start, Ireland must
'stand
shoulder to shoulder' with America, Britain and the civilised
democracies
in order to rid the planet of such a horrendous evil.' etc]
http://dawn.com/fixed/subs/dinasub.htm
*
EUROPE FIRMLY OPPOSED TO ATTACKING IRAQ
by
Peter Finn
Dawn
(from Washington Post), 19th February, 06 Zilhaj 1422
[A
round-up of opinions that have already been given elsewhere]
http://www.iht.com/articles/48455.html
*
EUROPE DOESN'T WANT WAR IN IRAQ
by
Michael Naumann
International
Herald Tribune (from The New York Times), 19th February
[More
European handwringing and whingeing and inability to look evil in
the
face and stand up to it, this time from 'a former German minister of
culture
.... editor and publisher of the weekly Die Zeit'. Who makes his
timid
criticism of US terrorism then mumbles that: 'A truly enforced
policy
of serious sanctions against Iraq - and persuading Turkey to stop
breaking
them - would be more useful.']
RINKY-DINK
NATIONS
(2)
IRAQ'S NEIGHBOURS
*
Kuwaiti minister denies a reported US attack against Iraq from Kuwait
*
Assad Warns US Against Attacking Iraq
*
Saudi, UAE oppose action against Iraq
*
Egypt urges rethink of sanctions against Iraq [No details given]
*
US to found a central leadership base in Bahrain [Strange to see the
Arabic
News turning to The Sun for inside information about goings on in
Bahrain.]
*
Sudan opposes US strike on Iraq
*
Kuwait: we will not be the base to strike Iraq [Won't be the base ...]
*
The scenarios of striking Iraq [Will be the base ...]
*
Sudan urges Iraq to let U.N. inspectors return
*
Iraqi delegation holds talks in Turkey Ankara
RINKY-DINK
NATIONS
(3)
BRITAIN
*
Time to stop being America's lap-dog [An interesting article from Will
Hutton,
which suggests rather naively that there is a good 'liberal'
America
that has been swamped by a reactionary, ideologically motivated
one. He
concludes: 'The Tories broke over Europe. Labour will break over
too-slavish
fealty to this US.' But of course our basic problem is that
there
is no worthwhile opposition in British politics. In this respect
the
people who have usurped the honourable title of Tory (which once
meant
anti-imperialist, anti-free trade, rural, Church and State
monarchist)
are as bad as the people who have usurped the honourable
title
of Labour.]
*
Perhaps a Russian-British lobby against war on Iraq? [Hugo Young. A
good
first sentence but it quickly runs out of things to say].
*
Bombing Baghdad: a failed option [Its taken a long time for someone to
come up
with this - a developed satire on the analogy between Al Qaida
and the
IRA - but its still good to see it finally in print. For example:
'America,
on the other hand, provides a bewildering number of targets.
Should
the UK have bombed Washington, where the policies were formed? Or
should
it have concentrated on places where Irishmen are known to lurk,
like
New York, Boston and Philadelphia? The UK could have bombed any
police
station and fire station in most major urban centres, secure in
the
knowledge that we would be taking out significant numbers of IRA
sympathisers.
' What makes this good satire, as opposed to the mindless
obscenities
of a Steve Bell, and the glutinous mass of eighth rate
cartoonists
he has spawned, is that what is said here about IRA
sympathisers
is EXACTLY what is being said everywhere at the present time
about
sympathisers with those who believe in the establishment of an
Islamic
state (as any serious Muslim must, just as most Irish people
sympathise
with the aims of the IRA, whatever attitude they may have to
their
methods.)]
*
We must stand by Bush [Here's a clever little piece of special
pleading.
Bush must put pressure on Sharon to be nice to the
Palestinians.
But he can't do it while the Israelis have reason to be
scared
of Iraq and Iran (ie while there's any suggestion that Muslims
might
have and be prepared to use any sort of substantial military
capacity).
Iran will cease to be a scary place when the democratic
element
replaces the clerical element (it being well known that the
Muslim
'street' wants nothing better than to make peace with Israel). But
that
can't happen while Iran is scared of Iraq. Therefore ... And, as far
as
Britain is concerned: 'the consequences of stepping aside now from
action
to change the regime in Iraq would be devastating to our
international
credibility. We would look like a beached whale,
pretentious
and overblown.' After all, we are Tonto to the US's Lone
Ranger.
Without the Lone Ranger, what would Tonto be?]
AND, IN
NEWS, 16-23/2/02
(3)
RINKY-DINK
NATIONS
(4) THE
UNITED NATIONS
*
Iraq Says Over 2,400 Contracts Shelved by U.S., Britain
*
European banks jostle for Iraq's UN contract
*
Iraq: U.N. Special Rapporteur Concludes Visit, Prepares Report
*
Iraq Blasts U.N. Compensations Committee [which apparently has been
illegally
hearing claims from individuals and corporations which have not
passed
through their respective governments.]
*
Washington blocks $5bn supplies to Iraq [This one makes some attempt
to
explain the disparity between UN and Iraqi figures]
OTHER
RINKY-DINK NATIONS
*
Iraq seeks Pak expertise in power generation
*
[Canadian] PM stands firm on Iraq despite U.S. pressure
*
Baghdad backs anti-terror campaign in Chechnya [In the article,
Alexander
Rose puts the term "anti-terrorist" in inverted commas,
referring
to the Russian campaign in Chechnya. No-one seems to have told
him
that a large number of the people blown apart in the Al Qaida camps
in
Afghanistan were Chechens, even though not once, so far as I remember,
in all
the literature we had to endure at the time of the Afghan
massacre,
were the rights and wrongs of the Chechen question ever
discussed]
*
Russian Duma to Consider Draft in Support of Iran, Iraq, DPRK [Is the
Russian
Duma now standing alone as the only free and honourable
institution
left in the world?]
*
Self-interest should guide foreign policy [Unusually forthright
approach
to the problem from Canada. For example: 'In a few months, the
U.S.
will manufacture a causus belli for attacking Iraq, as by insisting
on
impossibly intrusive U.N. inspections. If Saddam agrees, he'll suffer
a
devastating loss of face as well as the loss of some of his weapons of
mass
destruction. If he refuses, down come the bombs with Canada saying,
Aye,
Aye.' Concludes that Canada's self interest means taking the moral
high
ground. And opposing the war (but not, apparently, sanctions).]
*
What they're saying about intervention in Iraq [Extracts from
newspapers
through the world. Too short to be very informative, but the
one
from the Daily Star in Lebanon is a cracker: "Saddam, in short, is
the
goose that continues supplying the US with fresh golden eggs every
morning.
Remove Saddam and US troops will be booted out of the Gulf
before
you can say 'Rumsfeld is a sucker.'"]
*
Go-slow approach makes sense [Another quite sensible article
advocating
independence for Canada but still falling short of opposing
the
existing murderous policy on Iraq.]
*
China warns Bush over bully tactics against Iraq
INSIDE
IRAQ
*
Hussein rejects development of weapons of mass destruction [He said
Iraqi
nuclear scientists' mission was to "increase Iraq's knowledge,
bring
happiness to men and to employ science to serve mankind." Pretty
scary,
eh?]
*
Alqanat [Arabic language daily] says Iraq buying advanced missiles
*
Saddam's Olympics
*
Iraq Decides to Distribute Money to Poor People
*
Iraq Roadtrip: Caught in the DMZ [This was sent to the list. I don't
know if
'Counterpunch' really counts as a newspaper but I thought it
would
be good to insinuate a little hint of the reality of things into
the
fantasy world of the newspaper cuttings service.]
*
Iraq sees 12 fold increase in cancer, depleted uranium cited
*
War tensions tough on Christians in Iraq [This article refers to the
importance
of '"cousin aid" from the outside', which connects
interestingly
with the stories about the suppression of attempts to send
money
to Iraq from the US, especially the one concerning Detroit in
Michigan.]
AND, IN
NEWS, 16-23/2/02
(4)
IRAQIS
OUTSIDE IRAQ
*
Focus-Humans live like cattle in French refugee camp
*
Raid on Iraqi-owned market here prompts nationwide crackdown
*
Money-Transfer Agents Raided
*
Searches seek data on cash links between Twin Cities, Iraq
*
U.S. raids get evidence about cash sent to Iraq
*
Brooklyn Park man says he won't send money to Iraq any more
IRAQI
OPPOSITION
*
Kurdish parties oppose toppling Saddam
*
Rebels balk as US targets Saddam [Refreshing to see that someone's
noticed
the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the only
body
that is actually, already, against overwhelming odds, courageously,
conducting
a terrorist war in Iraq.]
*
Iraqi opposition figure describes aftermath of Saddam Hussein ['Maj.
Gen.
Najib al-Salehi who was nominated by certain Iraqi opposition forces
to be
the President of Iraq' and who 'was a commander for the tanks
contingent
which occupied Kuwait in 1990.']
*
Saddam mulling peace with rebel Kurds
*
Washington fetes its enemy's enemy [Interview with Ahmed Chalabi. the
article
menions one 'Leith Kubba, who helped Mr Chalabi to found the INC
a
decade ago, but who left after concerns that it was becoming a US
foreign
policy tool ...' which sounds interesting. And it says that the
SCIRI
is affiliated to the INC. Is it? They used to be very insistent
that
they were not in alliance with the US.]
*
Dethrone Saddam (Granting Independence to the Kurds) [The Washington
Times
thinking the unthinkable, but logical, and proposing the breakup of
Iraq.
He suggests interestingly that an independent Iraqi Kurdistan would
oblige
the Turks to improve their behaviour in their part of Kurdistan.]
URL
ONLY:
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=138992
*
OPPOSITION LEADER 'READY TO SUPPORT LIBERATION OF IRAQ'
by
Andrew Buncombe
Independent,
22nd February
[Not
very interesting account of A.Chalabi.]
LEVEL
OF IDIOCY IN A CATEGORY OF ITS OWN
[An
unkind general heading for an article about people who lost relatives
on September
11, but are they so utterly incapable of understanding the
feelings
of people who lost relatives in the bombing of Baghdad and
Basra?]
*
Families of Sept 11 Dead Sue Bin Laden, Iran, Iraq
NEW
WORLD ORDER
URLs
ONLY:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/134406420_saudi17.html
*
ISRAEL POLICY THREATENS FRAGILE U.S.-SAUDI TIES
by
Robert G. Kaiser and David B. Ottaway
Seattle
Times (from The Washington Post), 17th February
[The
article suggests that in the run-up to Sept 11, Bush and the Saudis
were on
the point of agreeing a policy for Israel/Palestine. It didn't
work
out.]
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=134362
*
US STARTS A NEW WAR, FOR WORLD'S HEARTS AND MINDS
by
Rupert Cornwell
Independent,
20th February
[The
article is about the business of telling lies in warfare but it
barely
scratches the surface of the subject. How could it, given Mr
Cornwell's
support for the War Crimes tribunal at the Hague? It asserts
incidentally
that the story that the US had used germ warfare in Korea in
1952
was a KGB fabrication. For an alternative view - which was receiving
quite a
lot of publicity at the time - see "The United States and
Biological
Warfare - Secrets from the Early Cold War and Korea' by
Stephen
Endicott and Edward Hagerman, Indiana University Press, 1998
(http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/e/endicott-biological.html)]
http://www.iht.com/articles/48885.html
*
LIES CAN COME BACK TO HURT YOU
by
Flora Lewis
International
Herald Tribune, 22nd February
[The article
assumes that the purpose of the Pentagon's new Office of
Strategic
Influence is to tell lies and then suggests that this might not
be a
good idea. We are led to believe that such practises are the
exception
rather than the rule.]