With their city largely destroyed by two US military assaults, residents of Fallujah continue to suffer. Fallujah, Iraq – Fallujah still bears the scars of war; skeletons continue to be pulled from the rubble of bombed buildings, and, worse, rates of birth defects and childhood malformations have skyrocketed. There is evidence of reconstruction, but shortages
Rivals Say Maliki Leading Iraq to ‘Civil War’
Iraq’s deputy Prime Minister accuses Nouri al-Maliki of acting like “a dictator” amid fears of “chaos and civil war.” Baghdad, Iraq – Less than 24 hours after the US military withdrew the last of its occupation forces from Iraq, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered an arrest warrant for Vice-President Tariq al-Hashimi on terrorism charges. Maliki,
No Relief for Iraqi Doctors
As thousands of doctors leave Iraq, those who remain to heal the sick say they need more security and less corruption. “The hospital is crowded, the medical staff are overloaded, and we are deficient of medical staff because doctors continue to leave Iraq,” Dr Yehiyah Karim, a general surgeon at Baghdad Medical City, told Al
After False Promises, the Heat is On in Iraq
BAGHDAD – Iraqis promised development with the ouster of Saddam Hussein and the arrival of the U.S. are now suffering lack of development as never before. And where it hurts every moment is through the collapse of power supply. More than seven years into the U.S. occupation, most Iraqis lack electricity, leading to demonstrations in
Imam Assassination Sparks Fears of Violence
The assassination of Sheikh Ghazi Jabouri, a prominent Sunni Imam in the Al- Adhamiya district of Baghdad, has raised fears of renewed sectarian violence in the wake of the Mar. 7 elections. Tensions have been reported in the area following the assassination Wednesday last week. At least two gunmen killed Sheikh Jabouri, 42, as he
Iraq Vets: Coverage of Atrocities Is Too Little, Too Late
The WikiLeaks video footage from Iraq taken from an Apache helicopter in July 2007 showing soldiers killing 12 people and wounding two children has caused an explosion of media coverage. But many Iraq vets feel it is too little and too late. In contrast to most of the coverage that favors the military’s stated position
Iraq Election Sets Off New Political Tussle
BAGHDAD – The March elections have only deepened political divisions, and brought more violence. Violent incidents come now amid tensions fueled by post-election arrests of victorious MPs, and disputes over vote fraud. Incumbent Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has successfully appealed to the Supreme Court to disqualify more than 50 candidates on the opposition list, accusing
Iraq War Vet: “We Were Told to Just Shoot People, and the Officers Would Take Care of Us”
On Monday, April 5, Wikileaks.org posted video footage from Iraq, taken from a US military Apache helicopter in July 2007 as soldiers aboard it killed 12 people and wounded two children. The dead included two employees of the Reuters news agency: photographer Namir Noor-Eldeen and driver Saeed Chmagh. The US military confirmed the authenticity of
Cultural Cleansing in Iraq: Why Museums Were Looted, Libraries Burned and Academics Murdered
1 April 2010 Battle to destroy hearts and minds The dismantling of Iraqi intellectual life may have been a deliberate strategy, Roger Matthews learns (Dahr Jamail contributed a chapter to this book.) I first went to Iraq in 1984 to work on archaeological excavations near Mosul. Our workers were Yezidis from the neighbouring villages and
Operation Enduring Occupation
Plain Speak The 2008 National Defense Strategy reads: US interests include protecting the nation and our allies from attack or coercion, promoting international security to reduce conflict and foster economic growth, and securing the global commons and with them access to world markets and resources. To pursue these interests, the US has developed military capabilities