c.i.'s "Iraq snapshot" from monday:
Chaos and violence continue. Bombings continue, kidnappings continue and a corpse was discovered.
In what might get the most attention today, reporting from Baghdad, Nancy A. Youssef (Knight Ritter) breaks the news that the United States now admits to keeping some figures on Iraqis who have died during the illegal war. Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli tells Youssef that "the number of civilian dead and wounded" via US troops "is an important measurement." Chiarelli reveals that "he reviews the figures daily." The US government has denied that any figures were being kept.
Bombings?
In Baghdad, Reuters reports that a roadside bomb killed one and wounded at least five and that another bomb resulted in two police officers dead and at least four wounded.Also in Baghdad, the Associated Press reports that the convoy of Adnan al-Dulaimi ("Iraq's most senior Sunni Arab politician") was attacked and at least one of his bodyguards was killed.
Elsewhere, KUNA reports that two "civilians" were killed in Baquba. Reuters notes that, in Mosul, a police officer was killed Monday with six wounded in an attack while another died was wounded, along with a civilian, as a result of a roadside bomb. And in Hilla, Reuters reports that a bomb has taken the lives of at least 30.
The Associated Press estimates today that "nearly 40 people have been killed in the last 24 hours" in Iraq. This as Hiba Moussa and Michael Georgy (Reuters) report that an estimated that at least 130,000 Iraqis have been displaced due to violence across the country.
Kidnappings?
Ibon Villelabeitia and Alastair Macdonald (Reuters) report "10 young men, all students from Sunni towns near Baghdad, from a building in the capital" were kidnapped by unidentified "gunmen." In other kidnapping news, CBS and the AP report that "Russian news agency Interfax" is reporting "that the Foreign Ministry has confirmed the death of the Russian hostages in Iraq." In a separate report, the AP notes that "Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed doubt Monday over the authenticity of the video" allegedly showing three of the four Russian diplomats (kidnapped June 3rd in Baghdad) being killed. The four are: Fyodor Zaytsev, Rinat Aglyulin, Anatoly Smirnov and Oleg Fedosseyev.
Corpses?
Reuters reports that the corpse of a police officer ("bullet wounds . . . head and chest") was found near Falluja.
Today on KPFA's The Morning Show, Brian Edwards-Tiekert noted that Sunni leaders are stating that the resistance in Iraq will continue until foreign troops are withdrawn. Edwards-Tiekert also noted that Tariq al-Hashimi has noted Nouri al-Maliki's proposed plan (or "plan") falls for short of the needed goals. Ibon Villelabeitia and Alastair Macdonald (Reuters) explore some of the Shi'ite criticism and some of the Sunnie criticism of the plan/"plan".
Tomorrow is Tuesday, June 27th and that means? Alex Fryer (Seattle Times) reports: "Atlanta peace activists plan a vigil for him at the Georgia state Capitol. In Charlotte, N.C., an anti-war group will show a film and hold a lecture at the public library. In Cleveland, Ohio, there will be a rally at the federal building. And in New York, protesters will converge at an Army recruiting station, an event billed to 'support Lt. Ehren Watada and other resisters of the war in Iraq.'" This as the Seattle Times editorializes that Watada shouldn't serve time but the military should instead "consider a dishonorable discharge." To sign a petition in support of Watada by clicking here.
More information on tomorrow's national day of action can be found at ThankYouLt.org and Courage to Resist.
And finally, next week, July 4th (Tuesday) CODEPINK will be demonstrating against the war in the form or a hunger strike:
TROOPS HOME FAST! On July 4, we will launch an historic hunger strike called TROOPS HOME FAST in Washington, DC in front of the White House. While many Americans will be expressing their patriotism via barbeques and fireworks, we'll be fasting in memory of the dead and wounded, and calling for the troops to come home from Iraq. Read an interview with Diane Wilson to learn more. We're inviting people around the world to show their support for this open-ended fast by fasting for at least one day. Please sign here to join us in DC or to support us in your hometown and encourage your friends to do the same.
i'm including that, and should have yesterday, because of the fact that nancy youssef just revealed on monday that the us government keeps a body count. they've denied that they do. they've said they have no idea how many iraqis have died. 1 of the fools, donald rumsfeld? colin powell?, infamously said 'we don't do body counts.' they do. they're keeping a count. (no surprise to c.i. who has maintained that a count was kept repeatedly.) who's seeing that count and why isn't made public to the american people? and why isn't every network and every paper talking about nancy youssef's scoop? this is news.
so here's some of what's going on. the 1s selling fear tried to hide behind the flag today by forcing a fire burning ban. they lost by 1 vote.
by 1 vote.
think about that.
free speech hangs by 1 vote. orrin hatchet-face said there's nothing more important for the senate to debate.
does that make you nervous, because it should. they've pushed this nonsense forever. this is the closest they've gotten so far. if they had won, what would be next in their rifle scopes? what would they come for next?
1 vote saved free speech.
you should be nervous.
i'm reading a good book. it's called our media not theirs by robert w. mcchesney and john nichols. today (and i plan to do the same tomorrow) i just laid around. i listened to democracy now while i had my coffee but, honestly, i slept in. kpfa plays it twice in the morning. once at 6 a.m. and again at 9 a.m. (i listenened at 9.) i felt guilty about it but c.i. said 'relax' and that's probably the smart thing to do. flyboy had some stuff to do today so he ran errands but he's going to stay poolside with me tomorrow. so after the show went off, i wandered around the bookshelves looking for a new book that interested me and chose this 1 mainly because it was short (140 pages) but also because i recognized john nichols' name. i recognized a lot of names but i stuck to 1 room (c.i. has book cases all over. that was true in college as well and books were lined around the walls then even with the book cases.) when i finish this, i'll sit in c.i.'s bedroom on a stack of books. i always feel i'll put something back in the wrong place.
(there is a system everything's shelved by. i have no idea what it is.)
elaine reads a lot too. by 'a lot,' i mean a lot. those 2 go through books. i think i do pretty good doing a book a week. i'm a piker compared to those 2. and elaine will read really heavy literature. no bridget jones for her. she'll read it in the original language. (she can read in i don't know how many languages but she can speak three in addition to english. she says she wished she'd taken spanish. and if she wasn't blogging, i bet she'd be in classes for that right now.) and c.i. reads these intense books, nonfiction. i looked at the 'to read' stack in c.i.'s bedroom today (i'm a prowler/snoop, c.i. knows that about me) and i had a headache just from the back covers.
i've also grabbed, with permission, books (galley form) for my vacation that starts mid-week, next week. i'd love to tell you i grabbed something heavy but i went for fun.
so that's been the day. basically. i had coffee and listened to democracy now. every 1 was out so i wondered around in my robe for an hour, took a shower, went out to the pool with the mcchesney and nichols book and had kpfa on out there. against the grain was interesting. elizabeth kolbert was on discussing global warming and the damange we're doing to the environment.
but i'd read a little. stop. think about it. pay attention to kpfa, then go back to reading. it was a relaxing morning. it was relaxing and probably some down time that was needed. i'm fine mentally with the miscarriage but i think my body needed some down time physically. (plus, i'm the ultimate slug even on a good day.) ava came in around 3 and we talked for a few hours. which was fun. then flyboy joined us a little before 4:30 and by 6 every 1 was back.
flashpoints had dr. mona on discussing attacks on palestinians. she'll be on tomorrow night, so make a point to listen.
they also played a nice speech by greg palast. (on the stolen elections.)
when i listen at home, i'm listening online. and either i turn it off or drift in and out of the room. so, point, i miss kpfa's evening news, or parts of it. they do a really great job. i can't believe how much they pack into an hour. they dealt with the flag 'debate' in the senate, they covered iraq, they covered so much. as some 1 who has to have my tv, it really drove home how much i miss by watching tv. so praise to them, high praise, for the great work they do.
now i want to note alexander cockburn's "Hitchens Hails the 'Glorious War'" (don't i sound laid back - i think california has seeped into my pores!):
Israel's continued withholding of just Palestinian tax/customs revenues reduces the total available budget resources for the PA to between US $700 - $750 million. In the PA's draft budget for 2006 prepared by the IMF in December 2005, the figure needed to sustain the territories was US $1.9 billion. The United States' administration nonetheless claims that no humanitarian crisis in the occupied territories exists.
The rationale for this onslaught on a civilian population? Israel says Hamas is a terrorist organization, bent on Israel's destruction. As prominent Israelis and western observers have pointed out, Hamas's leadership has made it clear on numerous occasions that Israel's right to exist is not at issue. What is at issue is Israel's adamant refusal to confirm Palestine's right to exist. As prime minister Olmert told a joint session of the US Congress in Washington DC a few weeks ago, "I believed, and to this day still believe, in our people's eternal and historic right to this entire land." In other words he doesn't recognize the right of Palestinians to even the wretched cantons currently envisaged in his "realignment".
The world shook with rage at the reports from Darfur. Do not the starvation, not to mention almost daily murder of Palestinian civilians merit even a word of reproach to the government of Israel, or the US and European governments that have joined in this barbaric siege?
by the way, ty told me tonight about a report he heard on kpfa's evening news last week. guess what? the u.n. is trying to get people to accept refugees from darfur. guess who's resisting? israel. i couldn't get over that. sudan and israel are enemies of some form apparently. (i've never been blonder than while in california!) and so israel's not all that interested in accepting refugees. israel. i can't believe that. (i'm not saying it's not true, i believe it's true, i can't believe that israel would ... well, maybe i can. it's a reflection of the government in charge, not of the people. i think israelies get as little say in their country as we do in ours.)
back to alexander cockburn, another reason i noted the thing above was because he will be on the radio tomorrow night:
Laura Flanders is filling in for Mike Malloy all week on The Mike Malloy Show (which airs live on Air America Radio from ten p.m. to one a.m. EST)
and her guest tomorrow night, or 1 of them, will be alexander cockburn. (i'm listening now, laura's covered the flag nonsense very well and she's discussing the voting machines right now.)
so make a point to listen.
here's c.i.'s "Iraq snapshot" for today:
Chaos and violence continue.
Happy talk continues.
In the land of reality, Medea Benjamin and Raed Jarrar examine the neutered "peace plan" put foward by occupation puppet Nouri al-Maliki and the United States. Benjamin and Jarrar remind that a World Public Opinion poll this year "showed 87% of the general population [of Iraq] favoring a set timeline for U.S. withdrawal." This as USA Today reports on the USA Today/Gallup Poll which found that "[a] majority of Americans say Congress should pass a resolution that outlines a plan for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq" and that "[h]alf of those surveyed would like all U.S. forces out withing 12 months."
In other reality news, Sandra Lupien noted on KPFA's The Morning Show, over 5% of Iraq's population is displaced with over 150,000 having fled their home (a figure that does not include those who have been taken in by extended family members). In addition, Reuters notes that the figures for children only: 40,000 displaced children since February 22nd of this year. UNICEF, in its 1996 study (the most recent) looking at the effects of war on children found, for the 1980s: "2 million killed; 4-5 million disabled; 12 million left homeless; more than 1 million orphaned or separated from their parents; [and] some 10 million psychologically traumatized." Using figures up through the 80s, UNICEF found that civilian victims of war "has been rising steadily".
Bombings?
Reuters notes that in Baghdad, one car bomb took the lives of three peopl at a market and wounded at least ten while a second bomb took the lives of three police officers with another three wounded.
Al Jazeera notes that a car bomb in Kirkuk which took the lives of three and wounded at least seventeen. The Irish Examiner notes that the car bomb attack "came three days after a roadside bomb killed the chief of intelligence in Kirkuk" (Associated Press). Also in Kirkuk, Reuters notes "an off duty soldier" was killed by assailants "while driving his car."
Kidnappings?
Updates on two items. First, we noted yesterday the 10 kidnapped males. Steven Hurst and Qassim Abdul-Zahra (Canadian Press) report that the ten were all Sunni and students who were kidnapped "from their dormitory rooms" at Iraqi Technology University. The AFP reports that the kidnappings took place in "broad daylight" and that the kidnappers used "five sports utility vehicles with tinted windows".
Emma Griffiths (Australia's ABC) reports that the four Russian diplomats -- Fyodor Zaytsev, Rinat Aglyulin, Anatoly Smirnov and Oleg Fedosseyev -- have been confirmed dead by the Foreign Ministry of Russia. The four were kidnapped on June 3rd in Baghdad when their car was attacked by unknown assailants. During the attack a fifth diplomat, Vitaly Vitalyevich Titov, was killed. On Sunday, a videotape was released which showed what appear to be some of the four being killed. While the press reports were circulating, the Russian government noted repeatedly that the murders had not been confirmed. The Mujahedeen Shura Council has asserted since last weekend that they had killed the four diplomats.
Meanwhile, as Amy Goodman noted on Democracy Now! today, "former CIA officer Tyler Drumheller said he repeatedly warned administration over the discredited Iraqi source known as 'Curveball'." Ignoring the warnings and advise, Colin Powell used the information for his now infamous UN speech that Powell has described as a "blot" on his career/record. Yesterday in Washington, DC, Democrats in the Senate held a hearing on the intelligence issue where, among others, Larry Wilkerson and Paul Pillar testified. Speaking of the administration and the intelligence community, Pillar stated, "I would describe the relationship as broken."
Joshua Belile will not be punished for "an obscenity-laced song" performed "to a laughing and cheering crowd." The US military has found no reason to charge him and one unnamed Marine Corps. official tells Reuters that "poor taste, poor judgment and poor timing, not to mention offensive lyrics, do not necessarily amount to criminal conduct." Margaret Neighbor (Scotsman) described the song thusly: "In a four-minute video called Hadji Girl, a singer who appears to be a marine tells a cheering audience about gunning down members of an Iarqi woman's family after they confront him with authomatic weapons." As Sandra Lupien reported June 14th on KPFA's The Morning Show, the song included lyrics such as: "the blood sprayed from between her eyes." As Lupien noted June 15th on KPFA's The Morning Show, the apologetic Belile stated that "People need to laugh at it and let it go." Reuters notes that he has said it was "supposed to be funny" and that he based it on Team America: World Police. (The film that underwhelmed at the box office in 2004 and was put out by the South Park twins.)
Finally, in peace news. NPR actually covered the case of Suzanne Swift. The audio clips can be heard online and lasts 3:58 minutes. The reporting? The segment's over (except for some really bad bumper music) at 3:26 minutes in a report filed by Martin Kaste. The report starts at 0:16 and Swift's case is over by 1:30 minutes. A minute and fourteen seconds may not seem like much but it's more than they've given Ehren Watada.
Today is a day of action for those wanting to stand with war resister Ehren Watada. To sign a petition in support of Watada by clicking here. More information on today's national day of action can be found at ThankYouLt.org and Courage to Resist.
