U.S. Military Hoped for Virtually Unlimited Freedom of Action in Iraq
Drafting of U.S.-Iraq Security Agreement Began Nearly Five Years Ago
Washington D.C., June 13, 2008 - Recently declassified documents show that the U.S. military has long sought an agreement with Baghdad that gives American forces virtually unfettered freedom of action, casting into doubt the Bush administration's current claims that their demands are more limited in scope. News reports have indicated that the Bush administration is exerting pressure on the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to accept a U.S.-Iraq security plan by the end of July 2008. According to these accounts, the plan would give the U.S. more than 50 military bases in Iraq, provide complete freedom of action to conduct military operations, allow complete freedom to arrest and detain Iraqis, and grant U.S. forces and contractors total immunity from Iraqi law. Growing awareness of the implications of the pact have fueled opposition by the Iraqi public – to the extent that Prime Minister al-Maliki announced today that discussions had deadlocked.
Showing posts with label dodecahedron-ass things. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dodecahedron-ass things. Show all posts
Monday, June 16, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
where's the gratitude?
Maliki raises possibility that Iraq might ask U.S. to leave
BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki raised the possibility that his country won't sign a status of forces agreement with the United States and will ask U.S. troops to go home when their U.N. mandate to be in Iraq expires at the end of the year.
BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki raised the possibility that his country won't sign a status of forces agreement with the United States and will ask U.S. troops to go home when their U.N. mandate to be in Iraq expires at the end of the year.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
there is more s#i+ blowing up directly after this s#i+ blows up
News item: Asked whether the planned nominations by Bush are a sign that U.S. policy is to "stay the course" in Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the security gains achieved under Petraeus' command mean that "staying that course is not a bad idea."
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Dick "Dick" (Dick) Dick DICK is not going to like this one bit
"We haven't turned any corners, we haven't seen any lights at the end of the tunnel."
-- David Petraeus
He didn't mention last throes.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Dick: future weatherman?
On Monday, Vice-President Dick Cheney came to Baghdad and talked about "the phenomenal improvement in security". That day more than 60 Iraqis were killed in bomb attacks.
News item: "America after the invasion of Iraq is no longer the superpower it was before."
News item: "America after the invasion of Iraq is no longer the superpower it was before."
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Winning Hearts And Minds! (WHAM!) (cont'd!)
Sunni Forces Losing Patience With U.S.
BAGHDAD, Feb. 27 -- U.S.-backed Sunni volunteer forces, which have played a vital role in reducing violence in Iraq, are increasingly frustrated with the American military and the Iraqi government over what they see as a lack of recognition of their growing political clout and insufficient U.S. support...
"Now, there is no cooperation with the Americans," said Haider Mustafa al-Kaisy, an Awakening commander in Baqubah, the capital of Diyala province, an insurgent stronghold that U.S. and Iraqi forces are still struggling to control. "We have stopped fighting al-Qaeda..."
"They should make me stronger. They should not weaken me," said Kassim, a former commander in the Islamic Army, an insurgent group. "We need weapons. We need vehicles. We do not even have gas for the few cars we have. When we joined, the Americans promised to provide all necessities. Now we know those were only words..."
Inadvertent U.S. killings of Awakening fighters -- five such incidents have occurred in the past three weeks -- are adding to the frustrations. In the southern town of Jurf al-Sakr, U.S. soldiers killed three fighters Feb. 15. U.S. commanders said that the men had fired upon the soldiers first and that the troops acted in self-defense.
Within hours, more than 1,000 fighters walked away from their posts. Sabah al-Janabi, who heads the Awakening in the area, publicly criticized the U.S. military, alleging it had killed 19 of his men in the past 45 days, which U.S. commanders deny...
In the village of Zaab, west of the northern city of Kirkuk, police officials and witnesses said U.S. forces on Feb. 14 killed six relatives of an Awakening leader, Issa Muhsin al-Jubouri, and detained him and others. In an interview last week, after his release, he said U.S. soldiers had "raised their weapons in my face and shouted at me, 'Confess or I will shoot you.'
"They beat me and cursed me and made me face the wall, saying to me, 'You have exploited the Awakening to support the terrorists,' " Jubouri said. "I kept saying, 'You are mistaken, because I and my family have been victims of terrorists.' "
BAGHDAD, Feb. 27 -- U.S.-backed Sunni volunteer forces, which have played a vital role in reducing violence in Iraq, are increasingly frustrated with the American military and the Iraqi government over what they see as a lack of recognition of their growing political clout and insufficient U.S. support...
"Now, there is no cooperation with the Americans," said Haider Mustafa al-Kaisy, an Awakening commander in Baqubah, the capital of Diyala province, an insurgent stronghold that U.S. and Iraqi forces are still struggling to control. "We have stopped fighting al-Qaeda..."
"They should make me stronger. They should not weaken me," said Kassim, a former commander in the Islamic Army, an insurgent group. "We need weapons. We need vehicles. We do not even have gas for the few cars we have. When we joined, the Americans promised to provide all necessities. Now we know those were only words..."
Inadvertent U.S. killings of Awakening fighters -- five such incidents have occurred in the past three weeks -- are adding to the frustrations. In the southern town of Jurf al-Sakr, U.S. soldiers killed three fighters Feb. 15. U.S. commanders said that the men had fired upon the soldiers first and that the troops acted in self-defense.
Within hours, more than 1,000 fighters walked away from their posts. Sabah al-Janabi, who heads the Awakening in the area, publicly criticized the U.S. military, alleging it had killed 19 of his men in the past 45 days, which U.S. commanders deny...
In the village of Zaab, west of the northern city of Kirkuk, police officials and witnesses said U.S. forces on Feb. 14 killed six relatives of an Awakening leader, Issa Muhsin al-Jubouri, and detained him and others. In an interview last week, after his release, he said U.S. soldiers had "raised their weapons in my face and shouted at me, 'Confess or I will shoot you.'
"They beat me and cursed me and made me face the wall, saying to me, 'You have exploited the Awakening to support the terrorists,' " Jubouri said. "I kept saying, 'You are mistaken, because I and my family have been victims of terrorists.' "
Friday, February 22, 2008
What this means: ETA to K-Mad: August 12th
Baseball Prospectus 2008 Shipping News
Posted by Steven Goldman @ February 21, 2008, 11:32 PM-->
Due to some scattered shipping dates quoted by various on-line book retailers, we’ve received many inquiries from readers as to just when they can expect to receive their copies of Baseball Prospectus 2008. Sadly, we’re not told much more about this than anyone else; when you publish a book, it’s a bit like sending your kid off to school, only the school refuses to tell you when they’ll be coming home.
That said, we’re hearing that Amazon should start filling orders very shortly. The books are out there: we’ve glimpsed them, the retailers have them, and it’s just a question of them gearing up their massive delivery apparatus and getting the books out the door and onto the shelves. We understand your impatience because we share it.
Posted by Steven Goldman @ February 21, 2008, 11:32 PM-->
Due to some scattered shipping dates quoted by various on-line book retailers, we’ve received many inquiries from readers as to just when they can expect to receive their copies of Baseball Prospectus 2008. Sadly, we’re not told much more about this than anyone else; when you publish a book, it’s a bit like sending your kid off to school, only the school refuses to tell you when they’ll be coming home.
That said, we’re hearing that Amazon should start filling orders very shortly. The books are out there: we’ve glimpsed them, the retailers have them, and it’s just a question of them gearing up their massive delivery apparatus and getting the books out the door and onto the shelves. We understand your impatience because we share it.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
dere is annudder quagmire directly below dis one
News item: Four months after announcing troop reductions in Iraq, President Bush is now sending signals that the cuts may not continue past this summer...
News item: The U.S. military plans to boost the number of neighborhood outposts across the capital by more than 30 percent this year even as American forces begin to withdraw, the new commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad said Tuesday.
News item: The U.S. military plans to boost the number of neighborhood outposts across the capital by more than 30 percent this year even as American forces begin to withdraw, the new commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad said Tuesday.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
dere is annudder corner directly around dis one (cont'd)
GOP leader: Transit logjam could go into January
(AP) — House Republican leader Tom Cross acknowledges it could take until January to work out a gambling expansion plan that would pay for a statewide construction program and pave the way for a mass-transit bailout.
Cross says he'd like something to happen next week but he can't promise anything will. He blames the political climate and personalities involved.
House Speaker Michael Madigan didn't attend a second day of meetings with Gov. Rod Blagojevich and the three other legislative leaders to break a logjam that has transit riders facing threatened service cuts and fare increases.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
