World-News

Congressman Dennis Kucinich: New Study Shows 1.2 Million Iraqi Civilians Died In War; Resolution Will Ask House To Investigate, Prefer Criminal Charges If Necessary.

http://www.commondreams.org/news2007/0919-21.htm



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Kucinich

John DeFore, writing for Reuters, reports, "A matter-of-fact but pointedly critical commentary on the Iraq War, "Body of War" focuses on how soldiers got sent to Iraq and the shape in which they're coming back.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092007F.shtml

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"Body of War" a disturbing Iraq war critique

Tomas Young joined the Army on September 13, 2001, after seeing President Bush stand in front of Ground Zero rubble and promise to hunt down those who attacked us. He expected to go to Afghanistan in the hunt for Osama bin Laden, but eventually found himself shipped off to Iraq. For about five days -- after which his unarmored vehicle was attacked, and an AK-47 round pierced his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed.

http://snipurl.com/1r53c


From Information Clearing House

George Lakoff, writing for Truthout, states: "Think about what it means for our troops and for the people of Iraq. Our troops were told, and believed because they trusted their president, they were in Iraq to protect America, to protect their families, their homes, their friends and neighbors, our democracy. But they were betrayed. Those troops fought and died and were maimed and had their marriages break up for oil company profits."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092007B.shtml



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=George+Lakoff
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Iraq+oil
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Big+Oil

Irak: Premier Maliki zur Blackwater-Affäre
http://www.heise.de/tp/r4/artikel/26/26238/1.html

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Maliki Blasts Blackwater Firm

Leila Fadel of the McClatchy Newspapers reports, "Blackwater security guards who protect top U.S. diplomats in Iraq have been involved in at least seven serious incidents, some of which resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki said Wednesday."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092007A.shtml

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All the essential elements of governance in the Bush era come together in the Blackwater episode

http://ga3.org/ct/5p20pgF10XZA/

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Victim claims Blackwater killings unprovoked
http://therealnews.com/c.php?c=070921A&i=449



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=al-Maliki
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Blackwater
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Leila+Fadel
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Marie+Cocco

http://therealnews.com/c.php?c=070920A&e=52



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Abu+Risha
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Pepe+Escobar

David M. Herszenhorn and Carl Hulse report for The New York Times, "A proposal that Democrats put forward as their best chance of changing the course of the Iraq war died on the Senate floor on Wednesday, as Republicans stood firmly behind President Bush."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092007K.shtml

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/09/18/140201

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The Real News Network Alert

New Item: Will Blackwater be expelled from Iraq?

After recent alleged killings of civilians by Blackwater operatives, the Iraqi Interior Minister on Tuesday said he wanted to expel the security firm from Iraq. Due to an overextended military, the Bush administration is attempting to protect Blackwater—the largest such firm in Iraq.

In a Real News interview, Jeremy Scahill author of Blackwater, says: "The United States government has gutted the Iraqi legal system and basically tried to prevent them from holding accountable mercenaries who commit crimes inside of Iraq."

Iraqi Interior Minister on Tuesday revokes Blackwater’s license.
http://therealnews.com/c.php?c=070919B&i=441


The Real News Network

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Checkbook Imperialism: The Blackwater Fiasco

Robert Scheer writes for Truthdig: "Please, please, I tell myself, leave Orwell out of it. Find some other, fresher way to explain why 'Operation Iraqi Freedom' is dependent upon killer mercenaries. Or why the 'democratically elected government' of 'liberated' Iraq does not explicitly have the legal power to expel Blackwater USA from its land or hold any of the 50,000 private contractor troops that the US government has brought to Iraq accountable for their deadly actions."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092007O.shtml

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Hessians Redux: Blackwater, U.S. and England

By Dr. Sam Hamod
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article18429.htm



'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors mercenaries shooting up Iraqi drivers

The video of Aegis Defence Services, shows security guards opening fire with automatic rifles at civilian cars. All of the shooting incidents apparently took place on "route Irish", a road that links the airport to Baghdad.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11157.htm



180,000 Private Contractors Mercenaries Flood Iraq

The United States has assembled an imposing industrial army in Iraq larger than its uniformed fighting force and responsible for a such a broad swath of responsibilities the military might not be able to operate without its private-sector partners.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=3626620


From Information Clearing House



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Blackwater
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=mercenaries
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=imperialism
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Robert+Scheer

Cato Institute
by Ted Galen Carpenter

09/20/07

We have heard Bush administration officials express optimism for a reduction in the U.S. military presence many, many times before. Indeed, the Pentagon’s original plan envisioned — quite astonishingly — having no more than 50,000 to 60,000, and perhaps as few as 30,000 troops remaining in Iraq by the end of 2003. Periodically thereafter, U.S. officials indicated that a partial withdrawal of troops was likely in the not-too-distant future. In December 2005, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld informed reporters that adjustments ‘will reduce forces in Iraq by the spring of 2006 below the current high of 160,000 during the [Iraqi] election period to below the 138,000 baseline that had existed before the most recent elections.’ Six months later, Gen. George Casey, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq stated: ‘I am confident that we will be able to continue to take reductions over the course of this year.’ But the promises of troop drawdowns were always set months into the future — and the future never seemed to arrive...

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=8707


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=withdrawal+Iraq
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Ted+Galen+Carpenter