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EKOSYSTEM
EKOSYSTEM.ORG opened a section devoted to Fahrenheit 451 from Zurich. Check it there are tons of new colorful posters and stickers.
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Friday, February 28, 2003
EMPIRE
world tribune: Perle: U.S. also seeks regime change in Iran, Libya, Syria
ABU DHABI — The United States will not be satisfied with toppling
Saddam Hussein, but also seeks to change other regimes throughout the Arab
world. Richard Perle, chairman of the U.S. Defense Advisory Board, said the
regimes include those in Iran, Libya and Syria. Perle told Arab
journalists during a trip to London last week that the U.S. tactic would differ for
each country. Perle, who is close to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
is said to be one of the architects in the Bush administration on the
policy of the toppling of the Saddam regime, Middle East Newsline reported. He
has played a leading, if behind-the-scenes role in diplomatic, political
and military aspects of the current Iraqi-U.S. confrontation as well as the
war against terrorism. Change is needed in all those three countries [Iran,
Libya and Syria], and a few others besides," Perle told the
London-based
author and analyst Amir Taheri.
Das Puzzle fügt sich langsam zusammen
world tribune: Perle: U.S. also seeks regime change in Iran, Libya, Syria
ABU DHABI — The United States will not be satisfied with toppling
Saddam Hussein, but also seeks to change other regimes throughout the Arab
world. Richard Perle, chairman of the U.S. Defense Advisory Board, said the
regimes include those in Iran, Libya and Syria. Perle told Arab
journalists during a trip to London last week that the U.S. tactic would differ for
each country. Perle, who is close to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
is said to be one of the architects in the Bush administration on the
policy of the toppling of the Saddam regime, Middle East Newsline reported. He
has played a leading, if behind-the-scenes role in diplomatic, political
and military aspects of the current Iraqi-U.S. confrontation as well as the
war against terrorism. Change is needed in all those three countries [Iran,
Libya and Syria], and a few others besides," Perle told the
London-based
author and analyst Amir Taheri.
Das Puzzle fügt sich langsam zusammen
WAR ON IRAK
Ari Laughed Out Of Press Conference ON CSPAN
And of course with the instructions to start 28 minutes into the
stream.
(comment follows from AWPD list)
ON CSPAN --- WH press conference with Ari ended just now. It's grim.
Not much new but a reiteration of the "Saddam must disarm" and some hints
that Saddam and other top Iraqi leaders might be assassinated if GWgives the
executive decree. Then one tidbit floated up. A reporter asked about a
French report that says Bush is offering a bundle of concessions (and I
think she actually said 'buying votes') to Mexico and Colombia,
granting worker amnesty and so on. Ari tap-danced. Then she (the reporter)
started to press the issue by saying "they (the French) are quoting two US
State Dept.Diplomats that Bush intends to give work permits to Colombia and
Mexico." WOW. WOW.... Ari just drew himself up with imperious
indignation and said something like "you're implying that the President is buying
the votes of other nations and that's just not a consideration" or words to
that effect. And guess what happened? The whole press corps, normally
sheep, broke out in laughter... sweet, derisive laughter. They kept on
laughing as Ari turned on his heels and strode out. Sheesh.
Ari Laughed Out Of Press Conference ON CSPAN
And of course with the instructions to start 28 minutes into the
stream.
(comment follows from AWPD list)
ON CSPAN --- WH press conference with Ari ended just now. It's grim.
Not much new but a reiteration of the "Saddam must disarm" and some hints
that Saddam and other top Iraqi leaders might be assassinated if GWgives the
executive decree. Then one tidbit floated up. A reporter asked about a
French report that says Bush is offering a bundle of concessions (and I
think she actually said 'buying votes') to Mexico and Colombia,
granting worker amnesty and so on. Ari tap-danced. Then she (the reporter)
started to press the issue by saying "they (the French) are quoting two US
State Dept.Diplomats that Bush intends to give work permits to Colombia and
Mexico." WOW. WOW.... Ari just drew himself up with imperious
indignation and said something like "you're implying that the President is buying
the votes of other nations and that's just not a consideration" or words to
that effect. And guess what happened? The whole press corps, normally
sheep, broke out in laughter... sweet, derisive laughter. They kept on
laughing as Ari turned on his heels and strode out. Sheesh.
WAR ON IRAK
Bush Selects Zionist U.S. General Jay Gardner To Run Iraq
February 26, 2003
(See also Israel-first, hate Islam agenda spelled out at
http://www.jinsa.org/about/agenda/agenda.html )
(See also http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/palestin.asp See the very
long
list of top ranking, retired US military officers who signed on to this
manifesto: "America's role as facilitator in this (peace) process
should
never yield to America's responsibility as a friend to Israel..." . )
While the S.F. Chronicle lauds this general turned "humantarian" the
general's past roles as one of the key leaders of JINSA and longtime
advocate of using the U.S. military to support Zionism has been removed
from the JINSA site. The Jewish Institute for National Security
Affairs
(JINSA), a cabal of Jewish American military officers who have long
advocated putting Israel's security needs before those of the United
States, has removed most all links to JINSA positions which may
embarass
the Bush administrations drive to appoint General Gardner as the U.S.
installed dictator of "liberated" Iraq. Despite the Zionist's attempt
to
put General Gardner's past down the memory hole, many Arab sources
including Al-Quds al-Arabi and Washington Report on Middle East have
revealed General Gardner's close ties to the Israeli Likud party. The
established media should realize that they may purge and censor their
news
to constantly rewrite history, but the truth lives forever on the
Internet.
There are still many sources on what General Gardner actually believes
such
as this JINSA statement on Palestinian "violence":
Bush Selects Zionist U.S. General Jay Gardner To Run Iraq
February 26, 2003
(See also Israel-first, hate Islam agenda spelled out at
http://www.jinsa.org/about/agenda/agenda.html )
(See also http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/palestin.asp See the very
long
list of top ranking, retired US military officers who signed on to this
manifesto: "America's role as facilitator in this (peace) process
should
never yield to America's responsibility as a friend to Israel..." . )
While the S.F. Chronicle lauds this general turned "humantarian" the
general's past roles as one of the key leaders of JINSA and longtime
advocate of using the U.S. military to support Zionism has been removed
from the JINSA site. The Jewish Institute for National Security
Affairs
(JINSA), a cabal of Jewish American military officers who have long
advocated putting Israel's security needs before those of the United
States, has removed most all links to JINSA positions which may
embarass
the Bush administrations drive to appoint General Gardner as the U.S.
installed dictator of "liberated" Iraq. Despite the Zionist's attempt
to
put General Gardner's past down the memory hole, many Arab sources
including Al-Quds al-Arabi and Washington Report on Middle East have
revealed General Gardner's close ties to the Israeli Likud party. The
established media should realize that they may purge and censor their
news
to constantly rewrite history, but the truth lives forever on the
Internet.
There are still many sources on what General Gardner actually believes
such
as this JINSA statement on Palestinian "violence":
WAR ON TERROR
Spiegel: Zwei Tote bei Terroranschlag auf US-Konsulat
Bei einer Schießerei vor dem US-Konsulat in Karatschi sind am Freitag zwei Polizisten getötet worden. Mindestens fünf Beamte wurden zum Teil schwer verletzt
Spiegel: Zwei Tote bei Terroranschlag auf US-Konsulat
Bei einer Schießerei vor dem US-Konsulat in Karatschi sind am Freitag zwei Polizisten getötet worden. Mindestens fünf Beamte wurden zum Teil schwer verletzt
APOKALYPSE
Das Ende ist nah!
Der Komet ist das Zeichen...
After a great misery for mankind an even greater approaches. The great cycle of the centuries is renewed: It will rain blood, milk, famine, war and disease. In the sky will be seen a fire, dragging a tail of sparks. ---Nostradamus, Century 2, Quatrain 46 (1654)
Planet-Sized Comet Headed This Way?
Is The Prophsied Comet Here?
Omen Update - Nostradamus' Comet
Das Ende ist nah!
Der Komet ist das Zeichen...
After a great misery for mankind an even greater approaches. The great cycle of the centuries is renewed: It will rain blood, milk, famine, war and disease. In the sky will be seen a fire, dragging a tail of sparks. ---Nostradamus, Century 2, Quatrain 46 (1654)
Planet-Sized Comet Headed This Way?
Is The Prophsied Comet Here?
Omen Update - Nostradamus' Comet
WAR ON IRAK
Spiegel: Saddam will seine Raketen zerstören
Überraschende Wende in der Irak-Krise: Diktator Saddam Hussein will der Uno-Forderung "im Prinzip" nachkommen und hat per Brief zugesichert, seine umstrittenen Raketen zu zerstören. Doch Washington zeigt sich unbeeindruckt. Das Schreiben Bagdads sei nur Taktik.
Spiegel: Saddam will seine Raketen zerstören
Überraschende Wende in der Irak-Krise: Diktator Saddam Hussein will der Uno-Forderung "im Prinzip" nachkommen und hat per Brief zugesichert, seine umstrittenen Raketen zu zerstören. Doch Washington zeigt sich unbeeindruckt. Das Schreiben Bagdads sei nur Taktik.
OIL
Spiegel: Hysterie an der Rohöl-Börse
Der Preis für Rohöl ist außer Kontrolle geraten, an der New Yorker Warenbörse stieg er an nur einem Tag um fast sechs Prozent. Die Erdöl-Organisation Opec würde den Auftrieb gerne bremsen, muss ihm aber machtlos zusehen
Spiegel: Hysterie an der Rohöl-Börse
Der Preis für Rohöl ist außer Kontrolle geraten, an der New Yorker Warenbörse stieg er an nur einem Tag um fast sechs Prozent. Die Erdöl-Organisation Opec würde den Auftrieb gerne bremsen, muss ihm aber machtlos zusehen
Thursday, February 27, 2003
WAR ON TERROR
Boston Globe: 'Spy files' suit draws national attention
DENVER -- Sister Antonia Anthony has blocked streets in Washington to protest the International Monetary Fund and criticized living conditions in Mexico's poverty-stricken Chiapas Province.
That makes the 74-year-old Franciscan nun a ''criminal extremist,'' according to her Denver police file.
Boston Globe: 'Spy files' suit draws national attention
DENVER -- Sister Antonia Anthony has blocked streets in Washington to protest the International Monetary Fund and criticized living conditions in Mexico's poverty-stricken Chiapas Province.
That makes the 74-year-old Franciscan nun a ''criminal extremist,'' according to her Denver police file.
MEDIA WATCH
allyourtv.com: Donahue Cancelled -The Surrender Of MSNBC
While the official announcement wasn't a surprise to anyone working at
the network, MSNBC officially canceled the primetime show "Donahue" on
Tuesday, citing disappointing ratings. While "Donahue" does badly trail both
O'Reilly and CNN's Connie Chung in the ratings, those numbers have
improved in recent weeks. So much so that the program is the top-rated show on
MSNBC, beating even the highly promoted "Hardball With Chris
Matthews."..... That report--shared with me by an NBC news
insider--gives an excruciatingly painful assessment of the channel and its
programming. Some of recommendations, such as dropping the "America's News Channel,"
have already been implemented. But the harshest criticism was leveled
at Donahue, whom the authors of the study described as "a tired, left-wing
liberal out of touch with the current marketplace." .... The study went
on to claim that Donahue presented a "difficult public face for NBC in a
time of war......He seems to delight in presenting guests who are anti-war,
anti-Bush and skeptical of the administration's motives." The report
went on to outline a possible nightmare scenario where the show becomes "a
home for the liberal antiwar agenda at the same time that our competitors
are waving the flag at every opportunity."
allyourtv.com: Donahue Cancelled -The Surrender Of MSNBC
While the official announcement wasn't a surprise to anyone working at
the network, MSNBC officially canceled the primetime show "Donahue" on
Tuesday, citing disappointing ratings. While "Donahue" does badly trail both
O'Reilly and CNN's Connie Chung in the ratings, those numbers have
improved in recent weeks. So much so that the program is the top-rated show on
MSNBC, beating even the highly promoted "Hardball With Chris
Matthews."..... That report--shared with me by an NBC news
insider--gives an excruciatingly painful assessment of the channel and its
programming. Some of recommendations, such as dropping the "America's News Channel,"
have already been implemented. But the harshest criticism was leveled
at Donahue, whom the authors of the study described as "a tired, left-wing
liberal out of touch with the current marketplace." .... The study went
on to claim that Donahue presented a "difficult public face for NBC in a
time of war......He seems to delight in presenting guests who are anti-war,
anti-Bush and skeptical of the administration's motives." The report
went on to outline a possible nightmare scenario where the show becomes "a
home for the liberal antiwar agenda at the same time that our competitors
are waving the flag at every opportunity."
WAR ON IRAK
The Institute for Policy Studies: Beyond the Rhetoric: Institute for Public Accuracy - Facts and
Interviews on UN Security Council Resolutions
The Institute for Policy Studies is releasing a report today --
"Coalition of the Willing or Coalition of the Coerced?" -- which charges that
member representatives on the U.N. Security Council are being recruited
through coercion, bullying, and bribery. Anderson is a fellow at IPS
specializing in global economy issues, Bennis is a Mideast and U.N. expert and
Cavanagh is the director of the organization. The report is available at:
www.ips-dc.org/coalition.htm. The Bush administration has repeatedly
cited violations of UN Security Council resolutions as key reasons for its
policy on Iraq. But several nations have Security Council resolutions pending
against them, including Indonesia, Armenia and Croatia. And the
violators with the most Security Council resolutions -- more than Iraq -- are
Israel (over 30), Turkey (over 20) and Morocco (over 15). A partial listing of
UN Security Council resolutions being violated by U.S. allies is available
at:
www.Accuracy.org/sc
The Institute for Policy Studies: Beyond the Rhetoric: Institute for Public Accuracy - Facts and
Interviews on UN Security Council Resolutions
The Institute for Policy Studies is releasing a report today --
"Coalition of the Willing or Coalition of the Coerced?" -- which charges that
member representatives on the U.N. Security Council are being recruited
through coercion, bullying, and bribery. Anderson is a fellow at IPS
specializing in global economy issues, Bennis is a Mideast and U.N. expert and
Cavanagh is the director of the organization. The report is available at:
www.ips-dc.org/coalition.htm. The Bush administration has repeatedly
cited violations of UN Security Council resolutions as key reasons for its
policy on Iraq. But several nations have Security Council resolutions pending
against them, including Indonesia, Armenia and Croatia. And the
violators with the most Security Council resolutions -- more than Iraq -- are
Israel (over 30), Turkey (over 20) and Morocco (over 15). A partial listing of
UN Security Council resolutions being violated by U.S. allies is available
at:
www.Accuracy.org/sc
SADDAM INTERVIEW
Transkript des CBS Interviews mit Saddam Hussein vom 24.02.2003
Interview Part 1
Interview Part 2
Interview Part 3
Transkript des CBS Interviews mit Saddam Hussein vom 24.02.2003
Interview Part 1
Interview Part 2
Interview Part 3
MEDIA WATCH
Guardian: White House clash with TV chiefs
Bush administration claims CBS is allowing the Iraqi leader to set the agenda by refusing them a right to reply
The Bush administration and the American TV network CBS were embroiled in a slanging match last night over charges that the broadcaster rejected a White House offer to rebut comments made by Saddam Hussein in his first US interview for 13 years.
"This seems odd they wouldn't let the White House have a voice," Ari Fleischer, President George Bush's spokesman, told reporters yesterday, hours before CBS broadcast the Iraqi leader's meeting with the veteran US news anchor Dan Rather.
Mr Fleischer said CBS had refused to give a right of reply unless it came from Mr Bush in person, an offer the administration spurned "in the name of not making a moral equivalence between a dictator and a democracy".
But the White House was interested in "equal time", Mr Fleischer said - "in the same interview and the same time".
Ms Genelius said: "The issue of equal time ... is a little curious, because the truth is that the American people see the president and his administration virtually every day. We report the White House position on key issues virtually every day."
New York Times: CBS News and White House Differ on Rebutting Hussein
The exclusive interview by CBS News with Saddam Hussein, broadcast last
night, led to a disagreement between the network and the White House
yesterday after CBS News declined a request to have a White House
representative appear during the interview to rebut claims made by the
Iraqi president. .... CBS News executives said that the original
request
from the White House asked for the opportunity for a White House
representative to appear several times to rebut whatever had just been
said
by Mr. Hussein. .. Mr. Heyward said CBS News believed this was
unnecessary.
"Ari Fleischer has access to the American public every single day," he
said......Mr. Fleischer said one reason he wanted to rebut Mr. Hussein
was
to make clear to broadcast news media that Iraqi representatives should
not
make unsubstantiated charges on the air. ... He predicted that, in the
event of war, Iraqis would try to get on American news outlets with
claims
of "Americans blowing up a dam" or other facilities. "If it's all lies,
why
put it on in the first place?" Mr. Fleischer said. Die Amerikanische Propaganda ist schon jetzt damit beschäftigt allfällige vorwürfe die es in zukunft geben könnte als lügen abzutun...zivillisten gebombt? lügen
Guardian: White House clash with TV chiefs
Bush administration claims CBS is allowing the Iraqi leader to set the agenda by refusing them a right to reply
The Bush administration and the American TV network CBS were embroiled in a slanging match last night over charges that the broadcaster rejected a White House offer to rebut comments made by Saddam Hussein in his first US interview for 13 years.
"This seems odd they wouldn't let the White House have a voice," Ari Fleischer, President George Bush's spokesman, told reporters yesterday, hours before CBS broadcast the Iraqi leader's meeting with the veteran US news anchor Dan Rather.
Mr Fleischer said CBS had refused to give a right of reply unless it came from Mr Bush in person, an offer the administration spurned "in the name of not making a moral equivalence between a dictator and a democracy".
But the White House was interested in "equal time", Mr Fleischer said - "in the same interview and the same time".
Ms Genelius said: "The issue of equal time ... is a little curious, because the truth is that the American people see the president and his administration virtually every day. We report the White House position on key issues virtually every day."
New York Times: CBS News and White House Differ on Rebutting Hussein
The exclusive interview by CBS News with Saddam Hussein, broadcast last
night, led to a disagreement between the network and the White House
yesterday after CBS News declined a request to have a White House
representative appear during the interview to rebut claims made by the
Iraqi president. .... CBS News executives said that the original
request
from the White House asked for the opportunity for a White House
representative to appear several times to rebut whatever had just been
said
by Mr. Hussein. .. Mr. Heyward said CBS News believed this was
unnecessary.
"Ari Fleischer has access to the American public every single day," he
said......Mr. Fleischer said one reason he wanted to rebut Mr. Hussein
was
to make clear to broadcast news media that Iraqi representatives should
not
make unsubstantiated charges on the air. ... He predicted that, in the
event of war, Iraqis would try to get on American news outlets with
claims
of "Americans blowing up a dam" or other facilities. "If it's all lies,
why
put it on in the first place?" Mr. Fleischer said. Die Amerikanische Propaganda ist schon jetzt damit beschäftigt allfällige vorwürfe die es in zukunft geben könnte als lügen abzutun...zivillisten gebombt? lügen
SPANIEN
Heise: Baskische Journalisten gefoltert
"Sie haben uns wie Ratten behandelt", sagte Otamendi, Chef der wegen angeblicher Verbindung mit der ETA geschlossenen Zeitung Egunkaria, nach seiner Freilassung auf Kaution
Heute kam, nach fast einer Woche in Haft, davon fünf Tage unter Kontaktsperre, der vierte von zehn baskischen Journalisten auf Kaution frei ( Spanische Regierung unter Druck). Was zu vermuten war, ist eingetreten: Die zehn Journalisten, die Ende vergangener Woche von der Guardia Civil im Rahmen der Schließung der "Baskischen Tageszeitung" (Euskaldunon Egunkaria) verhaftet wurden, sind nach eigenen Angaben gefoltert worden, was hierzulande eine Lehre für die von der konservativen Seite versuchte Aufweichung des Folterverbots bieten sollte ( Zurück ins Mittelalter?).
Heise: Baskische Journalisten gefoltert
"Sie haben uns wie Ratten behandelt", sagte Otamendi, Chef der wegen angeblicher Verbindung mit der ETA geschlossenen Zeitung Egunkaria, nach seiner Freilassung auf Kaution
Heute kam, nach fast einer Woche in Haft, davon fünf Tage unter Kontaktsperre, der vierte von zehn baskischen Journalisten auf Kaution frei ( Spanische Regierung unter Druck). Was zu vermuten war, ist eingetreten: Die zehn Journalisten, die Ende vergangener Woche von der Guardia Civil im Rahmen der Schließung der "Baskischen Tageszeitung" (Euskaldunon Egunkaria) verhaftet wurden, sind nach eigenen Angaben gefoltert worden, was hierzulande eine Lehre für die von der konservativen Seite versuchte Aufweichung des Folterverbots bieten sollte ( Zurück ins Mittelalter?).
WAR ON IRAK
Spiegel: US-Diplomat quittiert den Dienst
Ein amerikanischer Diplomat hat genug von der Irak-Politik seiner Regierung. Am Montag faxte der in Griechenland stationierte Staatsbeamte sein Rücktrittsschreiben an Außenminister Colin Powell.
Washington - John Kiesling arbeitete in Athen als Botschaftsrat und hat im Gespräch mit der "New York Times" sein Schreiben bestätigt.
Spiegel: US-Diplomat quittiert den Dienst
Ein amerikanischer Diplomat hat genug von der Irak-Politik seiner Regierung. Am Montag faxte der in Griechenland stationierte Staatsbeamte sein Rücktrittsschreiben an Außenminister Colin Powell.
Washington - John Kiesling arbeitete in Athen als Botschaftsrat und hat im Gespräch mit der "New York Times" sein Schreiben bestätigt.
NORDKOREA
Spiegel: Nordkorea fährt offenbar Reaktor wieder an
Im Streit um das Atomprogramm hat Nordkorea offenbar für eine neue Provokation gesorgt. Die Regierung in Pjöngjang ließ angeblich einen umstrittenen Reaktor wieder anfahren.
Seoul/Washington - Das US-Außenministerium bestätigte Berichte amerikanischer Medien zunächst nicht, Nordkorea haben den Reaktor in Yongbyon wieder angefahren. Sollte der Reaktor wieder am Netz sein, sei dies "ein weiterer Schritt in einer Serie provokativer Gesten Nordkoreas", sagte jedoch der Sprecher des US-Außenministeriums, Lou Fintor.
Spiegel: Nordkorea fährt offenbar Reaktor wieder an
Im Streit um das Atomprogramm hat Nordkorea offenbar für eine neue Provokation gesorgt. Die Regierung in Pjöngjang ließ angeblich einen umstrittenen Reaktor wieder anfahren.
Seoul/Washington - Das US-Außenministerium bestätigte Berichte amerikanischer Medien zunächst nicht, Nordkorea haben den Reaktor in Yongbyon wieder angefahren. Sollte der Reaktor wieder am Netz sein, sei dies "ein weiterer Schritt in einer Serie provokativer Gesten Nordkoreas", sagte jedoch der Sprecher des US-Außenministeriums, Lou Fintor.
MARKET WATCH
New York Times: Oil Prices Hit Highest Levels Since the Persian Gulf War
il prices surged yesterday to their highest levels since Iraq invaded Kuwait 12 years ago, buoyed by a combination of cold weather and a weekly government report that showed low inventories of oil and petroleum products.
In New York, crude oil for April delivery rose to $37.93 a barrel during trading yesterday before closing at $37.70, up $1.64, or 4.6 percent.
In after-hours over-the-counter trading, the price surpassed $38 a barrel, traders said, as an already jittery market reacted to reports that North Korea had reactivated a long-dormant nuclear reactor.
New York Times: Oil Prices Hit Highest Levels Since the Persian Gulf War
il prices surged yesterday to their highest levels since Iraq invaded Kuwait 12 years ago, buoyed by a combination of cold weather and a weekly government report that showed low inventories of oil and petroleum products.
In New York, crude oil for April delivery rose to $37.93 a barrel during trading yesterday before closing at $37.70, up $1.64, or 4.6 percent.
In after-hours over-the-counter trading, the price surpassed $38 a barrel, traders said, as an already jittery market reacted to reports that North Korea had reactivated a long-dormant nuclear reactor.
WAR ON IRAK
Independent: Revolt of the backbenchers
Blair suffers biggest rebellion as 121 Labour MPs vote against war
Tony Blair suffered the biggest backbench rebellion since he became Prime Minister last night when 121 Labour MPs voted against an immediate war in Iraq.
After a highly charged six-hour Commons debate dominated by anti-war speeches, 199 of the 659 MPs voted in favour of a cross-party amendment, saying the case for war was "as yet unproven".
A bruised and embarrassed Mr Blair won the vote with 393 votes including most Tory MPs but still suffered what is believed to be the biggest revolt by MPs from a governing party in Britain
Guardian: Parliament has seen nothing like it...
Last night's Commons vote saw the biggest active rebellion by members of a single governing party in over a century.
"There has been nothing remotely comparable in the past 100 years," said David Butler, the Oxford academic and constitutional expert. Only Labour's towering majority saved the government from the humiliation of relying on Tory votes to win the day.
Independent: Revolt of the backbenchers
Blair suffers biggest rebellion as 121 Labour MPs vote against war
Tony Blair suffered the biggest backbench rebellion since he became Prime Minister last night when 121 Labour MPs voted against an immediate war in Iraq.
After a highly charged six-hour Commons debate dominated by anti-war speeches, 199 of the 659 MPs voted in favour of a cross-party amendment, saying the case for war was "as yet unproven".
A bruised and embarrassed Mr Blair won the vote with 393 votes including most Tory MPs but still suffered what is believed to be the biggest revolt by MPs from a governing party in Britain
Guardian: Parliament has seen nothing like it...
Last night's Commons vote saw the biggest active rebellion by members of a single governing party in over a century.
"There has been nothing remotely comparable in the past 100 years," said David Butler, the Oxford academic and constitutional expert. Only Labour's towering majority saved the government from the humiliation of relying on Tory votes to win the day.
WAR ON IRAK
Spiegel: Irak soll zur Vorzeige-Demokratie werden
Der Feldzug zur Beseitigung Saddam Husseins hat zwar noch nicht begonnen. US-Präsident George W. Bush teilte aber schon mit, wie der Irak nach einem Krieg aussehen soll. Der Regimewechsel könne aus dem Land ein Demokratie-Beispiel für den ganzen Nahen Osten machen. Vorbild für den US-Einsatz sei der Wiederaufbau Deutschlands und Japans nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg.
Bush versicherte vor Politikwissenschaftlern des American Enterprise Institute, er werde die US-Truppenpräsenz im Fall eines Krieges zeitlich auf das nötige Maß beschränken und die Ölquellen zum Wohle des irakischen Volkes gegen Sabotage sichern "Wie selbstlos"
Keinesfalls würden es die USA zulassen, dass Präsident Saddam Hussein durch einen anderen "Diktator" ersetzt werde. "so wie im iran, den philipinen, afghanistan...."
Vor allem die Palästinenser würden von einem neuen Irak profitieren, sagte Bush: "Erfolg im Irak kann auch eine neue Stufe für Frieden im Nahen Osten einläuten." Wenn mit dem Regime in Bagdad eine Finanzierungsquelle für den Terrorismus ausgeschaltet sei, seien die Palästinenser besser in der Lage, eine neue Führung zu wählen, die den Frieden suche. "Ein palästinensischer Staat muss ein reformierter und friedlicher Staat sein, der den Terror für immer aufgibt", "wenn der terroristenstaat israel die palästinenser überhaupt so lange in den besetzten gebieten lässt"
Wir bringen euch Demokratie...so wie in Afghanistan...Imperialismus=Demokratie?
Spiegel: Irak soll zur Vorzeige-Demokratie werden
Der Feldzug zur Beseitigung Saddam Husseins hat zwar noch nicht begonnen. US-Präsident George W. Bush teilte aber schon mit, wie der Irak nach einem Krieg aussehen soll. Der Regimewechsel könne aus dem Land ein Demokratie-Beispiel für den ganzen Nahen Osten machen. Vorbild für den US-Einsatz sei der Wiederaufbau Deutschlands und Japans nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg.
Bush versicherte vor Politikwissenschaftlern des American Enterprise Institute, er werde die US-Truppenpräsenz im Fall eines Krieges zeitlich auf das nötige Maß beschränken und die Ölquellen zum Wohle des irakischen Volkes gegen Sabotage sichern "Wie selbstlos"
Keinesfalls würden es die USA zulassen, dass Präsident Saddam Hussein durch einen anderen "Diktator" ersetzt werde. "so wie im iran, den philipinen, afghanistan...."
Vor allem die Palästinenser würden von einem neuen Irak profitieren, sagte Bush: "Erfolg im Irak kann auch eine neue Stufe für Frieden im Nahen Osten einläuten." Wenn mit dem Regime in Bagdad eine Finanzierungsquelle für den Terrorismus ausgeschaltet sei, seien die Palästinenser besser in der Lage, eine neue Führung zu wählen, die den Frieden suche. "Ein palästinensischer Staat muss ein reformierter und friedlicher Staat sein, der den Terror für immer aufgibt", "wenn der terroristenstaat israel die palästinenser überhaupt so lange in den besetzten gebieten lässt"
Wir bringen euch Demokratie...so wie in Afghanistan...Imperialismus=Demokratie?
WORLD WIDE PROTESTS
Spiegel: Virtueller Marsch legt Washingtons Telefone lahm
Die Organisatoren sprachen von einem vollen Erfolg. Mehrere hunderttausend Kriegsgegner haben bei ihrem "virtuellen Marsch" auf Washington den US-Kongress und die Regierung bei ihrer Arbeit blockiert.
Spiegel: Virtueller Marsch legt Washingtons Telefone lahm
Die Organisatoren sprachen von einem vollen Erfolg. Mehrere hunderttausend Kriegsgegner haben bei ihrem "virtuellen Marsch" auf Washington den US-Kongress und die Regierung bei ihrer Arbeit blockiert.
Wednesday, February 26, 2003
DESIGN
Some fresh new T-shirts from Bombingscience.com
also new designs from subsurface uk give it a try
also check new silas and maharishi shirts at wellgosh
Some fresh new T-shirts from Bombingscience.com
also new designs from subsurface uk give it a try
also check new silas and maharishi shirts at wellgosh
CONSPIRACY
rumormills: WHERE IN THE WORLD IS BARBRA OLSON? (Updated)
Given the FACT that 17 months after the "PENTAGON CRASH" no BLACK BOXES have been made public , not to mention ANY debris of the fuselage wings or engine of the alleged American Airlines crash, the French theory that there was no crash seems to hold true. For those of you who do not subscribe to this theory and would like to show us "proof" w/ 2 pictures the pentagon released of two SHINY parts of the Boeing 757,please spare us those photos ,we have seen them and that’s not ENOUGH proof. We need the black boxes for proof. We'd like to know what was said in the hour and a half between takeoff and the alleged crash.
rumormills: WHERE IN THE WORLD IS BARBRA OLSON? (Updated)
Given the FACT that 17 months after the "PENTAGON CRASH" no BLACK BOXES have been made public , not to mention ANY debris of the fuselage wings or engine of the alleged American Airlines crash, the French theory that there was no crash seems to hold true. For those of you who do not subscribe to this theory and would like to show us "proof" w/ 2 pictures the pentagon released of two SHINY parts of the Boeing 757,please spare us those photos ,we have seen them and that’s not ENOUGH proof. We need the black boxes for proof. We'd like to know what was said in the hour and a half between takeoff and the alleged crash.
WAR ON IRAK
International Herald Tribune: Norman Mailer: Gaining an empire, losing democracy?
LOS ANGELES: There is a subtext to what the Bushites are doing as they prepare for war in Iraq. My hypothesis is that President George W. Bush and many conservatives have come to the conclusion that the only way they can save America and get if off its present downslope is to become a regime with a greater military presence and drive toward empire. My fear is that Americans might lose their democracy in the process.
By downslope I'm referring not only to the corporate scandals, the church scandals and the FBI scandals. The country has gone kind of crazy in the eyes of conservatives. Also, kids can't read anymore. Especially for conservatives, the culture has become too sexual.
Iraq is the excuse for moving in an imperial direction. War with Iraq, as they originally conceived it, would be a quick, dramatic step that would enable them to control the Near East as a powerful base - not least because of the oil there, as well as the water supplies from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers - to build a world empire.
The dire prospect that opens, therefore, is that America is going to become a mega-banana republic where the army will have more and more importance in Americans' lives. It will be an ever greater and greater overlay on the American system. And before it is all over, democracy, noble and delicate as it is, may give way. My long experience with human nature - I'm 80 years old now - suggests that it is possible that fascism, not democracy, is the natural state.
International Herald Tribune: Norman Mailer: Gaining an empire, losing democracy?
LOS ANGELES: There is a subtext to what the Bushites are doing as they prepare for war in Iraq. My hypothesis is that President George W. Bush and many conservatives have come to the conclusion that the only way they can save America and get if off its present downslope is to become a regime with a greater military presence and drive toward empire. My fear is that Americans might lose their democracy in the process.
By downslope I'm referring not only to the corporate scandals, the church scandals and the FBI scandals. The country has gone kind of crazy in the eyes of conservatives. Also, kids can't read anymore. Especially for conservatives, the culture has become too sexual.
Iraq is the excuse for moving in an imperial direction. War with Iraq, as they originally conceived it, would be a quick, dramatic step that would enable them to control the Near East as a powerful base - not least because of the oil there, as well as the water supplies from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers - to build a world empire.
The dire prospect that opens, therefore, is that America is going to become a mega-banana republic where the army will have more and more importance in Americans' lives. It will be an ever greater and greater overlay on the American system. And before it is all over, democracy, noble and delicate as it is, may give way. My long experience with human nature - I'm 80 years old now - suggests that it is possible that fascism, not democracy, is the natural state.
WAR ON IRAK
Stratfor: Sources: Iraq Agrees To Full Compliance With Inspectors
Former Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov, reputed to be a
personal
friend of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, made a lightning visit to
Baghdad
on February 23. The purpose and results of the meeting are shrouded in
secrecy, apart from a statement by Moscow that Hussein was asked -- and
agreed -- to cooperate fully with U.N. weapons inspectors. ,,,,, The
importance of the meeting stretches much further, however. Sources say
the
Iraqi leader has agreed to a proposal by Russian President Vladimir
Putin
-- previously discussed between Russian, French and German leaders --
that
Baghdad formally invite U.N. peacekeepers within the next 10 days or so
to
back up weapons inspectors. This, sources say, would show the world
that
Iraq will be unconditionally disarmed under strict and fully
enforceable
U.N. deadlines, with peacekeepers staying on in Iraq until the task is
complete. Sources also say that Hussein has asked Putin to deliver a
secret
offer to U.S. and British energy giants, inviting them back to Iraq as
major industry players roughly 30 years after they were ousted from the
country. The companies could return to Iraq immediately if Washington
calls off its planned invasion.
Stratfor: Sources: Iraq Agrees To Full Compliance With Inspectors
Former Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov, reputed to be a
personal
friend of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, made a lightning visit to
Baghdad
on February 23. The purpose and results of the meeting are shrouded in
secrecy, apart from a statement by Moscow that Hussein was asked -- and
agreed -- to cooperate fully with U.N. weapons inspectors. ,,,,, The
importance of the meeting stretches much further, however. Sources say
the
Iraqi leader has agreed to a proposal by Russian President Vladimir
Putin
-- previously discussed between Russian, French and German leaders --
that
Baghdad formally invite U.N. peacekeepers within the next 10 days or so
to
back up weapons inspectors. This, sources say, would show the world
that
Iraq will be unconditionally disarmed under strict and fully
enforceable
U.N. deadlines, with peacekeepers staying on in Iraq until the task is
complete. Sources also say that Hussein has asked Putin to deliver a
secret
offer to U.S. and British energy giants, inviting them back to Iraq as
major industry players roughly 30 years after they were ousted from the
country. The companies could return to Iraq immediately if Washington
calls off its planned invasion.
ISRAEL
It's OK to Eat Belgian Chocolate by Uri Avnery
"Don't eat Belgian chocolate," the Israel consul in Florida ordered the large Jewish community there.
In Israel, anti-Belgian curses reached an ear-splitting new crescendo. Miserable Belgium! Mad Belgium! Megalomaniac Belgium! And again and again, Anti-Semitic Belgium! Neo-Nazi Belgium!
The Israeli ambassador was, of course, recalled from Brussels. No wonder, how can Israel keep an ambassador in the world capital of anti-Semitism?
The storm broke when a Belgian court decided that Ariel Sharon can be sued for alleged war crimes, but only after finishing his term as Prime Minister of Israel. Israel army officers connected with the 1982 massacre in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps can be sued even now.
On an Israeli TV program, the anchorman, a lawyer, put it this way: "Anti-Semitic Belgium wants to judge the officers of a second country for crimes committed in a third country, while the accused have no connection at all with Belgium, are not on Belgium territory and the whole affair does not concern Belgium. That is megalomania, really a matter for psychiatrists!"
"Strange," I replied on the program, "I seem to remember a case where country A kidnapped in country B the citizen of country C for committing in country D crimes against the citizens of countries E, F and G, all this in spite of the fact the crimes were committed before country A even existed."
I meant, of course, the trial of Adolf Eichmann, to which we all agreed.
It's OK to Eat Belgian Chocolate by Uri Avnery
"Don't eat Belgian chocolate," the Israel consul in Florida ordered the large Jewish community there.
In Israel, anti-Belgian curses reached an ear-splitting new crescendo. Miserable Belgium! Mad Belgium! Megalomaniac Belgium! And again and again, Anti-Semitic Belgium! Neo-Nazi Belgium!
The Israeli ambassador was, of course, recalled from Brussels. No wonder, how can Israel keep an ambassador in the world capital of anti-Semitism?
The storm broke when a Belgian court decided that Ariel Sharon can be sued for alleged war crimes, but only after finishing his term as Prime Minister of Israel. Israel army officers connected with the 1982 massacre in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps can be sued even now.
On an Israeli TV program, the anchorman, a lawyer, put it this way: "Anti-Semitic Belgium wants to judge the officers of a second country for crimes committed in a third country, while the accused have no connection at all with Belgium, are not on Belgium territory and the whole affair does not concern Belgium. That is megalomania, really a matter for psychiatrists!"
"Strange," I replied on the program, "I seem to remember a case where country A kidnapped in country B the citizen of country C for committing in country D crimes against the citizens of countries E, F and G, all this in spite of the fact the crimes were committed before country A even existed."
I meant, of course, the trial of Adolf Eichmann, to which we all agreed.
OCCUPIED TERRITORIES
Palestine Media Center: IOF Demolish 5,000 Houses, All Public Facilities in Jenin: Mayor
Palestine Media Center- (PMC)
Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have demolished 5,000 houses, destroyed all public service facilities and buildings, detained 13,000 Palestinians and soared unemployment to 70 percent in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, its mayor Walid Musa told reporters in Kuala Lampor, Malaysaia, on Saturday.
Palestine Media Center: IOF Demolish 5,000 Houses, All Public Facilities in Jenin: Mayor
Palestine Media Center- (PMC)
Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have demolished 5,000 houses, destroyed all public service facilities and buildings, detained 13,000 Palestinians and soared unemployment to 70 percent in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, its mayor Walid Musa told reporters in Kuala Lampor, Malaysaia, on Saturday.
Atlanta Journal Constitution: The president's real goal in Iraq
"This war, should it come, is intended to mark the official emergence
of
the United States as a full-fledged global empire, seizing sole
responsibility and authority as planetary policeman. It would be the
culmination of a plan 10 years or more in the making, carried out by
those
who believe the United States must seize the opportunity for global
domination, even if it means becoming the "American imperialists" that
our
enemies always claimed we were."
WAR ON IRAK
Washington Post: Bush Faces Increasingly Poor Image Overseas
The messages from U.S. embassies around the globe have become urgent and disturbing: Many people in the world increasingly think President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
Washington Post: Bush Faces Increasingly Poor Image Overseas
The messages from U.S. embassies around the globe have become urgent and disturbing: Many people in the world increasingly think President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
PROPAGANDA WATCH
Independent: Robert Fisk: How the news will be censored in this war
A new CNN system of 'script approval' suggests the Pentagon will have nothing to worry about
25 February 2003
Already, the American press is expressing its approval of the coverage of American forces which the US military intends to allow its reporters in the next Gulf war. The boys from CNN, CBS, ABC and The New York Times will be "embedded" among the US marines and infantry. The degree of censorship hasn't quite been worked out. But it doesn't matter how much the Pentagon cuts from the reporters' dispatches. A new CNN system of "script approval" – the iniquitous instruction to reporters that they have to send all their copy to anonymous officials in Atlanta to ensure it is suitably sanitised – suggests that the Pentagon and the Department of State have nothing to worry about. Nor do the Israelis.
Indeed, reading a new CNN document, "Reminder of Script Approval Policy", fairly takes the breath away. "All reporters preparing package scripts must submit the scripts for approval," it says. "Packages may not be edited until the scripts are approved... All packages originating outside Washington, LA (Los Angeles) or NY (New York), including all international bureaus, must come to the ROW in Atlanta for approval."
The date of this extraordinary message is 27 January. The "ROW" is the row of script editors in Atlanta who can insist on changes or "balances" in the reporter's dispatch. "A script is not approved for air unless it is properly marked approved by an authorised manager and duped (duplicated) to burcopy (bureau copy)... When a script is updated it must be re-approved, preferably by the originating approving authority."
Independent: Robert Fisk: How the news will be censored in this war
A new CNN system of 'script approval' suggests the Pentagon will have nothing to worry about
25 February 2003
Already, the American press is expressing its approval of the coverage of American forces which the US military intends to allow its reporters in the next Gulf war. The boys from CNN, CBS, ABC and The New York Times will be "embedded" among the US marines and infantry. The degree of censorship hasn't quite been worked out. But it doesn't matter how much the Pentagon cuts from the reporters' dispatches. A new CNN system of "script approval" – the iniquitous instruction to reporters that they have to send all their copy to anonymous officials in Atlanta to ensure it is suitably sanitised – suggests that the Pentagon and the Department of State have nothing to worry about. Nor do the Israelis.
Indeed, reading a new CNN document, "Reminder of Script Approval Policy", fairly takes the breath away. "All reporters preparing package scripts must submit the scripts for approval," it says. "Packages may not be edited until the scripts are approved... All packages originating outside Washington, LA (Los Angeles) or NY (New York), including all international bureaus, must come to the ROW in Atlanta for approval."
The date of this extraordinary message is 27 January. The "ROW" is the row of script editors in Atlanta who can insist on changes or "balances" in the reporter's dispatch. "A script is not approved for air unless it is properly marked approved by an authorised manager and duped (duplicated) to burcopy (bureau copy)... When a script is updated it must be re-approved, preferably by the originating approving authority."
EMPIRE
Asia Times: US troops take 'Monroe Doctrine' global
WASHINGTON - United States troops appear suddenly to be deploying everywhere, and with very little notice. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but on the same week that one of the country's leading neoconservative writers called explicitly for Washington to serve as "Globocop", the Pentagon announced that it was sending 3,000 troops to the Philippines for joint operations against a minor Muslim guerrilla group.
On the same day, US congressmen visiting Colombia hinted that hundreds of US Special Forces training soldiers in the Colombian army might soon take a much more direct role in the civil war there as a result of last week's apparent abduction by leftwing rebels of three US military contractors, after their plane crashed in a rebel-held area.
Meanwhile, thousands more US troops are cruising in the Mediterranean, waiting to hear whether they will be invading Iraq next month from Turkey or with the main invasion force of some 150,000 soldiers, who have already deployed in or near Kuwait.
German commanders of the international force in Kabul warned that the US might have to beef up its 7,000 troops continuing operations in Afghanistan in order to cope with possible new fighting if Washington invades Iraq.
Thousands more US military personnel are on stand-by in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, ready to snatch suspected Islamic terrorists from Yemen to Somalia, while 4,000 more reservists remain in Bosnia and Kosovo to help keep the peace in the Balkans.
Asia Times: US troops take 'Monroe Doctrine' global
WASHINGTON - United States troops appear suddenly to be deploying everywhere, and with very little notice. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but on the same week that one of the country's leading neoconservative writers called explicitly for Washington to serve as "Globocop", the Pentagon announced that it was sending 3,000 troops to the Philippines for joint operations against a minor Muslim guerrilla group.
On the same day, US congressmen visiting Colombia hinted that hundreds of US Special Forces training soldiers in the Colombian army might soon take a much more direct role in the civil war there as a result of last week's apparent abduction by leftwing rebels of three US military contractors, after their plane crashed in a rebel-held area.
Meanwhile, thousands more US troops are cruising in the Mediterranean, waiting to hear whether they will be invading Iraq next month from Turkey or with the main invasion force of some 150,000 soldiers, who have already deployed in or near Kuwait.
German commanders of the international force in Kabul warned that the US might have to beef up its 7,000 troops continuing operations in Afghanistan in order to cope with possible new fighting if Washington invades Iraq.
Thousands more US military personnel are on stand-by in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, ready to snatch suspected Islamic terrorists from Yemen to Somalia, while 4,000 more reservists remain in Bosnia and Kosovo to help keep the peace in the Balkans.
TERROR
Auf der Seite der US Regierung www.ready.gov gibt es coole Pdf's die einem erklären was man im Falle eines Bio-, Nuklear-, wasauchimmer-angriff tuen muss.
BIO: Biological.pdf
CHEMIE: chemical.pdf
EXPLOSIONEN: explosions.pdf
ATOMBOMBE: nuclear.pdf
VERSTRAHLUNG: radiation.pdf
BE PREPARED!!!!!
Auf der Seite der US Regierung www.ready.gov gibt es coole Pdf's die einem erklären was man im Falle eines Bio-, Nuklear-, wasauchimmer-angriff tuen muss.
BIO: Biological.pdf
CHEMIE: chemical.pdf
EXPLOSIONEN: explosions.pdf
ATOMBOMBE: nuclear.pdf
VERSTRAHLUNG: radiation.pdf
BE PREPARED!!!!!
WAR ON IRAK
Alternet: When U.S. Foreign Policy Meets Biblical Prophecy
As the nation marches toward war in the Middle East, millions of
Americans believe in Biblical prophecies of Armageddon that predict
war and mass slaughters of Jews and Muslims. "Genocide, in short,
becomes the ultimate means of prophetic fulfillment," writes
historian Paul Boyer. "Without close attention to the prophetic
scenario embraced by millions of American citizens, the current
political climate in the United States cannot be fully understood.
... [W]hen our born-again president describes the nation's
foreign-policy objective in theological terms as a global struggle
against 'evildoers,' and when, in his recent State of the Union
address, he casts Saddam Hussein as a demonic, quasi-supernatural
figure who could unleash 'a day of horror like none we have ever
known,' he is not only playing upon our still-raw memories of 9/11.
He is also invoking a powerful and ancient apocalyptic vocabulary
that for millions of prophecy believers conveys a specific and
thrilling message of an approaching end - not just of Saddam, but
of human history as we know it."
CHECK IT
Alternet: When U.S. Foreign Policy Meets Biblical Prophecy
As the nation marches toward war in the Middle East, millions of
Americans believe in Biblical prophecies of Armageddon that predict
war and mass slaughters of Jews and Muslims. "Genocide, in short,
becomes the ultimate means of prophetic fulfillment," writes
historian Paul Boyer. "Without close attention to the prophetic
scenario embraced by millions of American citizens, the current
political climate in the United States cannot be fully understood.
... [W]hen our born-again president describes the nation's
foreign-policy objective in theological terms as a global struggle
against 'evildoers,' and when, in his recent State of the Union
address, he casts Saddam Hussein as a demonic, quasi-supernatural
figure who could unleash 'a day of horror like none we have ever
known,' he is not only playing upon our still-raw memories of 9/11.
He is also invoking a powerful and ancient apocalyptic vocabulary
that for millions of prophecy believers conveys a specific and
thrilling message of an approaching end - not just of Saddam, but
of human history as we know it."
CHECK IT
MEDIA WATCH
Most Large Papers Argue for World Support on Iraq
A new survey by Editor & Publisher magazine shows that "the growing
rift at the United Nations and massive antiwar demonstrations
around the globe appear to have had an impact. E&P now finds that a
majority of top papers oppose any attack on Iraq without broad
international support." Previous surveys in January also opposed
President Bush's desire for a quick invasion, but pro-war
editorials surged immediately following Colin Powell's presentation
to the U.N. in early February. Following the protests, however,
newspapers have taken a more cautious position: "Of the 37 papers
publishing editorials on Iraq between Feb 15. and Feb. 19, the
hawks numbered 15 and doves 9, while the cautious camp became
solidly internationalist. Some that once reluctantly accepted a
quick war for different reasons are now calling for any invasion to
be backed by a stronger world coalition or with the full support of
the United Nations Security Council -- a noteworthy condition at a
time when the U.N. appears deeply fractured. Thirteen papers now
occupy this middle ground, meaning that almost two-third's of the
total sample oppose any war for the time being."
SOURCE: Editor & Publisher, February 20, 2003
Most Large Papers Argue for World Support on Iraq
A new survey by Editor & Publisher magazine shows that "the growing
rift at the United Nations and massive antiwar demonstrations
around the globe appear to have had an impact. E&P now finds that a
majority of top papers oppose any attack on Iraq without broad
international support." Previous surveys in January also opposed
President Bush's desire for a quick invasion, but pro-war
editorials surged immediately following Colin Powell's presentation
to the U.N. in early February. Following the protests, however,
newspapers have taken a more cautious position: "Of the 37 papers
publishing editorials on Iraq between Feb 15. and Feb. 19, the
hawks numbered 15 and doves 9, while the cautious camp became
solidly internationalist. Some that once reluctantly accepted a
quick war for different reasons are now calling for any invasion to
be backed by a stronger world coalition or with the full support of
the United Nations Security Council -- a noteworthy condition at a
time when the U.N. appears deeply fractured. Thirteen papers now
occupy this middle ground, meaning that almost two-third's of the
total sample oppose any war for the time being."
SOURCE: Editor & Publisher, February 20, 2003
PR WATCH
Guardian: US falls out with Iraqi opposition
PR Watch has previously written about the origins of the Iraqi
National Congress (INC) as a PR front group created by the Rendon
Group, which has nevertheless become the Bush administration's
preferred source for "intelligence" about Iraq. Now an internal
fight is bubbling over INC's plan to actually become the government
of Iraq after a U.S. invasion. The INC's Ahmad Chalabi wants to
"declare a provisional government when the war starts," a plan that
has "alienated some of Mr Chalabi's most enthusiastic backers in
the Pentagon and in Congress, who fear the announcement of a
provisional government made up of exiles would split anti-Saddam
sentiment inside Iraq." Other opponents of Saddam Hussein, such as
Iraqi political exile Kamil Mahdi, warn that "the objective of the
US is to have regime change without the people of Iraq. ... The
prevalent Iraqi opinion is that a US attack on Iraq would be a
disaster, not a liberation."
Guardian: US falls out with Iraqi opposition
PR Watch has previously written about the origins of the Iraqi
National Congress (INC) as a PR front group created by the Rendon
Group, which has nevertheless become the Bush administration's
preferred source for "intelligence" about Iraq. Now an internal
fight is bubbling over INC's plan to actually become the government
of Iraq after a U.S. invasion. The INC's Ahmad Chalabi wants to
"declare a provisional government when the war starts," a plan that
has "alienated some of Mr Chalabi's most enthusiastic backers in
the Pentagon and in Congress, who fear the announcement of a
provisional government made up of exiles would split anti-Saddam
sentiment inside Iraq." Other opponents of Saddam Hussein, such as
Iraqi political exile Kamil Mahdi, warn that "the objective of the
US is to have regime change without the people of Iraq. ... The
prevalent Iraqi opinion is that a US attack on Iraq would be a
disaster, not a liberation."
MEDIA
Journalism.com: US public turns to Europe for news
The threat of war in Iraq is driving increasing numbers of Americans to British and international news web sites in search of the broader picture.
According to the internet audience management and analysis company, Nielsen NetRatings, traffic to the UK's biggest news sites, BBC News Online and Guardian Unlimited, has increased dramatically over the past year. Many of these new users are from the US.
Jon Dennis, deputy news editor of the Guardian Unlimited web site said: "We have noticed an upsurge in traffic from America, primarily because we are receiving more emails from US visitors thanking us for reporting on worldwide news in a way that is unavailable in the US media."
The American public is apparently turning away from the mostly US-centric American media in search of unbiased reporting and other points of views. Much of the US media's reaction to France and Germany's intransigence on the Iraqi war issue has verged on the xenophobic, even in the so-called 'respectable' press. Some reporting has verged on the hysterical - one US news web site, NewsMax.com, recently captioned a photograph of young German anti-war protesters as "Hitler's children".
Journalism.com: US public turns to Europe for news
The threat of war in Iraq is driving increasing numbers of Americans to British and international news web sites in search of the broader picture.
According to the internet audience management and analysis company, Nielsen NetRatings, traffic to the UK's biggest news sites, BBC News Online and Guardian Unlimited, has increased dramatically over the past year. Many of these new users are from the US.
Jon Dennis, deputy news editor of the Guardian Unlimited web site said: "We have noticed an upsurge in traffic from America, primarily because we are receiving more emails from US visitors thanking us for reporting on worldwide news in a way that is unavailable in the US media."
The American public is apparently turning away from the mostly US-centric American media in search of unbiased reporting and other points of views. Much of the US media's reaction to France and Germany's intransigence on the Iraqi war issue has verged on the xenophobic, even in the so-called 'respectable' press. Some reporting has verged on the hysterical - one US news web site, NewsMax.com, recently captioned a photograph of young German anti-war protesters as "Hitler's children".
USA
Spiegel: USA der Unterstützung des Iraks beschuldigt
Kurioses Schauspiel vor Gericht: Während die USA sich auf einen Krieg gegen den Irak vorbereiten, beschuldigt der Iran die US-Regierung wegen ihrer früheren Nähe zu Saddam Hussein. Vor dem Internationalen Gerichtshof warf Teheran den USA vor, in den achtziger Jahren gefährliche Chemikalien und tödliche Viren nach Bagdad geliefert zu haben
Spiegel: USA der Unterstützung des Iraks beschuldigt
Kurioses Schauspiel vor Gericht: Während die USA sich auf einen Krieg gegen den Irak vorbereiten, beschuldigt der Iran die US-Regierung wegen ihrer früheren Nähe zu Saddam Hussein. Vor dem Internationalen Gerichtshof warf Teheran den USA vor, in den achtziger Jahren gefährliche Chemikalien und tödliche Viren nach Bagdad geliefert zu haben
NORKOREA
New York Times: U.S. to Resume Food Aid to North Korea, at a Reduced Level
South Korea, Feb. 25 — The State Department announced today that it would resume shipments of food aid to North Korea, ending a two-month hiatus, but that it intended to cut donations this year by 35 to 75 percent from last year's totals.
Nordkorea baut eine Atombombe und feuert Raketen ins Meer und wird dafür mit der Wiederaufnahme von Hilfslieferungen und diplomatischen Beziehungen belohnt. Irak konnte nicht 100% bewiesen das sie keine Massenvernichtungswaffen mehr besitzen und hat dafür seit 11 Jahren Sanktionen und bald den 3. Krieg und gelten als "grösste Bedrohung der freien Welt". So ne heuchelei
New York Times: U.S. to Resume Food Aid to North Korea, at a Reduced Level
South Korea, Feb. 25 — The State Department announced today that it would resume shipments of food aid to North Korea, ending a two-month hiatus, but that it intended to cut donations this year by 35 to 75 percent from last year's totals.
Nordkorea baut eine Atombombe und feuert Raketen ins Meer und wird dafür mit der Wiederaufnahme von Hilfslieferungen und diplomatischen Beziehungen belohnt. Irak konnte nicht 100% bewiesen das sie keine Massenvernichtungswaffen mehr besitzen und hat dafür seit 11 Jahren Sanktionen und bald den 3. Krieg und gelten als "grösste Bedrohung der freien Welt". So ne heuchelei
WAR ON IRAK
Spiegel: Muslimischer Staat droht mit Öl-Boykott
Um einen Irak-Krieg zu verhindern, könnten muslimische Staaten Öl als "Waffe" gegen den Westen einsetzen und die Lieferungen einstellen. Damit droht zumindest der Premierminister Malaysias, dessen Land allerdings nicht in der Opec vertreten ist.
Mahathir hatte zuvor auf einer Pressekonferenz zum Abschluss der Tagung Blockfreier Staaten gesagt, dass die Organisation Krieg als Mittel der Politik ablehne. Die Blockfreien-Bewegung wolle deshalb die Friedensbewegung in den westlichen Ländern unterstützen, um einen Krieg zu verhindern. "Wir sind gegen Krieg, sei es multilateral oder unilateral. Im Krieg werden Menschen abgeschlachtet. Wir sind gegen das Abschlachten von Menschen, sei es durch das Abwerfen von Bomben oder das abstürzen lassen von Flugzeugen in Gebäude. Wir sind dagegen."
"sollte sich die OPEC dem Boycott anschliessend steigt der Ölpreis sehr schnell ums 2 bis 3-fache...dann hätten wir wirklich eine Weltwirtschaftskrise"
Spiegel: Muslimischer Staat droht mit Öl-Boykott
Um einen Irak-Krieg zu verhindern, könnten muslimische Staaten Öl als "Waffe" gegen den Westen einsetzen und die Lieferungen einstellen. Damit droht zumindest der Premierminister Malaysias, dessen Land allerdings nicht in der Opec vertreten ist.
Mahathir hatte zuvor auf einer Pressekonferenz zum Abschluss der Tagung Blockfreier Staaten gesagt, dass die Organisation Krieg als Mittel der Politik ablehne. Die Blockfreien-Bewegung wolle deshalb die Friedensbewegung in den westlichen Ländern unterstützen, um einen Krieg zu verhindern. "Wir sind gegen Krieg, sei es multilateral oder unilateral. Im Krieg werden Menschen abgeschlachtet. Wir sind gegen das Abschlachten von Menschen, sei es durch das Abwerfen von Bomben oder das abstürzen lassen von Flugzeugen in Gebäude. Wir sind dagegen."
"sollte sich die OPEC dem Boycott anschliessend steigt der Ölpreis sehr schnell ums 2 bis 3-fache...dann hätten wir wirklich eine Weltwirtschaftskrise"
WAR ON IRAK/PROPAGANDA
Spiegel: Murdochs Mietgehirne
Der US-Medienmogul Rupert Murdoch lässt seine 175 Zeitungen weltweit für den Irak-Krieg und den Sturz Saddam Husseins trommeln - mit allen Mitteln der Propaganda, aber erstaunlich bescheidenen Erfolgen
"Dass Tausende von Murdochs gleichgeschalteten Mietgehirnen in aller Welt ihre Computer zu Sturmgeschützen im Kreuzzug gegen das Böse aufgerüstet haben, ist durchaus Strategie. "Die PR-Schlacht zu gewinnen", hieß es in der "Sunday Times", "ist fast ebenso wichtig wie der militärische Sieg."
Beides lässt derzeit noch auf sich warten. Rupert Murdoch allerdings ist nicht der Mann, der sich davon bei seinem Kampf für billiges Öl aufhalten ließe. "
Guardian: Their master's voice
Rupert Murdoch argued strongly for a war with Iraq in an interview this week. Which might explain why his 175 editors around the world are backing it too, writes Roy Greenslade
Spiegel: Murdochs Mietgehirne
Der US-Medienmogul Rupert Murdoch lässt seine 175 Zeitungen weltweit für den Irak-Krieg und den Sturz Saddam Husseins trommeln - mit allen Mitteln der Propaganda, aber erstaunlich bescheidenen Erfolgen
"Dass Tausende von Murdochs gleichgeschalteten Mietgehirnen in aller Welt ihre Computer zu Sturmgeschützen im Kreuzzug gegen das Böse aufgerüstet haben, ist durchaus Strategie. "Die PR-Schlacht zu gewinnen", hieß es in der "Sunday Times", "ist fast ebenso wichtig wie der militärische Sieg."
Beides lässt derzeit noch auf sich warten. Rupert Murdoch allerdings ist nicht der Mann, der sich davon bei seinem Kampf für billiges Öl aufhalten ließe. "
Guardian: Their master's voice
Rupert Murdoch argued strongly for a war with Iraq in an interview this week. Which might explain why his 175 editors around the world are backing it too, writes Roy Greenslade
Tuesday, February 25, 2003
NORDKOREA
Tagesanzeiger: Powell: Nordkoreanischer Raktenabschuss harmlos
Der jüngste nordkoreanische Raketentest gibt nach Aussage von US-Aussenminister Colin Powell keinen Anlass zur Beunruhigung.
Powell sagte am Dienstag in Seoul nach einem Treffen mit dem neu ins Amt eingeführten südkoreanischen Präsidenten Roh Moo Hyun, der Raketenabschuss sei «ziemlich harmlos». Zudem habe die nordkoreanische Seite vorab über ihr Vorhaben informiert. Bei dem Abschuss sei zudem altes Gerät eingesetzt worden.
Tagesanzeiger: Powell: Nordkoreanischer Raktenabschuss harmlos
Der jüngste nordkoreanische Raketentest gibt nach Aussage von US-Aussenminister Colin Powell keinen Anlass zur Beunruhigung.
Powell sagte am Dienstag in Seoul nach einem Treffen mit dem neu ins Amt eingeführten südkoreanischen Präsidenten Roh Moo Hyun, der Raketenabschuss sei «ziemlich harmlos». Zudem habe die nordkoreanische Seite vorab über ihr Vorhaben informiert. Bei dem Abschuss sei zudem altes Gerät eingesetzt worden.
WAR ON IRAK
Tagesanzeiger: «Irak hat die letzte Chance versäumt»
Die USA haben gemeinsam mit Grossbritannien und Spanien dem Uno-Sicherheitsrat den Entwurf einer neuen Irak-Resolution vorgelegt. Danach soll das höchste Uno-Gremium beschliessen, dass Irak seine «letzte Chance» zur Abrüstung nicht genutzt hat.
Zugleich brachten Frankreich, Deutschland und Russland ein gemeinsames Memorandum ein, das von ihren Uno-Diplomaten als «politischer Gegenentwurf» bezeichnet wurde. China unterstützt nach den Worten seines Uno-Botschafters Wang Yingfan das französische Memorandum.
In dem Resolutionsentwurf der USA, Grossbritanniens und Spaniens wird Irak kein Ultimatum gestellt. Das Papier beruft sich allerdings auf Kapitel VII der Uno-Charta, in dem die Anwendung militärischer Gewalt unter bestimmten engen Bedingungen erlaubt wird.
Tagesanzeiger: «Irak hat die letzte Chance versäumt»
Die USA haben gemeinsam mit Grossbritannien und Spanien dem Uno-Sicherheitsrat den Entwurf einer neuen Irak-Resolution vorgelegt. Danach soll das höchste Uno-Gremium beschliessen, dass Irak seine «letzte Chance» zur Abrüstung nicht genutzt hat.
Zugleich brachten Frankreich, Deutschland und Russland ein gemeinsames Memorandum ein, das von ihren Uno-Diplomaten als «politischer Gegenentwurf» bezeichnet wurde. China unterstützt nach den Worten seines Uno-Botschafters Wang Yingfan das französische Memorandum.
In dem Resolutionsentwurf der USA, Grossbritanniens und Spaniens wird Irak kein Ultimatum gestellt. Das Papier beruft sich allerdings auf Kapitel VII der Uno-Charta, in dem die Anwendung militärischer Gewalt unter bestimmten engen Bedingungen erlaubt wird.
Monday, February 24, 2003
WAR ON IRAK
DER KRIEG HAT BEGONNEN
Independent: US and Britain pound Iraqi defences in massive escalation of airstrikes
In recent days, an Independent on Sunday investigation reveals, they have stepped up attacks on missile sites near Basra which could threaten the military build-up in Kuwait and the Gulf.
The raids are being carried out by aircraft patrolling the "no-fly" zones in northern and southern Iraq, established by the victors after the first Gulf war. They claim the patrols are being carried out in the name of the UN – especially ironic, given the passionate debate over the need for a second Security Council to authorise war on Iraq.
Some have always disputed whether the "no-fly" zones have UN authority,("haben sie nicht") but now the US and Britain have widened the "rules of engagement" to the point where warplanes are effectively preparing the way for an imminent invasion
Until last summer, coalition aircraft patrolling the "no-fly" zones over Iraq hit back only at missile or artillery batteries that opened fire on them, or loosed AGM-88 anti-radiation missiles at radar units "locking on" to them. But with an invasion looming, the number and type of targets attacked have increased sharply.
* Last September, in a raid given unusual publicity, more than 100 British and US warplanes hit the main Iraqi air command and control centre in the west of the country, which would direct any Scud attacks on Israel.
* Air defence command bunkers along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers south of Baghdad, and the fixed communications that link them to missile and gun positions, have come in for repeated attack.
* Fibre-optic links get the most attention, since they are quickly repaired. The Iraqis are warned through leaflets that repair crews may be targeted.
* While continuing to dismantle Iraq's air defences, coalition aircraft are increasingly attacking battlefield weapons in the far south of Iraq, the likely focus of an invasion. Fixed and mobile surface-to-air missile batteries have been targeted, as well as surface-to-surface missiles threatening US and British land and naval forces.
DER KRIEG HAT BEGONNEN
Independent: US and Britain pound Iraqi defences in massive escalation of airstrikes
In recent days, an Independent on Sunday investigation reveals, they have stepped up attacks on missile sites near Basra which could threaten the military build-up in Kuwait and the Gulf.
The raids are being carried out by aircraft patrolling the "no-fly" zones in northern and southern Iraq, established by the victors after the first Gulf war. They claim the patrols are being carried out in the name of the UN – especially ironic, given the passionate debate over the need for a second Security Council to authorise war on Iraq.
Some have always disputed whether the "no-fly" zones have UN authority,("haben sie nicht") but now the US and Britain have widened the "rules of engagement" to the point where warplanes are effectively preparing the way for an imminent invasion
Until last summer, coalition aircraft patrolling the "no-fly" zones over Iraq hit back only at missile or artillery batteries that opened fire on them, or loosed AGM-88 anti-radiation missiles at radar units "locking on" to them. But with an invasion looming, the number and type of targets attacked have increased sharply.
* Last September, in a raid given unusual publicity, more than 100 British and US warplanes hit the main Iraqi air command and control centre in the west of the country, which would direct any Scud attacks on Israel.
* Air defence command bunkers along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers south of Baghdad, and the fixed communications that link them to missile and gun positions, have come in for repeated attack.
* Fibre-optic links get the most attention, since they are quickly repaired. The Iraqis are warned through leaflets that repair crews may be targeted.
* While continuing to dismantle Iraq's air defences, coalition aircraft are increasingly attacking battlefield weapons in the far south of Iraq, the likely focus of an invasion. Fixed and mobile surface-to-air missile batteries have been targeted, as well as surface-to-surface missiles threatening US and British land and naval forces.
WAR ON TERROR
Economic Times: US released al-Qaeda terrorists to Pak: Report
WASHINGTON: Playing a "losing game", the US allowed many Interservice Intelligence (ISI) agents it had captured during the war on terror in Afghanistan to go back to Pakistan and they took with them thousands of al-Qaeda terrorists, who later spread into Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir, media reports said.
After surrounding ISI operatives and "the cream of the crop" of al-Qaeda near Konduz during the early phase of the war, US allowed the ISI to escape, in order to prop up Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, investigative reporter Seymour Hersh revealed on the Public Broadcasting System network in the weekend.
By letting them go, "the US is playing a losing game, because Musharraf is certainly much more interested in his own survival than ours," Hersh said.
He added that the US military allowed 3,000 to 4,000, perhaps 8,000, ISI and al Qaeda.
Economic Times: US released al-Qaeda terrorists to Pak: Report
WASHINGTON: Playing a "losing game", the US allowed many Interservice Intelligence (ISI) agents it had captured during the war on terror in Afghanistan to go back to Pakistan and they took with them thousands of al-Qaeda terrorists, who later spread into Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir, media reports said.
After surrounding ISI operatives and "the cream of the crop" of al-Qaeda near Konduz during the early phase of the war, US allowed the ISI to escape, in order to prop up Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, investigative reporter Seymour Hersh revealed on the Public Broadcasting System network in the weekend.
By letting them go, "the US is playing a losing game, because Musharraf is certainly much more interested in his own survival than ours," Hersh said.
He added that the US military allowed 3,000 to 4,000, perhaps 8,000, ISI and al Qaeda.
WAR ON IRAK
New Scotsman: Allies hushed up weapons' destruction
THE highest-ranking defector ever to turn informant on Saddam Hussein’s
government told United Nations weapons inspectors in 1995 that Iraq had
destroyed all its chemical and biological weapons stocks after the Gulf
war. But UN inspectors hushed up that part of Hussein Kamel’s story -
which he also told to debriefers from British and United States
intelligence - because they wanted to keep the pressure on Iraq to tell
more... Kamel’s value as an informant, however, was huge; for ten
years
he had run Iraq’s nuclear, chemical, biological and missile weapons
programmes, as well as Iraqi efforts to keep the weapons secret... But
Kamel’s story that Iraq had indeed - as it has long claimed - destroyed
chemical and biological stocks back in 1991 was never reported.
New Scotsman: Allies hushed up weapons' destruction
THE highest-ranking defector ever to turn informant on Saddam Hussein’s
government told United Nations weapons inspectors in 1995 that Iraq had
destroyed all its chemical and biological weapons stocks after the Gulf
war. But UN inspectors hushed up that part of Hussein Kamel’s story -
which he also told to debriefers from British and United States
intelligence - because they wanted to keep the pressure on Iraq to tell
more... Kamel’s value as an informant, however, was huge; for ten
years
he had run Iraq’s nuclear, chemical, biological and missile weapons
programmes, as well as Iraqi efforts to keep the weapons secret... But
Kamel’s story that Iraq had indeed - as it has long claimed - destroyed
chemical and biological stocks back in 1991 was never reported.
USA
Newsday: Editor: Bush Cited Report That Doesn't Exist
Washington - There was only one problem with President George W. Bush's claim Thursday that the nation's top economists forecast substantial economic growth if Congress passed the president's tax cut: The forecast with that conclusion doesn't exist.
Bush and White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer went out of their way Thursday to cite a new survey by "Blue-Chip economists" that the economy would grow 3.3 percent this year if the president's tax cut proposal becomes law.
Newsday: Editor: Bush Cited Report That Doesn't Exist
Washington - There was only one problem with President George W. Bush's claim Thursday that the nation's top economists forecast substantial economic growth if Congress passed the president's tax cut: The forecast with that conclusion doesn't exist.
Bush and White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer went out of their way Thursday to cite a new survey by "Blue-Chip economists" that the economy would grow 3.3 percent this year if the president's tax cut proposal becomes law.
WAR ON TERROR
PBS: Transcript: Jane Wallace Interviews Seymour Hersh
JANE WALLACE: Let's talk about Konduz. During the war with Afghanistan--
SY HERSH: Great story.
JANE WALLACE: -- you reported that during a key battle our side in that battle had the enemy surrounded. There were a reported perhaps 8,000 enemy forces in there.
SY HERSH: Maybe even more. But certainly minimum that many.
JANE WALLACE: It's your story, take it.
SY HERSH: Okay, the cream of the crop of Al Qaeda caught in a town called Konduz which is near ... it's one little village and it's a couple hundred kilometers, 150 miles from the border of Pakistan. And I learned this story frankly-- through very, very clandestine operatives we have in the Delta Force and other very...
We were operating very heavily with a small number of men, three, 400 really in the first days of the war. And suddenly one night when they had everybody cornered in Konduz-- the special forces people were told there was a corridor that they could not fly in. There was a corridor sealed off to-- the United States military sealed off a corridor. And it was nobody could shoot anybody in this little lane that went from Konduz into Pakistan. And that's how I learned about it. I learned about it from a military guy who wanted to fly helicopters and kill people and couldn't do it that day.
JANE WALLACE: So, we had the enemy surrounded, the special forces guys are helping surround this enemy.
SY HERSH: They're whacking everybody they can whack that looks like a bad guy.
JANE WALLACE: And suddenly they're told to back off--
SY HERSH: From a certain area--
JANE WALLACE: -- and let planes fly out to Pakistan.
SY HERSH: There was about a three or four nights in which I can tell you maybe six, eight, 10, maybe 12 more-- or more heavily weighted-- Pakistani military planes flew out with an estimated-- no less than 2,500 maybe 3,000, maybe mmore. I've heard as many as four or 5,000. They were not only-- Al Qaeda but they were also-- you see the Pakistani ISI was-- the military advised us to the Taliban and Al Qaeda. There were dozens of senior Pakistani military officers including two generals who flew out.
And I also learned after I wrote this story that maybe even some of Bin Laden's immediate family were flown out on the those evacuations. We allowed them to evacuate. We had an evacuation.
JANE WALLACE: How high up was that evacuation authorized?
SY HERSH: I am here to tell you it was authorized — Donald Rumsfeld who — we'll talk about what he said later — it had to be authorized at the White House. But certainly at the Secretary of Defense level.
PBS: Transcript: Jane Wallace Interviews Seymour Hersh
JANE WALLACE: Let's talk about Konduz. During the war with Afghanistan--
SY HERSH: Great story.
JANE WALLACE: -- you reported that during a key battle our side in that battle had the enemy surrounded. There were a reported perhaps 8,000 enemy forces in there.
SY HERSH: Maybe even more. But certainly minimum that many.
JANE WALLACE: It's your story, take it.
SY HERSH: Okay, the cream of the crop of Al Qaeda caught in a town called Konduz which is near ... it's one little village and it's a couple hundred kilometers, 150 miles from the border of Pakistan. And I learned this story frankly-- through very, very clandestine operatives we have in the Delta Force and other very...
We were operating very heavily with a small number of men, three, 400 really in the first days of the war. And suddenly one night when they had everybody cornered in Konduz-- the special forces people were told there was a corridor that they could not fly in. There was a corridor sealed off to-- the United States military sealed off a corridor. And it was nobody could shoot anybody in this little lane that went from Konduz into Pakistan. And that's how I learned about it. I learned about it from a military guy who wanted to fly helicopters and kill people and couldn't do it that day.
JANE WALLACE: So, we had the enemy surrounded, the special forces guys are helping surround this enemy.
SY HERSH: They're whacking everybody they can whack that looks like a bad guy.
JANE WALLACE: And suddenly they're told to back off--
SY HERSH: From a certain area--
JANE WALLACE: -- and let planes fly out to Pakistan.
SY HERSH: There was about a three or four nights in which I can tell you maybe six, eight, 10, maybe 12 more-- or more heavily weighted-- Pakistani military planes flew out with an estimated-- no less than 2,500 maybe 3,000, maybe mmore. I've heard as many as four or 5,000. They were not only-- Al Qaeda but they were also-- you see the Pakistani ISI was-- the military advised us to the Taliban and Al Qaeda. There were dozens of senior Pakistani military officers including two generals who flew out.
And I also learned after I wrote this story that maybe even some of Bin Laden's immediate family were flown out on the those evacuations. We allowed them to evacuate. We had an evacuation.
JANE WALLACE: How high up was that evacuation authorized?
SY HERSH: I am here to tell you it was authorized — Donald Rumsfeld who — we'll talk about what he said later — it had to be authorized at the White House. But certainly at the Secretary of Defense level.
BESETZTE GEBIETE
Globeandmail: Palestinians expect Israeli takeover once Iraq war starts
GAZA CITY -- Standing on a muddy street flanked by the ruins of small workshops recently blown up or knocked down by Israeli forces, Zaki Fora voiced the common view in Gaza City.
"Ninety per cent of Palestinians believe that in the case of a [U.S.-led] war with Iraq, Israel will occupy all of the Gaza Strip," he said. "Israel will take the opportunity while the rest of the world is looking the other way."
In a series of spectacular raids in recent weeks, including one yesterday in which 11 Palestinians were killed, Israeli armoured columns have punched deep into the Gaza Strip.
Globeandmail: Palestinians expect Israeli takeover once Iraq war starts
GAZA CITY -- Standing on a muddy street flanked by the ruins of small workshops recently blown up or knocked down by Israeli forces, Zaki Fora voiced the common view in Gaza City.
"Ninety per cent of Palestinians believe that in the case of a [U.S.-led] war with Iraq, Israel will occupy all of the Gaza Strip," he said. "Israel will take the opportunity while the rest of the world is looking the other way."
In a series of spectacular raids in recent weeks, including one yesterday in which 11 Palestinians were killed, Israeli armoured columns have punched deep into the Gaza Strip.
USA
Observer: Two men driving Bush into war
Ed Vulliamy in New York profiles the religious figures behind a 'Texanised presidency' who believe war will mean America is respected in the Islamic world
Behind President George W. Bush's charge to war against Iraq, there is a carefully devised mission, drawn up by people who work over the shoulders of those whom America calls 'The Principals'.
Lurking in the background behind Bush, his Vice-President, Dick Cheney, and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld are the people propelling US policy. And behind them, the masterminds of the Bush presidency as it arrived at the White House from Texas, are Karl Rove and Paul Wolfowitz.
It is too simple to explain the upcoming war as 'blood for oil', as did millions of placards last weekend, for Rove and Wolfowitz are ideologists beyond the imperatives of profit. They represent an unlikely and formidable alliance forged between the gritty Texan Republicans who took over America, fuelled by fierce conservative Christianity, and a faction of the East Coast intelligentsia with roots in Ronald Reagan's time, devoted to achieving raw, unilateral power.
Observer: Two men driving Bush into war
Ed Vulliamy in New York profiles the religious figures behind a 'Texanised presidency' who believe war will mean America is respected in the Islamic world
Behind President George W. Bush's charge to war against Iraq, there is a carefully devised mission, drawn up by people who work over the shoulders of those whom America calls 'The Principals'.
Lurking in the background behind Bush, his Vice-President, Dick Cheney, and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld are the people propelling US policy. And behind them, the masterminds of the Bush presidency as it arrived at the White House from Texas, are Karl Rove and Paul Wolfowitz.
It is too simple to explain the upcoming war as 'blood for oil', as did millions of placards last weekend, for Rove and Wolfowitz are ideologists beyond the imperatives of profit. They represent an unlikely and formidable alliance forged between the gritty Texan Republicans who took over America, fuelled by fierce conservative Christianity, and a faction of the East Coast intelligentsia with roots in Ronald Reagan's time, devoted to achieving raw, unilateral power.
WAR ON IRAK
Observer: Powell speaks with forked tongue
Language, not truth, has been the first casualty of the West's war against terrorism
It was interesting to hear Colin Powell accuse France and Germany of cowardice in not wanting to go to war. Or, as he put more succinctly, France and Germany 'are afraid of upholding their responsibility to impose the will of the international community'. Powell's speech brings up one of the most outrageous but least examined aspects of this whole war on Iraq business. I am speaking about the appalling collateral damage already being inflicted on the English language.
Perhaps the worst impact is on our vocabulary. 'Cowardice', according to Colin Powell, is the refusal to injure thousands of innocent civilians living in Baghdad in order to promote US oil interests in the Middle East. The corollary is that 'bravery' must be the ability to order the deaths of 100,000 Iraqis without wincing or bringing up your Caesar salad.
CHECK IT
Observer: Powell speaks with forked tongue
Language, not truth, has been the first casualty of the West's war against terrorism
It was interesting to hear Colin Powell accuse France and Germany of cowardice in not wanting to go to war. Or, as he put more succinctly, France and Germany 'are afraid of upholding their responsibility to impose the will of the international community'. Powell's speech brings up one of the most outrageous but least examined aspects of this whole war on Iraq business. I am speaking about the appalling collateral damage already being inflicted on the English language.
Perhaps the worst impact is on our vocabulary. 'Cowardice', according to Colin Powell, is the refusal to injure thousands of innocent civilians living in Baghdad in order to promote US oil interests in the Middle East. The corollary is that 'bravery' must be the ability to order the deaths of 100,000 Iraqis without wincing or bringing up your Caesar salad.
CHECK IT
USA/COLOMBIA
Observer: US considers intervention in Colombia
Washington mulls tough response to kidnapping of CIA 'agents'
The United States is considering direct military intervention in Colombia for the first time following the murder of an American and the kidnapping of three others, all suspected CIA agents.
The US embassy in Colombia has recommended Washington make a 'major response' to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) rebels responsible, and American officials have confirmed that military action is being considered to recover the men from the dense jungles of the southern province of Caqueta.
They were captured after their plane crashed into the jungle suffering engine trouble. Despite the swift arrival of the Colombian army, the rebels spirited three survivors away after executing one American and the Colombian pilot who are thought to have put up a struggle.
Good Morning Vietnam
Observer: US considers intervention in Colombia
Washington mulls tough response to kidnapping of CIA 'agents'
The United States is considering direct military intervention in Colombia for the first time following the murder of an American and the kidnapping of three others, all suspected CIA agents.
The US embassy in Colombia has recommended Washington make a 'major response' to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) rebels responsible, and American officials have confirmed that military action is being considered to recover the men from the dense jungles of the southern province of Caqueta.
They were captured after their plane crashed into the jungle suffering engine trouble. Despite the swift arrival of the Colombian army, the rebels spirited three survivors away after executing one American and the Colombian pilot who are thought to have put up a struggle.
Good Morning Vietnam
USA
Swissinfo/Rense: Rumsfeld Was On ABB Board During N Korea Nuke Deal
Donald Rumsfeld, the US secretary of defense, was on the board of technology giant ABB when it won a deal to supply North Korea with two nuclear power plants.
Weapons experts say waste material from the two reactors could be used for so-called 'dirty bombs'.
The Swiss-based ABB on Friday told swissinfo that Rumsfeld was involved with the company in early 2000, when it netted a $200 million (SFr270million) contract with Pyongyang.
Swissinfo/Rense: Rumsfeld Was On ABB Board During N Korea Nuke Deal
Donald Rumsfeld, the US secretary of defense, was on the board of technology giant ABB when it won a deal to supply North Korea with two nuclear power plants.
Weapons experts say waste material from the two reactors could be used for so-called 'dirty bombs'.
The Swiss-based ABB on Friday told swissinfo that Rumsfeld was involved with the company in early 2000, when it netted a $200 million (SFr270million) contract with Pyongyang.
WAR ON IRAK
Independent: UN inspectors provide Bush with fresh trigger for war
An invasion of Iraq by the US and Britain could come even sooner than expected, as United Nations weapons inspectors threw down a double challenge to Saddam Hussein, and President Bush issued his sternest warning yet to the UN to fall into line or face irrelevance
Independent: UN inspectors provide Bush with fresh trigger for war
An invasion of Iraq by the US and Britain could come even sooner than expected, as United Nations weapons inspectors threw down a double challenge to Saddam Hussein, and President Bush issued his sternest warning yet to the UN to fall into line or face irrelevance
ANTI WAR PROTESTS
Drudgereport: CBS EXECUTIVES WANT NO 'ANTI-WAR' STATEMENTS DURING GRAMMYS
Top CBS executives are deeply concerned that Sunday night's GRAMMY Awards may turn from a celebration of music -- into a giant anti-war political rally, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.
The GRAMMY broadcast, which is set to air live from New York City, will feature performances by Eminem, Sheryl Crow, Springsteen, Coldplay, James Taylor and others.
Word has reached network suites how one star is allegedly planning a dramatic anti-war gesture.
Drudgereport: CBS EXECUTIVES WANT NO 'ANTI-WAR' STATEMENTS DURING GRAMMYS
Top CBS executives are deeply concerned that Sunday night's GRAMMY Awards may turn from a celebration of music -- into a giant anti-war political rally, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.
The GRAMMY broadcast, which is set to air live from New York City, will feature performances by Eminem, Sheryl Crow, Springsteen, Coldplay, James Taylor and others.
Word has reached network suites how one star is allegedly planning a dramatic anti-war gesture.
BESETZTE GEBIETE
Independent: As the world focuses on Iraq, the bodies pile up in Gaza
Is the Israeli military taking advantage of a time when the world is not paying attention to what is going on here, when media coverage is focusing on Iraq, to step up its campaign in the occupied territories?
In the past week, while the world's press focused on the UN security council and Baghdad, the violence has suddenly surged. In six days, at least 30 Palestinians have been killed in a series of Israeli operations, chiefly in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank city of Nablus.
The dead have been a combination of unarmed civilians, armed militants, members of the legitimate Palestinian security forces and one a medic trying to reach a sick patient.
But this week's violence was not a response to a suicide bombing or an attack by Palestinian gunmen in Israel.
Saturday
A week of bloodshed began when Hamas militants succeeded in setting fire to an Israeli tank outside the Jewish settlement of Dugit in the Gaza Strip with a massive explosive charge hidden by the roadside. Desperate attempts by the Israeli army to put out the fire could not save four soldiers trapped inside. Shaul Mofaz, the Israeli Defence Minister, promised Israel would "strike hard at our enemy Hamas".
Sunday
Six Hamas militants were killed in a mysterious explosion in the Gaza Strip. Hamas said they were trying to adapt a model aeroplane they had obtained from across the fence in Israel to carry explosives for use in attacks, and accused the Israeli military of booby-trapping the aeroplane and murdering the men. The Israeli army did not comment on their deaths.
The same day, Tayseer Khalil, a representative of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a PLO faction that does not support attacks on Israeli civilians, was arrested by soldiers in Nablus. Palestinian gunmen fired on the soldiers trying to arrest him and four Palestinians were killed in the gun battle. Palestinian witnesses claimed the dead men were civilians, not gunmen.
Monday
Hamas activist, Riyad abu Zeid, was killed when undercover Israeli soldiers hiding in a vegetable van ambushed his car on the Gaza coast road. The Israeli army claimed the soldiers intended to capture Mr abu Zeid and opened fire when they saw him reach for his gun. Palestinians accused the army of assassinating him.
In the past the Israeli army has openly admitted a policy of assassinating Palestinian militants. "I can't be certain," said Mr Yavne of B'Tselem, "but I have noticed over the last few months the army has claimed a lot more people have been killed while trying to escape." On the same day, 35 Israeli tanks and helicopters entered the Gaza Strip and soldiers demolished the house of Ahmad Ghadnour, another Hamas militant. Two Palestinians were killed in the gun battle as militants attacked the soldiers, one reportedly a suspected militant, the other a Palestinian policeman, legitimately armed under the Oslo peace accords.
Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper reported that the Israeli army was starting a new offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and that instead of reoccupying the densely populated strip, as it has cities in the West Bank, it would stick to assassinations and raids.
Tuesday
Mohammed al-Mur became the eighth Hamas activist to be killed in three days when he was shot by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank town of Yatta, near Hebron. The Israeli army said he had barricaded himself in his house and soldiers opened fire because they believed he was armed. But his uncle, Mahmoud, said the soldiers shot him without provocation. "He ran away and they shot him in the leg," he said. "He carried on to another house. There, the soldiers shot him dead." The same day the Israeli army swept back into the old city of Nablus, searching house by house for militants and arms caches.
Wednesday
On the bloodiest day of the week, 11 Palestinians died in an Israeli incursion into Gaza City. The dead included Mundur Safadi, a Palestinian medic shot dead as he accompanied his brother, Dr Ra'ed Safadi, who was trying to reach a patient with heart problems. According to Dr Safadi, who was injured, they were deliberately shot by a sniper.
They also included three young men killed when the Israeli army demolished two buildings, according to Palestinian witnesses, who said the men had evacuated the buildings when ordered to by the Israeli army, but returned too soon to a third building next door, which was also damaged. Accounts of how the three died differed – some said there was a second explosion at the building, others that a helicopter fired at them – but there was a smear of blood amid the ruins.
The Israeli army said the aim of the incursion was to destroy metal workshops it claimed were used by Hamas to build rockets to fire at Israeli towns. That evening Hamas fired three rockets at the nearby town of Sderot, injuring three Israelis.
The dead in the raid also included two Hamas militants and one from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine who were killed in fighting, and three members of Palestinian intelligence, a legitimate security force, killed when their car was hit by machine-gunfire.
The same day in Nablus, 93-year-old Mustafa abu Safieh accused an Israeli soldier of shooting his son Nasser dead in cold blood. Mr abu Safieh said they were stopped and searched by soldiers, then told to move on. As they moved away a soldier killed his son. The Israeli said he was shot dead because he did not halt when ordered to.
A second Palestinian was shot dead throwing stones at soldiers, according to Palestinians. The army said he threw a firebomb. Also in Nablus, a Welsh medical volunteer, Anne Gwynne, 65, said an Israeli soldier deliberately fired at her and a Palestinian ambulance driver she was accompanying.
Thursday
In Nablus, 61-year-old Ahmad abu Zahra and his 17-year-old grandson of the same name were shot dead while on the streets of Nablus old city during a curfew, according to Palestinian witnesses.
Friday
Yesterday two Palestinians were killed in attempted attacks in Gaza, both claimed by Islamic Jihad. One tried to throw grenades at soldiers, the other tried to break into the Jewish settlement of Dugit.
Tens of thousands joined the funeral of Riyad abu Zeid, vowing to avenge the 30 deaths. "Sharon, prepare the coffins," they shouted. "Revenge is coming soon, in Tel Aviv and Jaffa."
Independent: As the world focuses on Iraq, the bodies pile up in Gaza
Is the Israeli military taking advantage of a time when the world is not paying attention to what is going on here, when media coverage is focusing on Iraq, to step up its campaign in the occupied territories?
In the past week, while the world's press focused on the UN security council and Baghdad, the violence has suddenly surged. In six days, at least 30 Palestinians have been killed in a series of Israeli operations, chiefly in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank city of Nablus.
The dead have been a combination of unarmed civilians, armed militants, members of the legitimate Palestinian security forces and one a medic trying to reach a sick patient.
But this week's violence was not a response to a suicide bombing or an attack by Palestinian gunmen in Israel.
Saturday
A week of bloodshed began when Hamas militants succeeded in setting fire to an Israeli tank outside the Jewish settlement of Dugit in the Gaza Strip with a massive explosive charge hidden by the roadside. Desperate attempts by the Israeli army to put out the fire could not save four soldiers trapped inside. Shaul Mofaz, the Israeli Defence Minister, promised Israel would "strike hard at our enemy Hamas".
Sunday
Six Hamas militants were killed in a mysterious explosion in the Gaza Strip. Hamas said they were trying to adapt a model aeroplane they had obtained from across the fence in Israel to carry explosives for use in attacks, and accused the Israeli military of booby-trapping the aeroplane and murdering the men. The Israeli army did not comment on their deaths.
The same day, Tayseer Khalil, a representative of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a PLO faction that does not support attacks on Israeli civilians, was arrested by soldiers in Nablus. Palestinian gunmen fired on the soldiers trying to arrest him and four Palestinians were killed in the gun battle. Palestinian witnesses claimed the dead men were civilians, not gunmen.
Monday
Hamas activist, Riyad abu Zeid, was killed when undercover Israeli soldiers hiding in a vegetable van ambushed his car on the Gaza coast road. The Israeli army claimed the soldiers intended to capture Mr abu Zeid and opened fire when they saw him reach for his gun. Palestinians accused the army of assassinating him.
In the past the Israeli army has openly admitted a policy of assassinating Palestinian militants. "I can't be certain," said Mr Yavne of B'Tselem, "but I have noticed over the last few months the army has claimed a lot more people have been killed while trying to escape." On the same day, 35 Israeli tanks and helicopters entered the Gaza Strip and soldiers demolished the house of Ahmad Ghadnour, another Hamas militant. Two Palestinians were killed in the gun battle as militants attacked the soldiers, one reportedly a suspected militant, the other a Palestinian policeman, legitimately armed under the Oslo peace accords.
Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper reported that the Israeli army was starting a new offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and that instead of reoccupying the densely populated strip, as it has cities in the West Bank, it would stick to assassinations and raids.
Tuesday
Mohammed al-Mur became the eighth Hamas activist to be killed in three days when he was shot by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank town of Yatta, near Hebron. The Israeli army said he had barricaded himself in his house and soldiers opened fire because they believed he was armed. But his uncle, Mahmoud, said the soldiers shot him without provocation. "He ran away and they shot him in the leg," he said. "He carried on to another house. There, the soldiers shot him dead." The same day the Israeli army swept back into the old city of Nablus, searching house by house for militants and arms caches.
Wednesday
On the bloodiest day of the week, 11 Palestinians died in an Israeli incursion into Gaza City. The dead included Mundur Safadi, a Palestinian medic shot dead as he accompanied his brother, Dr Ra'ed Safadi, who was trying to reach a patient with heart problems. According to Dr Safadi, who was injured, they were deliberately shot by a sniper.
They also included three young men killed when the Israeli army demolished two buildings, according to Palestinian witnesses, who said the men had evacuated the buildings when ordered to by the Israeli army, but returned too soon to a third building next door, which was also damaged. Accounts of how the three died differed – some said there was a second explosion at the building, others that a helicopter fired at them – but there was a smear of blood amid the ruins.
The Israeli army said the aim of the incursion was to destroy metal workshops it claimed were used by Hamas to build rockets to fire at Israeli towns. That evening Hamas fired three rockets at the nearby town of Sderot, injuring three Israelis.
The dead in the raid also included two Hamas militants and one from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine who were killed in fighting, and three members of Palestinian intelligence, a legitimate security force, killed when their car was hit by machine-gunfire.
The same day in Nablus, 93-year-old Mustafa abu Safieh accused an Israeli soldier of shooting his son Nasser dead in cold blood. Mr abu Safieh said they were stopped and searched by soldiers, then told to move on. As they moved away a soldier killed his son. The Israeli said he was shot dead because he did not halt when ordered to.
A second Palestinian was shot dead throwing stones at soldiers, according to Palestinians. The army said he threw a firebomb. Also in Nablus, a Welsh medical volunteer, Anne Gwynne, 65, said an Israeli soldier deliberately fired at her and a Palestinian ambulance driver she was accompanying.
Thursday
In Nablus, 61-year-old Ahmad abu Zahra and his 17-year-old grandson of the same name were shot dead while on the streets of Nablus old city during a curfew, according to Palestinian witnesses.
Friday
Yesterday two Palestinians were killed in attempted attacks in Gaza, both claimed by Islamic Jihad. One tried to throw grenades at soldiers, the other tried to break into the Jewish settlement of Dugit.
Tens of thousands joined the funeral of Riyad abu Zeid, vowing to avenge the 30 deaths. "Sharon, prepare the coffins," they shouted. "Revenge is coming soon, in Tel Aviv and Jaffa."
AFGANISTHAN
Mediamonitor: American losses mounting as Afghans maintain resistance
After claiming for months that everything in Afghanistan is under their control, the Americans got a rude shock at the end of January; it has forced them to concede that several of their soldiers have been killed. But even this admission came with a fantastic amount of ‘spin’, and several days after the actual event. On January 30 an American military spokesman was quoted as saying that a helicopter carrying troops had crashed at Bagram airbase north of Kabul, killing at least four soldiers.
Afghan fighters opposed to the US presence in Afghanistan claimed that they had killed 14 American and 24 Afghan soldiers. They also said that an Apache helicopter had been shot down during fighting in Adi Ghar, a mountain range south of Qandahar. The truth about the two conflicting versions was confirmed through other Afghan sources, and reveals the degree of censorship exercised by the US government, and the willingness of the US media to go along with it. This has been standard procedure with most news emanating from Afghanistan: only one version (the American one) is given, but this time the Americans’ denials were not plausible.
Opposition to the US’s presence in Afghanistan is increasing, and the use of Stinger missiles is bound to raise the level of resistance. It is already much more widespread and sustained than it was against the Soviets during their occupation of Afghanistan. The Americans have been extremely cautious in using ground troops; now they have even more to worry about. All this is made even worse by the fact that Hamid Karzai’s government has demonstrably failed to exercise any control even in Kabul, much less anywhere else in the country.
Mediamonitor: American losses mounting as Afghans maintain resistance
After claiming for months that everything in Afghanistan is under their control, the Americans got a rude shock at the end of January; it has forced them to concede that several of their soldiers have been killed. But even this admission came with a fantastic amount of ‘spin’, and several days after the actual event. On January 30 an American military spokesman was quoted as saying that a helicopter carrying troops had crashed at Bagram airbase north of Kabul, killing at least four soldiers.
Afghan fighters opposed to the US presence in Afghanistan claimed that they had killed 14 American and 24 Afghan soldiers. They also said that an Apache helicopter had been shot down during fighting in Adi Ghar, a mountain range south of Qandahar. The truth about the two conflicting versions was confirmed through other Afghan sources, and reveals the degree of censorship exercised by the US government, and the willingness of the US media to go along with it. This has been standard procedure with most news emanating from Afghanistan: only one version (the American one) is given, but this time the Americans’ denials were not plausible.
Opposition to the US’s presence in Afghanistan is increasing, and the use of Stinger missiles is bound to raise the level of resistance. It is already much more widespread and sustained than it was against the Soviets during their occupation of Afghanistan. The Americans have been extremely cautious in using ground troops; now they have even more to worry about. All this is made even worse by the fact that Hamid Karzai’s government has demonstrably failed to exercise any control even in Kabul, much less anywhere else in the country.
BESETZTE GEBIETE
Israel setzt Giftgas gegen Zivilisten ein!
The Israeli poison gas attacks
"Just six days after the landslide election of Ariel Sharon, February 12, 2001 was a violent day in occupied Palestine. In the war-ravaged neighborhoods of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched a barrage of collective punishment after soldiers were shot at by Palestinian gunmen. Machinegun fire and tank shells rained down on the refugee camps, a fusillade that lasted long into the night. The next morning would find an estimated 300 Palestinians newly homeless.(1)
In occupied Palestine, where neighborhoods can become high-tech, made-in-America shooting galleries in the blink of an eye, it might have been just another day of occupation. But the Israeli army chose that afternoon to introduce a new and mysterious gas weapon to a defenseless population. To ensure its delivery, the soldiers fired the gas canisters into the streets, courtyards, and houses of the Khan Younis and Gharbi refugee camps.(2)
The people of Khan Younis are utterly familiar with teargas; their neighborhood has long been known as one of the most heavily teargassed areas in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). But no-one in Khan Younis had seen these strange canisters before, or their seemingly harmless multicolored smoke.
The smoking gas had no immediate effect. There was none of the instant irritation to the eyes and breathing passages caused by all forms of teargas. And, at first, the gas had no odor. "It's harmless - this gas is nothing!", yelled a few teenagers, taunting Israeli soldiers. "Throw more!" The soldiers complied.(3)"
"Soon, however, people began to realize that the gas wasn't harmless after all. One man recalled: "..ten - fifteen minutes later I got severe stomach cramps. I felt that my stomach was being torn apart. And a burning sensation in my chest. I couldn't breathe." People began to vomit, and go into seizures and spasms, then collapse and lose consciousness.(6)
Forty people were admitted to Al-Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis "in an odd state of hysteria and nervous breakdown", suffering from "fainting and spasms." Sixteen of them had to be transferred to the intensive care unit. Doctors "reported the Israeli use of gas that appeared to cause convulsions."(7)
At the Gharbi refugee camp, also in Khan Younis, thirty-two people "were treated for serious injuries" following exposure to the gas. Dr. Salakh Shami at Al-Amal Hospital reported that the hospital received "about 130 patients suffering from gas inhalation from February 12."(8)
Bewildered medical personnel had "never seen anything..like the gas at Tufa." Victims were "jumping up and down, left and right..thrashing limbs around", suffering "with convulsions..a kind of hysteria. They were all shaking." Others were already unconscious. An hour or two later, they would come to. And the convulsions and the vomiting and disorientation and pain would return. And so it would go, for days or, for some, weeks to come.(9)"
The news began to trickle out that Israel might be using something new and dreadful. AFX News Limited reported that "Palestinian security services have accused the Israeli army of using nerve gas during a gunbattle yesterday..", and noted "the army has strongly denied the charges." The BBC wire picked up the Voice of Palestine's report that "specialists believe that this is an internationally banned nerve gas." Those who inhaled the gas, the report said, "suffered a nervous breakdown and vomited blood."(11)
The next day, the Deutsche Presse-Agentur news service reported that "Israel has been using a powerful type of tear gas against the Palestinians that causes convulsions and spasms," a quote attributed to Dr. Yasser Sheikh Ali at Al-Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. "More than 80 Palestinians arriving at Nasser Hospital..reported that Israeli soldiers had used the white smoky gas, but Israel denied doing so."(12)
Israel setzt Giftgas gegen Zivilisten ein!
The Israeli poison gas attacks
"Just six days after the landslide election of Ariel Sharon, February 12, 2001 was a violent day in occupied Palestine. In the war-ravaged neighborhoods of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched a barrage of collective punishment after soldiers were shot at by Palestinian gunmen. Machinegun fire and tank shells rained down on the refugee camps, a fusillade that lasted long into the night. The next morning would find an estimated 300 Palestinians newly homeless.(1)
In occupied Palestine, where neighborhoods can become high-tech, made-in-America shooting galleries in the blink of an eye, it might have been just another day of occupation. But the Israeli army chose that afternoon to introduce a new and mysterious gas weapon to a defenseless population. To ensure its delivery, the soldiers fired the gas canisters into the streets, courtyards, and houses of the Khan Younis and Gharbi refugee camps.(2)
The people of Khan Younis are utterly familiar with teargas; their neighborhood has long been known as one of the most heavily teargassed areas in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). But no-one in Khan Younis had seen these strange canisters before, or their seemingly harmless multicolored smoke.
The smoking gas had no immediate effect. There was none of the instant irritation to the eyes and breathing passages caused by all forms of teargas. And, at first, the gas had no odor. "It's harmless - this gas is nothing!", yelled a few teenagers, taunting Israeli soldiers. "Throw more!" The soldiers complied.(3)"
"Soon, however, people began to realize that the gas wasn't harmless after all. One man recalled: "..ten - fifteen minutes later I got severe stomach cramps. I felt that my stomach was being torn apart. And a burning sensation in my chest. I couldn't breathe." People began to vomit, and go into seizures and spasms, then collapse and lose consciousness.(6)
Forty people were admitted to Al-Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis "in an odd state of hysteria and nervous breakdown", suffering from "fainting and spasms." Sixteen of them had to be transferred to the intensive care unit. Doctors "reported the Israeli use of gas that appeared to cause convulsions."(7)
At the Gharbi refugee camp, also in Khan Younis, thirty-two people "were treated for serious injuries" following exposure to the gas. Dr. Salakh Shami at Al-Amal Hospital reported that the hospital received "about 130 patients suffering from gas inhalation from February 12."(8)
Bewildered medical personnel had "never seen anything..like the gas at Tufa." Victims were "jumping up and down, left and right..thrashing limbs around", suffering "with convulsions..a kind of hysteria. They were all shaking." Others were already unconscious. An hour or two later, they would come to. And the convulsions and the vomiting and disorientation and pain would return. And so it would go, for days or, for some, weeks to come.(9)"
The news began to trickle out that Israel might be using something new and dreadful. AFX News Limited reported that "Palestinian security services have accused the Israeli army of using nerve gas during a gunbattle yesterday..", and noted "the army has strongly denied the charges." The BBC wire picked up the Voice of Palestine's report that "specialists believe that this is an internationally banned nerve gas." Those who inhaled the gas, the report said, "suffered a nervous breakdown and vomited blood."(11)
The next day, the Deutsche Presse-Agentur news service reported that "Israel has been using a powerful type of tear gas against the Palestinians that causes convulsions and spasms," a quote attributed to Dr. Yasser Sheikh Ali at Al-Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. "More than 80 Palestinians arriving at Nasser Hospital..reported that Israeli soldiers had used the white smoky gas, but Israel denied doing so."(12)
WAR ON IRAK
AP: Russia Says Inspectors Are Being Pressed
In an indirect attack on the United States and Britain, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Thursday that U.N. weapons inspectors were being pressured to provide a pretext for war on Iraq.
Ivanov did not say who was applying the pressure, which he said aimed "to provoke them (inspectors) to discontinue their operations in Iraq ... or to pressure them into coming up with assessments that would justify the use of force."
AP: Russia Says Inspectors Are Being Pressed
In an indirect attack on the United States and Britain, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Thursday that U.N. weapons inspectors were being pressured to provide a pretext for war on Iraq.
Ivanov did not say who was applying the pressure, which he said aimed "to provoke them (inspectors) to discontinue their operations in Iraq ... or to pressure them into coming up with assessments that would justify the use of force."
PALESTINE
Le Monde Diplomatique: Threats of forced mass expulsion by Amira Hass
Israel: a new Palestinian diaspora _______________________________________________________
The repugnant idea of the 'transfer' of the Palestinians - meaning their total expulsion - now appeals to many Israelis. The Israeli army and some settlers are already organising 'mini-transfers' in the West Bank, and any serious new threat to Israel (for example, missile attacks from Iraq at war) could precipitate the brutally enforced expulsion of millions.
Le Monde Diplomatique: Threats of forced mass expulsion by Amira Hass
Israel: a new Palestinian diaspora _______________________________________________________
The repugnant idea of the 'transfer' of the Palestinians - meaning their total expulsion - now appeals to many Israelis. The Israeli army and some settlers are already organising 'mini-transfers' in the West Bank, and any serious new threat to Israel (for example, missile attacks from Iraq at war) could precipitate the brutally enforced expulsion of millions.
WAR ON IRAK
Counterpunch: The 1998 Rumsfeld & Wolfowitz Memo to Clinton
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz undertook a full-fledged lobbying campaign in 1998 to get former President Bill Clinton to start a war with Iraq and topple Saddam Hussein's regime claiming that the country posed a threat to the United States, according to documents obtained from a former Clinton aide.
This new information begs the question: what is really driving the Bush Administration's desire to start a war with Iraq if two of Bush's future top defense officials were already planting the seeds for an attack five years ago?
In 1998, Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz were working in the private sector. Both were involved with the right-wing think tank Project for a New American Century, which was established in 1997 by William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, to promote global leadership and dictate American foreign policy.
Counterpunch: The 1998 Rumsfeld & Wolfowitz Memo to Clinton
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz undertook a full-fledged lobbying campaign in 1998 to get former President Bill Clinton to start a war with Iraq and topple Saddam Hussein's regime claiming that the country posed a threat to the United States, according to documents obtained from a former Clinton aide.
This new information begs the question: what is really driving the Bush Administration's desire to start a war with Iraq if two of Bush's future top defense officials were already planting the seeds for an attack five years ago?
In 1998, Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz were working in the private sector. Both were involved with the right-wing think tank Project for a New American Century, which was established in 1997 by William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, to promote global leadership and dictate American foreign policy.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"We have heard that a half million children have died," said 60
Minutes
reporter Lesley Stahl, speaking of US sanctions against Iraq. "I mean,
that's more children than died in Hiroshima. & — and you know, is the
price worth it?" Her guest, May 1996, U.N. Ambassador Madeleine
Albright,
responds: "I think this is a very hard choice, but the price — we think
the price is worth it."
"We have heard that a half million children have died," said 60
Minutes
reporter Lesley Stahl, speaking of US sanctions against Iraq. "I mean,
that's more children than died in Hiroshima. & — and you know, is the
price worth it?" Her guest, May 1996, U.N. Ambassador Madeleine
Albright,
responds: "I think this is a very hard choice, but the price — we think
the price is worth it."
WAR ON IRAK
New York Times: Firing Leaflets and Electrons, U.S. Wages Information War
Even before President Bush orders American forces to loose bullets and bombs on Iraq, the military is starting an ambitious assault using a growing arsenal of electronic and psychological weapons on the information battlefield
Radio transmitters hauled aloft by Air Force Special Operations EC-130E planes are broadcasting directly to the Iraqi public in Arabic with programs that mimic the program styles of local radio stations and are more sophisticated than the clumsy preachings of previous wartime propaganda efforts.
Commanders may use supersecret weapons that could flash millions of watts of electricity to cripple Iraqi computers and equipment, and literally turn off the lights in Baghdad if the campaign escalates to full-fledged combat
New York Times: Firing Leaflets and Electrons, U.S. Wages Information War
Even before President Bush orders American forces to loose bullets and bombs on Iraq, the military is starting an ambitious assault using a growing arsenal of electronic and psychological weapons on the information battlefield
Radio transmitters hauled aloft by Air Force Special Operations EC-130E planes are broadcasting directly to the Iraqi public in Arabic with programs that mimic the program styles of local radio stations and are more sophisticated than the clumsy preachings of previous wartime propaganda efforts.
Commanders may use supersecret weapons that could flash millions of watts of electricity to cripple Iraqi computers and equipment, and literally turn off the lights in Baghdad if the campaign escalates to full-fledged combat
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