Iraq Report, Mar 21/05

Welcome! Our goal at Winds of Change.NET is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from Iraq that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. This briefing is brought to you by Joel Gaines of No Pundit Intended and Andrew Olmsted of Andrew Olmsted dot com.

TOP TOPICS

• Terrorists struck at Iraqi security forces and American forces from Mosul to Baghdad, killing six including the head of the Iraqi police's anti-corruption task force.

• Is the insurgency weakening? That's the claim of Marine General John F. Sattler, and Greg Djerian of The Belgravia Dispatch and Wretchard (reporting from his new digs) report on the claims.

• U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld warned the nascent Iraqi government to be careful not to weaken the Iraqi security forces that will be vital for defeating the insurgency. Rumsfeld also took a shot at the Turkish government, suggesting that the insurgency would have been far less successful had Turkey permitted the 4th Infantry Division to attack Iraq from the north.

Other Topics Today Include: Eyes on the War; terrorists' revenge; aftermath of a hotel bombing; reconstruction highlights; first meeting of Iraq's assembly; anti-terrorist protest; promoting real democracy; Carnival of the Liberated; diplomatic tiff with Jordan; anti-war protests; remembering the start of the war.

REPORTS FROM THE FIELD

• Check out Eyes on the War, a series of 24 interviews with photojournalists who spent time in Iraq and are back reporting on what they saw in-country. (Hat tip: Intel Dump.>

• There are reports indicating seven foreigners, members of Al Qaeda in Iraq, were executed by cousins of LTC Sulaiman Ahmed Dulaimi, the Iraqi National Guard commander for Ramadi and Fallujah who was slain in October. A notice from al-Zarqawi's group calls for revenge on the Dulaimi clan.

• Red2Alpha of "This is Your War" has a piece about the aftermath of a March 9th hotel bombing in Baghdad, where he's currently posted.

• An RAAF C-130J Hercules cargo plane dodged a surface-to-air missile on March 9, a reminder of the continuing threat to aircraft coming into and out of Baghdad.

RECONSTRUCTION & THE ECONOMY

• Here are a few of this week's Iraq reconstruction highlights: The expansion of the Baghdad South thermal power plant is 71% complete. The expanded plant will greatly enhance electricity stability to Baghdad and surrounding communities. Rehabilitation of the Rustimiyah North Wastewater Treatment Plant is about 80% complete. One of the plant’s two processing systems has begun to receive sewage flows allowing for operation at about half of its capacity, or 179,000 cubic meters/day. In the municipality of Babil Governorate a 1,250-meter water pipe was installed connecting the neighborhood’s potable water network to the city’s water system. This neighborhood of 5,600 had been deliberately neglected under the former regime, and the existing potable water network had not been maintained for decades. The Program to Support an Iraqi National Government, Iraqi Transitional Government and Constitutional Development hosted a meeting for 26 women leaders as part of an initiative to involve women in the drafting of the constitution.

IRAQI POLITICS

• Iraq's National Assembly met for the first time on March 16 as the representatives continue to work towards assembling

• Ali, from Free Iraqi, has an article entitled Winds of Change from the South in which he describes a recent strike of students at the Basra University. They were protesting the "terrorism" of the religious parties in Basra, mainly Sadrist thugs who are attempting to impose themselves as the law in the community.

• "The chaos in Iraq is actually promoting a real democracy," writes CaliValleyGirl. "How’s that for an argument?" Surprisingly well put together, actually... use her comments section to discuss.

• The latest Carnival of the Liberated is up at Dean's World.

THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE

• Iraq and Jordan withdrew their respective ambassadors over reports that Jordan is failing to prevent the infiltration of suicide bombers into Iraq.

• Frans van Anraat was charged Thursday by Dutch prosecutors with selling chemicals, which were used to make lethal mustard gas. The mustard gas was used as part of the chemical weapons cocktail unleashed at the order of Ali Hassan al-Majid - "Chemical Ali" - on civilians in the Kurdish town of Halbja in 1988. The attack killed more than 5,000 men, women and children.

• The second anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq War was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1442246,00.htmlmarked by antiwar demonstrations of varying success in San Francisco, London, Rome, Madrid and Istanbul. Blogger Citizen Smash had his protest warriors out in force and reports on a protest in San Diego. Arthur Chrenkoff notes the dog that didn't bark: the lack of antiwar protests among the Iraqi people themselves.

ETCETERA

• Greyhawk of the Mudville Gazette, recently returned from Iraq, has a roundup of milbloggers' reactions to the first week of the Iraq War.

• Do you have your GI Bracelet? Many military families fall into financial hardship when the breadwinner is injured or killed. The entire $5 purchase price of the GI Bracelet is donated to support our troops and their families! Please join us to give back to these brave people in their time of need.

• The troops are still there. So is the Winds of Change.NET consolidated directory of ways you can support the troops: American, Australian, British, Canadian & Polish. Anyone out there with more information, contact us!

• Don't forget Chief Wiggles' Toys for Iraq drive!

Thanks for reading! If you found something here you want to blog about yourself (and we hope you do), all we ask is that you do as we do and offer a Hat Tip hyperlink to today's "Winds of War". If you think we missed something important, use the Comments section to let us know. And if you have a tip for a future Iraq Report, email us at MondayIraqReport(at)windsofchange.net.