Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Today we also have a separate Winds of War briefing, covering the global War on Terror. Today's "Winds of War" is brought to you by Dan Darling. of Regnum Crucis.
Top Topics
- US marines are tightening the border between Syria and Iraq. This move led to a major clash with insurgents coming in from Syria, though there appear to be different versions as far as what actually occurred.
- ICT has a nice profile up of Muqtada al-Sadr.
- UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi is proposing a caretaker government to govern Iraq between June 30 and the elections on January 31, 2004. Bush and Blair seem to agree with the plan as it now stands.
Other Topics Today Include: Reports from the front lines; Iraqi politics & economy; The international stage; WMD.
Reports from the Front Lines
- Sporadic gunfire broke out on Thursday between US marines and Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah despite the tentative cease-fire. The clashes appear to be turning into a duel of snipers for both sides.
- Judging from this story from the Washington Post, the insurgent forces in Fallujah appear highly organized.
- US troops fought with members of the Mahdi Army near the Iraqi city of Kufa.
- A mortar attack by insurgent forces near Mosul has killed 8 Iraqi civilians.
- Father Nizar Semaan, an Iraqi Catholic priest, is telling the Vatican news agency that he believes that al-Qaeda is behind the recent wave of kidnappings inside Iraq. Experts, however, believe them to be members of the al-Delemi tribe.
Iraqi Politics & Economy
- The Iraqi arms trade appears to be booming in the wake of the Sadr Revolt. Not all that surprising, if you ask me ...
- Journalist Dhiya Rasan believes that Sadr is trying to reenact his father's struggle against Saddam Hussein against the United States.
- The new Iraqi army is getting up and running, though Bremer believes they will be insufficient to handle the security situation following June 30.
- An Najaf's residents, meanwhile, don't seem to fond of Muqtada al-Sadr.
- Mohammed Ayyash al-Kubaisi's Sunni organization has thrown its lot in with Sadr. He was accusing Sadr of sectarian cleansing back in September.
The International Stage
- Dead Italian hostage Fabrizio Quattrocchi has become a national hero over his last words to his insurgent captors before they murdered him.
- US ambassador John Negroponte is urging troops for a UN force in Iraq.
- An Iranian diplomat has been shot dead in Baghdad while apparently trying to broker an end to the Sadr Revolt. No doubt the reason for his killing makes sense to somebody, somewhere ...
- One of Sadr's aides appears to be a Vancouver-area cleric (that's Vancouver, Canada).
- Jesse Jackson is offering to negotiate for the release of a US hostage in Iraq, for whatever it's worth.
- Support the Troops! Especially, support Spirit of America's efforts to set up T.V. transmitters in Iraq.
WMD
- Large elements of Iraqi nuclear-related equipment are turning up in Europe, often in scrap yards.
While the world has it's eyes on Iraq, ethnic Albanians (read Muslim
barbarians), grateful for the liberation from their Serbian "oppressors"
show their gratitude and respect for other peoples and religions
while the UN lives up to its noble reputation.
http://www.kosovo.net/node/view/87?PHPSESSID=c65284a00d8313fa8630196cf2809e8f
Thanks for the summary. Couple notes:
1) "...news and trends from the global War on Terror..." War on Terror? I thought this was about Iraq. You mean the Escalation of Terror project.
2) "An Najaf's residents, meanwhile, don't seem to fond of Muqtada al-Sadr." I'm sure plently of people hate the guy. Linking to a Moonie-rag's list of anecdotes doesn't lend much creedence to that position, however.
Otherwise, good summary.
Dave:
1) I regard Iraq as part of the war on terrorism. Whether or not al-Qaeda was involved with Iraq pre-invasion, it is quite clear that they are there now.
2) The Washington Times definitely has its own editorial line that bleeds over into the reporting, as does NYT, WaPo, or the various items from any other media outlet that one relies on as a source. This was the only news story that covered the attitude of An Najaf's residents towards Sadr, so I felt that it was worth noting. Whether or not the editorial line influenced that policy is a decision I leave to the reader, since I'm not the WT and don't intend to act as their apologist.
David Warren had put up on his website today an article on Lakhdar Brahimi:
http://www.davidwarrenonline.com/Comment/Apr04/index215.shtml
He doesn't seem to think Brahimi can be trusted...