The LA Times reports that decades of war and mismanagement, compounded by two years of drought, are wreaking havoc on Iraq's ecosystem, drying up riverbeds and marshes, turning arable land into desert, killing trees and plants, and generally transforming what was once the region's most fertile area into a wasteland.
Falling agricultural production means that Iraq, once a food exporter, will this year have to import nearly 80% of its food, spending money that is urgently needed for reconstruction projects.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Almost 100,000 foreign troops now in Afghanistan
Here is a breakdown of current main national deployments in Afghanistan, which totals around 96,500 troops as at the end of July.
Country Troops
United States 62,000
Britain 9.000
Germany 4,050
France 3,160
Canada 2,800
Italy 2,795
Poland 2,000
Netherlands 1,770
Australia 1,090
Romania 1,025
Spain 780
Turkey 730
Denmark 700
Belgium 510
Norway 485
Bulgaria 470
Sweden 430
Czech Republic 340
======
94,135
Other nations: 2,378
======
TOTALS: 96,513
Country Troops
United States 62,000
Britain 9.000
Germany 4,050
France 3,160
Canada 2,800
Italy 2,795
Poland 2,000
Netherlands 1,770
Australia 1,090
Romania 1,025
Spain 780
Turkey 730
Denmark 700
Belgium 510
Norway 485
Bulgaria 470
Sweden 430
Czech Republic 340
======
94,135
Other nations: 2,378
======
TOTALS: 96,513
Israel issued a report on the Gaza attack 6 months ago. It claims the offensive was "necessary and proportionate".
But it wasn't, as many other reports have documented.
But it wasn't, as many other reports have documented.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
US-Israel "peace plan"
There is currently a tactical dispute between Israel and the US over two issues: the establishment of a Palestinian state and the freezing of settlement expansion.
Contrary to what the mainstream media would have us believe, the dispute is quite minor and tactical, as the US still lends massive support to Israel.
An article by Uri Avnery and another one by Noam Chomsky show that talks of a Palestinian state by the US and Israel would in fact in all likelihood only lead to a non viable Palestinian state, i.e. a state wiht so many restrictions that it would in fact not be a functioning state, but just called a "state" on paper.
Also, whether Israel suspends settlement expansion or not, the fact remains that the already existing settlements in the West Bank seem to be acceptable, which is one important reason why a Palestinian state would not be functioning.
Another point to keep in mind is that there are other important issues that are not even addressed in the current "dispute", such as the fact that the separation wall is still proceeding; that Obama is implementing a 25% increase over Bush in US military aid to Israel over the next 10 years, during which Israel is set to receive $30 billion over 10 years; and that the blockade on Gaza is still maintained.
Contrary to what the mainstream media would have us believe, the dispute is quite minor and tactical, as the US still lends massive support to Israel.
An article by Uri Avnery and another one by Noam Chomsky show that talks of a Palestinian state by the US and Israel would in fact in all likelihood only lead to a non viable Palestinian state, i.e. a state wiht so many restrictions that it would in fact not be a functioning state, but just called a "state" on paper.
Also, whether Israel suspends settlement expansion or not, the fact remains that the already existing settlements in the West Bank seem to be acceptable, which is one important reason why a Palestinian state would not be functioning.
Another point to keep in mind is that there are other important issues that are not even addressed in the current "dispute", such as the fact that the separation wall is still proceeding; that Obama is implementing a 25% increase over Bush in US military aid to Israel over the next 10 years, during which Israel is set to receive $30 billion over 10 years; and that the blockade on Gaza is still maintained.
Obama's military is spying on US peace groups
The US military is spying on peace groups. There is nothing new in this, but the fact that it's being done under Obama might wake up those who still thought he was such a big change compared to Bush.
Amy Goodman reported that "Anti-war activists in Olympia, Wash., have exposed Army spying and infiltration of their groups, as well as intelligence gathering by the Air Force, the federal Capitol Police and the Coast Guard."
Amy Goodman reported that "Anti-war activists in Olympia, Wash., have exposed Army spying and infiltration of their groups, as well as intelligence gathering by the Air Force, the federal Capitol Police and the Coast Guard."
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Taliban get more money from US allies than drug trade
Richard Holbrooke, the US envoy in Afghanistan and Pakistan, said that the Taliban get more funding from donations from Persian Gulf countries than from the drug trade. Persian Gulf countries are US allies, so US allies are funding the Taliban.
"More money is coming from the Gulf than is coming from the drug trade to the Taliban," Holbrooke told journalists at NATO headquarters in Brussels. He didn't identify the countries where the sympathizers were donating from, but nations located on the Persian Gulf include Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.
The mainstream story that drugs in Afghanistan serve to fund the Taliban is quite misleading: 1) Afghan government officials, supported by the US of course, also receive a lot of money from the drugs trade; 2) Taliban receive a lot of money from US allies in the Persian Gulf.
But we rarely hear about those 2 points because #2 inculpates US allies which the US wants to protect, and #1 inculpates US allies in Afghanistan which the US wants to protect. So in other words, US allies in the Gulf and Afghanistan are quite guilty but for the US that's not a problem.
"More money is coming from the Gulf than is coming from the drug trade to the Taliban," Holbrooke told journalists at NATO headquarters in Brussels. He didn't identify the countries where the sympathizers were donating from, but nations located on the Persian Gulf include Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.
The mainstream story that drugs in Afghanistan serve to fund the Taliban is quite misleading: 1) Afghan government officials, supported by the US of course, also receive a lot of money from the drugs trade; 2) Taliban receive a lot of money from US allies in the Persian Gulf.
But we rarely hear about those 2 points because #2 inculpates US allies which the US wants to protect, and #1 inculpates US allies in Afghanistan which the US wants to protect. So in other words, US allies in the Gulf and Afghanistan are quite guilty but for the US that's not a problem.
US alone in Iraq
With the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq this week, the US will be the only country left in the "coalition" in Iraq.
As for the other two small remnants of the coalition, the Romanians and Australians, the Australians will be gone by July 31, too, and the Romanians left last Thursday, according to the Romanian chargé d’affaires, Cristian Voicu. NATO will keep a small training presence in Iraq, but its troops were never considered part of the Multi-National Force because of opposition to the war from many NATO countries. In response to a query, American military officials acknowledged the need for a name change, and said Multi-National Force-Iraq would officially become United States Force-Iraq as of Jan. 1, 2010, according to the deputy coalition spokesman, Lt. Col. Mike Stewart.
As for the other two small remnants of the coalition, the Romanians and Australians, the Australians will be gone by July 31, too, and the Romanians left last Thursday, according to the Romanian chargé d’affaires, Cristian Voicu. NATO will keep a small training presence in Iraq, but its troops were never considered part of the Multi-National Force because of opposition to the war from many NATO countries. In response to a query, American military officials acknowledged the need for a name change, and said Multi-National Force-Iraq would officially become United States Force-Iraq as of Jan. 1, 2010, according to the deputy coalition spokesman, Lt. Col. Mike Stewart.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
British strategy change in Afghanistan
Britain announced a change in strategy which involves talking to the Taliban in Afghanistan to negotiate. Moderate Taliban would be engaged.
The thing to know about this is that the concepts of "moderate" and "extremist/radical" have been used historically to mean moderate=agrees with US/Britain and extremist/radical=confronts US/Britain.
So all the British are saying now, and the US has said in the past, is that they would like to negotiate with those Taliban who won't challenge the US/Britain and who will decide to ally themselves with the US/Britain.
Also, the Taliban are as bad as the warlords currently in government, so the fact that Britain and US want to cooperate with them is the wrong policy. All it does show is that the US/Britain are willing to talk to rapists and murderers, as long as those are allies, but they won't support progressive groups and individuals, like, say, RAWA and Malalai Joya. It just show that NATO supports murderers and fundamentalists.
The thing to know about this is that the concepts of "moderate" and "extremist/radical" have been used historically to mean moderate=agrees with US/Britain and extremist/radical=confronts US/Britain.
So all the British are saying now, and the US has said in the past, is that they would like to negotiate with those Taliban who won't challenge the US/Britain and who will decide to ally themselves with the US/Britain.
Also, the Taliban are as bad as the warlords currently in government, so the fact that Britain and US want to cooperate with them is the wrong policy. All it does show is that the US/Britain are willing to talk to rapists and murderers, as long as those are allies, but they won't support progressive groups and individuals, like, say, RAWA and Malalai Joya. It just show that NATO supports murderers and fundamentalists.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Kurdish referendum
Kirkuk is a disputed area in Iraq. The question is: will Kirkuk be part of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, or will it remain under the control of the central government in Baghdad.
When Iraq drafted its constitution in 2005, there could be no agreement on who would control Kirkuk, an oil rich area. So the Iraqis inserted Article 140, a clause that called for a national census, followed by a referendum on the status of Kirkuk, all to be held by the end of 2007.
But since then a series of delays have prevented the census and the referendum to happen.
The problem is that there can't be a referendum on Kirkuk before there is a census to know who is eligible to vote. And just to carry out a census could bring a civil war in itself as it would obviously shape the outcome of the referendum vote.
Already, the Kurdish regional government has been defying Baghdad and issuing contracts to develop its oil fields, including some in Kirkuk.
When Iraq drafted its constitution in 2005, there could be no agreement on who would control Kirkuk, an oil rich area. So the Iraqis inserted Article 140, a clause that called for a national census, followed by a referendum on the status of Kirkuk, all to be held by the end of 2007.
But since then a series of delays have prevented the census and the referendum to happen.
The problem is that there can't be a referendum on Kirkuk before there is a census to know who is eligible to vote. And just to carry out a census could bring a civil war in itself as it would obviously shape the outcome of the referendum vote.
Already, the Kurdish regional government has been defying Baghdad and issuing contracts to develop its oil fields, including some in Kirkuk.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Malalai Joya
Malalai Joya has an article in the Guardian.
She calls for NATO troops to withdraw from Afghanistan and says that the Afghan government they are now supporting is a government of warlords and drug lords. That's what taxpayers' dollars are spent on: foreign troops in Afghanistan are supporting warlords and drug lords with a record of rapes, murders and other abuses.
She calls for NATO troops to withdraw from Afghanistan and says that the Afghan government they are now supporting is a government of warlords and drug lords. That's what taxpayers' dollars are spent on: foreign troops in Afghanistan are supporting warlords and drug lords with a record of rapes, murders and other abuses.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Afghan media and the presidential electoral campaign
An interesting article on the electoral campaign in Afghanistan with elections set for August 20. The focus is on the media campaign of candidates and the main point is that Afghan state television is biased in favor of Karzai, in terms of coverage time and interpretation.
The fact that Karzai is shown favorably by the media and that he has the funds to build a good advertising campaign obviously favors him, but smaller candidates are hurt and less able to attract coverage of their activities.
An excerpt:
"Covering Karzai's daily routine takes up a lot of air time and column inches. According to Tawhidi [the head of Afghanistan's Media Commission], during the first two weeks of monitoring, Karzai was on the TV news 55 times; his closest rival, Abdullah Abdullah, was a distant second with 13 appearances. Ashraf Ghani, the only other challenger given a chance in the poll, enjoyed a mere six airings.
In print media, the story was similar. Monitors found that state newspapers devoted twice as much space to Karzai during the monitoring period as to Abdullah and about ten times as much as Ashraf Ghani got."
The fact that Karzai is shown favorably by the media and that he has the funds to build a good advertising campaign obviously favors him, but smaller candidates are hurt and less able to attract coverage of their activities.
An excerpt:
"Covering Karzai's daily routine takes up a lot of air time and column inches. According to Tawhidi [the head of Afghanistan's Media Commission], during the first two weeks of monitoring, Karzai was on the TV news 55 times; his closest rival, Abdullah Abdullah, was a distant second with 13 appearances. Ashraf Ghani, the only other challenger given a chance in the poll, enjoyed a mere six airings.
In print media, the story was similar. Monitors found that state newspapers devoted twice as much space to Karzai during the monitoring period as to Abdullah and about ten times as much as Ashraf Ghani got."
Thursday, July 23, 2009
US silent over Kyrgyzstan abuses
The NYT reports on how the US supports a government that abuses human rights in Kyrgyzstan because it's a strategic ally. The US has a military air base in Manas so it's important to keep good relations...
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