Electronic Iraq : Opinion/Editorial

The Obama Administration, Iraq, and the Question of Leverage

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:01:40 CST

With Barack Obama’s victory in the American presidential elections there are expectations of changes in US policy in Iraq, involving a substantial reduction of force levels. The U.S. forces will withdraw in large numbers, but beyond that, and of interest to those who care for Iraq itself, can Obama realistically hope to achieve anything other than a unilateral withdrawal?

Wrecked Iraq: What the Good News from Iraq Really Means

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:04:01 CST

Since there are far fewer foreign reporters moving around a quieter Iraq, far less news is coming out of that wrecked land. The major newspapers and networks have drastically reduced their staffs there and what's left is often little more than a collection of pronouncements from the U.S. military, or Iraqi and American political leaders in Baghdad and Washington, framing the American public's image of the situation there.

Iraq's missing generation

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 16:24:53 CST

Youth, not oil, is Iraq's most precious asset in building a stable and prosperous future. In 2002, before the US invasion, around 60% of Iraq's population was under the age of 30 – many with high school and university education. Today, too many of those young people are among the 2.2 million Iraqi refugees living in countries such as Syria, Jordan and Lebanon.

Five Years On: The Pentagon Still Struggling to Make Sense of Iraq

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 08:25:57 CST

The U.S. presidential candidates are not the only ones scrambling to put together a credible interpretation of the situation in Iraq these days. Today, Pentagon released its latest report to the U.S. Congress, entitled "Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq."

Whose War Will Win the Election -- McCain's or Obama's?

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 23:15:56 CST

In 1932, in the midst of a disastrous economic meltdown, Franklin D. Roosevelt made "the forgotten man" the centerpiece of his presidential election campaign. Far more than we suspect, this year's election may turn not on a forgotten man, but on a forgotten war in a forgotten country.

No, Senator Obama, On This One You Were Wrong and McCain Was Right

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 08:52:47 CST

Senator Barack Obama to Senator John McCain during yesterday's presidential debate: "You said that there was no history of violence between Shiite and Sunni. And you were wrong." Since this is forceful claim about Iraqi history which was presented during a contest for the position as the world's most powerful leader, it is worth examining in some further detail. Let's take a closer look at that "history of violence between Shiite and Sunni" in Iraq.

Sunnis Need Political Power

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 08:00:08 CST

An upcoming provincial council election is certain to turn a new page in Iraqi politics by boosting the representation of Iraq’s once-powerful Sunni Arab minority. Iraq seems to be moving forward these days. Its citizens are fed up with sectarianism and extremism, the violence is somewhat contained, foreign diplomats are returning to Baghdad and high oil prices are feeding the state treasury. Amid the positive signs, the omission of Sunni Arabs from local councils remains a black mark on the process of political development.

Iraq's biggest hospitals become sick

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 21:23:44 CST

Not even the elevators work now at Baghdad Medical City, built once as the center for some of the best medical care. One of the ten elevators still does, and the priority for this is patients who have lost their legs -- and there are many of them. The rest, the doctors, patients and students at the four specialized teaching hospitals within the building complex, just take the stairs, sometimes to the 18th floor.

Awash in "Missing" Weapons

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 16:35:45 CST

Clandestine gun suppliers, funded by the U.S. and Iraqi governments, have flooded Iraq with a million weapons since 2003, charges a new Amnesty International investigation. Because of faulty or non-existent government tracking systems, many of those guns have gone missing, and some have turned up in the hands of insurgents. Contracts with one of these companies, Taos Industries, account for almost half of the 217 million dollars Baghdad and Washington have officially spent to arm the Iraqi army, police and security forces employed by various Iraqi ministries.

No Friends but the Kurds? The Biden Problem in Democratic Iraq Policy

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:43:38 CST

In defining his "gravitas" on foreign policy, the statesmanlike thing for Biden to do would be to admit mistakes when it comes to his interpretation of Iraqi politics, and instead focus on those aspects of his Middle East initiatives that are constructive, such as his warnings against a war on Iran. Iraqi politicians already speak about Biden as the father of a second "Balfour declaration" because of his "plans", and the Democratic Party would lose its credibility in the entire Arab world if these schemes were allowed to snowball.

Is the Maliki Government Jumping Off the American Ship of State?

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 08:44:41 CST

Whatever their disappointments, administration officials never actually gave up on their grandiose ambitions. Through thick and thin, Washington has sought to install a regime "aligned with U.S. interests" -- a government ready to cooperate in establishing the United States as the predominant power in the Middle East. Recently, with significantly lower levels of violence in Iraq extending into a second year, Washington insiders have begun crediting themselves with--finally--a winning strategy.

A Hidden Agenda for an Endless Stay

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:33:30 CST

There were reports last week of an agreement between Iraq and the United States on how to regulate the status of foreign - mainly American - forces in Iraq following the termination of the UN mandate they were retrospectively given after invading the country in 2003. The reports proved to be inaccurate. There are still serious points of disagreement between the two sides.

Change the Iraqis Can Believe In? Why Obama-Biden Could Mean More of the Same (Or Maybe Something Worse)

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 09:31:25 CST

During Obama's recent trip to the Middle East, he revealed an extremely dated way of thinking about Iraq, more or less reiterating the Iraq cosmology of those Bush administration officials that have been in charge since 2003. During a press conference in Amman on 22 July following a visit to Anbar where meetings with "Sunni tribal leaders" were high on the agenda, this tendency could be seen very clearly, with Obama consistently portraying the principal dynamic of Iraqi politics as a struggle between Shiites and Sunnis.

Cold Shoulders

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:42:20 CST

Kathy Kelly writes from Amman, Jordan, demonstrating through the story of one mother and her son -- who's still in Iraq -- how violence is entrapping Iraq's boys and young men. In the process, she shows the ways in which US efforts in the name of security send dangerous messages and force painful choices on the young people who are the future of their country.

Istiklal

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 18:41:54 CST

The city of Amman, Jordan, is awash with numerous colorful signs that proclaim independence, "Istiklal." The word is found on posters and placards in store windows. It names a major thoroughfare, a hospital, and a shopping center. Appreciation for independence is palpable, and this could be said for numerous cities and towns throughout the region, including Iraq, where past struggles for independence are commemorated by naming buildings and streets "Istiklal." It reflects the love of independence and the longing for it.

Iraqis in Baquba Weigh in on the U.S. Presidential Election

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:34:50 CST

Ali Ahmed, Dahr Jamial, and a handful of Iraqis in Baquba weigh in on the U.S. presidential election. "I'll believe the troops are gone from Iraq when they are no longer on our streets and their warplanes no longer bomb our homes," a local merchant told IPS. " All politicians are liars, even school children know this."

The Oil Majors Take a Little Sip of the Ol' Patrimony

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 17:19:55 CST

More than five years after the invasion of Iraq -- just in case you were still waiting -- the oil giants finally hit the front page. Last Thursday, the New York Times led with this headline: "Deals with Iraq Are Set to Bring Oil Giants Back." And who were these giants? ExxonMobil, Shell, Total and BP. What these firms got were mere "service contracts" -- as in servicing Iraq's oil fields -- not the sort of "production sharing agreements" that President Bush's representatives in Baghdad once dreamed of, and that would have left them in charge of those fields. Still, it was clearly a start.

Iraqi Refugees Facing a Desperate Situation

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 06:53:04 CST

Amnesty International has released a new report on the Iraqi refugee crisis. "Humanitarian agencies cannot cope with growing demands as more refugees need help with the basics to survive," the organization writes. "The UNHCR had planned that by the end of the year it would be food to around 300,000 people in Syria alone. However, the agency recently announced that inadequate funding means that, by August 2008, it will not be able to 'cover all basic health needs of Iraqis, and many serious and chronically ill Iraqis will not be able to receive their monthly medication.'"

Weary of War? Don't Collaborate.

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:00:25 CST

Veteran Iraq campaigner Kathy Kelly denounces the current efforts by some in the US leadership to require the Iraqi government to foot the bill for US costs in Iraq, and challenges the argument that the American people are bound to continue to fund the war - rather than reparations, relief, and reconstruction - with their tax dollars.

The Enigmatic Second Battle of Basra

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 07:52:25 CST

"On the surface, the story may look plausible enough," writes Reidar Visser, author of Basra: The Failed Gulf State. "A provincial city rich in oil degenerates into mafia-style conditions affecting the security of citizens as well as the national oil revenue; the central government intervenes to clean up. Still, there are probably few spots on this planet where the search for mono-causality is more futile than Basra."