Partisan Divide on Iraq Exceeds Split on Vietnam

No military conflict in modern times has divided Americans on partisan lines more than the war in Iraq, scholars and pollsters say — not even Vietnam.

US 'outrage' over Israeli claims

The US state department has dismissed as "outrageous" a suggestion by Israel that it has been authorised by the world to continue bombing Lebanon.

Agency hid rising costs of Iraq projects

The U.S. State Department agency in charge of $1.4 billion in reconstruction money in Iraq used an accounting shell game to hide ballooning cost overruns on its projects in Iraq and knowingly withheld information on schedule delays from Congress, a federal audit released late Friday has found.

'Definitive answer' on depleted uranium sought for troops

After years of veterans pleading for help with illnesses occurring after service in the Gulf wars, the U.S. House and Senate are calling for an immediate study of health effects of exposure to a radioactive metal used in U.S. weapons and armor.

New maximum-security jail to open at Guantanamo Bay

Far from winding down, the controversial US detention centre is expanding

Cell Phone Picture Called Obstruction Of Justice

Man Arrested For Shooting Photo Of Police Activity

Israel bans reporting of use of "unique" weapons

Israel has issued new censorship guidelines banning reporting of the "use of unique kinds of ammunition and weaponry" in Lebanon

Countering Zionist propaganda about Hizbullah and Lebanon

In the current Israel-Lebanon conflict (in which my relatives' home in Carmiel has been destroyed, and visiting Lebanese Canadians have been incinerated in South Lebanon), the propaganda war is key. Here are some quick points to remember in the propaganda war:

Venezuela, Belarus in "strategic alliance"

Venezuela and Belarus have launched a "strategic alliance" focusing particularly on military cooperation, Tuesday said Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez during his visit to the Minsk military academy.

Whose 'Moral Clarity'

George W. Bush is polishing up his “moral clarity” argument as he and his chief diplomat, Condoleezza Rice, signal to the Israelis that they should press ahead in crushing “terrorist” organizations like Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

India could make 50 warheads under nuclear deal with Bush

The US House of Representatives was set to vote yesterday on a nuclear deal with India that threatens to fuel a nuclear arms race in Asia. The deal, a centrepiece of the Bush administration's foreign policy, comes as the US is pressuring Iran and North Korea to halt their nuclear programmes.

Maliki: Dead Man Walking

The address by Iraq’s puppet prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday was a surreal and other-worldly exercise in the make-believe.

U.N. Nomination Comes Back To Senate

Bolton is serving as U.N. ambassador in a recess appointment, which means his term runs out at the end of the year unless he's confirmed when lawmakers take up the nomination in September.

Layoffs at IRS will halve audits of wealthy estates

The U.S. government is moving to eliminate the jobs of nearly half of the lawyers at the Internal Revenue Service who audit the tax returns of some of the wealthiest Americans, specifically those who are subject to gift and estate taxes when they transfer parts of their fortunes to their children and others.

White House working on detainee rules

The White House is expected to unveil as early as next week a proposal on the legal handling of detainees after weeks of negotiations with Congress and meeting with military lawyers.

Bush to Add Troops in Baghdad, Citing 'Terrible' Sectarian Strife

President Bush said yesterday that he will send more U.S. forces and equipment to Baghdad as part of a fresh strategy to put down rising sectarian violence, abandoning a six-week-old operation that failed to pacify the strife-torn Iraqi capital and opening what aides called an unexpected new phase of the war.

U.N.: Observers Made Many Calls Before Strike

The U.N. observers killed when an Israeli bomb hit their bunker in Lebanon Tuesday called an Israeli military liaison about 10 times in the six hours before they died to warn that aerial attacks were getting close to their position, a U.N. officer said.

Lebanese Envoy Lament Bolton

“It is not only one-sided,” he complained of the media. “We see them celebrating the shelling of Lebanon and the bombardment of Lebanon as if they are watching fireworks. They cover it with some euphoria about hitting Lebanon, and that is a very insensitive way of covering things. But it is a way of also rallying people around some cause that is not very well understood here.”

United States is Doing Too Little, Too Late

The conference in Rome on Wednesday wants to find a peaceful solution in the Middle East. But so far, US efforts by Secretary of State Rice on this conflict have been meager.

Sectarian break-up of Iraq is now inevitable, admit officials

The Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, meets Tony Blair in London today as violence in Iraq reaches a new crescendo and senior Iraqi officials say the break up of the country is inevitable.

Turkish premier calls for NATO to join fight against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for NATO to join the combat against mounting violence by Kurdish rebels holed up in northern Iraq, the Anatolia news agency reported.

Canadian among four UN observers killed in Israeli air strike

An Israeli air strike Tuesday killed four United Nations military observers — one of them Canadian — in what UN Secretary General Kofi Annan called an "apparently deliberate" attack.

News Bias in the Associated Press

A new study conducted at Sonoma State University shows widespread bias in Associate Press (AP) news reports favoring US government positions.

ISRAELIS TARGET CHRISTIAN PART OF BEIRUT

Israeli warplanes targeted for the first time a Christian area of eastern Beirut on Wednesday morning. No one was reportedly injured in the attack. Two trucks were hit near the department store 'Abc' in the heart of the Ashrafiyah neighbourhood. The two vehicles were however not reportedly transporting missiles as initially thought. Residents panicked and took to the streets after the raid. "We aren't safe here anymore," Ratiba Naaman told Adnkronos International

Signs Israel preparing for larger invasion

5000 reservists called up – armor convoys heading north

Report: US to deliver 'smart bombs' to Israel

Smart bombs on the way: The Bush administration has complied with Israel's request for an expedited delivery of satellite and laser-guided bombs, the New York Times reported Saturday.

British anger at terror celebration

The commemoration of Israeli bombings that killing 92 people has caused offence

Attacks Qualify as War Crimes, Officials Say

“The scale of killings in the region, and their predictability, could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved, particularly those in a position of command and control,” said Louise Arbour, the high commissioner for human rights.

Tough hurdles for CBN project

That the parcel now stands a chance of being filled with a shopping mall, hotels, a gated community and high-end condos may have something to do with the land's best use. But it undoubtedly has everything to do with the user. His name is Pat Robertson, and he would like to use $100 million in tax dollars to help secure his Christian empire.

CIA: Osama Helped Bush in '04

On Oct. 29, 2004, just four days before the U.S. presidential election, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin-Laden released a videotape denouncing George W. Bush. Some Bush supporters quickly spun the diatribe as “Osama’s endorsement of John Kerry.” But behind the walls of the CIA, analysts had concluded the opposite: that bin-Laden was trying to help Bush gain a second term.

Handwritten letter from President Saddam Hussein to the American people.

To the American people:

Peace upon those who believe in peace and desire it, and the mercy of God and His blessings.

Judge rules against Bush in spying lawsuit

A federal judge Thursday refused to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the Bush administration’s domestic spying program, rejecting government claims that allowing the case to go forward could expose state secrets and jeopardize the war on terror.

Lebanon may be bad, but let's not forget about Gaza

However, the suffering of the civilian population is not merely a byproduct of Israel's attacks against militants. It is an intentional part of Israeli policy. Consider, for example, the low-altitude sorties of the Israeli Air Force over the Gaza Strip, three to four times each night, in order to cause powerful sonic booms. There is no military benefit to these flights; their sole purpose was explained by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert: "Thousands of residents in southern Israel live in fear and discomfort, so I gave instructions that nobody will sleep at night in Gaza."

Is Bush Still Too Dumb to Be President?

You can't run a country on horse sense.

From my home, I saw what the 'war on terror' meant

All night I heard the jets, whispering high above the Mediterranean. It lasted for hours, little fireflies that were watching Beirut, waiting for dawn perhaps, because it was then that they descended.

Wildly disproportionate attack on Lebanon seems like pretext to confront Iran, says Linda McQuaig

As Israeli firepower rained down on Lebanon last week, pundits here in the West wasted no time pinning the blame on — Iran.

Bill Would Allow Arrests For No Reason In Public Place

The Ohio Patriot Act has made it to the Taft's desk, and with the stroke of a pen, it would most likely become the toughest terrorism bill in the country. The lengthy piece of legislation would let police arrest people in public places who will not give their names, address and birth dates, even if they are not doing anything wrong.

Bush and Olmert’s Dangerous Game

But as mighty as the U.S. is, and as mighty as Israel is, both will lose this game in the long run.