Friday, March 03, 2006

Asharq Al Awsat's headline - Oh fuck episode 4,563,984a

العراق: الائتلاف كان على علم باختراقات لمرقد سامراء

العراق: الائتلاف كان على علم باختراقات لمرقد سامراء

لندن: معد فياض
أفادت معلومات أمنية سرية صادرة عن وزارة الدولة لشؤون الأمن الوطني (التي يديرها عبد الكريم العنزي من حزب الدعوة تنظيم العراق ـ شيعي)، وتقارير أمنية حصلت «الشرق الأوسط» على نسخة منها، بأن حكومة الائتلاف كانت على علم باختراقات أمنية حصلت في فريق حراسة مرقد الامام علي الهادي قبل تفجيره بأسبوعين. وان حكومة ابراهيم الجعفري، المنتهية ولايته، كانت على علم بهذه المعلومات ولم تتخذ إجراءات بصددها.

وحسب تقرير أمني مرفوع من مكتب المتابعة في وزارة الدولة لشؤون الامن الوطني الى مستشار الامن القومي، فإن الحكومة المنتهية ولايتها رصدت منذ العام الماضي حركة ارهابيين في سامراء هدفهم تفجير مقام الامام علي الهادي. وان هذه المعلومات تتهم السنة مباشرة بحادث التفجير.

وعلق سلمان الجميلي، المتحدث الرسمي باسم جبهة التوافق العراقية، قائلا أمس: «نحن في جبهة التوافق نؤمن بأن قوة موقفنا بعد أن شكلنا كتلة برلمانية مع القائمة العراقية وجبهة الحوار وتأييد التحالف الكردستاني لنا والتخلخل الذي أصاب الائتلاف لانقسام الجعفري وتيار الصدريين في جهة والمجلس الاعلى في جهة أخرى، كل هذا دفع بجهات تتبع مجموعات مشاركة في الحكم للقيام بتفجير المرقد»، مشيرا الى «اننا كنا نعرف بأن الائتلاف سيقوم بعمل ما لإنزال الازمة الى الشارع، وكنا حذرين من وقوع شيء كبير، لكننا لم نكن نتخيل ان تصل الامور الى تفجير مرقد الامام علي الهادي لاتهام السنة من جهة، ولإرسال الغوغاء لإحراق مساجدنا وقتل الأئمة والمصلين وحرق المصاحف الشريفة. ونحن على يقين بأن التفجير كان مفبركا ومهيئا له من قبل أجهزة وبتخطيط من قبل دولة مجاورة للعراق».

مصدر أمني عراقي اعتبر ما جاء بالتقرير الأمني «لما تسمى بوزارة الأمن الوطني»، ليس «إلا فبركة مفضوحة الأهداف»، مشيرا الى انه «ليست هناك على ارض الواقع وزارة بهذا الاسم سوى اسم وزيرها».

وأضاف المصدر ان «معلومات التقرير تشير وبوضوح الى ان حكومة الائتلاف تمتلك معلومات عن حركة الارهابيين في سامراء ونشاطات ابن شقيق وشقيقة ارهابي معروف منذ العام الماضي فلماذا لم تتخذ اجراءاتها لحماية المرقد وتعمدت بتركه عرضة للتفجير؟».

ورفض الربيعي مستشار الأمن القومي التعليق على التقرير المرفوع اليه من وزارة الدولة لشؤون الأمن الوطني. وقال لـ«الشرق الأوسط» عبر الهاتف من مكتبه في بغداد أمس حيث كرر قائلا «لا تعليق لدي على هذا الموضوع».

كما ابدى الدكتور خضير عباس هادي رئيس ديوان رئاسة الوزراء عدم معرفته بالتقرير, وقال لـ «الشرق الأوسط» عبر الهاتف أمس «لم اطلع على هذا التقرير ولا علم لي بمعلوماته, لا أؤكد ولا أنفي».



[Note: I haven't bothered to paste in any graphics.]


Leaked Security Memo Critical of Iraqi Government




01/03/2006

By Ma'ad Fayad

London, Asharq Al-Awsat- A leaked security memo from the Iraqi Ministry for National Security Affairs, headed by Abdul-Karim al-Anzi, and security reports seen by Asharq al Awsat allege that the outgoing government was aware of security violations around the Imam Ali al Hadi shrine in Samarra, two weeks before it was bombed but didn't take any action to prevent the attack

According to a security report from the National Security Affairs Ministry addressed to national security advisor Muwafak al Rubaie, Prime minister Ibrahim al Jaafari’s outgoing government had detected terrorist activity around the Imam Ali al Hadi mausoleum in the historic Iraqi city last year. The report also claimed Iraqi Sunnis were directly involved in the dawn raid in which the famous golden dome, one the holiest Islamic Shia sites, was blown up.

Salman al Jamili, spokesman for the Iraqi Accord Front stated, “The fractures in the Shia coalition caused by divisions between al Jaafari and al Sadr's movement and the Supreme Council [Supreme council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI)] prompted/encouraged groups closely linked to government members to bomb the shrine.”

“We knew the coalition was about to act so as to increase the crisis. We were on our guard. However, we did not conceive that matters would [deteriorate so far that they would] come to an attack on the Imam al Hadi mausoleum so that the Sunnis could be accused and individuals encouraged to burn our mosques, kill our imams and burn the Quran. We are aware the bombing was premeditated and organised by particular groups, with planning assistance from one of Iraq's neighbours, ” he added.

A security source who requested anonymity questioned why the government had not acted to halt terrorists plans if, according to the report, it “had information about the movement of terrorists in Samarra and the activities of the nephew and sister of a known terrorist. Why didn’t it take any measures to protect the shrine and deleiberately leave it exposed to attacks?”

From his office in Baghdad Al Rubaie declined to comment [on the report] and told Asharq al Awsat , “I have no comment on this issue.” Dr. Khodr Abbas Hadi, head of the prime minister’s office, said he had not heard of the report and told Asharq al Awsat, “I have not seen this report and have no information about its contents. I cannot confirm it or deny it.”




* The IAF came into being on October 26, 2005. It is a combination of:

  1. Adnan al-Dulaimi's General Council for the People of Iraq. [ Adnan al-Dulaimi had escaped a determined assasination attempt approx twelve hours before I started to write this posting. He heads the state-run Sunni endowment and played a leading role in campaigns to get the iraqi constitution adopted mfi]
  2. Mohsen Abd al-Hamid's Iraqi Islamic Party
  3. And the Iraqi National Dialogue Council. [The Iraqi National Dialogue Council are a Sunni political headed by Khalaf al-Ulayyan.

    There's a reasonable good overview of the various parties here - mfi]
The IAF is Islamist and Sunni and as noted in the list above consists of the Sunni groups that backed the 2005 constitution. Its most important rivals for the Sunni vote are:

  1. Saleh al-Mutlak's Iraqi National Dialogue Front, the INDF are a secular Sunni party who opposed the constitution.
  2. The Iraqi National List, which include The Iraqis, the most successful Sunni party in the January election.





It was only a matter of time - markfromireland

Thursday, March 02, 2006

Why is this woman crying?

iraqi woman weeping leaving hospital morgue
She is crying because she has just identified the body of someone she loved, a member of her family who was killed in the violence following the Samarra bombing.

Most Iraqis hold the occupying powers, in particular the United States of America, and Britain, directly responsible for the bombing and the ensuing mayhem.

And so do I.

markfromireland

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

"Incident" in Al Amarah

I got this off "the wires" yesterday. As you might expect when you read further Al Amarah is one of the places in Iraq that any stories coming over the wire makes me sit up and take notice. Why? - Read on.

Two British soldiers killed in Iraq blast
MIL-DEFENCE-IRAQ-BLAST
Two British soldiers killed in Iraq blast

(With UK-IRAQ-BLAST series) LONDON, Feb 28 (KUNA) -- Two British soldiers were killed in a bomb blast close to a playground in southern Iraq Tuesday, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.


Let's see what the Scotsman has to say about it:


Key points

• New low in civilians relation with army as roadside bomb kill two soldiers
• Attack located in Al Amarah in Maysan province, scene of notorious video
• British death toll in Iraq now stands at 103, with several hundred injured
Key quote

"It is with deep regret that I can confirm the death of two British soldiers, killed by a terrorist bomb as they carried out their duties in south-east Iraq this morning" - JOHN REID, DEFENCE SECRETARY

Story in full


Here's what you need to know as you read the Scotsman's excellent report:

Al Amarah, is on the river Tigris, south of Baghdad, fairly close to Iranian border. The last time I looked its recorded population was in the region of 340-35000 and it's the provincial capital. As you might expect the population is overwhelmingly Shi´ite. As you might expect from it being a border town the population is more than somewhat intensely nationalistic.

Contrary to what MOD spokespersons would have you believe the British army of occupation here have never been popular there and have been repeatedly attacked. (Bear in mind that the population are overwhelmingly Shi´ite.) As the Scotsman report notes after this particular "incident" what a lovely neutral word "incident" is. The scotsman describe the "incident" as follows:
"RELATIONS between UK forces and locals in southern Iraq reached a new low yesterday as two British soldiers were killed and another was injured by a roadside bomb.

The bomb was detonated next to a Land Rover patrol in the town of Al Amarah in Maysan province, scene of the notorious video of British soldiers beating up Iraqi rioters two years ago.

Two soldiers attached to the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards battle group died in the blast and one was hurt. After the three were flown out by helicopter, British troops maintaining a cordon around the scene of the bombing came under attack from a stone-throwing mob.
[snip]

One witness to the Al Amarah attack said a car bomb had been used to target the soldiers as they patrolled in Land Rovers. Other troops arriving at the scene were stoned by a mob, including young children.[emphasis added by me.]

Actually the stone throwing mob consisted almost entirely of children. Did I mention that Al Amarah's kind of an old-fashioned place and that adults there have kind of old-fashioned ideas about parental discipline?

Al Amarah's kind of an old-fashioned place, adults there have kind of old-fashioned ideas about parental discipline - you can take it that those children's parents were considerably less than disapproving of their children being part of that stone throwing mob.

"Al Amarah, on the river Tigris, south of Baghdad, has been the scene of trouble before, with both local rioting and insurgent attacks.

The fact is that from the shortly after the British arrived to "take control of Al Amarah there's been repeated rioting, shooting at troops, attempts to bomb British convoys, and attacks on their compound at Camp Abu Naji* outside the town. The invaders aren't popular, invaders rarely are.

Let's move on:

Al Amarah is close to the Iranian border and an army investigation, already under way, will analyse bomb components to see if they are traceable to Iran. British officials have previously accused Iran of supplying hi-tech devices used in a series of similar attacks on British forces, a charge denied by Tehran, which has countered by accusing Britain of training insurgents to carry out attacks on its territory.


If it weren't for the fact that we're talking about two young men death's being added to the total of the carnage caused by President Bush and The Right Honourable Member for West Texas' illegal racist corrupt and incompetent war against the people of Iraq I'd react to that with "Bwaaaahhahahahahaha" then I'd sit down and weep. They're still peddling that tired old line.

Now let's see:

Al Amarah is the capital of Maysan governorate that's same governorate that contains Basra. The same governorate where members of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment were caught by Iraqi police in Basra dressed as Arabs and carrying a large collection of weapons and bomb-making equipment. Here's some of what the Scotsman had to say at the time:

"Iraqi officials, who had dispatched a senior judge to question the pair, were insisting that the British military in Basra had confirmed that they were on an undercover mission. Mohammed al-Abadi, an official of the Basra authorities, said their cover had been blown after local police became suspicious and approached them. "A policeman approached them and then one of these guys fired at him. Then the police managed to capture them," he said. "They refused to say what their mission was. They said they were British soldiers and [suggested] to ask their commander about their mission."

Defence sources have told The Scotsman that the soldiers were part of an undercover special forces detachment set up this year to try to "bridge the intelligence void" in Basra. The detachment draws on special forces' experience in Northern Ireland and Aden, where British troops went "deep" undercover in local communities to try to break the code of silence against foreign forces.

The troops are under the jurisdiction of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment that was formed last year by the then defence secretary, Geoff Hoon, to gather so-called human intelligence during counter-terrorist missions.

The day of dramatic incident comes amid an increasingly volatile security picture in Basra, which until earlier this summer enjoyed a reputation as one of the most-trouble free cities in Iraq. Earlier this month, three British soldiers were killed in two separate roadside bomb attacks, thought to be the work of a newly-arrived insurgent unit that specialises in targeting coalition personnel. [emphasis added by me - mfi]

There have also been increased tensions following the arrest of the local leader of the al-Mahdi army, a heavily armed street gang loyal to the outlawed Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Members of al-Mahdi are thought to have been behind the violent protests that took place outside the city's main Felony Crimes Department, where a crowd of around 200 people gathered when news spread that the soldiers were being held inside.


The al-Mahdi army are still strong in Al Amarah as is SCIRI's Badr Brigade. Saying it was the Iranians as the war drums beat ever louder just won't wash. As I said on my other site about the last lot of finger British pointing at the Iranians (and as you probably came here from there) I'll just do a copy and paste:

It was a coherent reasonable sounding explanation. There’s just one problem, it was manifestly untrue:


Iran was working through the pro-occupation SCIRI? Really? The Iranians were working their nefarious magic through “The reactionary and collaborationist Islamic Supreme Council (SCIRI) and their Badr Corps?


The fact is that SCIRI’s militia was fighting Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army, and nobody else at that time..The “Iranian” cover story simply won’t wash and Iraqis knew it then, and know it now:




Well if you've got this far I admire your perseverance. Here's my summary:

Iraq is in turmoil following the Samarra bombing. Iraqis are tired of tyrannny and they're furious at the way in which the armies of occupation have treated them. They believe that the bombing at Samarra was the work of the invaders:

“My brothers this is no coincidence consider that in the space of a few days we have:


  1. The Danish cartoons.

  2. More photos of the evil the crusaders do in and are still doing in Abu Ghraib.

  3. We have the British army assaulting Muslim children.

  4. We have an “incident” at the jail.

  5. Our brother Shiite’s mosques in Pakistan have been bombed just yesterday.

  6. Just yesterday the massacre of Shiites and now;
    This most heinous act of desecration.


No reasonable person can believe that any of these acts are random, they were all planned and co-ordinated by the Americans and the Danes and the English to plunge us to war so they can continue to rape our land.”

They're taking their revenge. This was "just" two more deaths, two families plunged into grief, somebody wounded, a tiny fraction of the "collateral damage" caused by George W. Bush and Anthony Blair masturbating their messiah complexes.




Notes

* The camp has soldiers and a goat named Ben. Ben** is needed to keep the grass down. The grass needs to be kept down otherwise it becomes infested with rather poisonous snakes.

** I don't actually know this but I'd be prepared to wager a considerable amount of money that "Ben" is named after Lieutenant Colonel Ben Edwards - soldiers are human too in case you hadn't noticed.

Ozymandias and Empire


"The aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." ... "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality—judiciously, as you will—we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do." "

Juan Cole has a posting today entitled;
"Bush Ignored own National Intelligence Estimate
on Danger, Nature of Iraq Insurgency
Or, Ozymandias and Empire"
in it he links to this Knight-Ridder report:

"Intelligence agencies warned about growing local insurgency in late 2003"
By WARREN P. STROBEL and JONATHAN S. LANDAY
Knight Ridder Newspapers"

Here's two excerpts from the article:
Robert Hutchings, the chairman of the National Intelligence Council from 2003 to 2005, said the October 2003 study was part of a "steady stream" of dozens of intelligence reports warning Bush and his top lieutenants that the insurgency was intensifying and expanding.

"Frankly, senior officials simply weren't ready to pay attention to analysis that didn't conform to their own optimistic scenarios," Hutchings said in a telephone interview.

The office of Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte declined Tuesday to comment for this article.

[snip]

" In August 2003, with concerns about the insurgency growing, Bush told reporters: "There are some who feel like that the conditions are such that they can attack us there. My answer is bring them on. ... We've got the force necessary to deal with the security situation." "


Presumably John "who death squads me?" Negroponte's minions didn't want to comment to Knight-Ridder in case he decided to exercise his "Salvadoran option" on them. Mr. "riding with the bad boys now" himself was in the meantime lieing his ass off testifying before a Senate Armed Services Committee as this AP report makes clear.

A civil war in Iraq could lead to a broader conflict in the Middle East, pitting the region's rival Islamic sects against each other, National Intelligence Director John Negroponte said cackling maniacally in an unusually frank assessment Tuesday.

"Now that our Pat Robertson decreed mission of getting the sand niggers in Iraq to murder each other has been accomplished we want to expand it a bit. If chaos were to descend upon Iraq or the forces of democracy were to be defeated in that country ... this would have implications for the rest of the Middle East region and, indeed, the world," Negroponte said wiping tears of happiness from his eyes at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on global threats.

Negroponte served as Death Squad Organisation, Supplies and Funding Officer in Baghdad U.S. ambassador to Baghdad before taking over as the nation's top Director of cynicism corruption incompetence blood thirstyness and fucking over of the serfs intelligence official last April. … … …

Cole's posting is here.

(Cross-posted to Liberal Avenger)

Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Who do you believe?

Do you believe The Washington Post?

Iraq's Deadly Surge Claims 1,300 — Morgue Figure Eclipses Other Counts Since Shrine Attack — BAGHDAD, Feb. 27 — Grisly attacks and other sectarian violence unleashed by last week's bombing of a Shiite shrine have killed more than 1,300 Iraqis, making the past few days the deadliest

or do you believe the people who live there and who have to cope with the blood-soaked hell that America has created in Iraq?

Specifically do you believe the people in charge of the morgue, Abd al-Razzak al-Ubaidi - the acting director, and Qais Hasan, the mortuary duty manager on duty who has flat out denied that the morgue got 1300+ bodies in the last few days?

Now not all deaths in Baghdad are registered at the morgue - deaths are registered at hospitals as well but the morgue gets most of them.

Has there been a massive upsurge in violence since the Samarra bombing? Yes, in the region of about 70%.

Do you believe Reuters? - I've edited it to give just the important stories.

"FACTBOX-Developments in Iraq, Feb. 28
28 Feb 2006 14:29:42 GMT
Source: Reuters
Feb 28 (Reuters) - The following are security incidents and political developments in Iraq reported on Tuesday, as of 1430 GMT.

SECURITY DEVELOPMENTS


POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS

[snip]

KERBALA - Firebrand Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called for unity when he addressed several hundred supporters in Kerbala 110 km (68 miles) southwest of Baghdad. Sadr said sectarian violence was what foreign forces in Iraq wanted. (IRAQ-DEVELOPMENTS; reporting by Baghdad newsroom, writing by Nick Olivari; editing by Sami Aboudi)) ... "

And I have another question for you:

How come not one Western News Agency has reported that today Tuesday the bodies of Sheikh Hamid Ghazi Al-Mehamdah and eight of his relatives were found by the Iraqi Army (the Desert Lion Brigade to get specific about it)in southern Baghdad.

The Sheikh of the Al-Mehamdah clan and eight of his family are abducted and murdered and not one Western News agency reports it? In particular not one American news agency reports it? Do you think this'll make it into the Washingtomtomtom post?

No? - Me neither.


Update Wednesday Morning 1:30 AM - well it finally made it:


"Iraqi soldiers find bullet-riddled bodies of nine people near two burned minibuses in Iraq's Diyala province. The victims included a Sunni Muslim of the influential Mahamdeh tribe, and two of his nephews."


Hat tip Susan at Today in Iraq

Sunday, February 26, 2006

Samarra: Qui Bono?

The question is Machiavelli's and is his advice to anybody who wants to know who did something in politics (including war) and why. He suggested you ask "cui bono?" - "who benefits?"

I have been asking this question about the Samarra bombing and am writing a multipart part series suggesting the reply.

The first installment is here Samarra: “Cui Bono”

Update 1:

Second installment uploaded:Samarra: “Cui Bono”


markfromireland