Iraq

War in Iraq: "Mission Russian roulette"

Julien — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:14:34 +0200

This video was filmed from the inside of an American tank that finds itself in the middle of a rocket attack in Adhamiyah, Baghdad. Disturbingly, the reaction of the marines in the vehicle seems to be one of despair and disorder. An American soldier who served in Iraq tells us that this is just a glimpse into an increasingly chaotic situation.

Torture is "self-defense" according to the Pentagon

Julien — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 19:41:48 +0200

In 2003 the U.S. Justice Department sent a memo to the Pentagon in which it conceived torture as a "self-defense" for the purpose of interrogating an "enemy combatant". An Iraqi deputy and a French colonel specialised in the Algerian war react to the document, declassified yesterday and published here in full.

Written by a lawyer for the Justice Department, the memorandum basically said that the American president is entitled by the Constitution to authorise certain forms of torture against al-Qaeda militants for reasons of national security. The Justice nullified the statement nine months after it was sent. But according to the Washington Post, the article served as the "legal foundation for the Defense Department's use of aggressive interrogation practices at a crucial time, as captives poured into military jails from Afghanistan".

"The Sahwa militia has brought peace to my district"

Julien — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:09:19 +0100

Our Observer in Baghdad, Last of Iraqis, took the same street scene and filmed it once in June 2007 and then in March 2008. In the first video nobody dared set foot outside; the street is deserted. But now, it seems to have come back to life. Thanks to the American Army? Apparently not. According to Last of Iraqis it's the al Sahwa militia to be thankful to.

The Sahwa (meaning 'awakening councils') are a Sunni-based Iraqi military funded by the American army to fight against al Qaeda. Many of its 80,000 members are former insurgents. The movement has its stronghold in the district of Adamiyah, north Baghdad, in Last of Iraqis' neighbourhood.

More info on Iraq: FRANCE 24 reporter's notebook.

McCain: "al Qaeda is going back into Iran and receiving training"

Julien — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 11:09:38 +0100

In a speech in Amman, Jordan, on Tuesday, John McCain declared that "al Qaeda is going back into Iran and receiving training". The statement will certainly not help the Republican candidate make it to the White House, seeing as al Qaeda, a Sunni terrorist movement, is unlikely to be supported by the Iranian Shiite regime.

McCain only managed to correct his mistake at the end of the speech after receiving advice through his earpiece from Connecticut senator Joseph Lieberman. For the Republican leader, who based his campaign on his ability to be “commander in chief from day one”, the blunder could cost him dearly. Barack Obama seized the opportunity to point out that “we heard Senator McCain confuse Sunni and Shi'ite, Iran and al Qaeda. Maybe that is why he voted to go to war with a country that had no al Qaeda ties”, according to the New York Times.

Bloggers react to Bush’s speech on Iraq

Julien — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 19:10:42 +0100

To mark the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, George Bush made a speech to the Pentagon today, in which he insisted that the controversial offensive had opened a "major strategic victory" in the broader war on terror. Two American bloggers criticise their president's speech, but for very different reasons.

Bush reaffirmed in the speech that removing Saddam Hussein from power was the "right decision", and that this is a fight "America can and must win". He then went on to reiterate the somewhat worn out argument for continuing the war; that the Americans must combat al Qaeda in Iraq in order not to face them on their own soil; and to leave too quickly would cause chaos and strengthen terrorists in neighbouring Iran.

A bit of hash with your Viagra sergeant?

Julien — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:42:54 +0100

An insight into the daily life of American soldiers in Iraq. In this video, filmed from the top of an army vehicle, backstreet vendors try to peddle Viagra and hashish to the soldiers.

Hostage Brit pleads for release in new video

Julien — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 12:20:50 +0100

After being captured by 40 gunmen at the Iraqi Finance Ministry in Baghdad last May 29, one of five British workers has been shown alive in a video appeal to the UK. The man, who identifies himself as Peter Moore, who was working in Baghdad for the Canadian security firm GardaWorld, has not been seen since his capture. The people detaining him are thought to be a splinter group of the Mehdi Army, which the US believes is Iran-controlled. They are demanding the release of nine Islamic Shia Resistance members in exchange for the five Brits, but British troops have said that they no longer hold any prisoners. The UK foreign office simply condemned the airing of the video and called for the release of the hostages.

Apprenticeships in terrorism with al Qaeda

Julien — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 12:48:00 +0100

The American military in Iraq released five videos this week which they say show Iraqi children being trained by al Qaeda to capture civilians and to use weapons. The American army, which seized the material during an operation against al-Qaeda in Khan Bani Saad, north Baghdad, says that the videos are being used for propaganda and to recruit young people. Our Observer for Iraq, ‘Treasure of Baghdad’, was shocked by the videos. Here is his reaction.

The cost of war comes as “a total surprise”

Julien — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:55:37 +0100

With presidential elections well under way in the United States the cost of war is a sensitive subject for the ruling Republicans. And every penny counts. The Center for arms control and non-proliferation tallies up every cent spent on the main U.S wars and publishes its findings online. And they have just been updated. World War II easily tops the table with a whopping $3.2 trillion (€2.2 trillion). But still climbing and currently in second place, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have almost reached $700 billion (around €500 bln) combined. The centre treats this information as a warning, they predict that if troops remain in both countries until 2018 as Bush said may well happen, the final cost will be over a trillion dollars. We spoke to the creator of the project about why he feels it's important to publish the figures.

Showtime in Iraq: harmless fun or simply tasteless?

Julien — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 11:08:00 +0100

The proliferation of camera cell phones has seen an increasing number of amateur videos emerging from Iraq. The favourite genre appears to be humour, which is spurring the production of hundreds of videos that would match ‘Pop Idol' standards. With hours to spare and nothing to do between often dangerous missions, US soldiers are choreographing, performing, and recording themselves dancing and singing, and then posting the videos on YouTube. We put together a collection of these videos, although dates and locations are unknown, and showed them to ex-soldiers and US Army officials to get their reactions. Post your questions on their profile pages.