Arabs focus on refugee issue after accord: "Deciding the fate of millions of Palestinian refugees may be the biggest challenge to settling more than five decades of Arab-Israeli conflict."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Emirates airlines announces engine deal: "Emirates airlines announced Monday a $1.5 billion deal with engine manufacturers General Electric and Pratt & Whitney for more than 90 engines to power an order of Airbus A380 aircraft."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Some Iraqis Get New Freedom After Saddam: "The Musawis are grateful to the Americans for getting rid of Saddam Hussein. It's meant higher wages, a new car and more freedom. (AP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
S.Korean Electric Workers to Leave Iraq: "A South Korean company said Monday it has decided to withdraw its 60 workers restoring electricity lines in Iraq, after a gun attack killed two of its electricians working for the U.S. government project. (AP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Presidential Trips Abroad: "Andy Rooney looks back at President Bush's surprise Thanksgiving visit to Iraq, and reflects on some other notable presidential trips."
In CBS News: Iraq Crisis
Operation Iraqi Freedom: "A senior representative of the top Shiite religious leader in Iraq tells Steve Kroft that former loyalists of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party must be fired from municipal posts."
In CBS News: Iraq Crisis
Andrew's Winds of War: Dec 8/03: "Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Today's "Winds of War" is brought to you by Andrew Olmsted (with plenty of help from Joe) of Andrew Olmsted dot com .
TOP TOPICS
- The issue of Saudi support for terrorism has been an open secret since September 11. Now US News has blown into the issue and uncovered just how deep the problem is (Hat tip: Instapundit ).
- The commander of American forces in Iraq expects attacks to increase as Iraq comes closer to national elections next summer. The logic is impeccable, but it suggests that November may be a harbinger of things to come rather than an aberration.
- JK: Photos from Iraq's mass graves . If you were for the war, you need to see this. If you were against it, you really need to see this.
Other Topics Today Include: more on Samarra; Was the '45 minutes' WMD claim accurate; Domestic WMD plot thwarted; Canada - terrorism conduit?; Sniper update; AQ finance chief nabbed; Afghanistan; The Wall and Geneva; Winning the War of Ideas; Chechnya; Will NATO survive the war on terror?
Read The Rest..."
In Command Post: Irak
Indonesia Says U.S. Policy in Iraq Becoming Debacle: "Indonesia, the world's most populousMuslim nation, issued some of its harshest criticism ofWashington's Iraq policy on Monday, saying the U.S. occupationhad not met objectives and was becoming a debacle. (Reuters)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Making a killing in the new Iraq as cars, TVs, food and fridges flood in (08 Dec 03) in Radio Free USA
Palestinians agree to a conditional ceasefire in Israel (8 Dec 03) in Radio Free USA
Palestinians can't agree on truce offer: "Palestinians failed to agree on a truce offer to Israel on Sunday after three days of talks, setting back the Palestinian prime minister's hopes for a halt in violence to jump start the stalled U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Daniel Nehme, Syria politician, dies at 78: "Daniel Nehme, a member of the central leadership of Syria's ruling political coalition, has died at age 78, the official Syrian Arab News Agency said Sunday."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Report: Source of Iraq Arms Claim Emerges: "By MICHAEL McDONOUGH
Associated Press Writer
Originally published December 7, 2003, 8:22 AM EST
LONDON
* * *
The Sunday Telegraph said Lt. Col. al-Dabbagh identified himself as the source for the British government's assertion that Iraq could have deployed chemical or biological weapons of mass destruction within 45 minutes of a decision to do so . The paper gave the officer's surname only, citing fears for his safety if he was fully identified.
The 45-minute claim was in a government dossier published in September 2002. A British Broadcasting Corp. report later accused the government of "sexing up" the dossier to make a more convincing case for military action. Government weapons adviser David Kelly apparently committed suicide in July after being identified as the source for the BBC report.
Kelly's death prompted a judicial inquiry that scrutinized the workings of Blair's government and its use of intelligence in the buildup to the U.S.-led war. A report from the inquiry is expected early next year.
The Sunday Telegraph reported that al-Dabbagh was the former head of an Iraqi air defense unit in the country's western desert. It said he had spied for the Iraqi National Accord, a London-based exile group, and provided reports to British intelligence from early 2002 on Saddam's plans to deploy weapons of mass destruction.
Al-Dabbagh said cases containing chemical or biological warheads were delivered to front-line units, including his own, in late 2002, the paper reported. He said they were designed to be launched by hand-held rocket-propelled grenades, and did not know what exactly the warheads contained.
The government's September dossier said that "Iraq's military forces are able to use chemical and biological weapons, with command, control and logistical arrangements in place. The Iraqi military are able to deploy these weapons within 45 minutes of a decision to do so."
The head of the MI6 spy agency, Sir Richard Dearlove, told the inquiry into Kelly's death that the 45-minute warning in the dossier came from an "established and reliable source," quoting a senior Iraqi military officer who was in a position to know the information.
The Sunday Telegraph said al-Dabbagh believed he was the source for that claim.
"I am the one responsible for providing this information," he was quoted as saying. "It is 100 percent accurate.
"Forget 45 minutes, we could have fired these within half an hour," al-Dabbagh added. He said the weapons were not used because most of the Iraqi army did not want to fight for Saddam.
The newspaper said al-Dabbagh works as an adviser to the Iraqi Governing Council and said he has received death threats from Saddam loyalists.
* * *
Via the Baltimore Sun .
"
In Command Post: Irak
Rumsfeld watches training of Iraq's new security forces: "Military says attacks on U.S. troops decline
By John Hendren
Los Angeles Times
Originally published December 7, 2003
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld saw firsthand the U.S.-led coalition's strategy of turning over security to Iraqis in a sweep through the nation yesterday, as military officials lauded a precipitous drop in attacks on American troops even as they acknowledged that it was likely the result of poor weather and the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The Pentagon chief focused much of his visit on briefings and demonstrations of the fledgling Iraqi Civil Defense Corps, one of four security forces set up by the occupying coalition.
The Pentagon's strategy in Iraq is to increasingly turn control of security - police, border patrol and military actions - to newly established Iraqi agencies that, in the case of the civil defense corps, often receive less than one month's training.
With 140,000 Iraqi border patrol and police officers, paramilitary troops, building guards and other security forces in place, Rumsfeld said, "they are increasingly taking over security in this country."
He trusted his safety to members of the corps, entering a Baghdad warehouse in which roughly 50 new recruits toting AK-47s were in their first days of training.
During his first stop of the day, in the northern city of Kirkuk, Rumsfeld met with a group of recruits and their commanders in crisp new khaki uniforms at a lavish home confiscated from an unidentified Iraqi on the list of most-wanted former regime officials.
The Iraqi civil defense corps is coming along "very fast," he told the recruits, giving Americans confidence that it "can make a tremendous difference."
* * *
Rumsfeld was joined throughout the day by the top commander on the ground, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez.
Several senior military officials said attacks on U.S. personnel have plunged from nearly 40 a day in early last month to 19 daily over the past week.
Nevertheless, they acknowledged, it is not clear that the decline will endure, and many suggested that attacks would likely increase during the hajj holiday next month.
The coalition death toll soared during Ramadan, making last month the costliest for the United States and its allies since the invasion of Iraq more than eight months ago.
Dempsey said that four of 10 known guerrilla cells were disabled last month, including one that he said was responsible for the October rocket attack on the Al Rashid Hotel that killed a U.S. Army colonel while Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz was in the building.
The 1st Armored is still pursuing intelligence that it hopes will allow the division to crush the remaining six cells, he said.
The arrests have diminished but not ended the insurgents' ability to launch attacks because their leadership and financiers remain at large, Dempsey said.
Nevertheless, Sanchez painted a portrait of gradual success for Rumsfeld's third visit since President Bush declared major combat over May 1.
"The main message to the secretary is primarily that we're being successful, our troops are prepared and we're making a lot of progress," Sanchez said.
* * *
Via the Baltimore Sun .
"
In Command Post: Irak
Iraq Prepares to Create Its Own Tribunal to Prosecute War Crimes Under Hussein: "The special court would try members of Saddam Hussein's government on charges varying from genocide to squandering the nation's wealth."
In New York Times: World Special
Iraqi Exiles Face Uncertainty as Enthusiasm for Them Dims at Home and in Washington: "With Iraq moving toward a new political configuration, Iraqis are debating whether Iraqi exiles are the nation's future or its past."
In New York Times: World Special
General Sees More Attacks as Elections Near: "Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez added that insurgent forces were bent on disrupting Iraq's transition to democracy."
In New York Times: World Special
In TV Interviews, Senator Clinton Criticizes Bush's Handling of Iraq: "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York sharply criticized President Bush's policies in Iraq during an unusual series of back-to-back appearance on the Sunday morning talk shows."
In New York Times: World Special
WMD claims of Iraqi 'colonel' treated sceptically (8 Dec 03) in Radio Free USA
Rumsfeld Says Army in Iraq Not Worn Out: "The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have taken a toll on the Army, but the soldiers who are due home next spring are fit to return to a war zone if called upon, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Sunday. (AP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Card Calls Prewar Intelligence Woes 'Moot': "President Bush's chief of staff dismissed as "a moot point" any lingering question about whether Bush relied on faulty intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq. (AP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
First Commercial Flight Brings Joy to Iraqi Kurds: "With a final victory swoop over theIraqi Kurd capital and a waggle of his wings on Sunday, thepilot of the new United Iraqi Airlines landed his plane to wildapplause - inside and out. (Reuters)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Turkey charges 3 more in Istanbul attack: "A Turkish court on Sunday charged three more men for their involvement in a string of suicide bombings in Istanbul, raising the total number of suspects to 30."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Iran's Khatami orders vigilante crackdown: "Iran's president Sunday ordered two Cabinet ministers to crack down on hard-line vigilantes who disrupt political meetings following an attack on one of his close aides, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
A Look at U.S. Military Deaths in Iraq: "As of Friday, Dec. 5, 443 U.S. service members have died since the beginning of military operations in Iraq, according to the Department of Defense. Of those, 306 died as a result of hostile action and 137 died of non-hostile causes, the department said. The department did not provide an update Sunday. (AP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
US has forfeited its "moral leadership" of the world under Bush: Dean: "The United States has forfeited its "moral leadership" of the world under President George W. Bush, Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean charged. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
No oil crisis in Iraq, ministry says: "Iraq is suffering only a temporary shortage of oil and not a crisis, the spokesman for the oil-rich country's oil ministry said as motorists faced long lines at the fuel pumps. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Iraq's political transformation delicate: "Sitting at his desk, the governor pulls out a photograph of the corpse of a brother - red marks around his neck - who was executed by Saddam Hussein's regime. He displays another of himself, walking with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld in Iraq in September."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
