In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Eight civilians killed, dozens wounded by US fire in Iraq town: "Scenes of devastation dotted the Iraqi town of Samarra after fierce clashes between US forces and insurgents in which senior police and hospital officials said at least eight civilians were killed and dozens wounded by US fire. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Three suspected al-Qaeda members nabbed by US forces in Mosul: "Three men suspected of belonging to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network have been captured by US troops in the main northern Iraqi city of Mosul. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
'Intense battle' in Samarra: "There is evidence of a fierce fight between US forces and militants in the central Iraqi city, says BBC's Peter Greste."
In BBC: Conflict with Iraq
South Korea stands firm on Iraq, condemns "inhuman" attack: "South Korea said an "inhuman" attack that killed two of its civilians in Iraq would not derail plans to dispatch more troops to the war-torn country. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Koizumi presses ahead with troop dispatch after Iraq attacks: "Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi lashed out at "indiscriminate" attacks in Iraq that killed two of the country's diplomats as a poll showed little public backing for sending troops. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Death toll rises from Iraq ambush: "The number of Iraqis killed after American convoys come under attack in central Iraq rises to 54, US officials say."
In BBC: Conflict with Iraq
Israel's Sharon home sick with the flu: "Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was home sick with the flu Monday and canceled all his appearances, Israeli media reported."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Israeli troops kill two in West Bank raid: "The Israeli military launched a large-scale raid on suspected militants in the West Bank city of Ramallah Monday, killing at least two armed Palestinians and arresting dozens of other people, the army said."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Battle Casualty Toll Rises: "From the AFP via the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :
"
The United States has raised the death toll from intense clashes with insurgents in the Iraqi town of Samarra to 54, after reports from Iraqi doctors that eight civilians were killed by US fire in the exchanges.
A hospital director in Samarra says another 60 civilians were injured.
US commanders previously said they had they killed 46 Iraqi insurgents in the clashes.
The hospital says a woman and child were amongst the eight civilians who died in the fighting.
In Command Post: Irak
CIA admits Uncertainties over Iraqi WMD: "From the AFP via the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :
The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has acknowledged it "lacked specific information" about alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction when it compiled an intelligence estimate last year that served to justify the US-led invasion of Iraq."
[...]
... an explanation issued over the weekend by veteran CIA analyst Stuart Cohen, who was in charge of putting together the 2002 intelligence estimate and currently serves as vice chairman of the National Intelligence Council, made clear the case against Iraq, as presented by the CIA behind closed doors, was much less clear-cut and more nuanced.
[...]
The document still concluded that Iraq had chemical and biological weapons as well as missiles with ranges in excess of the 150-kilometre limit imposed by the UN Security Council.
It also said that Baghdad did not have nuclear weapons.
Mr Cohen said he still stood by those judgments.
[...]
Moreover, specialists from three US government agencies - the State and Energy Departments and the Air Force - vocally disagreed with at least some of the findings, the CIA analyst said, who denied that these expressions of dissent had been somehow suppressed or buried in footnotes.
" All agencies were fully exposed to these alternative views, and the heads of those organisations blessed the wording and placement of their alternative views ," Mr Cohen said.
The veteran CIA analyst stressed that all major conclusions about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction had been drawn on the basis of information "overwhelmingly" gleaned from a combination of human intelligence, satellite imagery and communications intercepts.
" There is a reason that the October 2002 review of Iraq's WMD programs is called a National Intelligence Estimate and not a National Intelligence factbook ," Mr Cohen said.
" On almost any issue of the day that we face, hard evidence will only take intelligence professionals so far ."
In Command Post: Irak
Relatives of slain Japanese diplomats to head to Kuwait to collect bodies: "Ten bereaved family members of the two Japanese diplomats killed in an ambush in Iraq over the weekend were to leave for Kuwait to bring back the bodies, the foreign ministry said. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
7-year Old Wounded: "From the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :
A seven-year-old child brandishing a Kalashnikov was shot in the foot by US troops during a raid in the hotspot city of Ramadi, west of Baghdad, the US military said."
"[Troops] conducted a mission in the Ramadi area today. While on patrol, the soldiers witnessed two men with weapons running into a nearby residence. The soldiers followed the men in order to apprehend them for questioning ," a Central Command statement said.
" Upon approaching the house, a seven-year-old child came out with an AK-47 rifle pointed at the soldiers. A soldier responded in self-defence and shot the child in the foot. "
The statement said the child was evacuated to a nearby army medical facility for treatment and then flown to Baghdad.
In Command Post: Irak
Mideast negotiators to launch peace plan: "Last-minute dissent among the Palestinians and strong opposition from Israeli leaders underscored just how difficult it will be for a symbolic peace plan to sway either side after years of conflict in the Middle East."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
U.S. allies promise to stay in Iraq: "U.S. coalition partners South Korea and Spain promised to stay in Iraq despite attacks that killed their citizens over the weekend, while the deaths of two Japanese coincided with a poll that showed growing fears in Japan about sending troops."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
NATO seeks to expand Afghan mission: "NATO wants to expand its mission in Afghanistan, but the alliance's leaders have warned they will need more support from member nations to do the job right."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Saudi interrogators use new technique: "Forget the bread-and-water routine. Saudi Arabian interrogators often bring a Quran, the Muslim holy book, to their prison interviews, using a technique that has proved successful in eliciting information from al-Qaida captives and reorienting them to less violent religious beliefs."
In Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Bush's morale-boosting Baghdad visit doesn't make up for urge to go home, say troops: "Just a day after US President George W. Bush flew into Baghdad to feed 600 of his troops the traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner, soldiers at the same base were offered a rare musical evening but the Bush high had failed to outlast the impromptu visit. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
Saddam Hussein sought missile assembly line from North Korea: "Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was trying to obtain an entire missile production line from North Korea prior to the US-led invasion of Iraq, with Syria offering a transit route for delivery of the goods, the New York Times reported. (AFP)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
South Korea, Japan Sending Troops to Iraq: "Japan and South Korea voiceddetermination on Monday to proceed with sending troops to Iraqdespite weekend killings of several of their nationals thereand popular doubts about taking part in the operation. (Reuters)"
In Yahoo! News: War with Iraq
