Opinion/Editorial Cold Shoulders
Kathy Kelly, Electronic Iraq (Jul 10, 2008)
Kathy Kelly writes from Amman, Jordan, demonstrating through the story of one mother and her son -- who's still in Iraq -- how violence is entrapping Iraq's boys and young men. In the process, she shows the ways in which US efforts in the name of security send dangerous messages and force painful choices on the young people who are the future of their country.
Opinion/Editorial Istiklal
Kathy Kelly, Electronic Iraq (Jul 4, 2008)
The city of Amman, Jordan, is
awash with numerous colorful signs that proclaim independence, "Istiklal." The word is found on posters and placards in
store windows. It names a major thoroughfare, a hospital, and a shopping
center. Appreciation for independence is
palpable, and this could be said for numerous cities and towns throughout the
region, including Iraq,
where past struggles for independence are commemorated by naming buildings and
streets "Istiklal." It reflects the love
of independence and the longing for it.
Opinion/Editorial Iraqis in Baquba Weigh in on the U.S. Presidential Election
Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail, Inter Press Service (Jun 24, 2008)
Ali Ahmed, Dahr Jamial, and a handful of Iraqis in Baquba weigh in on the U.S. presidential election. "I'll believe the troops are gone from Iraq when they are no longer on
our streets and their warplanes no longer bomb our homes," a local
merchant told IPS. " All politicians are liars, even school children
know this."
News & Analysis UN Proposal Provokes Iraqi Anger
Zaineb Naji, Institute for War and Peace Reporting (Jun 24, 2008)
Rival political factions have slammed a United Nations proposal to
settle disputes over control of a number of areas in the north of the
country, arguing the recommendations are more likely to deepen their
disagreements than resolve them.
Opinion/Editorial The Oil Majors Take a Little Sip of the Ol' Patrimony
Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.com (Jun 22, 2008)
More than five years after the invasion of Iraq -- just in case you
were still waiting -- the oil giants finally hit the front page. Last Thursday, the New York Times led with this headline: "Deals with Iraq Are Set to Bring Oil Giants Back."
And who were these giants? ExxonMobil,
Shell, Total and BP.
What these firms got were mere "service contracts" -- as in servicing
Iraq's oil fields -- not the sort of "production sharing agreements"
that President Bush's representatives in Baghdad once dreamed of, and
that would have left them in charge of those fields. Still, it was
clearly a start.
War Every Day (eIraq Blog) A Tale of Three Cities
Jeff Severns Guntzel, Electronic Iraq (Jun 21, 2008)
Don't miss Brooklyn photographer Moises Saman's from Basra, Mosel and Sadr City over at the New York Times site. The slide show accompanies the paper's "What’s going right? And can it last?"
Direct Aid Initiative Healing the Healer: Dr. Muhammad
Kathy Kelly, Voices for Creative Nonviolence (Jun 20, 2008)
Kathy Kelly writes from Jordan with an appeal for an Iraqi doctor in need of an urgent surgery. In the process, she gives us a window into the struggles of Iraq's doctors to support even one of their own through the ongoing catastrophe, so that they can support and heal their people now and in the time to come.
