iraq

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Iraq: Sunnis Form New Coalition, as al Sadr Reenters Politics

Iraq's political parties have finalized their coalition lists for the December

15 elections. The lists were due today. Three of Iraq's most powerful Shiite

Muslim religious parties have formed a reshuffled alliance. In a surprising

move, the political groups of the young cleric Moqtada al Sadr have joined with

the two parties that control Iraq's transitional government -- Dawa, led by

Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari, and the Supreme Council for the Islamic

Revolution in Iraq. Sadr has historically resisted participating in a political

process he has denounced as a US-created sham and his forces reportedly joined

on the condition that the coalition oppose a normalization of relations with

Israel. Meanwhile, the two main Kurdish parties have formed their own coalition,

while Sunni Arab leaders formed an alliance. This comes days after fierce Sunni

opposition narrowly failed to veto the new, U.S.-backed constitution in a

referendum. The new group, called Iraqi Accord Front called on all Iraqis to

participate in elections and not to boycott. But what has gotten little

attention is the fact that the group says it opposes the US occupation. A

prominent Sunni leader, Hussein al Falluji, told Reuters " Our political program

will focus more on getting the Americans out of Iraq. Our message to the

American administration is clear: get out of Iraq or set a timetable for

withdrawal or the resistance will keep slaughtering your soldiers until Judgment

Day. "

 

Attack on Palestine Hotel Aimed at Private Security Firm?

Time magazine is reporting that the target of this Monday's attack against

Baghdad's Palestine Hotel mat not have been foreign journalists as was

originally believed. The magazine, citing sources inside the Iraqi resistance,

says the real target was a private security firm based in the hotel. The

well-coordinated attack involving truck bombs killed at least six people. Time

says resistance fighters believe the targeted security firm is actually a

Western or Israeli government intelligence agency.

 

Cartoonist Writes Names of All 2,000 Soldiers Killed in Iraq

As the US military death toll in Iraq surpassed 2,000 dead this week, Atlanta

Journal Constitution editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich marked the tragic

milestone by hand-writing the name of each one in his Wednesday editorial

cartoon. Together, their names spell out the question: WHY? The Pulitzer

Prize-winning Luckovich told Editor and Publisher, " I was trying to think of a

way to make the point that this whole war is such a waste. But I also wanted to

honor the troops I believe our government wrongly sent to Iraq. " Luckovich says

he spent 12 or 13 hours this past weekend writing in most of the names --

roughly in the order of when the soldiers died. The paper's publisher and

various editors were also involved in the effort. When it looked like the names

might not be readable, the editors gave permission for the cartoon to be

published much larger than Luckovich's drawings usually appear in the

Journal-Constitution.

 

Almost 70% of Iraq Deaths Under Age of 30

MTV has compiled some new statistics on the 2,000 US troops killed in Iraq.

Nearly a third were between the ages of 20 and 22, with the highest fatality

rate--about 12 percent--being among 21-year-olds. Nearly 70 percent of U.S.

casualties are under the age of 30. Forty percent left behind spouses and 30

percent were survived by children.

 

 

The propagandist's purpose is to make one set of people forget that certain

other

sets of people are human: Aldous Huxley