Don’t let the bombings fool you: The American military withdrawal stabilizes Iraq to a degree never admitted by protagonists of the original invasion.

Related Entries

• February 17, 2012 Pay Close Attention to China
• February 15, 2012 The Afghan War’s Nine Lives
• February 13, 2012 Occupy Draws Strength From the Powerless
• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy
• February 7, 2012 Iran and Israel: Only Half the Story

Gen. Petraeus’ oft-declared uncertainty about the future stability of Iraq is genuine. It is the Shiites and their Iranian backers, not the Americans, who are the true victors in the Iraqi war.

Related Entries

• February 17, 2012 Pay Close Attention to China
• February 15, 2012 The Afghan War’s Nine Lives
• February 13, 2012 Independent Voters Swing to Obama
• February 9, 2012 Clint, Rick and the Limits of Pessimism
• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy

Iraq will be plunged into a new war if Israel or the U.S. launches an attack on Iran, Iraqi leaders have warned. Iranian retaliation would take place in Iraq, said Dr. Mahmoud Othman, the influential Iraqi MP.

Related Entries

• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy
• January 29, 2012 ‘Our Sky Is Our Sky, Not the USA’s Sky’
• January 23, 2012 Marine Pleads Guilty in Haditha Massacre Case
• January 18, 2012 The Myth of ‘Isolated’ Iran
• January 16, 2012 Iran, the U.S. and Israel: Blind Man’s Bluff

Related Entries

• February 17, 2012 Truthdigger of the Week: Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis
• February 17, 2012 Pay Close Attention to China
• February 15, 2012 The Afghan War’s Nine Lives
• February 13, 2012 Occupy Draws Strength From the Powerless
• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy

The militia leader’s threat of an “open war” between his supporters and the U.S.-backed Iraqi government has ratcheted up tensions in Basra and Baghdad. [In this analysis, columnist Patrick Cockburn of The Independent looks into the current situation in light of Sadr’s history with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.]

Related Entries

• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy
• January 29, 2012 ‘Our Sky Is Our Sky, Not the USA’s Sky’
• January 23, 2012 Marine Pleads Guilty in Haditha Massacre Case
• December 15, 2011 The Iraq War Is Officially Over
• December 6, 2011 Dozens Killed in Afghan Bombings

A new civil war may be looming in Iraq as American-backed Iraqi government forces battle Shiite militiamen for control of Basra and parts of Baghdad.

Related Entries

• February 18, 2012 Syrian Troops Kill Mourner at Damascus Funeral
• February 15, 2012 White House Isn’t Buying What Syria Is Selling
• February 11, 2012 Syrian General Killed by Gunmen in Damascus
• February 8, 2012 State Department to Downsize Massive Baghdad Embassy
• February 8, 2012 27 Dead as Violence Escalates in Homs

All governments lie in wartime, but American and British propaganda in Iraq over the past five years has been more untruthful than in any other conflict since the First World War.

Related Entries

• February 17, 2012 Pay Close Attention to China
• February 15, 2012 The Afghan War’s Nine Lives
• February 15, 2012 White House Isn’t Buying What Syria Is Selling
• February 15, 2012 Congress Might Actually Make a Payroll Tax Deal Soon
• February 13, 2012 Independent Voters Swing to Obama

Ahmadinejad’s unprecedented trip to Baghdad demonstrates his nation’s influence on its neighbor since the fall of Saddam.

Related Entries

• February 17, 2012 Pay Close Attention to China
• February 16, 2012 The Imperial Way: American Decline in Perspective, Part 2
• February 15, 2012 The Afghan War’s Nine Lives
• February 13, 2012 Independent Voters Swing to Obama
• February 9, 2012 Steve Jobs, According to the FBI