MetaFilter posts tagged with Iraq

WSJ's Middle East Real Time blog

mediareport — Thu, 09 May 2013 20:47:08 -0800

Since the end of March, the Wall Street Journal's new Middle East Real Time blog has written about Turkey's "unstoppable" export boom in soap operas, Saudi Arabia's "life after jihad" rehab program, the persistence of obviously fraudulent bomb detectors across Iraq, YouTube branding discussions among Syrian rebel factions, a rising media star Sunni cleric in Lebanon, a post-revolutionary Cairo arts festival, and attempts to overcome conservative objections and change the Saudi Thursday-Friday weekend to match the rest of the business world. Previous non-paywalled WSJ Real Time blogs include Korea, China, Canada, India, Brussels, Emerging Europe, Japan.

Crossing the "Red Line"?

the man of twists and turns — Thu, 02 May 2013 10:45:13 -0800

Syria Options Go From Bad To Worse

As reports have surfaced of possible use of sarin gas in the Syrian civil war, calls by long-time proponents of U.S. intervention on behalf of the anti-Assad rebels have grown to a fever pitch. These same voices, both at home and abroad, have evoked the administration’s previously stated “red line” on use of chemical weapons. But even assuming that reports of WMD usage in Syria turn out to be true, the Obama Administration’s position may be far more nuanced than previously thought.

Why would the US get involved in Syria? Civilian deaths, chemical weapons use (and proliferation), and mounting refugee crisis, and unrest in Lebanon are reasons for intervention. But should it? Obama Appears At A Loss To Define The Way Forward In Syria Why Obama Doesn't Want To Intervene In Syria and Obama's Case Against The War In Syria. Sentors Graham and McCain respond: "There are many options at our disposal, including military options short of boots on the ground in Syria, that can make a positive impact on this crisis, which is destabilizing the region. The President must act now or risk squandering U.S. credibility in Syria and around the world." Is Barack Obama A Republican Realist? Various groups have attached themselves to factions in the conflict. Hezbollah announced that Syria has "real friends in the region and world" and that they support al-Assad. Opposition group the al-Nusrah Front has "merged" with Al-Qaeda In Iraq. Al-Qaeda's battle for control of Assad's chemical weapons plant - "A battle near a factory believed to be one of the Syrian regime's main chemical weapons plants shows just how close such weapons could be to falling into al-Qaeda's hands." Intervention isn't guaranteed to work. The "Libyan model" or "Malian model" for foreign military support may not be repeatable in Syria. Even With US Guns, Syria's Rebels Still Might Lose. But what might intervention look like? Drone strikes? Boots-on-the-ground? Safe havens? No-fly zones? "Decapitation strike"? Simply material support? Or are there just no good military options?

The question has been, and remains: Does the U.S. have the capacity to end the violence, in any meaningful way, within the immediate future?

The conflict and the weapons of war aren't limited to Syria. Repercussions and implications extend through the region: The Syria-Iran Red Line Show Want to fix Syria? Talk to Iran Syrian Conflict Casts Long Shadow Over Iraq More Syrian Refugees Will Cause Crisis In Jordan as Jordan Weighs Syria Buffer Zone Israel Sees US Respons As Gauge for Iran. The Onion Goes To War

COIN 101

exogenous — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:58:15 -0800

A short photo essay documenting a marine's experience of counterinsurgency (COIN) operations in Iraq. via.

"Never, ever let anybody use your gender as an excuse."

zarq — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 18:55:06 -0800

"Women get flustered under fire. They're too fragile, too emotional. They lack the ferocity required to take a life. They can't handle pain. They're a distraction, a threat to cohesion, a provocative tease to close-quartered men. These are the sort of myths you hear from people who oppose the U.S. military's evolving new rules about women in combat. But for women who have already been in combat, who have earned medals fighting alongside men, the war stories they tell don't sound a thing like myths" Multi-page link to the article. Additional Feature * Women of the 101st Airborne Division: "As part of Nathaniel Penn's "Natural Born Killers"—an oral history documenting the experiences of American female soldiers on the field that marks the official lifting of the U.S. military ban on women in combat roles—in the May issue of GQ, we spoke to a group of female servicewomen currently stationed in Fort Campbell, K.Y. as they prepare for deployment to Afghanistan this spring. These soldiers were assigned to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division roughly a year ago as part the Women in The Service Review program. The program first introduced women to historically male-held roles in combat arms battalions—an experiment, in part, to make sure that they could handle it. Mission accomplished. Here, five of them talk to us about past deployments, navigating expectations, and their changing roles in the Army."
Video * "Natural Born Killers: Battle Tested" * "Natural Born Killers: Battle Ready, Women of the 101st Airborne"

Riverbend returns

the duck by the oboe — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 17:25:29 -0800

Baghdad Burning, a blog written by an Iraqi woman during the course of the invasion of Iraq and its aftermath, has had its first update since 2007.

We learned that you can be floating on a sea of oil, but your people can be destitute. Your city can be an open sewer; your women and children can be eating out of trash dumps and begging for money in foreign lands. We learned that justice does not prevail in this day and age. Innocent people are persecuted and executed daily. Some of them in courts, some of them in streets, and some of them in the private torture chambers. We are learning that corruption is the way to go. You want a passport issued? Pay someone. You want a document ratified? Pay someone. You want someone dead? Pay someone. We learned that it’s not that difficult to make billions disappear.

"There will be plenty of time to edit and stylize it later."

timsteil — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 12:18:09 -0800

His Horse Was Named Death: The Iraq War Diary of 1st LT Tim McLaughlin, USMC McLaughlin is a walk-on to history. His diary begins at the Pentagon on the morning of the 9/11 attacks, jumps to his deployment in Kuwait, follows him into battle during the invasion of Baghdad, and recounts the moment his own American flag was draped over the statue of Saddam Hussein in Firdos Square -- an iconic image of the U.S. invasion. But the diary is much more than just a retelling of the early days of the Iraq war: It's at times wryly funny, tragic, brutal -- and, above all, honest.

Iraq: 10 Years After Invasion

homunculus — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 10:10:34 -0800

Iraq: 10 Years After Invasion. "The United States invaded Iraq on March 19, 2003 on the false pretext that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. The mass destruction of the invasion, occupation, and civil war followed, and amplified the societal and health disintegration caused by the previous decade of sanctions. Iraqi lives and communities remain war-devastated ten years on. American military and contractor families struggle with the loss of loved ones as well as the emotional and economic burdens of living with long-term injuries and illnesses. Total US federal spending associated with the Iraq war has been $1.7 trillion through FY2013. In addition, future health and disability payments for veterans will total $590 billion and interest accrued to pay for the war will add up to $3.9 trillion." "The goal of the Costs of War project has been to outline a broad understanding of the domestic and international costs and consequences of those wars. A team of 30 economists, anthropologists, political scientists, legal experts, and physicians were assembled to do this analysis. Their research papers are posted and summarized on this website."

She Who Tells a Story

nangar — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:43:27 -0800

I feel creatively emboldened to personally say something on the subjects that I am documenting. In terms of how it is produced, intellectually I am more excited than I have been in years. I am envisioning so many more possibilities for the work ... I feel for first time empowered on my own terms. We are calling our own shots and have created somewhat of our own institution.

An interview with the six-woman Middle Eastern documentary photography collective Rawiya, whose name means "female narrator" in Arabic. The individual members' websites:

Tanya Habjouqa Tamara Abdul Hadi Myriam Abdelaziz Laura Boushnak Newsha Tavakolian Dalia Khamissy

Rawiya has ongoing exhibitions at Bildmuseet in Umeå, Sweden, and The New Art Exchange in Nottingham, England.

How the Bush administration sold the Iraq war

shivohum — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 09:04:09 -0800

“Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction,” Cheney said. “There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies and against us.” Zinni, sitting right next to Cheney’s lectern, says he “literally bolted” when he heard the vice president’s comments. “In doing work with the CIA on Iraq WMD [weapons of mass destruction], through all the briefings I heard at Langley, I never saw one piece of credible evidence that there was an ongoing program.” Rachel Maddow hosts Hubris: The Selling of the Iraq War, a documentary special, based on the eponymous book by Michael Isikoff and David Corn, that will air Monday, February 18 on MSNBC at 9 p.m.

Will oil companies provide Kurdistan its de facto statehood?

the man of twists and turns — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 12:11:18 -0800

Iraq, Kurds, Turks and oil - A tortuous triangle The governments of Turkey, Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan play a dangerous game Kurdistan's Vast Reservess Draw Oil Majors

“Kurdistan is the oil exploration capital of the world,” says Tony Hayward, the former chief executive of BP, now chief executive of Genel Energy, the largest independent oil producer in the region. Exxon’s decision to enter the region in 2011 was a turning point, with Chevron, Total and Gazprom following in its wake. The KRG says their arrival should silence critics who question the legality of the production-sharing contracts it has signed with international energy groups. “[Exxon’s arrival] is an endorsement of our policy,” says Ashti Hawrami, the KRG’s minister of natural resources. Baghdad says the Exxon contract and the roughly 50 other deals the KRG has signed are unconstitutional and has barred oil companies that enter the north from participating in Iraqi oil licensing rounds. It has also made life hard for oil companies operating in KRG-controlled areas who often have to wait months for Baghdad to pay them for the oil they produce.

With Or Without Exxon, Iraq Kurds Strive For Energy Autonomy

Behind the closed doors of their offices in the United States, top executives and lawyers for Exxon Mobil are poring over two sets of contracts, weighing a decision that could shift the balance of power in Iraq.

Exxon, Kurdistan Visit Disputed Iraqi Oil Block leading to Exxon's Deal With The Kurds Inflames Baghdad

The bombshell exploded last month when Exxon Mobil, the world's largest oil company, defied the instructions of the Baghdad government and signed a deal with the Iraqi Kurds to search for oil in the northern area of Iraq they control. To make matters worse, three of the areas Exxon has signed up to explore are on territory the two authorities dispute. The government must now decide if it will retaliate by kicking Exxon out of a giant oilfield it is developing in the south of Iraq.

Chevron Acquires New Stake in Kurdish Oil License

The company and the Kurdish regional government have agreed on the terms of the deal but have yet to sign it, the official said. The Iraqi central government has barred Chevron from having oil contracts in central and southern Iraq since the California-based company bought stakes in the two oil-exploration blocks.

Kurds Warn BP Not To Drill For Baghdad BP and ExxonMobil take up opposite sides of the front lines in Iraq Kurdistan To Resume Oil Exports Via Turkey and Iraqi Kurds Press Ahead With Pipeline Plans Iraq And The Kurds: The High-Stakes Hydrocarbons Gambit Will oil companies provide Kurdistan its de facto statehood?

"The terms in the north are much better. The government gets a stake, but the better you do, the more you get, and the terms are attractive," he said. Plus the overall conditions are "night and day better" in Kurdistan than in Baghdad, he said. "You fly into a very modern, efficient airport. There are good hotels, good infrastructure." When combined with the Kurdish authorities’ already-existing plans to build independent oil and natural gas export pipelines out of Kurdistan that avoid the Arab regions of Iraq entirely, the oil deals look increasingly like a robust, commercial-led carving out of the region as a stand-alone entity. Some might call it another substantial piece of the puzzle toward the creation of the Kurds’ longstanding national dream — a state of their own.

"I watched the entire street turn hot and black with smoke and then, after a few minutes, stared up at the hole in the roof and saw thousands of small gray ashes—pieces of paper, books, newspapers—floating down from the sky."

Kattullus — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 14:12:30 -0800

Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here is a project initiated by San Francisco bookseller and poet Beau Beausoleil that began as a response to the 2007 bombing [previously on MeFi] of the Baghdad bookselling center Al-Mutanabbi Street. After the attack the authorities made an effort to revive the area but recently the government has begun to make life difficult for the booksellers and intends to turn the street into an animal market. The Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here project consists of book art created by 260 artists and authors from all over the world, but also includes essays, exhibitions and readings, some of which have been put online as videos. You can see a lot of artists' books online at the Jaffe Center for Book Arts and the Centre for Fine Print Research (1, 2, 3). The history of the project was told in a recent essay in World Literature Today by Persis M. Karim.

Decontaminating Halabja

marienbad — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 14:02:54 -0800

Halabja chemical weapons: A chance to find the men who armed Saddam? "Nearly 25 years ago, Iraqi forces killed thousands of their own civilians using chemical weapons on the Kurdish town of Halabja. Now steps are about to be taken to discover which country - and possibly which factory - supplied some of the chemicals." Via BBC

"As long as you're breathing, life is worth living."

zarq — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 22:24:04 -0800

Six years ago, US Army Captain Ivan Castro was severely wounded in a mortar attack in Iraq that left him permanently and completely blinded. Today, he's one of only three blind active duty Army officers, and the very first to serve in the US Army Special Forces. Thirteen months and 36 surgeries after the attack, Castro ran the 2007 Marine Corps Marathon in 4:14 and the Army Ten Miler in 1:25. And he's still going: In the last 15 months, he's completed 14 marathons. Why? "Because I still can. Because people need to see what's possible." As of June, 2011, Captain Castro had completed "an astounding 18 marathons, 11 half marathons, four Army 10-milers, two 50-mile ultra marathons, two triathlons and an ascent to Grays Peak, one of the highest mountains in Colorado." "...he has met with members of Congress to advocate for wounded veterans' participation in the Paralympics, spoken at military and civilian events to encourage employers to hire the blind, and counseled disabled soldiers. When he visits injured veterans, his message is simple: As long as you're breathing, life is worth living." (Additional photos.) * CNN: True Champion: Blind Army Hero runs marathon * CNN Money: A Soldier's Story: Financial Rehab Accompanying Photos / Audio Commentary. * Photoessay and Article from FoxNewschannel * Profile in the National Review: Captain Extraordinary

De-listing of the MEK

Blasdelb — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 03:53:32 -0800

The Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), or People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, is an Iranian dissident group that has been formally designated for the last 15 years by the US State Department as a "foreign terrorist organization". When the Bush administration sought to justify its attack on Iraq in 2003 by accusing Saddam Hussein of being a sponsor of "international terrorism", one of its prime examples was Iraq's "sheltering" of the MEK. Its inclusion on the terrorist list has meant that it is a felony to provide any "material support" to that group. Now, in the with the support of A-list American politicians who have been handsomely compensated for their efforts, the MEK are being delisted. Glenn Greenwald draws Five lessons from the de-listing of MEK as a terrorist group

There is a separate justice system in the US for Muslim Americans.

The US government is not opposed to terrorism; it favors it.

"Terrorism" remains the most meaningless, and thus the most manipulated, term in political discourse.

Legalized influence-peddling within both parties is what drives DC.

There is aggression between the US and Iran, but it's generally not from Iran.

Previously, Previouslier

Do the work Indiana Jones couldn't be bothered with

MartinWisse — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 13:55:11 -0800

Between 1922 and 1934 archaeologists from the University of Pennsylvania and the British Museum embarked on a large scale excavation of the Mesopotamian city of Ur, one of the world's earliest cities. That excavation generated a huge mass of documents (lettres, field notes, dig report etc.) and now you can help to digitally transcribe them.

Overcoming student debt by working in war zone

Brandon Blatcher — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 16:10:04 -0800

"If I had felt any unease that I was potentially exploiting a horrible situation for personal gain, it was short-lived. The next four months were the most stressful, difficult, and dangerous of my life until that point, and probably—hopefully—ever. ... On December 31, 2004, I achieved a couple of significant milestones: I made my final student loan payment, and I had a positive net worth for the first time in my adult life. Mortars, rockets, and car bombs aside, that was pretty satisfying."

Now I’m home and I’m blind and I’m broke/What is next?

spitbull — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 07:13:50 -0800

"Hell Broke Luce" -- a surreal anti-war video from Tom Waits for his powerful song based on the harrowing story of Lance Corporal Jeff Lucey, a 23-year old Iraq war Marine veteran who committed suicide in 2004. From Waits' 22d album Bad As Me (2011, AntiRecords) Lucey was also one of the subjects of a Frontline documentary called "The Soldier's Heart." (His case significantly complicates our current understanding of the horrors of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder for veterans.) Song lyrics at LyricsWiki. Commentary on "Hell Broke Luce" at Common Dreams. An alternate video to the song using images from Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. And from the first user comment on YouTube: I'm an Iraq vet. This song evokes an amazing emotional reaction in me. So much of this is directly applicable to my experiences. Shit, Tom. Shit. Thank you so much for this. NPR First Listen on Bad As Me. Sasha Frere-Jones on Bad as Me. Of course, this is not Waits' first powerful anti-war song. (I recommend reading the description under this YT video.)

How to kill a rational peasant

homunculus — Sun, 17 Jun 2012 14:00:57 -0800

How to kill a rational peasant: America's dangerous love affair with counterinsurgency. [Via]

It was a good war. (For some.)

markkraft — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 12:34:08 -0800

Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp., repeatedly lobbied Tony Blair to invade Iraq. In the days leading up to the invasion, Tony Blair's Director of Communications wrote that "(Blair) took a call from Murdoch who was pressing on timings, saying how News International would support us, etc. Both TB and I felt it was prompted by Washington, and another example of their over-crude diplomacy. Murdoch was pushing all the Republican buttons, how the longer we waited the harder it got." The phone call in question took place just days before a crucial vote on Iraq, and was one of three personal calls from Murdoch that Blair received in that week alone. Blair recently testified, admitting an "unhealthy" level of closeness with Murdoch, oftentimes communicating more with him than with his own ministers. In the first 19 days following the invasion of Iraq, Rupert Murdoch's Fox News averaged 3.3 million viewers, a 236% increase from the weeks preceding the war. Huge increases in newspaper sales were seen throughout his global media empire, with advertising revenue soaring to record levels. That empire now faces serious calls for it to be broken up.

You might want to have your surprised face handy.

unSane — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 09:04:29 -0800

Curveball comes clean: "My main purpose was to topple the tyrant in Iraq because the longer this dictator remains in power, the more the Iraqi people will suffer from this regime's oppression." ... When it is put to him "we went to war in Iraq on a lie. And that lie was your lie", he simply replies: "Yes."

Lesson #1: The United States lost.

latkes — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 09:21:47 -0800

Ten Lessons from the Iraq War

No fear! No indecision! Rage against the system of the oppressors!

fearfulsymmetry — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 07:28:54 -0800

Punks Not Dead.... but it can get you killed. Punk rock in oppresive regimes.

a radical experiment in empathy

flex — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 06:52:59 -0800

Sam Richards: A Radical Experiment In Empathy (button underneath the video makes "interactive transcript" available, at link) "Now, you might ask, "Okay, Sam, so why do you do this sort of thing? Why would you use this example of all examples?" And I say, because ... because. You're allowed to hate these people. You're allowed to just hate them with every fiber of your being. And if I can get you to step into their shoes and walk an inch, one tiny inch, then imagine the kind of sociological analysis that you can do in all other aspects of your life. You can walk a mile when it comes to understanding why that person's driving 40 miles per hour in the passing lane, or your teenage son, or your neighbor who annoys you by cutting his lawn on Sunday mornings. Whatever it is, you can go so far. And this is what I tell my students: step outside of your tiny, little world. Step inside of the tiny, little world of somebody else. And then do it again and do it again and do it again. And suddenly all these tiny, little worlds, they come together in this complex web. And they build a big, complex world. And suddenly, without realizing it, you're seeing the world differently. Everything has changed. Everything in your life has changed. And that's, of course, what this is about."

Scott Ritter's Fall.

lalochezia — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:51:22 -0800

Scott Ritter's Other War SL NYTMagazine

WFKATGWOT

crayz — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:22:14 -0800

Andrew Bacevich on the war: "So what tentative judgments can we offer regarding the ongoing [war formerly known as the global war on terrorism]? Operationally, a war launched by the conventionally minded has progressively fallen under the purview of those who inhabit what Dick Cheney once called “the dark side,” with implications that few seem willing to explore. Strategically, a war informed at the outset by utopian expectations continues today with no concretely stated expectations whatsoever, the forward momentum of events displacing serious consideration of purpose. Politically, a war that once occupied center stage in national politics has now slipped to the periphery, the American people moving on to other concerns and entertainments, with legal and moral questions raised by the war left dangling in midair."