Hard News
'Hard News' contains Dahr Jamail's published news reports regarding the Middle East.
May 09, 2008
Running Out of Water in Rising Heat
Inter Press Service
By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail*
BAQUBA, May 9 (IPS) - Water supply is drying out in what was once the agriculturally rich Diyala province north of Baghdad. Baquba, the capital city of Diyala, is now running out of water both for drinking and for irrigation.
Continue reading "Running Out of Water in Rising Heat"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 04:59 PM
May 07, 2008
US presidents-to-be in denial
McCain, Obama and Clinton silent on Iraq exit
May 2008 Issue
As soon as it was clear that the presidential primaries would be the news story of the year in the US, Iraq was dropped by the media. The occupation and the campaign for the presidential nominations were de-linked almost from the start. So we don’t know what the potential candidates would do in Iraq. But pulling troops out doesn’t seem to be an option for any of them.
By Dahr Jamail
Amman, April 2008: the UN undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, John Holmes, said he wanted “to highlight the gravity of the humanitarian situation in Iraq” (1).
New Hampshire, January 2008: the Republican presidential candidate John McCain said: “President Bush has talked about our staying [in Iraq] for 50 years, maybe 100. We’ve been in Japan for 60 years, in South Korea for 50 years or so. That would be fine with me as long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or killed” (2).
Baghdad, April 2008: in an interview with Al-Jazeera, an Iraqi government employee said: “There is no improvement in Baghdad on the security level. All of it is getting worse. We hear about it on TV, but on the ground we see nothing. No services, no security in the streets” (3).
Continue reading "US presidents-to-be in denial"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 01:41 AM
May 03, 2008
Corruption Eats Into Food Rations
Inter Press Service
By Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
FALLUJAH, May 2 (IPS) - Amidst unemployment and impoverishment, Iraqis now face a cutting down of their monthly food ration – much of it already eaten away by official corruption.
Continue reading "Corruption Eats Into Food Rations"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 02:08 AM
May 01, 2008
Falluja's struggle after invasion
Al-Jazeera (I highly recommend reading the piece on the Al-Jazeera website, as it includes photos and video)
By Dahr Jamail
Five years ago, George Bush, the US president, announced aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier that the war in Iraq was a "mission accomplished".
But events in the western Anbar province had already been spiralling out of control and were threatening the volatile security situation in occupied Iraq.
Continue reading "Falluja's struggle after invasion"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 04:59 PM
April 26, 2008
Poverty Gets the Survivors
Inter Press Service
By Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail*
DAMASCUS, Apr 26 (IPS) - More than a million Iraqis were lucky enough to flee into Syria. But in this relatively safe haven, there is no getting away from poverty.
Continue reading "Poverty Gets the Survivors"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 04:59 PM
April 14, 2008
Five Years On, Fallujah in Tatters
Inter Press Service
By Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
FALLUJAH, Apr 14 (IPS) - Fallujah remains a crippled city more than two years after the November 2004 U.S.-led assault.
Continue reading "Five Years On, Fallujah in Tatters"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 10:30 AM
April 12, 2008
From One Dictator to the Next
Inter Press Service
Analysis by Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
BAGHDAD, Apr 12 (IPS) - Many Iraqis have come to believe that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is just as much a dictator as Saddam Hussein was.
Continue reading "From One Dictator to the Next"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 01:38 PM
April 08, 2008
A Little Too Tense to be Truce
Inter Press Service
By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail*
BAQUBA, Apr 8 (IPS) - As violence continues in Baghdad and southern Iraq, it seems quiet on the surface in Baquba, the volatile city 40km north of Baghdad. But few believe truce between the U.S.-backed Awakening Groups and the government security forces can last.
Continue reading "A Little Too Tense to be Truce"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 10:44 AM
April 07, 2008
Shia Battles Spread to Baquba
Inter Press Service
By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail*
BAQUBA, Apr 7 (IPS) - Battles between rival Shia groups have spread from Basra in the south to Baquba in the north.
Continue reading "Shia Battles Spread to Baquba"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 11:01 AM
April 02, 2008
'Handed Over' to a Government Called Sadr
Inter Press Service
By Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
BAGHDAD, Apr 2 (IPS) - Despite the huge media campaign led by U.S. officials and a complicit corporate-controlled media to convince the world of U.S. success in Iraq, emerging facts on the ground show massive failure.
Continue reading "'Handed Over' to a Government Called Sadr"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 07:47 PM
March 31, 2008
Divided Arabs Deliver Little
Inter Press Service
By Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail*
DAMASCUS, Mar 31 (IPS) - The Arab summit held in Damascus over this weekend has convinced many Iraqis that Arab leaders do not speak for them.
Continue reading "Divided Arabs Deliver Little"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 05:20 PM
March 27, 2008
/CORRECTED REPEAT*/IRAQ: Blackwater Fever Comes In New Ways
Inter Press Service
By Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
FALLUJAH, Mar 31 (IPS) - Iraqi doctors in al-Anbar province warn of the spread of Blackwater fever, a complication of malaria. Many Iraqis see that name as ominously one with Blackwater Worldwide, the U.S. mercenary company operating in Iraq.
Continue reading "/CORRECTED REPEAT*/IRAQ: Blackwater Fever Comes In New Ways"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 01:24 AM
March 26, 2008
Fever Named After Blackwater
Inter Press Service
By Ali al-Fadhily and Dahr Jamail*
FALLUJAH, Mar 26 (IPS) - Iraqi doctors in al-Anbar province warn of a new disease they call "Blackwater" that threatens the lives of thousands. The disease is named after Blackwater Worldwide, the U.S. mercenary company operating in Iraq.
Continue reading "Fever Named After Blackwater"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 09:05 PM
March 24, 2008
Syria Now Home to a Million 'Pillow Drivers'
Inter Press Service
By Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail*
DAMASCUS, Mar 24 (IPS) - More than a million Iraqis in Syria cannot find work. For their idleness, they have come to be called the "pillow drivers".
Continue reading "Syria Now Home to a Million 'Pillow Drivers'"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 01:28 PM
March 22, 2008
Winter Soldiers Sound Off
The Progressive
April 2008 Issue
Dahr Jamail
Jason Moon suffers from persistent insomnia as he wrestles with memories of his time in Iraq. “While on our initial convoy into Iraq in early June 2003, we were given a direct order that if any children or civilians got in front of the vehicles in our convoy, we were not to stop, we were not to slow down, we were to keep driving,” says the former National Guard and Army Reserve member. “In the event an insurgent attacked us from behind human shields, we were supposed to count. If there were thirty or less civilians we were allowed to fire into the area. If there were over thirty, we were supposed to take fire and send it up the chain of command. These were the rules of engagement. I don’t know about you, but if you are getting shot at from a crowd of people, how fast are you going to count, and how accurately?”
Continue reading "Winter Soldiers Sound Off"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 09:12 PM
March 18, 2008
IRAQ: Five Years, And Counting
Inter Press Service
Analysis by Dahr Jamail
WASHINGTON, Mar 18 (IPS) - Devastation on the ground and largely held Iraqi opinion contradicts claims by U.S. officials that the situation in Iraq has improved towards the fifth anniversary of the invasion Mar. 19.
Continue reading "IRAQ: Five Years, And Counting"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 01:08 PM
March 17, 2008
Rule, Not Reconciliation
Dahr Jamail | March 17, 2008
Editor: Erik Leaver
As we mark the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq, rhetoric around the "success" of the so-called surge continues. Presidential hopefuls, along with members of the Bush administration, continue to tout "progress," citing fewer U.S. casualties and moves amongst Iraqi groups towards "reconciliation." While indeed, there has been a reduction in violence, it is lost in the headlines that thousands of Iraqis still are losing their lives each month in the conflict. But even worse, the "success" of the surge has the potential to bring violence to all time highs.
Continue reading "Rule, Not Reconciliation"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 03:47 PM
March 15, 2008
US/IRAQ: Rules of Engagement "Thrown Out the Window"
Inter Press Service
By Dahr Jamail
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Mar 15 (IPS) - Garret Reppenhagen received integral training about the Geneva Conventions and the Rules of Engagement during his deployment in Kosovo. But in Iraq, "Much of this was thrown out the window," he says.
Continue reading "US/IRAQ: Rules of Engagement "Thrown Out the Window""
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 04:56 PM
March 14, 2008
US/IRAQ: "We Reacted Out of Fear, and With Total Destruction"
Inter Press Service
By Dahr Jamail
Photo of testimonies
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Mar 14 (IPS) - Hart Viges joined the U.S. Army the day after Sep. 11, 2001, in the belief that he could help make the world a safer place.
Continue reading "US/IRAQ: "We Reacted Out of Fear, and With Total Destruction""
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 07:29 PM
March 10, 2008
Childhood Is Dying
Inter Press Service
By Dahr Jamail and Ahmed Ali*
BAQUBA, Mar 10 (IPS) - Iraq's children have been more gravely affected by the U.S. occupation than any other segment of the population.
Continue reading "Childhood Is Dying"
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at 07:40 PM
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