Today in Iraq

War News for March 10, 2004 Bring ‘em on: Spanish troops under mortar fire near Diwanlya. Bring ‘em on: Two American contractors and Iraqi interpreter killed in ambush near Hilla. Bring ‘em on: Two US soldiers wounded in unspecified explosion. Bring ‘em on: More explosions and small arms fire reported in Baghdad. Bring ‘em on: Bomb at SCIRI office in Baquba wounds one Iraqi. Bring ‘em on: One Italian Carabinieri wounded, four Iraqi policemen killed in firefight with Shi’ite militia near Nasiriyah. Bring ‘em on: Mosul police chief survives attempted assassination. CPA awards contract to run pro-democracy advertising campaign in Iraq. Halliburton reports $85 million profit on $3.6 billion revenue from Iraq contracts. Iraqi farmers claim US occupation is damaging agriculture. Arab-Kurd tensions continue to build in Kirkuk. Armed guards for schoolchildren. “His is a typical story of the new Iraq: a man with a thriving business selling satellite dishes but who lives in fear in a lawless country.” The US Fourth Estate and Iraq. “The study, by the university's Center for International and Security Studies, concluded that newspaper coverage generally failed to adequately question the U.S. administration's efforts to link its campaign against Iraq and the ‘war on terror’…’Too many journalists acted as virtual stenographers for the current administration, in effect validating President (George W.) Bush's linkage of terrorism, Iraq and weapons of mass destruction,’ said University of Maryland journalism professor Susan Moeller, the report's author.” Rummy’s end-run on the CIA. “Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Tenet said he was unaware until recently that the Pentagon unit had presented its findings to the offices of Vice President Dick Cheney and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice. It is not clear whether Cheney or Rice was present for the briefing, which was mentioned in a Defense Department letter released by the Armed Services Committee on Tuesday… The Pentagon unit was created by Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. Feith has said the unit comprised a handful of intelligence analysts, and that it was established to examine state sponsorship of terrorism, but it is principally known for its efforts to assemble evidence linking Iraq to al Qaeda.” Northern oil pipeline still requires major repairs. The Problem of the Grudge Informer. Where is Lon Fuller when we need him? Commentary Opinion: “The coalition’s track record of rule in Iraq is a pitiful one ­ a catalogue of errors and misjudgments. It is time for the coalition to step down and pass responsibility to a democratically elected Iraqi government. Despite the UN verdict, which is also a truly fallible institution that has made its share of mistakes in the past, and repeated claims by the coalition that the security situation makes elections impossible, it is time to accept that it is the coalition’s presence that creates such a situation.” Editorial: “President Bush also wants Iraq to be someone else's worry when the fall campaign begins in earnest. That's why the June 30 deadline originally was set. Bush isn't about to let it slip.” Editorial: “Constitution-making is a classic Muslim crisis. The demand for the ‘shariah’ is a latent emotion that becomes overpowering after the achievement of a state. Pakistan began as a secular state under the Quaid-e-Azam, then trimmed its sails a bit under Liaquat Ali Khan and his Objectives Resolution, only to fall in the trap of General Ziaul Haq and his ‘shariah’. The worst years of Pakistan were experienced under the ‘shariah’ and the jihad it unleashed in the region. The irony is that after the Muslims have achieved a legal shipwreck they tend to go into denial and refuse to accept that the ‘shariah’ is responsible for it. Indeed, often they insist that the shipwreck is due to a scarcity of shariah rather than an abundance of it. When Ayatollah Khomeini imposed his ‘shariah’, the Pakistani clergy started coveting it; when Mullah Umar went one better on him in Afghanistan, Pakistan began yearning for Talibanisation. No one learns any lessons; in fact, lessons don’t even register. That is why the news that Iran’s ‘shariah’ has abolished ‘rijm’ (stoning to death) and Egypt’s ‘shariah’ has allowed ‘riba’ (bank interest) has not reached Pakistan.” Casualty Reports Local story: Louisiana soldier dies in Iraq. Local story: Florida soldier wounded in Iraq. Local story: Pennsylvania soldier wounded in Iraq. Local story: North Dakota Marine dies in Kuwait. 86-43-04. Pass it on.