Blair Admits Iraq a Disaster

Tony Blair admitted in an interview with David Frost, on Al-Jazeera's new English-language channel, that the invasion of Iraq was "a disaster".

No kidding!

Violence at Satanic Levels

General Michael Hayden, the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, has said that violence in Iraq has reached almost satanic levels, and is fearful that the Iraqi Government is not capable of bringing it under control.

General Hayden was speaking during an appearance before the Senate's Armed Services Committee in Washington.

General Hayden also said that the situation will get much worse if US troops start leaving the country.

The US is caught between a rock and a hard place on this issue, without any proespect of a painless solution.

Who was it said "Mission Accomplished"?

US Denies Rift With UK

The White House has denied that there is a split between the administrations in London and Washington, as to the future policy on Iraq.

Tony Blair has called for Syria and Iran to help stabilise Iraq, this runs contra to the stated policy in Washington.

Blair also gave his views to the bipartisan US study group, reassessing Washington's policy in Iraq, via video link. He said that resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with broad regional support, would pressure Damascus and Tehran to co-operate.

The Iraq Study Group is led by former Secretary of State James Baker, who believes that Washington should talk to its enemies.

Dalai Lama Calls For Saddam To Be Spared

The Dalai Lama has asked for Saddam Hussein to be spared the death sentence. The Dalai Lama asked the Iraqi authorities to consider that the guilty should get a chance to reform.

In a statement, issued from his office in India, the Dalai Lama said:

"The death penalty, although fulfils a preventive function, is clearly a form of revenge.

However horrible the act committed, His Holiness believes that everyone has the potential to improve and correct themselves."

Adding:

"His Holiness hopes that in this case, as in all others, human life will be respected and spared."

Bush Starts Drinking Again

It is reported that President Bush has started drinking again:

"Rumours persist here (and I have heard them repeated at a very senior level in the UK, too) that Bush has actually resumed drinking; I throw this into the mix not to sensationalise, but because I have now heard the rumour repeated at a sufficiently high level that I believe we must face the possibility that it might be true.

Bush was huddled inside the White House eating beef and ice cream on election night with Rove, my friend Josh Bolten, and four other trusted aides who will stick with him to the end. He was not drinking on this occasion, I'm assured - but, more than ever, my depiction of an unstable man living out his final days in office inside his bunker seem no longer to be fanciful.

Hemmed in by Democratic foes wherever he looks, determined to be remembered in history as an unwaveringly strong leader, and increasingly detached from reality: now that suddenly becomes a very frightening vision indeed."

Source: New Statesman

What Goes Around, Comes Around

In an interesting reversal of fate, it appears that Donald Rumsfeld one of the men primarily responsible for the Iraq fiasco may face criminal abuse charges.

Rumsfeld, who was "resigned" as US defence secretary this week, may face criminal charges in Germany for alleged abuses in Guantanamo Bay and Iraq.

The US group Centre for Constitutional Rights, representing a Saudi detained in Cuba and 11 Iraqis held in Baghdad, has filed a criminal complaint against Rumsfeld.

German law allows the pursuit of cases originating anywhere in the world.

A similar request was made in 2004 by the centre, but German prosecutors dropped that case.

The argument runs that Rumsfeld was instrumental in abuses committed at Guantanamo Bay and at Abu Ghraib jail in Baghdad, and that Rumsfeld personally approved torture to be used to extract information from the prisoners.

In addition to filing charges against Rumsfeld, the centre also wants to prosecute US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and former CIA director George Tenet.

The complaint will be filed with German federal prosecutors on Tuesday.

How ironic that as Saddam has been brought to a form of "justice", those that initiated the attack should also face legal scrutiny for their actions. It is even more ironic given Rumsfeld's association with Saddam back in the 1980's.

Verdict Timing "Suspect"

The row over the delay in delivering the verdict on Saddam Hussein's first trial, to the 5th of November (two days before the US midterms), won't go away.

The former British Foreign Secretary, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, has accused the US of delaying the verdict deliberately to coincide with the midterms.

He was speaking on the BBC show "Question Time", and said that the timing of the verdict was "deeply suspect".

The White House claims that the accusations are "preposterous", saying that the Iraqi judges determined the timing.

The trouble is that justice must not just be done, but be seen to be done.

Sir Malcolm does not believe the US, and said that he believed the US told the Iraqi court to hold off until just before the US elections.

President Bush, before being given a "thumping" in the midterms, welcomed the verdict as a "milestone" in the efforts of the Iraqi people "to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law".

Downing Street has refused to comment on Sir Malcolm's "suspicions".

To repeat, justice must not just be done but be seen to be done. Where there is suspicion of political interference the justice system itself is brought into disrepute, and its decisions laid open to criticism.

Saddam's Second Trial Continues

Saddam Hussein and six of his aides were back in court yesterday, as his second trial continued.

The defence demanded that the court order an investigation into the ransacking of the defence offices, guarded by U.S. soldiers in the heavily fortified Green Zone, last month.

Badie Aref Izzat said:

"I demand to open investigation with the American authorities because the offices were guarded by U.S. soldiers.

I have received 1429 pieces of totally black papers."

The judge ordered that the prosecutors provide a new set of documents to the defence team.

Four witnesses took the stand to testify in the trial of operation Anfal (Spoils of War) military campaign, in which prosecutors said that up to 180,000 Kurds were killed.

Ayoub Abdellah Mohammad said that his village was bombed by chemical weapons on August 24 1988:

"The court can now scrutinize the village to see the remains of bombing, rockets and shrapnel."

Tawfeeq Abdul-Aziz Mustafa said that his village was bombed by chemical weapons, and that he and several villagers buried some badly charred bodies before they fled to neighboring Turkey.

A third female witness said that she lost her husband and her son along with 27 other relatives, and have not found them till now.

However, one of Saddam's codefendants, Sabir al-Douri, from military intelligence, said that Kurdish guerrillas were collaborating with the Iranians.

Judge Ureiybi adjourned the trial till November 27th, to give the defence time to assemble a list of witnesses.

Rumsfeld Goes

Yesterday's article was right about Rumsfeld leaving office before the year end, see Rumsfeld To Go.

However, he went faster than predicted.

Sorry about that!

Rumsfeld To Go

Donald Rumsfeld the failed US Defence Secretary and one of the main architects of the failed Iraq invasion and occupation, will be leaving office before the end of this year.

Source Channel 4 News 7 November 2007 (click on the watch the report link)

Candidates to replace him are being approached, two have already declined the poison chalice. However, it is expected that Senator John Warner will replace him.

At the time of writing the Democrats have swept to power in Congress, the final results for the Senate are yet to be announced. Dick Cheney, another man with blood on his hands, has gone shooting.