John Irving, a British oil trader was arrested yesterday on U.S. charges of paying bribes to Saddam Hussein as part of the U.N. oil-for-food program for Iraq.
Irving was detained in London, by the Metropolitan Police, on a U.S. extradition warrant. He appeared at the city's Westminster Magistrates Court and was released on bail until his next hearing on July 20.
Irving was one of three men charged in New York in 2005 with defrauding the United Nations of at least $100M, money that should have gone to humanitarian aid for Iraqis.
The other two men, Texas oil executive David Chalmers and Bulgarian oil trader Ludmil Dionissiev, have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The extradition warrant accuses Irving of colluding with Chalmers and others to defraud the U.N., and pay "illegal and secret commissions and surcharges to officials of the government of Iraq" between January 2000 and March 2003.
Irving has previously denied any wrongdoing.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Pentagon Paints Grim Picture
A report issued by the Pentagon yesterday states that in the three months since sending in a "surge" of US troops, the overall levels of violence in Iraq have not decreased. All that has happened is that the violence has been displaced from Baghdad and Anbar, where U.S. forces are concentrated, to rise in most other provinces.
The report also notes that Iraq's government has proven "uneven" in delivering on its commitments under the strategy. Public pledges by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have in many cases produced no concrete results.
The report notes that:
"some analysts see a growing fragmentation of Iraq....the Iraqi people would be better off if the country were divided into three or more separate countries."
A mess by anyone's standards.
The report also notes that Iraq's government has proven "uneven" in delivering on its commitments under the strategy. Public pledges by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have in many cases produced no concrete results.
The report notes that:
"some analysts see a growing fragmentation of Iraq....the Iraqi people would be better off if the country were divided into three or more separate countries."
A mess by anyone's standards.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Powell Calls For Closure of Guantanamo Bay
Former United States Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday that the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay for foreign terrorism suspects should be immediately closed, and its inmates moved to the US.
Mr Powell, who in a 2003 speech to the UN Security Council made the case for war against Iraq for possessing weapons of mass destruction that were never found, described the prison in Cuba as a "major problem" for the US's image abroad and has done more harm than good.
Quote:
"Guantanamo has become a major, major problem ... in the way the world perceives America, and if it were up to me I would close Guantanamo, not tomorrow but this afternoon ... and I would not let any of those people go. I would simply move them to the United States and put them into our federal legal system.
Essentially, we have shaken the belief the world had in America's justice system by keeping a place like Guantanamo open and creating things like the military commission. We don't need it and it is causing us far more damage than any good we get for it."
That's all very well, but why did he not say this several years ago?
Mr Powell, who in a 2003 speech to the UN Security Council made the case for war against Iraq for possessing weapons of mass destruction that were never found, described the prison in Cuba as a "major problem" for the US's image abroad and has done more harm than good.
Quote:
"Guantanamo has become a major, major problem ... in the way the world perceives America, and if it were up to me I would close Guantanamo, not tomorrow but this afternoon ... and I would not let any of those people go. I would simply move them to the United States and put them into our federal legal system.
Essentially, we have shaken the belief the world had in America's justice system by keeping a place like Guantanamo open and creating things like the military commission. We don't need it and it is causing us far more damage than any good we get for it."
That's all very well, but why did he not say this several years ago?
Monday, June 11, 2007
Verdict Soon on Chemical Ali
The Iraqi court trying Saddam Hussein's cousin Ali Hassan al-Majid, aka "Chemical Ali", and other former regime officials for their roles in a 1980s military campaign against the Kurds said Sunday that it would issue a verdict on 24 June.
They all face a possible death sentence, if convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
They all face a possible death sentence, if convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Turkey Invades Iraq?
There are unsubstantiated reports that hundreds of Turkish soldiers crossed into Northern Iraq on Wednesday, pursuing Kurdish guerrillas who stage attacks on Turkey from hideouts there.
In the event that these reports are true, it would embarrass the United States and be seen as a broad indictment of its Iraq policy.
In the event that these reports are true, it would embarrass the United States and be seen as a broad indictment of its Iraq policy.
Friday, June 08, 2007
Bolton on Newsnight
BBC Newsnight's Jeremy Paxman interviews former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton in March 2007, and gets under his skin.
No Improvement
Lt. General Douglas E. Lute, President Bush's nominee Iraq war czar, said yesterday that conditions in Iraq have not improved significantly, despite the so called "surge" of U.S. troops in recent months.
General Lute went on to say that, absent any major political reform, violence will continue to rage over the next year.
General Lute, asked by Bush to serve as a new high-powered White House coordinator of the war, told senators at a confirmation hearing that Iraqi factions "have shown so far very little progress" toward the reconciliation necessary to stem the bloodshed.
If that does not change, he said, "we're not likely to see much difference in the security situation" a year from now.
The war is unwinnable, the only reason that Bush keeps the troops there is so that he does not lose face before his term of office expires.
General Lute went on to say that, absent any major political reform, violence will continue to rage over the next year.
General Lute, asked by Bush to serve as a new high-powered White House coordinator of the war, told senators at a confirmation hearing that Iraqi factions "have shown so far very little progress" toward the reconciliation necessary to stem the bloodshed.
If that does not change, he said, "we're not likely to see much difference in the security situation" a year from now.
The war is unwinnable, the only reason that Bush keeps the troops there is so that he does not lose face before his term of office expires.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
British Army Moral Falls
Not surprisingly the unwinnable war in Iraq is sapping the moral of the British army.
BBC Newsnight reports that sources within the army have stated that the only reason that they and the US troops remain in Iraq, is to ensure that Bush is not seen to "lead" the withdrawal before the next presidential election.
Bush prefers to save face rather than lives in this unwinnable conflict.
The Newsnight video report can be watched via this link Newsnight.
BBC Newsnight reports that sources within the army have stated that the only reason that they and the US troops remain in Iraq, is to ensure that Bush is not seen to "lead" the withdrawal before the next presidential election.
Bush prefers to save face rather than lives in this unwinnable conflict.
The Newsnight video report can be watched via this link Newsnight.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Leave Now
Sir Christopher Meyer, the UK's former ambassador to Washington, has told the Iraq Commission in London that the British and American military presence in Iraq is worsening security across the region and should be withdrawn quickly.
Quote:
"I personally believe that the presence of American and British and coalition forces is making things worse, not only inside Iraq but the wider region around Iraq. The arguments against staying for any greater length of time themselves strengthen with every day that passes.
I think the Iraqis are in fact sorting themselves out - often bloodily - independent of what we're doing."
This comes at the same time that the Americans themselves have realised that the security "surge" in Baghdad is failing.
As per the New York Times:
"Three months after the start of the Baghdad security plan that has added thousands of American and Iraqi troops to the capital, they control fewer than one-third of the city's neighborhoods, far short of the initial goal for the operation, according to some commanders and an internal military assessment.
The American assessment, completed in late May, found that American and Iraqi forces were able to 'protect the population' and 'maintain physical influence over' only 146 of the 457 Baghdad neighborhoods."
Mission accomplished!
Quote:
"I personally believe that the presence of American and British and coalition forces is making things worse, not only inside Iraq but the wider region around Iraq. The arguments against staying for any greater length of time themselves strengthen with every day that passes.
I think the Iraqis are in fact sorting themselves out - often bloodily - independent of what we're doing."
This comes at the same time that the Americans themselves have realised that the security "surge" in Baghdad is failing.
As per the New York Times:
"Three months after the start of the Baghdad security plan that has added thousands of American and Iraqi troops to the capital, they control fewer than one-third of the city's neighborhoods, far short of the initial goal for the operation, according to some commanders and an internal military assessment.
The American assessment, completed in late May, found that American and Iraqi forces were able to 'protect the population' and 'maintain physical influence over' only 146 of the 457 Baghdad neighborhoods."
Mission accomplished!
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Call For Release of Detainees
The defence team of Saddam Hussein and his assistants, have called for the release of all the Former Army Officials accused in Al Anfal case.
The attorney of the defence, Khalil Al Dulaymi, called in a statement to release the detainees in Al Anfal case and to issue a decision in order to close all the investigations and the trials. He added that Iraq didn't witness such investigations and trials even in the times of Inspection Courts.
The attorney of the defence, Khalil Al Dulaymi, called in a statement to release the detainees in Al Anfal case and to issue a decision in order to close all the investigations and the trials. He added that Iraq didn't witness such investigations and trials even in the times of Inspection Courts.
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