Also Try
- American Flag
- Anti-War
- Current Events Archives 2002
- Current Events Archives 2003
- Democracy and Corporate Power
- Democracy and Media
- Iraq and War - Comparison of Views
- Pro-War
- World Peace
Lesson Plans
- Iraq Conflict - Debating Iraq (PBS Newshour)
Provides a variety of role play activities to help students understand different perspectives on the Iraq conflict. 2-03
- Iraq Conflict - Exploration for Students (PBS Newshour)
Provides activities, such as role play and debate, for students to explore the issues of conflict with Iraq. Includes resource materials. 2-03
- War in Iraq (Constitutional Rights Foundation)
Provides lessons, articles, and aids to assist teachers to teach students about issues related to war in Iraq. 3-03
- War in Iraq (Massachusetts Teachers Association)
Provides lessons, articles, and aids to assist teachers to teach students about war in Iraq. 3-03
Lists
- How to Talk to Children About War and Terrorism (National Center for Children Exposed to Violence)
Provides guides and articles to assist parents, teachers, and professionals with talking to children about exposure to warfare and violence. 4-03
- Iraq (About.com - Rosenberg)
Provides sources of maps, statistics, the flag, government and military information, and information on the economy, as well as history. 2-01
Materials
- -Arabic Translation of the Web - English Instructions (AlMisbar.com)
Provides online translations of the Web. To view the Web through the Awesome Library, put the URL of the Awesome Library (https://www.awesomelibrary.org/) in the URL box, select Translate, and you will be started. You will need to have Arabic fonts loaded in your browser in order to see the Arabic. You may, of course, start with a Web page other than the Awesome Library. 7-02
- Awesome Library in Arabic (AlMisbar.com)
Provides the Awesome Library in Arabic. 7-02
- Iraq - Maps Related to Inspections by UN (CNN)
Provides interactive maps of sites under controversy.
News
- 01-07-04 Soldiers Offered $10,000 Re-Enlistment Bonus (ABC News)
"Griping about Army life is a tradition among soldiers, and it is unclear how many will actually opt out to take their chances in a civilian economy where jobs are scarce."
"However, Staff Sgt. Julian Guerrero, 38, who runs a re-enlistment program for a battalion in the 4th ID based in Tikrit, said only 10 of the battalion's 80 eligible soldiers have taken the deal so far." 1-04
- 01-08-04 Carnegie: Pre-emptive War on Iraq not Valid (BBC News - Reynolds)
"The latest assessment of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction is scornful of the way intelligence was presented and goes beyond concluding that Iraq was not an imminent threat - it calls for an end to the US doctrine of pre-emptive war."
"As far as the WMD were concerned, it [the Carnegie report] concluded:
"Iraq's nuclear programme had been suspended for many years. Iraq focussed on preserving a dual-use chemical and problem biological weapons capability but not on weapons production. Iraqi nerve agents had lost most of their lethality by 1991."
"The intelligence community overestimated the chemical and biological weapons in Iraq."
"Intelligence agencies appear to have been unduly influenced by policymakers' views. Officials misrepresented the threat over and above intelligence findings."
"There was no solid evidence linking Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, nor evidence that Iraq would transfer WMD to terrorists."
"Among the examples quoted of how officials went beyond the known facts to exaggerate the threat was a comment from President Bush who said:"
" 'The regime was forced to admit that it had produced more than 30,000 litres of anthrax and other deadly biological agents.' "
"In fact, the report notes, UN inspectors had commented only that Iraq might have imported enough growth media to produce these amounts, not quite the same thing." 1-04
- 01-08-04 Carnegie: White House Misled Public (Christian Science Monitor - Regan)
"The Guardian reports that the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) Thursday accused the Bush administration of "systematically misrepresenting" the threat posed by "Iraq's weapons of mass destruction" in a comprehensive report on post-war findings. The report, by four experts on weapons proliferation at the respected institute (which has consistently opposed the war in Iraq), is likely to reignite calls for a commission to look into the government's pre-war intelligence claims." 1-04
- 01-08-04 Halliburton to be Replaced (CNN News)
"The Defense Department is removing the Army Corps of Engineers from overseeing oil imports into Iraq, acting just weeks after Pentagon auditors said Halliburton -- Vice President Dick Cheney's former firm -- may have overcharged taxpayers under the Corps' supervision."
- 01-08-04 Powell Defends Statements on Iraq (CNN News)
"Secretary of State Colin Powell Thursday defended the Bush administration's position that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction programs and defended his speech on the matter to the United Nations last February."
"He was responding to a study that found Iraq had ended its programs by the mid-1990s and did not pose an immediate threat to the United States before the 2003 war. Powell said he had not read the report but read news reports about it." 1-04
- 01-08-04 Powell: No Proof of Links Between Saddam and al-Qaida (MSNBC)
"Secretary of State Colin Powell reversed a year of administration policy, acknowledging Thursday that he had seen no 'smoking gun [or] concrete evidence' of ties between former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida." 1-04
- 01-13-04 Bush Planned Attack of Iraq Before September 11 (ABC News)
"President Bush ordered the Pentagon to explore the possibility of a ground invasion of Iraq well before the United States was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, an official told ABCNEWS, confirming the account former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill gives in his new book."
"The official, who asked not to be identified, was present in the same National Security Council meetings as O'Neill immediately after Bush's inauguration in January and February of 2001."
"Both the official who spoke to ABCNEWS and O'Neill have acknowledged that Bush had not yet made up his mind for a ground invasion at the start of his administration, but they say officials were told to find ways to get rid of the Iraqi leader." 1-04
- 01-16-04 Iraqi Women Decry Move to Cut Rights (MSNBC News)
"For the past four decades, Iraqi women have enjoyed some of the most modern legal protections in the Muslim world, under a civil code that prohibits marriage below the age of 18, arbitrary divorce and male favoritism in child custody and property inheritance disputes."
"Saddam Hussein's dictatorship did not touch those rights. But the U.S.-backed Iraqi Governing Council has voted to wipe them out, ordering in late December that family laws shall be "canceled" and such issues placed under the jurisdiction of strict Islamic legal doctrine known as sharia."
"This week, outraged Iraqi women -- from judges to cabinet ministers -- denounced the decision in street protests and at conferences, saying it would set back their legal status by centuries and could unleash emotional clashes among various Islamic strains that have differing rules for marriage, divorce and other family issues." 1-04
- 01-16-04 Leading Iraqi Cleric Wants Direct Elections (MSNBC News)
"Administration officials insist they will hold to the July 1 deadline but they are exploring ways to strike a compromise with a leading Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, and his supporters."
"Al-Sistani is pressing for direct, popular elections, rather than the caucuses envisioned in the U.S. plan, as the way to create Iraq’s new government." 1-04
- 01-23-04 Halliburton Agrees: Corruption Charges Valid (CBS News)
"Halliburton has fired employees who allegedly took kickbacks from a Kuwaiti subcontractor helping to supply U.S. troops in Iraq, the company said." 1-04
- 01-30-04 Bush Wants "Facts," No Inquiry on False Intelligence on Iraq (CBS News)
"President Bush said Friday "I want to know the facts" about any intelligence failures concerning Saddam Hussein's alleged cache of forbidden weapons but he declined to endorse calls for an independent investigation." 1-04
- 02-02-04 President to Form Commission on Intelligence Related to Weapons of Mass Destruction (CNN News)
"President Bush said Monday he would appoint a presidential commission to review U.S. intelligence on the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq."
"Responding to political pressure, Bush told reporters at a Cabinet meeting he wanted to look at prewar intelligence and the findings of the Iraq Survey Group -- the U.S. team hunting for weapons programs in the country."
"A senior administration official said Monday that Bush will name the members of the commission. The official said the president had consulted some 'appropriate' members of Congress about the appointments."
"Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-South Dakota, questioned the president's description of the commission."
" 'I think that it is important for us to have an independent commission, as I've said now on several occasions, but it truly should be independent,' Daschle said."
" 'It sounds as if the president is going to call for one where he gets to appoint each of the members and dictate the design and ultimately the circumstances under which they do their work.' "
" 1-04
- 02-02-04 U.N Explores Role in Iraq (ABC News)
"The [U.N.] team's goal would be to assess the feasibility of electing an assembly that will pick a provisional government to rule the country after June 30, when the U.S.-led occupation is due to return sovereignty to the Iraqi people."
"The United States has been urging the United Nations to resume a role in Iraq and help end a stalemate between Iraq's Shi'ite leaders, who demand direct elections, and the U.S.-led occupation authorities, who believe time is too short."
"But sending a team does not necessarily mean the world body would try to resolve the impasse. The United States would like U.N. officials to take another trip to Iraq and mediate between Shi'ites who want direct elections and other factions." 1-04
- 02-04-04 CIA: PreWar Iraq Was Not an 'Imminent Threat' (Bloomberg.com)
"George Tenet, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, said his agency's prewar assessments never cast Iraq as 'an imminent threat' and there was no pressure to manipulate the findings."
"Tenet said his agency never said Hussein had nuclear weapons. 'We said that Saddam did not have a nuclear weapon and probably would have been unable to make one until 2007 to 2009,' he said." "Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, who leads among Democrats vying to oppose Bush in the November election, used Tenet's speech to attack the president." "Tenet 'admitted that the intelligence agencies never told the White House that Iraq posed an imminent threat,' Kerry said in a statement. 'But that's not what the White House told the American people. They said Iraq posed a 'mortal threat,' an 'urgent threat,' an 'immediate threat,' a 'serious threat.' " " 'Americans should be able to trust that what the president tells them is true,' Kerry said." 2-04
- 02-05-04 Halliburton Grilled About Excess Charges in Iraq (Bloomberg.com)
"There are new allegations about how well U.S. tax dollars have been used in Iraq. It's just the latest controversy surrounding Halliburton, the Texas company once run by Vice President Cheney - and the U.S. military's biggest contractor in Iraq."
"According to sources and published reports, Kellogg, Brown & Root - the Halliburton subsidiary that runs these military dining halls - has billed the government for millions of meals soldiers never ate, because, as CBS News Correspondent Wyatt Andrews, it is billing on the number of meals projected in advance, not the actual number of meals served." "Congressional critics say the meal projections were sometimes three times the number of meals delivered." 2-04
- 02-05-04 Powell Presented Uncertain Information as "We Know" (ABC News)
"When Secretary of State Colin Powell addressed the U.N. Security Council last year about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, CIA Director George Tenet sat directly behind him. It was a powerful sign of support."
"But instead of discussing Iraq's weapons in terms of 'possibilities' or 'estimates,' Powell spoke before the United Nations last February with certainty."
" 'These are not assertions,' Powell told the Security Council. 'What we are giving you are facts and conclusions based on solid intelligence.' "
"Powell qualified only one of his remarks during the 75-minute presentation, saying there was some 'controversy' over the intended use of high-strength aluminum tubes. On all other issues, Powell left no room for debate. He used the phrase 'we know' 32 times."
" 'We know — we know from sources — that a missile brigade outside Baghdad was dispersing rocket launchers and warheads containing biological warfare agents to various locations,' Powell said." 2-04
- 02-06-04 Bush Attempts to Defuse Iraq Controversy (BBC News)
"By appointing an independent commission to exam the intelligence on Iraq, President Bush hopes to neutralise the issue in this year's election."
"Mr Bush named the commission in the face of mounting political pressure. In recent days it has been damaging him politically. For the first time since the war, there's no longer a clear majority of Americans who believe it was the right thing to do."
"The commission has been given till the end of March next year to report. It sounds suspiciously like an election-avoidance timetable."
"Then there is the thorny question of political interference. Is it their job to examine just the intelligence, or can they look at what the politicians did with it?"
President Bush appeared to suggest that only the intelligence gathering process would be examined."
"But when the Democratic candidate in the Presidential debate launches his attack this autumn, Mr Bush now has a pre-scripted reply: Wait for the commission, wait for their answers, only then will we know the truth." 2-04
- 02-08-04 Bush: Iraq Was Not an 'Imminent Threat' (Bloomberg.com)
"President George W. Bush said chemical and biological weapons Iraq may have possessed were a danger even if the threat wasn't imminent and that former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein might have disposed of them before the war." 2-04
- 02-08-04 Russert Interviews Bush - On Iraq and the Economy (Forbes.com - Bush and Russert)
"Here is a transcript of an interview aired on Sunday by NBC's Meet the Press with President Bush. The interviewer was Tim Russert." 2-04
- 02-08-04 U.S. May Have Found Saddam's Money (Guardian Unlimited)
"The United States believes it has found at least $300 million Saddam Hussein hid in banks, yet doesn't have enough evidence to get countries such as Syria and Switzerland to hand over the money, U.S. and European officials told The Associated Press."
"Much to the frustration of the Bush administration, countries that acted quickly on relatively weak evidence involving al-Qaida funds have been unwilling to do the same on Iraq, partly because of growing doubts about the quality of U.S. intelligence."
"Were the account held in a U.S. bank, federal authorities wouldn't need any more evidence than they already have because the Patriot Act, passed after Sept. 11, 2001, gives them expanded powers of search and seizure." 2-04
- 02-12-04 U.N.'s Annan: Elections in Iraq Soon (BBC News)
"United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has said a consensus seemed to be emerging for direct elections in Iraq."
"The US says there is not time to organise free and fair elections before the 30 June handover. It wants regional meetings to select a new government, which in turn would draft a constitution - with elections postponed until at least the end of 2005" 2-04
- 02-14-04 Insurgents Overwhelm Police and Free Prisoners (CNN News)
"At least 20 people died and dozens of prisoners were set free when insurgents stormed a police station and a civil defense compound at dawn in Fallujah, Saturday, Iraqi sources said."
"Doctors and other Iraqi sources said most of the dead were police officers and some were civilians."
"More than 600 Iraqi security and police forces have been killed since April." 2-04
- 02-21-04 Poll: Educated Iraqis Not Confident in U.S.-Appointed Leadership (Nzoom.com)
"A poll of university-educated Iraqi men in Baghdad shows almost three in four of them did not believe the country's current leaders were fit to take over from the US-led coalition."
"Only 11% said some of the Iraqi leaders on the US-appointed interim Governing Council were fit to take the reins of the strife-torn country from the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority."
"Sixty per cent also said they did not want to see any members of the governing council at the helm of Iraq, against 17% who did." 2-04
- 02-21-04 U.S. Deadline for Iraqi Sovereignty Unchanged (CNN News)
"[U.S. civilian administrator in Iraq Paul] Bremer said the United Nations estimates 'somewhere between a year and 15 months' would be needed to get Iraq ready for elections, though that could be sped up."
"He was speaking after the White House Friday acknowledged a point U.S. officials have conceded privately -- the administration's plan to use a caucus-style procedure to choose an interim Iraqi government has been shelved. However, it remains firm on the June 30 date for a transition to full Iraqi sovereignty."
" 'Iraq has no election law, it has no national commission to even establish a national law governing political parties, it has no voters' lists, it has not had a credible, reliable census for almost 20 years, there are no constituent boundaries to decide where elections would take place,' Bremer told Dubai-based Al Arabiya satellite network." 2-04
- 02-26-04 Top Siite Cleric Accepts U.N. Timetable (MSNBC News)
"Iraq’s most prominent Shiite Muslim cleric on Thursday called for elections by the end of the year, signaling that he would accept an interim government but offering a strict time-frame after the United States hands over power." 2-04
- 03-02-04 Al-Qaeda Starting Civil War in Iraq? (BBC News)
"In the aftermath of the attacks on the Iraqi Shias, attention is turning to whether this is the result of a deliberate attempt by elements linked to al-Qaeda to foment inter-community strife and civil war." "If there is a mastermind behind the attacks, then the main candidate would appear to be a man with links to Osama Bin Laden named Abu Musab al-Zarqawi." 3-04
- 03-02-04 U.N.: No Weapons of Mass Destruction Since 1994 (CBS News)
"Iraq apparently had no significant weapons of mass destruction after 1994, according to a newspaper account of a United Nations report due to be released Tuesday." 3-04
- 03-05-04 Blix: Iraq War Was Illegal (Guardian Unlimited - Jeffery)
"The former UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix today rubbished the government's argument that war in Iraq was legalised by existing security council resolutions." 3-04
- 03-08-04 Interim Iraqi Constitution Signed (ABC News)
"For an hour anyway, Iraqi leaders put aside their disagreements Monday during the signing of a landmark interim constitution, which as CBS News Anchor Dan Rather reports, guarantees all Iraqis equal rights regardless of race, color or religious belief." 3-04
- 03-18-04 Polish President: Poland "Misled" on Iraq (Guardian Unlimited)
"President Aleksander Kwasniewski, a key Washington ally, said Thursday he may withdraw troops early from Iraq and that Poland was 'misled' about the threat of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction." 3-04
- 04-10-04 Bush Was Warned (USA Today)
"President Bush's August 2001 briefing on terrorism threats, described largely as a historical document, included information from three months earlier that al-Qaeda was trying to send operatives into the United States for an explosives attack, according to several people who have seen the memo." 4-04
- 04-16-04 Brokaw Interviews Blair (MSNBC News)
News anchor Tom Brokaw interviews British Prime Minister Tony Blair. 4-04
- 04-16-04 Bush Supports UN Solution in Iraq (Bloomberg.com)
"U.S. President George W. Bush said he supports the idea of a United Nations-selected interim government taking power in Iraq June 30. U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair said the UN has a 'central role' in the power transfer." 4-04
- 04-18-04 Woodward Shares War Secrets (CBS News)
"Journalist Bob Woodward calls his new book, 'Plan of Attack,' the first detailed, behind-the-scenes account of how and why the president decided to wage war in Iraq."
"It’s an insider’s account written after Woodward spoke with 75 of the key decision makers, including President Bush himself."
”Rumsfeld and Franks work out a deal essentially where Franks can spend any money he needs. And so he starts building runways and pipelines and doing all the preparations in Kuwait, specifically to make war possible,” says Woodward."
“Gets to a point where in July, the end of July 2002, they need $700 million, a large amount of money for all these tasks. And the president approves it. But Congress doesn't know and it is done. They get the money from a supplemental appropriation for the Afghan War, which Congress has approved. …Some people are gonna look at a document called the Constitution which says that no money will be drawn from the Treasury unless appropriated by Congress. Congress was totally in the dark on this."
” 'A year before the war started, three things are going on. Franks is secretly developing this war plan that he's briefing the president in detail on,' says Woodward. 'Franks simultaneously is publicly denying that he's ever been asked to do any plan.' ”
Woodward says that [Saudi Prince] Bandar understood that economic conditions were key before a presidential election: 'They’re [oil prices] high. And they could go down very quickly. That's the Saudi pledge. Certainly over the summer, or as we get closer to the election, they could increase production several million barrels a day and the price would drop significantly.' ” 4-04
- 12-16-03 U.S. Wins Agreement from France and Germany (Bloomberg)
"Former U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III said he has won agreements from France and Germany on the need to restructure Iraq's $125 billion in debt." 12-03
- 12-22-03 Arab States Agree to Anti-Terrorism Pact and Transfer of Autonomy to Iraq (China View)
"Leaders of the Gulf Arab states ended their annual summit here Monday with agreeing on the signing of a joint anti-terrorism accord and voicing support for a US-backed sovereignty transfer plan for the war-torn Iraq." 12-03
- 12-22-03 Russians Make Deal With Iraqis (ChannelNewsAsia.com)
"The head of the Iraqi Governing Council said after Kremlin talks that Moscow was ready to forgive at least some of Iraqi debts and in return Russian companies could work in Iraq." 12-03
- 12-29-03 Japan to Forgive Iraqi Debts (CBS News)
"Efforts to erase Iraq's massive foreign debt received a boost Monday when Japan said it would likely forgive much of what it is owed and China hinted it might do the same."
"Japan is already providing $5 billion to Iraqi reconstruction is dispatching 1,000 troops on a humanitarian mission to the area."
Japan is a member of the Paris Club, a group of creditors owed billions by Iraq. "The Paris Club is owed more than $40 billion by Iraq while Arab countries are owed at least $80 billion. Iraq owes an additional $125 billion in reparations from the 1991 Gulf War, according to the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies." 12-03
- Editorial - Destabilization or Reconstruction? (BBC News - Reynolds)
"On the one side is the Iraqi resistance. Its policy is to cause chaos in the hope that out of the wreckage, the occupation will end and perhaps even that Saddam Hussein himself will be propelled back to power."
"On the other are the Coalition or occupation authorities and their Iraqi allies. They hope to transfer power by the end of next year and in the meantime are pouring in money to rebuild the basic infrastructure."
Reynolds quotes US diplomat James Dobbins to summarize the situation: " 'Nation-building is not principally about economic reconstruction: rather it is about political transformation. The spread of democracy in Latin America, Asia and parts of Africa suggests that this form of government is not unique to Western culture or to advanced industrial economies: Democracy can, indeed, take root in circumstances where neither exists.' "
"What principally distinguishes Germany, Japan, Bosnia and Kosovo from Somalia, Haiti and Afghanistan are not their levels of Western culture, economic development or cultural homogeneity," he says.
"Rather it is the level of effort the United States and the international community put into their democratic transformations."10-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (ABC News from Australia)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 5-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (ABC News)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 2-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (CBC News)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 2-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (CBS News)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 5-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (CNN)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 2-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (IraqCrisisBulletin.com)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 3-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (PBS Newshour)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 2-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (USAToday.com)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 6-03
- Iraq Conflict - News (Yahoo News)
Provides news related to Iraq and reconstruction. 2-03
- Middle East News (AccessMiddleEast News)
Provides news and over 400 sources of information on news in the Middle East. 2-04
- Refugee News (Refugees.org)
Provides news on the status of refugees. Provides a current focus on Iraq's refugees, by hosting country. 4-03
- Relief and Reconstruction News for Iraq (DevelopmentGateway.org)
Provides news related to relief and reconstruction in Iraq. 10-03
- Sistani - Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani (Miami Herald)
"From a modest home in this holy city, Iraq's top Shiite cleric is projecting increasing political influence that has jeopardized Washington's plan for transferring power to Iraqis."
"The United States already has dropped one political plan for Iraq after al-Sistani's insistence that elected rather than appointed representatives draft the new constitution prompted the Americans to speed the timetable for handing over sovereignty and to delay the drafting of a new national charter." 1-04
Papers
- -Developmental Considerations in Talking to Children About War (CBC News - Oldershaw)
Dr. Oldershaw provides recommendations by age level. She emphasizes that "the age of your child will dictate to a large degree what you talk about, as well as the manner in which you relay information about war." 3-03
- -How to Talk to Children About War (CBC News - Oldershaw)
"As much as possible, be honest with your child when providing information about war." 3-03
- -How to Talk to Children About War (National Center for Children Exposed to Violence)
Provides a variety of guides for parents, teachers, and professionals to assist with talking to children about exposure to warfare and violence. 4-03
- -How to Talk to Children About War - Parent's Guide (National Center for Children Exposed to Violence)
Provides a guide for parents to assist with talking to children about exposure to warfare and violence. Uses PDF format. 4-03
- -Life After War in Iraq (CNN)
"Since the collapse of the Iraqi regime, homeless children -- often drug-addicted and hungry -- have become a common sight on the streets of Baghdad."
"Aid agencies say they are pressing the authorities running Iraq into working out ways of prevention and getting those already homeless and addicted into care."
Under Saddam, the problem of unwanted children was taboo and kept hidden -- children on the streets were slung into orphanages, even jail. But this life on the streets seems hardly better." 7-03
- -New American Empire (CBC News)
"Long before Sept. 11, influential neo-conservatives wanted to see America as an enlightened ruler, unchallenged, astride the world. Long before Bush was elected president, they got together and they wrote down a manifesto."
"The document was effectively a charter of the Project for a New American Century, a neo-conservative think tank in Washington." According to the article, the founding members included Vice-President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz of the Defense Department, Richard Perle, head of the defense advisory board, Louis Libby, Cheney's chief of staff; John Bolton, undersecretary of state for arms control, and Elliot Cohen of the defense policy board.
"They wanted the U.S. as a global 'constabulary' – their word – unburdened by the United Nations or world opinion, preventing any challenge to U.S. dominance."
"But, they wrote a year before Sept. 11, such aspirations are unlikely to be realized without 'a catastrophic and catalyzing event. . .like a new Pearl Harbor.' " 3-03
- -New American Empire (NewAmericanCentury.org)
"The Project for the New American Century is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to a few fundamental propositions: that American leadership is good both for America and for the world; that such leadership requires military strength, diplomatic energy and commitment to moral principle; and that too few political leaders today are making the case for global leadership."
"The Project for the New American Century intends, through issue briefs, research papers, advocacy journalism, conferences, and seminars, to explain what American world leadership entails. It will also strive to rally support for a vigorous and principled policy of American international involvement and to stimulate useful public debate on foreign and defense policy and America's role in the world." 3-03
- -New American Strategy (Christian Science Monitor - Chaddock)
"National strategy, released Friday, calls for US dominance to expand global peace."
"More broadly, the 31-page document asserts American dominance as the lone superpower – a status no rival power will be allowed to challenge."
"And it provides a reason the world should accept this state of affairs: the expansion of peace and more freedom. A Pax Americana will be 'in the service of a balance of power that favors freedom.' "
" ' We cannot let our enemies strike first.... To forestall or prevent such hostile acts by our adversaries, the United States will, if necessary, act preemptively.' " 4-03
- -New American Strategy for Security (Whitehouse.gov - Bush)
Outlines the Bush administration's approach to national defense in a 33-page paper, the National Security Strategy.
"The great struggles of the twentieth century between liberty and totalitarianism ended with a decisive victory for the forces of freedom—and a single sustainable model for national success: freedom, democracy, and free enterprise. In the twenty-first century, only nations that share a commitment to protecting basic human rights and guaranteeing political and economic freedom will be able to unleash the potential of their people and assure their future prosperity."
Introduces a new U.S. policy of using preemptive strikes and working unilaterally when the U.S. determines that U.S. interests are served by such approaches. 9-03
- -Propaganda - How to Recognize It (Donn)
Helps students recognize the role of propaganda in international relations, especially warfare, and how to keep propaganda from fooling them. Uses Panama and Iraq as examples of the U.S. using propaganda to help win a conflict.
"To protect yourself against the techniques of propaganda, three good questions to ask yourself are:
-Who does this benefit?
- Why did they do that?
-According to whom? " 2-03
- 02-20-04 U.S. Plan for Iraqi Government Changed (ABC News)
"The Bush administration acknowledged on Friday that its ambitious plan to transfer sovereignty directly to a democratically elected government in Iraq was unlikely to succeed, after Iraqis insisted on elections untainted by U.S. influence." 1-02
- 08-10-03 Checklist for Success in Iraq (CBS News - Mitchell)
"Since there was no formal surrender, those who opposed our presence in Iraq continued the fight and, indeed, have been killing US soldiers almost daily. This remains intolerable. It should not be happening and could be stopped if U.S. officials at the highest levels looked for innovative ways to bring peace and stability to the country. Such change can not occur if we continue to use our most precious commodity—people—to man stationary outposts, guard important buildings and patrol in areas where the likelihood of attack is far too high. It can not occur if we don’t find better ways to work with the people of Iraq." 5-02
- 11-06-03 Troop Rotations to Begin (USA Today)
"About 85,000 U.S. troops have been alerted they will soon be sent to Iraq to relieve forces who have been there for up to a year, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Thursday."
"In addition, nearly 47,000 National Guard and Reserve forces are in the process of being notified that they will be activated to serve in Iraq or Afghanistan, Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon news conference. Even more Army soldiers could be alerted soon to add to those deployments, Rumsfeld said."
"The Pentagon's plan for rotating U.S. troops in Iraq next year includes a return of the Marine Corps and a net reduction in the total American force." 11-03
- Al Saher, Kazem (CharlotteChurchFans.com)
Provides a short profile on the singer. "Considered one of the most renowned composers and vocalists in the Middle East, Kazem Al Saher is the voice of conscience for Arabs through song." 2-02
- American Isolation From Europe - Not So True (Stratfor)
"The United States is much less isolated in relation to Europe than is generally believed." 6-03
- Bad Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Distruction (MSNBC News - Newsweek - Barry and Hosenball)
Reviews the circumstances leading up to the U.S. failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Identifies a key problem to be that the CIA and the Bush administration did not have real evidence of an Iraqi program of weapons of mass destruction, but yet they stated that they did have the evidence.
U.S. chief weapons inspector Kay noted that "...Iraq was a monumental intelligence failure."
"How did it happen? The United States spends more to run spy satellites and supersecret listening devices than the gross domestic products of many countries, yet it didn't have a clue as to what was really going on inside a sanctions-racked dictatorship it was about to attack?"
"But if for no other reason than to restore American credibility, an unbiased review of the Iraq intelligence process may be vital. Who will believe the next American official who goes to the United Nations wagging a vial of fake anthrax, arguing that North Korea or Iran or some other 'rogue state' needs to be taken out before it attacks first? More worrisome still, the next dire warning may well be right." 1-04
- Baghdad - History of the City (CBC - O'Malley and Thompson)
"It is an ancient city, one of the world's oldest. It is the locale of much of Thousand and One Nights, the Arabian stories of Sheherazade, Ali Baba, Sinbad the Sailor, and Aladdin." 2-03
- Claims Versus Facts on Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq (CBC News - Thompson)
"Months after the coalition declared victory in the Iraq war, the U.S. has yet to reveal anything definitive to prove the allegations [of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction]. Here is a look at how some of these allegations have stood the test of time. " 7-03
- Editorial - Al-Sistani's Intentions for Iraq (WorldPress.org - Hani Fahs, Al-Hayat)
"Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani is not expected to escalate his position to the point where he might issue a fatwa calling for jihad and armed resistance, since he does not believe in wilayat al-faqih [the right of Islamic jurists to rule]."
"The essence of Al-Sistani’s position is that the Iraqis do not need to resort to violence to acquire their rights as long as they have peaceful means available to them. But should these means no longer be available, then other means, including armed resistance, should be sought." 2-04
- Editorial - Can the Mideast Ever Be Democratic? (Boston Globe - Greenway)
"Middle Easterners can plainly see that the only true democracy in the region is also the country that is imposing a fierce, land-grabbing occupation upon an Arab population with the support of the United States. Middle Easterners may ask: If a democratically elected leader falls out of favor with the United States, as Yasser Arafat has, will they be told to find a new leader, as the Palestinians are being told? Could Americans recall a leader in the Middle East if they didn't like him, as they did in California? The hypocrisy of the Bush administration in allowing Israel to circumvent the "road map" to peace and continue building settlements suggests to Arabs that democracy isn't necessarily the key to Middle East stability." 11-03
- Editorial - The U.S. is Primarily Interested in U.S. Interests in Iraq (WorldPress.org - Abu al-Hasan al-Mqawtir, Al-Daawa)
"As far as the economy is concerned, occupied Iraq’s experience over the last eight months proved beyond any doubt that the occupiers had bad intentions in invading Iraq. This is clearly seen in the exclusion of Iraqis from economic decision-making. Even when Iraqis do participate, they are only allowed a token, superficial role. You could call it throwing dust in the eyes."
"The reason behind this is obvious. Iraqis disagree over political, social, and cultural issues. But they fully agree on economic issues—especially if they have clear ideas as to how Iraq’s economy should be managed so that Iraq’s interests are put first."
"The occupiers’ two major aims are to loot all of Iraq’s national wealth and to control conflicts in the world by controlling Iraqi oil, which is one of the largest reserves in the world. These two aims require that Iraqis be excluded from the economic decision-making process even if they are the least patriotic Iraqis available." Editor's Note: Al-Daawa is an organ of the Siite Daawa Party in Baghdad. 2-04
- Editorial - What Is Needed Next in Iraq - A French Perspective (Washington Post - Moisi)
"Paris would probably be happy with a triumvirate to run the reconstruction, with an American general in charge of security under a U.N. mandate, an Iraqi interim government given many more political responsibilities and a U.N.-designated representative having overall responsibility for the process and for organizing elections on a shortened schedule of a few months. Ideally, though not necessarily realistically, power should be returned to the Iraqis before the beginning of next year." 9-03
- Essay - A Nation Lost (Boston Globe - Carroll)
"Even before conclusions can be drawn about the war in Iraq (Saddam? Weapons of mass destruction? Iraqi stability? Cost to civilians? Syria?) a home front consensus is jelling around a radical revision of America's meaning in the world."
"Centered on coercive unilateralism, the new doctrine assumes that the United States not only stands apart from other countries but above them. Military force has replaced democratic idealism as the main source of US influence."
"Beware of war as an organizing principle of society. It should be a source of alarm, not pride, that the United States is drawing such cohesive sustenance from the war in Iraq." 4-03
- Essay - Three Views of America's New Power in the World (BBC News - Reynolds)
Provides three points of view about the expression of American power in the world. 5-03
- Essays on the Middle East Conflicts and Other Current Events (History News Network)
Provides liberal and conservative viewpoints on the Middle East conflicts and other major current events. 10-02
- Evidence of No Nuclear Development After 1991 (CNN - McDonald)
"Gwozdecky, who said the [International Atomic Energy Agency] agency has no other information about the development other than press reports, said, "The findings and comments of Obeidi appear to confirm that there has been no post-1991 nuclear weapons program in Iraq and are consistent with our reports to the [U.N.] Security Council." 6-03
- Evolution of the Bush Doctrine in Iraq (PBS.org - Frontline)
Gives history of the development of President Bush's approach to Iraq, including a discussion of the the National Defense Strategy (NSS) providing the current overall philosophy regarding conflict and U.S. interests. Explains the policy of preemption and the U.S. acting alone." 9-03
- Five Women Confront the New Iraq (Christian Science Monitor - Prusher)
"From actresses to lawyers, women are seizing a historic if uncertain moment." 7-03
- Fueling War - Oil and Iraq (CBS News)
"It was not solely about oil, said the first President Bush, when America led the fight to drive Iraq from Kuwait more than a decade ago."
"And today, as Iraqis wonder when Baghdad may be bombed again, the current Bush administration says it’s not about oil at all – this time." “It’s about oil a lot more than people in the government are saying. I think if you had tulips in Iraq, we wouldn’t have several hundred thousand troops getting ready to invade,” says veteran journalist Sandy Tolan."
"Tolan teaches about the politics of oil at the University of California at Berkeley. " 2-03
- Fueling War - Oil and Iraq (MSNBC News)
"Behind the debate over Iraq’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, its fraternization with terrorist groups and defiance of the United Nations is a fact that colors every decision about war and peace in the Persian Gulf: Iraq sits atop the world’s second largest reserve of oil. How is that affecting American policy toward Iraq? Are France and Russia protecting Saddam Hussein to ensure their access to oil? Who stands to gain most from a post-Saddam world?" 1-03
- Fueling War - Oil and Iraq (TargetOil.com from Newsday - Royce)
"Officially, the White House agrees that oil revenue would play an important role during an occupation period, but only for the benefit of Iraqis, according to a National Security Council spokesman."
"Yet there are strong advocates inside the administration, including in the White House, for appropriating the oil funds as 'spoils of war,' according to a source who has been briefed by participants in the dialogue."
"Using Iraqi oil to fund an occupation would reinforce a prevalent belief in the Mideast that the conflict is all about control of oil, not rooting out weapons of mass destruction, according to Halim Barakat, a recently retired professor of Arab studies at Georgetown University." 2-03
- Fueling War - Oil and Iraq (TargetOil.com from Washington Post - Morgan and Ottaway)
"A U.S.-led ouster of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein could open a bonanza for American oil companies long banished from Iraq, scuttling oil deals between Baghdad and Russia, France and other countries, and reshuffling world petroleum markets, according to industry officials and leaders of the Iraqi opposition."
"The importance of Iraq's oil has made it potentially one of the administration's biggest bargaining chips in negotiations to win backing from the U.N. Security Council and Western allies for President Bush's call for tough international action against Hussein." 2-03
- Iraq (CountryReports.org)
Provides a profile by topic, including Economy, Defense, Geography, Government, People, National Anthem, Lyrics and Related Links. Provides a map and a flag. 6-02
- Iraq (Library of Congress)
Provides a history of the country, including culture, government, economy, and more. Also includes geographic information. 1-02
- Iraq (U.S. State Department)
Provides a history of the country, including culture, government, economy, and more. 1-02
- Iraq (U.S. State Department)
"Political power in Iraq lies exclusively in a repressive one-party apparatus dominated by Saddam Hussein and members of his extended family." 8-02
- Iraq: 4,000 Years of Strife (CBS News)
"The ancient Greeks called it Mesopotamia, a word meaning 'the land between the rivers' - the muddy Tigris and the meandering Euphrates. Here is the cradle of civilization."
"It’s been the home of great conquerors, like Hammurabi whose code of justice demanded an eye for an eye, Nebuchadnezzar who vanquished Jerusalem, around 600 B.C., and, centuries later, Saladin, the Muslim warrior who repelled the Christian crusaders of medieval Europe."
"Now comes the latest invading Army, preparing the last days, the last hours of Saddam Hussein. Soon the new invaders will have to unify what has never been unified, build what has never been built, here in the cradle of civilization. " 3-03
- Is Western-Style Democracy Good for Everyone? (BBC News)
Asks readers to answer the question, "Is western-style democracy good for the world or is it just another example of cultural imperialism?" Provides samples of responses to the question. 11-03
- Kay: Intelligence Services Owe Bush (CNN News)
"Two days after resigning as the Bush administration's top weapons inspector in Iraq, David Kay said Sunday that his group found no evidence Iraq had stockpiled unconventional weapons before the U.S.-led invasion in March."
"He said U.S. intelligence services owe President Bush an explanation for having concluded that Iraq had." 1-04
- Key Stories and Facts Related to War with Iraq (CBC News)
Provides in-depth articles from a Canadian perspective. 10-02
- Kurdish Language (Kurdistan Web)
Provides the alphabet, history, and more on the Kurdish language. 8-02
- Kurdistan (Kurdinfo.com)
Provides information about the people, land, culture, and history of Kurdistan, a territory within Iraq. 8-02
- Kurds of Iraq (PBS)
"Kurdistan was erased from the world's maps after World War I when the Allied Powers carved up the Middle East and denied the Kurds a nation-state. They are the largest ethnic group in the world without their own country, with more than twenty million Kurds living in parts of Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria. Throughout the 20th century their struggles for political and cultural autonomy were opposed by countries in the area, which often used the Kurds as pawns in regional politics." 3-03
- News and History on Iraq (CNN)
"After toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein in less than a month, the United States and other coalition countries are struggling against an ongoing guerrilla resistance as the reconstruction of Iraq gets under way." 1-04
- No Nuclear Weapons Program Found in Iraq (CNN)
"The U.N. agency searching for evidence of a nuclear weapons program in Iraq said Monday that so far it has not found evidence of one." 1-03
- Oil May Not Help the People of Iraq Much (Guardian)
"Iraq is swimming in oil, but anybody who thinks that such natural wealth translates into a fat and happy middle class is in for a crude awakening."
"Precious resources alone - whether oil or gold or diamonds - rarely raise nations from poverty to prosperity. Countries usually become poorer, more corrupt and more prone to coups, wars and tyranny than their less-endowed neighbors, recent studies show."
"Karl and policy analyst Ian Gary are co-authors of a 110-page analysis of the impact of oil on developing nations and the potential for disaster - or, if changes are made, of stunning success - that could result from a nascent oil boom in sub-Saharan Africa." 8-03
- Post-Conflict Reconstruction of Iraq (CSIS.com)
"A CSIS-led team of post-conflict reconstruction experts traveled to Iraq from June 27-July 7, at the invitation of Defense Secretary Rumsfeld and Ambassador Bremer, for an informal evaluation of U.S. led efforts to rebuild the country"
The 10-page report of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) recommends that strong changes be made quickly to rebuild Iraq with Iraq's support. 7-03
- Qur'an Searches (STG - Pickthall)
Provides searches in the text of the Holy Qur'an by sura number and verse or by word. Visitors sometimes spell as Koran or Quran. 6-02
- Qur'an in Arabic (IslamicCity.com)
Provides the text of the Holy Qur'an in Arabic. Requires setting the browser to accept Arabic fonts in order to use. In Internet Explorer 5.0 right click on the IE icon and select Properties. Then Select Languages and pick Arabic. 6-02
- Refugee Camps - The Human Toll (CBC)
Describes how refugee camps are set up, or need to be set up, to serve displaced people. People are often displaced as a result of warfare.
"The goal is to keep the mortality rate at less than one person per 10,000 per day. More than one person per 10,000 per day is considered a very serious situation, more than two is an emergency and more than five is a major catastrophe."
"The main causes of death and disease in emergency situations are measles, diarrhoeas (including cholera), acute respiratory infections, malnutrition and malaria." 4-03
- Saddam - Rise of Saddam Hussein to Power in Iraq (PBS.org - Aburish)
Provides a political biography of Saddam hussein. "Saddam Hussein is the most methodical Arab leader of the twentieth century. He's organized. He's a day dreamer. And also, he had the following. He was popular. But Saddam Hussein is a planner. And he has affected the Middle East so considerably that we need to understand him." College Level. Aburish alleges that the U.S. government provided support for Saddam's massacre of his Iraqi opposition after the Gulf War in order to keep Iraq from splitting into three nation states. 3-03
- Shiites (Columbia Encyclopedia)
Provides a brief introduction to the second largest branch of Islam. 9-01
- Shiites (InfoPlease.com)
Provides a brief introduction to the second largest branch of Islam. 9-01
- Should Christians Convert Muslims? (Time - Biema)
"Muslim critics accuse missionaries of lying about their identities and their faith to achieve their goals. And as the tensions between Islam and the West continue to boil, some familiar with the Middle East have begun asking whether the missionaries, who love Muslims but despise Islam, are the sort of nonappointed goodwill ambassadors the U.S. really needs in a region dense with the rhetoric of holy war. Says Charles Kimball, a Baptist minister who was director of the National Council of Churches' Middle East office in the 1980s: 'Sincerity isn't the issue, or commitment to one's faith. It is just that the region is at a pivotal and volatile juncture, and it is arguably not the time for groups coming in, like someone with a lighted match into a room full of explosives, wearing Jesus on their sleeves.' " 6-03
- Sunnis (Columbia Encyclopedia)
Provides a brief introduction to the largest branch of Islam. 9-01
- Sunnis (St Martins College)
Provides a brief historical profile of Sunni Islam. 9-01
- U.S. and British Leaders Accused of Misleading Public About Danger (Independent - Rangwala)
"One key tactic of the British and United States governments in their campaign on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction was to talk up suspicions and to portray possibility as fact. The clearest example was the quotation and misquotation of the reports of United Nations weapons inspectors." 6-03
- WMD in Iraq, Evidence and Implications (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace)
Reports evidence of the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and the "systematic misrepresentation" of that evidence by the Bush administration in order to conduct a pre-emptive war. 1-04
- WMD in Iraq, Evidence and Implications - Summary (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace)
"WMD in IRAQ: Evidence and Implications, a new study from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, details what the U.S. and international intelligence communities understood about Iraq's weapons programs before the war and outlines policy reforms to improve threat assessments, deter transfer of WMD to terrorists, strengthen the UN weapons inspection process, and avoid politicization of the intelligence process."
"The report distills a massive amount of data into side-by-side comparisons of pre-war intelligence, the official presentation of that intelligence, and what is now known about Iraq's programs." 1-04
- When the Gentle Are Required to Fight (Spirituality.com - Sharp)
Linda Sharp describes the spiritual experiences of her brother, a "gentle giant," as he served as a soldier in Iraq. He was shot during combat, but recovered. 5-03
Projects
- Help Iraqi Refugees (OxfamAmerica.org)
Provides food, water, sanitation, supplies, and other assistance. 3-03
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