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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: i-node who wrote (171540)	7/3/2003 10:54:11 AM
From: Alighieri	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1583307

It is crystal clear today that removal of Saddam was a key element of our national security policy. It isn't about "containment", it is about making the United States more secure by democratizing the region which was spewing forth anti-Americanism and hatred out of jealousy. I see. The baloney keeps on coming off the slicer thinner and thinner. They were a threat to us and we're gonna make pro-America by attacking their country. Yet another purpose of this multi-purposed war. Oh...they are so happy to have us there. This action defines and legitimizes anti-Americanism for them and for the rest of the world. Who is naive? story.news.yahoo.com Al

To: i-node who wrote (171540)	7/3/2003 10:58:23 AM
From: Alighieri	Respond to of 1583307

'This is what the Iraqis think of us,' said the captain, cradling a charred helmet By Daniel McGrory A drive-by rocket attack is the latest tactic to be used against the Americans in Baghdad IN A most audacious attack on American troops, an Iraqi fired a rocket-propelled grenade from the sunroof of a Chevrolet car at a passing patrol yesterday, incinerating one of the army vehicles and seriously wounding four of those travelling in the convoy. Until now, the 22 Americans killed since President Bush declared the war over on May Day had mainly been victims of snipers or crude booby-trap bombs. However, yesterday’s attack in northern Baghdad was reckless and inventive, and is an alarming demonstration of how organised and determined the Iraqi resistance is becoming. Witnesses spoke of seeing two men appear through the sunroof of the white saloon with blacked-out windows and take aim with the shoulder-held rocket, launching it at the convoy from no more than 60ft away. Sifting through what little remained of the burnt Humvee, a young infantry captain did not even try to hide his disgust as he picked up the charred helmet belonging to one of his comrades who had been inside the vehicle. “This is what the Iraqis think of us,” the captain said, stamping out the last of the fires after the daylight attack at a busy crossroads. The Americans in the second Humvee had dived for cover, fearing that they too would be ambushed. Within minutes, armoured reinforcements had sealed off the road and did what they could for the injured, before making a swift retreat and leaving lumps of wreckage at the mercy of gleeful trophy hunters. What is worrying is that in suburbs such as al-Mustansiriya, a moderate, middle class enclave of academics and businessmen, there was little apparent sympathy for the victims. Mohammed Alawi, 19, who claimed to have seen the attack, said: “What do the Americans expect after what they have done to us? There will be more attacks like this until they leave.” As the American rescue force accelerated away, the looters moved in, stealing metal parts of the Humvee’s chassis and half a camouflaged flak jacket that was badly burnt. Two teenagers encouraged television crews to film a grotesque dummy that they made from a charred Kevlar helmet, the remains of a soldier’s body armour and a long blonde wig they fashioned from the stuffing ripped from one of the Humvee’s seats. Jabar Khadoum, a 49-year-old father of five who witnessed the attack, said: “I froze as I watched the Humvee arc into the air and crash back down on to the road.” His body was shaking with shock. Mr Khadoum said he tried to help one of the Americans who ran at him, half his upper body on fire. “It was hopeless,” he said. “Soon his face was eaten by the flames.” Less than 24 hours after Donald Rumsfeld, the US Defence Secretary, insisted that Iraq was not a new Vietnam, a day of spiralling violence saw at least four serious armed assaults on US patrols. Two US soldiers were wounded in a rocket attack on their convoy near Baghdad airport and other American soldiers were said to have been injured in a shooting at Samarra. Ten Iraqis were killed in an explosion inside a mosque in the troubled town of Fallujah, which local people blamed on a US airstrike. The Americans said it was caused by terrorists who blew themselves up in an illegal bomb factory. Later in Fallujah thousands of Iraqis chanted anti-American slogans as they buried victims of the blast, including the imam, Sheikh Laith Khalil. The US military, which has about 156,000 soldiers in Iraq, has carried out several operations to stamp out attacks. The latest, Operation Desert Sidewinder, began on Sunday with infantry backed by aircraft and armoured vehicles. Rival Iraqi groups are also increasingly turning on each other, with the leader of Saddam Hussein’s tribe assassinated yesterday as he was driving through Tikrit, which still flaunts its support for the old regime. An American military spokesman struggled yesterday to suggest that his troops were still in full control, using phrases such as “isolated incidents” and “seeing progress”, though on every street corner fear could clearly be seen in the eyes of many young Americans who had recently arrived, thinking the war was over. One 23-year-old private, sent to root out gunmen who were said to have stormed a Baghdad hospital, said: “I thought we were peacekeepers, but there isn’t any peace to keep.”

To: i-node who wrote (171540)	7/3/2003 1:16:59 PM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1583307

This is how Reagan ended the Cold War, and it is how George Bush is eliminating the threat of further terrorism against us. The McGovern, Phil-Donahue-Liberals cannot understand this. Don't even try. You can't. Reagan did nothing but sit on his fat ass and give Saddam bioWMD and nuclear components. Your view of Reagan is a distortion that needs a reality check. If you are any indication, conservatives think highly of themselves only because they tell themselves they are great. It would be laughable if you weren't so serious about it.

To: i-node who wrote (171540)	7/3/2003 1:20:59 PM
From: tejek	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1583307

I forget.......was this stop on Bush's road map? *********************************************************** Israeli Troops Kill Palestinian Militant By ALEXANDRA ZAVIS .c The Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) - After tentative steps toward peace, Israeli troops killed a Palestinian militiaman during a West Bank raid Thursday, and the two sides bickered over who won the past 33 months of fighting. In the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces temporarily closed an important junction after rockets were fired at a Jewish settlement, casting a shadow over a handover of territory to Palestinians. Early Thursday, Israeli troops killed a local leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a militia linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, when an arrest turned violent in the West Bank city of Qalqiliya, the army said. The man killed was identified as Mahmoud Shawer, an assistant to Ibrahim Mansour, the Brigades' leader in Qalqiliya, who was arrested. The army said both men were armed and that one was killed when he tried to flee. Palestinian sources said Shawer was only wounded in the leg during the escape attempt, but when troops withdrew, he was found dead with gunshot wounds to the head. The incident raised fears for a temporary cease-fire declared Sunday by the three main Palestinian groups in an important boost to the ``road map'' peace plan launched by President Bush at a June 4 Mideast summit. The militant Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups suspended attacks for three months, while Fatah announced a six-month truce. However, renegade fighters from the Al Aqsa Martyr's Brigades and a number of smaller factions have rejected the cease-fire, and have carried out a number of shootings. About 30 gunmen from Al Aqsa and another armed group were among thousands marching in Shawer's funeral. A speaker from the militia promised revenge within 24 hours. One of Shawer's sons, about eight or nine years old, was hoisted on the shoulders of one of the marchers and handed an Uzi submachine gun. The boy fired in the air, with adults helping him hold up the heavy weapon. A senior Arafat aide, Tayeb Abdel Rahim, called Shawer's killing an ``assassination'' and accused Israel of trying ``to bring us back to the cycle of action and reaction.'' But the Palestinian foreign minister, Nabil Shaath, said the killing of the militant would not derail the peace process. ``We always knew that the road map is not a highway. It is a mountainous, winding road with cliffhangers and sharp turns to the right and to the left and up and down,'' he told reporters. Israeli officials said they have a right to defend their citizens if Palestinians refuse to dismantle violent groups as required by the road map. ``Until they do, Israel has every right to take defensive measures on behalf of its citizens,'' said Dore Gold, a government spokesman. Palestinian officials fear a crackdown could trigger a civil war. Preferring persuasion, they helped broker the cease-fire. After the truce announcement, Israeli forces began the pullbacks and the prime ministers of the two sides met at an upbeat summit, where they recommitted themselves to the peace plan. Bush called Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Wednesday and invited him to visit Washington in September, according to a statement from Sharon's office. Israel Army Radio said 12 Palestinians were to be released Thursday, including a senior Palestinian security official, Sulimein Abu Mutlak. The release of prisoners - more than 5,000 are held by Israel - is a key Palestinian demand, included in the cease-fire declarations. The two sides became embroiled Thursday in a war of words over who had won the current round of fighting, which began in September 2000. Israel's army chief claimed victory in an interview published Thursday in an Israeli newspaper. ``There is a good chance these days to bring the latest round of violence to an end,'' the army chief, Lt. Gen. Moshe Yaalon, told the Yediot Aharonot daily. ``Given that the Israeli society withstood the test, and the army fought the terror with heroism, we now need to announce that we have won and carry on.'' He said Hamas had been unable to see the fight through to the end. ``Hamas asked for a cease-fire before the gong had sounded,'' he said. ``There is a chance the power of Hamas is declining.'' Hamas responded with its own declaration of victory. ``Hamas has won and the resistance is alive and will continue,'' said Abdel Aziz Rantisi, a senior Hamas figure. ``Hamas has achieved a great victory on the ground ... and a diplomatic victory when Hamas declared the cease-fire,'' Palestinian Authority officials accused Yaalon of incitement. Meanwhile, Israeli forces blocked off a main Gaza junction for six hours, just days after it was reopened as part of a security handover. The closure came in response to the firing of four anti-tank shells at the Jewish settlement of Kfar Darom. Four people were hurt by shrapnel, the army said. On Thursday, two Palestinians were injured when Israeli troops fired on a car trying to pass jeeps blocking the road, Palestinian witnesses said. The army said troops had fired in the air on two occasions when Palestinian vehicles had approached the road block, endangering the soldiers. It was not aware of any victims. The closure of the checkpoint along the strip's main north-south road caused a long traffic jam, frustrating drivers. ``This reflects what liars the Israelis are,'' said Ismail Kadoura, a taxi driver waiting at the barrier. ``The occupation is still here, and we are still here.'' Israel filed a formal complaint with the Palestinian Authority about the firing of shells, saying it was a violation of a security agreement on the withdrawal. Palestinian authorities were searching for those responsible, a senior Palestinian official said on condition of anonymity. Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas condemned the rocket attack and urged Palestinians not to ``allow anyone who is trying to sabotage our lives to create stumbling blocks'' in the peace process. He spoke while touring the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, which returned to Palestinian control on Monday. Israeli troops have repeatedly occupied the town as they tried to stop Palestinian militants from firing homemade rockets over the fence at the nearby Israeli town of Sderot. 07/03/03 12:12 EDT Copyright 2003 The Associated Press.