IRAQ THE MODEL: "Pharoz Rajifar (sp?) president of the Iranian organization that ' Defends values of Islam' said that 15 thousands Iranian have volunteered to commit suicidal attacks in Iraq. Hamshri newspaper that's published in Iran reported that Mr. Rajifar mentioned that all the volunteers are ready to 'defend Islam' in southern Iraq or any other place that might need their services. "

Today in Iraq: "The toll of combat deaths in Anbar, west of Baghdad, has mounted even as Marines battle loyalists of renegade cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in southern Iraq, and accounts for a third of Americans tallied as killed in action since the June 28 transfer of political power. At least four Marines were killed in the past week there, including one yesterday, in what military statements posted on the Pentagon's Web site describe only as ?enemy action.?"

Boots on the Ground: "Muqtada al-Sadr is again being defiant. Saying he wont quit until the very last drop of his blood had been spilt. In a week or two he will probably come out and say he wants a truce. It anoyys me how easily we could kill the guy. We could easily have a spy in his mosque and could just drop a few cruise missiles on him, and that would be that, but we don't. I wish our government would really let us get on with the job. We could easily crush them if we were told to.
"

Iraqi American: "Last time Muqtada started the fighting it was the US Army in power and most of the Iraqi people did not agree with Muqtada but did not say anything because they are afraid of his people. Now we have an Iraqi government and an Iraqi face not to mention a prime minister who is a Shia. So my question to Muqtada is what is it you want this time? I wonder if this is the beginning of the end for Muqtada. I sure hope it?s the end for this guy and all his army."

Live From Dallas: "Two weeks ago I wrote about the Iraqi Olympic team heading to Athens. I raised the issue of Ala'a Hikmat, the sole Iraqi female Olympic athlete, who had no proper training or gear like her male peers. The post got lots of attention as it should. "

IRAQ THE MODEL: "Monday, August 09, 2004

The chief of Najaf IP, brigadier Ghalib Al Jazaeri was interviewed by Al Sharqyia TV today and gave some important statements. Mr. Ghalib confirmed the IP control over the majority Najaf and said that Al Mahdi militia are besieged in small areas. "

THE WAR IN CONTEXT:: Iraq, the War on Terrorism, and the Middle East Conflict - in Critical Perspective: "The effort by U.S. officials to justify raising the terror alert level last week may have shut down an important source of information that has already led to a series of al Qaeda arrests, Pakistani intelligence sources have said.

Until U.S. officials leaked the arrest of Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan to reporters, Pakistan had been using him in a sting operation to track down al Qaeda operatives around the world, the sources said."

Hammorabi: "It has been revealed that some Iranian Intelligent officers have been captured recently in Iraq and confessed that they are leading special cells inside Iraq. The uncovered information revealed that the Iranian government hardliner are directly involved in the recent unrest inside the Shiite cities of Najaf, Al-Thowrah, and the South."

THE MESOPOTAMIAN: "The Iraqi Government may not be perfect, but still if it succeeds in resolving the security issue this will be the key to subsequent positive developments. Now we are witnessing hopeful signs that this Government does not lack backbone, and it is struggling together with the fledgling new security forces who are beginning to demonstrate increasing determination and morale to impose Law and Order and combat criminals, terrorists and general lawlessness in the country."

Baghdad Burning: "300+ dead in a matter of days in Najaf and Al Sadir City. Of course, they are all being called ?insurgents?. The woman on tv wrapped in the abaya, lying sprawled in the middle of the street must have been one of them too. Several explosions rocked Baghdad today- some government employees were told not to go to work tomorrow."

Kurdo's World: "Al-Jazeera, Ansar Al-Islam and some more updates

Recently I asked Medya to give me some facts about the presence of Ansar Islam in Eastern (Iranian) Kurdistan. Medya lives in Mariwan, a town near the political border of Iraq and Iran.

A Kurdish newspaper, Hawlati claimed that Ansar Islam are now regrouping in Iran."

Today in Iraq: "Although US troops blocked the main routes into Najaf, the city itself remained largely under Mahdi control as Shia fighters travelled in from the towns of Amara, Kut and Diwaniya, using dirt tracks to bypass the closed roads. Others gathered in front of the mosque in the centre of Kufa, Najaf's sister town where al-Sadr is based. ?Yes, yes, Moqtada,? they chanted. ?By soul and blood, we worship Moqtada.? "

iraqi wannabe: justin alexander?s blog: "The last 5 days in Iraq have been tough and on the few occassions where i've had 15mins to blog I've felt overwhelmed and therefore wimped out. Apologies to friends who've been worried by the silence...

Would you believe I only managed to write that first paragraph when there were five heavy explosions so I quickly quit the hotel internet cafe (to avoid flying glass if a mortar rounds lands outside, and more importantly to avoid all the excited journalists scurrying around with a hungry look on their faces) and headed up to my room. "

News: "Al-Jazeera 'no more biased than other TV channels'
The Iraqi government's ban on the Arab satellite TV news channel is a mistake, say critics
By David Usborne in New York
08 August 2004
The lead story yesterday on the English-language website of al-Jazeera, the Qatar-based television news channel, was not about the closing of its office in Baghdad for 30 days by the interim government in Iraq. It focused instead on new Iraqi legislation to grant amnesty to minor criminals in the country.
What is telling, however, is how the story begins: 'The US-installed interim Iraqi PM, Iyad Allawi ...' "