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Excerpt - Federal prosecutors have sent target letters to six Blackwater Worldwide security guards involved in a September shooting that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead, indicating a high likelihood the Justice Department will seek to indict at least some of the men, according to three sources close to the case. ~ snip ~

(Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge erred in dismissing all charges against five Blackwater Worldwide security guards accused of killing 14 Iraqi civilians in 2007, an appeals court ruled on Friday. The unanimous three-judge panel reinstated the charges and sent the case back to the judge for more proceedings, handing a victory to the U.S. Justice Department in a high-profile prosecution dating to 2008. The five guards were charged with 14 counts of manslaughter, 20 counts of attempt to commit manslaughter and one weapons violation count over a Baghdad shooting that outraged Iraqis and strained ties between the two countries.

Fuzzy Moral Math Editor's Note: The fiction of 100,000 Iraqi civilian casualties has survived to this day in part because of the tantalizing propaganda value of such a large number. How many lightly informed people have tossed this number at you in debate without even realizing that the Lancet study doesn’t measure casualties at all? Now the number of 100,000 Iraqi civilians has new relevance, as the Iraqi Survival Count has surpassed the Lancet tally of "excess deaths." While I am not hopeful that the Iraqi Survival Count will enjoy the same exposure in the media as the Lancet death...

In Baghdad, Iraqi civilians took unusual action to protect coalition forces after a car-bomb attack Aug. 6. After U.S. medics treated the wounded at the scene in the Sumer al Ghadier District, local residents constructed a hasty barricade with trees, bricks and anything else available to protect the soldiers from additional danger. "This is the first time that I can remember where Iraqi civilians actually built a barrier to protect my soldiers," U.S. Army Lt. Col. Steven Merkel, commander of 1st Battalion, 9th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, said. "The soldiers are still talking about...

Troops Continue Forward Steps in Iraq War American Forces Press ServiceWASHINGTON, Feb. 8, 2004 – The hands-on work of patrols, raids and picking up targeted individuals continues in Iraq. Coalition forces are taking the fight to the enemy and responding to enemy challenges, according to news releases on recent coalition activity. Coalition troops are also benefiting from increased intelligence from local people. During the last 24 hours, the coalition reported that soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division conducted 261 patrols – including 18 joint patrols – cleared two small caches and carried out three offensive operations in the Anbar...

Explosion hits Iraqi security patrol north of Baghdad, witnesses say fear many casualties (Reuters)

 Who Are the Iraqi People? The CJTF7 (Combined Joint Task Force 7 - Operation Iraqi Freedom) is a site, it says, "is to provide information and multimedia for the press." It disseminates stories about how wonderfully everything is going in Iraq, and how good we are doing for the Iraqi people, the American people, and the people of the whole world, with stories like: "'Tremendous strides' made in Iraq, Afghanistan", and "Iraqis' spirit liberated with capture of Saddam"There is even a whole page dedicated to the, "Coalition Humanitarian Efforts in Iraq," with heartwarming pictures like these: Students from the Hala...

FALLUJAH, Iraq - (KRT) - The explosion Friday rocked the dusty blue bus, sending tattooed tribeswomen to the floor in a swirl of fringed scarves and screams. They were leaving town for a shopping trip to Baghdad, about 35 miles east, when insurgents apparently bombed a nearby American military checkpoint. None of the women was injured, but the blast destroyed the last vestige of their support for the guerrillas who make Fallujah the most consistently troublesome city for the U.S.-led coalition. "Now you see how it feels, how we have to jump and duck when we hear explosions," Samia Abdullah,...

Iraqis Stage Sweeping Pro-Coalition Demonstrations By Donna MilesAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2003 - Pro-coalition demonstrators gathered throughout Iraq Dec. 10 to protest terrorist actions and urge their fellow Iraqis to take action against anti-coalition forces. Coalition Provisional Authority officials reported major demonstrations in as many as eight cities by a sweeping representation of the Iraqi people: Kurds, Shiites, Sunnis and Christians among them. Although the CPA estimated participation at 15,000 to 20,000 people, Iraqi police and media sources cited numbers ranging from 100,000 to 1 million. The demonstrations, organized by the Iraqi Reconstruction and Development Council,...

Yesterday's demonstrations in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities were a benchmark: Iraq's resistance to terrorism has begun. Ironically, the first TV station to report such a revolutionary development was none other than al-Jazeera, the jihad channel across the Arab world. But the exclusive airing of such footages was not so innocent. The Qatar-based media understood much faster than Western networks the real dimensions of these marches. Therefore it decided to report it first, and, through condescending coverage, demean it in the eyes of Iraqi and Arab viewers, a traditional-yet-efficient subversive tactic. But whatever were the desperate attempts to pre-empt the...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 December 11, 2003Release Number: 03-12-25 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRO-COALITION DEMONSTRATION HELD IN AR RAMADI AR RAMADI, Iraq – Iraqis of the Al Anbar province gathered December 10th for an anti-terrorist demonstration at the provincial council headquarters in Ar Ramadi. Approximately 200 men, women and children gathered with banners to chant slogans condemning terrorism. Ar Ramadi, a former Ba’athist stronghold located approximately 60 miles west of Baghdad, has been a site of persistent anti-Coalition activities since post-war reconstruction efforts began. Speakers...

Yesterday's demonstrations in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities were a benchmark: Iraq's resistance to terrorism has begun. Ironically, the first TV station to report such a revolutionary development was none other than al-Jazeera, the jihad channel across the Arab world. But the exclusive airing of such footages was not so innocent. The Qatar-based media understood much faster than Western networks the real dimensions of these marches. Therefore it decided to report it first, and, through condescending coverage, demean it in the eyes of Iraqi and Arab viewers, a traditional-yet-efficient subversive tactic. But whatever were the desperate attempts to pre-empt the...

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Thousands of Iraqis, some watched over by US Apache helicopters, demonstrated in Baghdad and other cities to condemn "terrorism" in their country. More than 200 protesters from the Iraqi National Congress and other political parties, women's groups and sheikhs in traditional dress gathered near the National Theatre in Baghdad and marched to a central Baghdad hotel. "This is the national campaign against terrorism and sabotage," said Abo Thaer, 55, a member of the Iraqi Communist Party. His party members turned out with giant red flags bearing the hammer and sickle. Participants Wednesday said the rallies marked International...

According to what is described as the first truly representative survey of Iraqi opinion, people in Iraq believe that the best thing that happened in the past 12 months was the demise of Saddam Hussein's regime. The thing they want most over the next year is peace and stability, and the preferred form of government is an Iraqi democracy. The national survey was carried out by Oxford Research International through more than 3,000 interviews in October and November; it was commissioned by Oxford University and done at the same time as audience research for the BBC World Service. This scientific...

November 28, 2003 - 10:30PM The protest occurred in al-Firdos Square, where a large bronze statue of Saddam was toppled by Iraqis and US Marines after the fall of Baghdad in the US-led invasion. "Yes to Iraq," protesters shouted. "No to terrorism." Three empty coffins wrapped with Iraqi flags were brought to the rally to commemorate civilian victims of attacks carried out by Iraqi insurgents fighting American troops. The demonstration was organised by a handful of Iraqi political parties, none of which are members of the US-appointed governing council. Protesters held banners that read: "Killing the innocent is terrorism that...

<p>It’s been one month since the Red Cross headquarters in Baghdad (search) were reduced to a shattered shell, the result of a brutal homicide bombing which also left 12 people dead and many injured, most of them Iraqis.</p> <p>Fadhel Mohammed Ali was one of them. He lives across the street from the Red Cross and suffered a leg injury. He told me, "I saw the ambulance packed with explosives drive up to the building, and then my body was thrown to the side!"</p>

<p>BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) - Some Iraqis were happy President Bush came to their country Thursday, others wished he had gone to hell instead.</p> <p>"As far as I'm concerned he's welcome to come and he's more than welcome to leave," said Abu Mohammed, 57, a cigarette and chewing gum vendor on the streets of the capital.</p>

Baghdadis hail Bush surprise visit From correspondents in Baghdad 28nov03 ORDINARY Iraqis joined American soldiers today in hailing US President George W. Bush's surprise visit to Baghdad in which he fed 600 soldiers the traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner at the city's airport. "Why wouldn't he come here? He got rid of Saddam for us, we owe him," said Raad Turk Azab, a baker. Sara Hassan who was peddling fruits in downtown Baghdad said she appreciated the US president's visit but echoed feelings shared by most Iraqis seven months after the US-led troops invaded Iraq. He "should bring back security to...

US pays up for fatal Iraq blunders Over 10,000 claims but families must waive rights Rory McCarthy in Baghdad Wednesday November 26, 2003 The Guardian The US military has paid out $1.5m (£907,000) to Iraqi civilians in response to a wave of negligence and wrongful death claims filed against American soldiers, the Guardian has learned. Families have come forward with accounts of how American soldiers shot dead or seriously wounded unarmed Iraqi civilians with no apparent cause. In many cases their stories are confirmed by Iraqi police investigations. Yesterday the US military in Baghdad admitted a total of $1,540,050 has...

A Republican Senate Judiciary Committee staff member has been suspended with pay after he admitted that he improperly gained access to "secure committee computers," Fox News Channel reports. Whether the staffer is the person who leaked numerous memos in which Democrats on the committee plotted to turn toe current filibuster of judicial nominees for political advantage was not stated. An angry Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch denounced the staffer's action, saying that senators expect their computers to be secure and calling the staffer's action "entirely unacceptable."