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International terrorism experts say the situation in Iraq has diverted the attention of Islamic extremists away from the West. But they believe the threat to the West will resume, once violence in Iraq subsides. International terrorism experts say terror networks are focusing on their fight in Iraq, temporarily reducing the dangers faced by Western countries that have been targets in the past. The network of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the al-Qaida leader of insurgents in Iraq, is more interested in fighting the West in that country than in Europe or in the United States. Retired U.S. army colonel says the American...

This paper surveys Tarek Heggy's views on the need to liberalize Egypt and in the Arab world. Businessman with a Social Conscience In his website article "Why Do I Write?" Heggy outlines the areas in which Egypt is ripest for change. 1 He criticizes the tendency to invent conspiracy theories or blame world animosity as a means of explaining Egypt's current problems. Urging Egyptians to be more objective about their culture, he writes: "We have to curb our tendency to indulge in excessive self-praise and to glorify our past achievements. We have to learn to criticize ourselves and to accept...

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla., June 13, 2005 – Vice President Richard B. Cheney urged patience as Iraq continues on the road toward self-sufficiency in a June 10 interview here. Speaking with Air Force Master Sgt. Sean Lehman of the Pentagon Channel, Cheney stressed the need for patience with the remaining U.S. and coalition mission in Iraq and as the fledgling democracy takes shape, citing "two really important developments" in progress. "One is the Iraqis (are) in the midst of the process of writing a constitution, which will be ratified in a national referendum this fall, and then they'll have...

"You can't fix in six months what it took 35 years to destroy." These words, spoken by Ibrahim al-Jaafari, Iraq's first democratically elected Prime Minister in half a century, should be inscribed in 3-foot-tall characters as a preface to all the reporting from Iraq. Sadly, the underlying reality all too often seems to escape many reporters caught in the excitement of "now." Writing in the Christian Science Monitor, A. Heather Coyne concurs with the gradualist view: Having spent the past two years in Iraq, first as an Army officer and now as the head of the Iraq office of the...

Baqir Solagh Jabar, Minister of Interior, has emphasized, that Al-Barq (lightening) forces have captured 1318 terrorists resulted by breaking into their dens and followed the traces through out two weeks of chasing, killing 36 including another 8 Arab nationalities. Jabar has declared car bomb level has declined from 12 cars daily to 0.6, and pointed out to success of Al-Barq forces in guarding innocent people from killing by car bombing. On the other hand, Minister of Interior has said in a press conference, terror symbols have ran away out of Baghdad, adding, the first and second phases of [defeating] terror...

BAGHDAD — Business is booming for the wedding DJ in the Iraqi capital. The party planner at the city's upscale Hunting Club can't find enough floral designers to keep up with decoration demands. Overwhelmed by the demand for marriage contracts, two judges in Basra are turning away would-be brides and grooms. And an unscripted series that follows couples as they plan their weddings is among the most popular shows on Iraqi TV. Since President Saddam Hussein was ousted two years ago, the number of nuptials in Iraq has soared, say party planners, judges and clergy members. Although there are no...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE CONSTITUTION, BAGHDAD, Iraq, June 11, 2005 – A ceremony was held in western Baghdad June 9 to officially transfer the authority of Raider Base from the coalition forces to the Iraqi Army. "This represents a tremendous growth and ability of the Iraqi security forces to assume on their own duties of manning an important outpost," said Lt. Col. Loepoldo Quintas, commander, 2nd Battalion, 70th Armored Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. Gen. Aziz Swady, 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division commander and his soldiers were passed the torch of control for Raider Base. Aziz promised...

A ruthless band of cowardly terrorists are no match for our brave men and women in uniform. Each visit to Iraq reminds me that U.S. soldiers are articulate, capable and dedicated to the cause. On June 3, the New York Times reported that 75 percent of Iraqis support the Iraqi government, and that 65 percent of Iraqis believe Iraq is headed in the right direction. The report also noted that Iraqis are providing authorities with far more tips on insurgent activities than even a few months ago. The progress in Iraq is real. Our soldiers and the Iraqi people will...

Far from media focus: steady democratic progress in Iraq By A. Heather Coyne from the June 07, 2005 edition BAGHDAD – Recent international reporting on Iraq has focused on the wave of violence and the spike in insurgent activity. Yet only a few weeks ago, press reports were trumpeting a lull in attacks as the end of the insurgency. The political process in Iraq - as covered by the few reports that do not focus exclusively on the number of bombs and shootings - appears similarly erratic: elation over the elections rapidly deteriorated into cynicism and despair over parliamentary wrangling....

Rebuilding is 'truly remarkable' Following his two-day trip to Iraq, Rep. Mark Green said he saw signs of improvement in the war-torn and terrorist-plagued country. "From Baghdad to Fallujah, from our own troops to Iraq's new security forces, signs of progress abound," said Green, R-Green Bay, who has declared his candidacy for the 2006 Republican nomination for Wisconsin governor. "Eighteen months ago I had the honor of being one of the first members of Congress to visit Iraq after its liberation," Green said at a press conference in Green Bay. "It was clear then just how monumental the rebuilding task...

E-mail Author Send to a Friend Version June 01, 2005, 7:59 a.m. Fallujah Rises from the Ashes Building a new Iraqi city. By Michael Fumento Fallujah, Iraq — Critics of the attack on Fallujah last November often invoked the damning (and mythical) utterance from Vietnam: “We had to destroy the village to save it.” Never mind that the alternative to the massive assault on the city backed by artillery, tanks, and aircraft would either be a huge loss of American lives or simply allowing the al Qaeda cut-throat Abu Musab al-Zarqawi to keep it as the terrorist headquarters. Forget...

Benchmark 1,000th Reconstruction Project Completed in Iraq By Denise Calabria Special to American Forces Press Service BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 31, 2005 The public spotlight recently shone on an unassuming, eight-classroom school in the town of Zakho, Iraq, and for good reason. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Gulf Region Division, responsible for oversight of reconstruction in Iraq, announced it had identified Betas School as its 1,000th completed reconstruction project.    The Betas School, located amid rolling hills on the outskirts of the town of Zahko, in the northernmost province of Dahuk, is home to headmaster Ibraheem Nuri, 60 students, and...

RAMADI, Iraq -- Our men and women in uniform, doing extraordinary work day in and day out, are winning the ongoing battle for Iraq. Some days, in some places, the battlefront requires house-to-house searches, military "hardware" and courageous actions by the most awe-inspiring fighting force the world has ever known. I witnessed the tenacity and skill of our Marines, soldiers and sailors firsthand in the recent Operation Matador. Other days, in other places -- and more commonly -- the battle is won with a smile, a shared canteen, a soccer ball, a "human experience," heart to heart. America's men...

Abu Musab al Zarqawi and his "al Qaeda in Iraq" are being picked apart. One result of this is more knowledge of exactly what al Zarqawi and his organization are doing, and why (or at least the reasons they give themselves). All this comes from the mass of recently captured documents, and arrest of people who have worked for al Zarqawi. All this has revealed that, in the last two years, al Zarqawi and his chief lieutenants have met, at least five times, in nearby Syria or Jordan, to plan their strategy. Such meetings inside Iraq are considered too dangerous...

RAMADI, Iraq -- Our men and women in uniform, doing extraordinary work day in and day out, are winning the ongoing battle for Iraq. Some days, in some places, the battlefront requires house-to-house searches, military "hardware" and courageous actions by the most awe-inspiring fighting force the world has ever known. I witnessed the tenacity and skill of our Marines, soldiers and sailors firsthand in the recent Operation Matador. Other days, in other places -- and more commonly -- the battle is won with a smile, a shared canteen, a soccer ball, a "human experience," heart to heart. America's men and...

15 Taliban captured in southeastern Afghanistan KABUL: The Afghan military said on Tuesday that it had captured 15 suspected Taliban insurgents with rockets and automatic weapons during a raid in southern Afghanistan. The men were detained on Monday in Deh Rawood, a troubled district in the insurgency-hit south-central Uruzgan province, the regional commander, Gen Muslim Hamed, said. “We’ve captured 15 Taliban. We’ve seized weapons and documents that prove they were Taliban members,” the general told AFP, adding that the arrests were made without any exchange of gunfire. He said the men were hiding in a compound and preparing for attacks...

"These Marines are great. America ought to be very proud of its Marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen; they're doing great work out here." So Marine Col. Stephen Davis, the commander of Regimental Combat Team 2 (RCT-2), told me once we had a chance to talk near al Qaim, Iraq. Davis is in charge of Operation Matador, an effort to bring law and order to the bulk of Iraq's vast, western al Anbar province, which makes up one-third of the country. What these Marines are doing now near the Syrian border is what they did months ago in Fallujah, and the...

WESTERN IRAQ -- "These Marines are great. America ought to be very proud of its Marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen; they're doing great work out here." So Marine Col. Stephen Davis, the commander of Regimental Combat Team 2 (RCT-2), told me once we had a chance to talk near al Qaim, Iraq. Davis is in charge of Operation Matador, an effort to bring law and order to the bulk of Iraq's vast, western al Anbar province, which makes up one-third of the country. What these Marines are doing now near the Syrian border is what they did months ago in...

OPERATION MATADOR CONTINUES INTO FOURTH DAY CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, Iraq – Marines, Sailors and Soldiers from Regimental Combat Team Two, 2nd Marine Division, continued combat operations in northwestern Al Anbar province May 11. Three Marines have been killed in the course of the four-day operation. A significant number of terrorists, anti-Iraqi forces and foreign fighters have been killed. The offensive is aimed at eliminating terrorists and foreign fighters from the area. Information gathered prior to the operation about the presence of foreign fighters in the region has been confirmed by clothing, identification, dialect and by admissions from detainees. The number...

U.S. assault leaves 100 militants dead - Mission near the Iraq-Syria border targets followers of terrorist leader. BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Hundreds of American troops backed by helicopter gunships and warplanes swept into remote desert villages near the Syrian border Monday, hunting for followers of Iraq's most wanted terrorist and reportedly killing as many as 100 militants since the weekend operation began. The U.S. military said some foreign fighters were believed among the insurgents killed in the first 48 hours of the assault, which began late Saturday in the border town of Qaim, about 200 miles west of Baghdad. At least...