Target Centermass

Month: April 2005

  • Soldiers Cleared in Sgrena Shooting … or Not

    From MSNBC (hat tip to the Jawa Report):

    Report Clears U.S. in Friendly Fire Incident

    The friendly fire shooting at a U.S. military checkpoint last month in Baghdad wounded Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena and killed intelligence agent Nicola Calipari.

    Now, NBC News has learned that a preliminary report from a joint U.S.-Italian investigation has cleared the American soldiers of any wrongdoing and provides new details into the shooting.

    […]

    It was dark when the Italians turned onto a ramp leading to the airport road where the U.S. military had set up a temporary checkpoint.

    The investigation found the car was about 130 yards from the checkpoint when the soldiers flashed their lights as a warning to stop. But the car kept coming and, at 90 yards, warning shots were fired. At 65 yards, when the car failed to stop, the soldiers used lethal force — a machine gun burst that killed Calipari and wounded Sgrena and the driver.

    Senior U.S. military officials say it took only about four seconds from the first warning to the fatal shots, but insist the soldiers acted properly under the current rules of engagement.

    The investigation failed, however, to resolve one critical dispute: The Americans claim the car was racing toward the checkpoint at about 50 miles per hour, the Italians say it was traveling at a much slower speed.

    Wait, the Associated Press says not yet:

    Italy, U.S. Disagree Over Agent Shooting

    Reluctance by Italian investigators to accept the U.S. version of the killing of an Italian security agent by American troops in Iraq last month is holding up the conclusion of a joint inquiry into the shooting, Italian newspapers said Thursday.

    Also Thursday, the U.S. State Department said the investigation was ongoing and denied an NBC report that the U.S.-Italian commission had completed a preliminary report clearing the Americans of any wrongdoing in the killing.

    […]

    “Anyone asserting that conclusions have been reached, or anyone claiming that conclusions have been reached, and they know what they are, must be misinformed,” State Department press officer Thomas Casey said.

    Casey noted that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had said on Wednesday after a meeting Italian Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini that the most important thing was to do the investigation right, not to do it fast.

    An Italian Foreign Ministry official said the commission was continuing its work. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, declined to comment on the reports of a clash among the investigators.

    For once, she of the ever–changing story is quiet:

    Sgrena: I Won’t Comment on Leaks

    “We’ll keep doing whatever we can to find out what happened on March 4 near Baghdad’s airport” Giuliana Sgrena said speaking in the offices of the Province of Rome where she is taking part in a demonstration promoted by the Press Federation to call for the release of Florence Aubese, the correspondent of French newspaper ‘Liberation’ who was kidnapped in Iraq 100 days ago. Giuliana Sgrena chose not to comment the first leaks from the Italy-US Investigating Committee (“I’ll comment only on the conclusions of final official sources”).

    Well, if her version that mentioned 300 to 400 rounds fired or her version where she scooped shells off the seat were true, this would’ve been a pretty cut-and-dried investigation.

    Keep quiet, liar.

  • Dying for Another Tet II

    After the second recent attack on Abu Ghraib, I blogged that the terrorists were trying to use the dramatic attacks to create another Tet.

    The terrorists, despite vows to the contrary, had to watch an Iraqi citizenry give the finger to fear and vote for their own future. The attacks against U.S. troops have repeatedly failed and casualties are declining. It is time for the terrorists to turn back to the Viet Nam playbook – they need another Tet.

    Now, one week and another glorious failure by the terrorists, this one an assault on a Marine encampment near the Syrian border, columnist Austin Bay reaches the same conclusion.

    While bomb attacks on unarmed Iraqi civilians continue (particularly against Shiites), public opinion now matters in Iraq, and the thugs’ public slaughters have killed too many Iraqi innocents. January’s election dramatically lifted public morale and changed the media focus — suddenly, democracy looks possible, and an Arab Muslim democracy is Al Qaeda’s worst nightmare.

    Hence the “Tet gamble.” Bombs haven’t cowed the Iraqi people — but perhaps the American people will lose heart and buckle if Al Qaeda concocts a military surprise.

    U.S. forces, however, are “hard targets” — unlike civilians standing in line to vote, U.S. troops shoot back. Since 9-11, Al Qaeda has never won a military engagement at the platoon level (30 men) or higher. Coalition forward operating bases are heavily fortified.

    But the Tet fantasy is so compelling.

    Go give it a read. Hat tip to In the Bullpen‘s Chad Evans, who adds some solid insight to expand on Bay’s column.

    Al Qaida is not just losing because they are outnumbered, have inferior technology to that of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers, rely on old weaponry funneled in through Iraq’s borders, the fighters have the marksmanship of a virgin hunter, are suffering from heat exhaustion because they have to hide their identity or even because they have had their leaders captured or killed at an alarming rate. Most importantly, Al Qaida and similar terrorist groups are losing in Iraq, Afghanistan and throughout the entire world because the world public rejects their ideology of hatred.

  • Chirac Gives Latest Pro-EU Argument

    Do it to piss off the Brits and the Americans.

    A French Non to the EU constitution will “boomerang” against France and delight “Anglo-Saxon” opponents of a powerful Europe, President Jacques Chirac said.

    In his first major contribution to France’s increasingly sour EU referendum campaign, President Chirac made it clear that, if the country votes “no”, he will ignore the precedent set by his political idol Charles de Gaulle and refuse to resign.

    Debating with 83 young people in a two-hour television political chat show, M. Chirac put up a spirited – if often vague – defence of the proposed new European Union constitution.

    France’s voice in Europe would be “silenced” and “Anglo-Saxon” enemies of the EU – in both Britain and America – would be delighted if the French reject a constitution “largely inspired by France and French values,” he said.

    Far from being a surrender to “liberal” (ie capitalist) values, as left-wing opponents claim, President Chirac said that the constitution enshrined the French view that market forces were essential but should be “organised” and “humanised”.

    […]

    In 13 consecutive opinion polls in the past month, French voters have said that they are planning to reject the EU constitution in a referendum on 29 May. A French Non would in effect wreck the treaty and leave the enlarged EU to struggle on with its existing system of decision-making.

    Opposition to the treaty is especially strong on the left. In part this is a protest vote against 10 per cent unemployment, President Chirac and the floundering centre-right government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin.

    […]

    One young woman asked M. Chirac to give “two or three concrete” examples of how the constitution would benefit France. M. Chirac struggled to give a simple answer. He mentioned a boom in French trade with eastern Europe; the fact that the treaty would enshrine women’s rights; and would increase co-operation against international crime.

    But he kept coming back to his central message: France had nothing to fear; this was a French text, hated by “les Anglo Saxons”.

    M. Chirac was asked if he would follow the example General de Gaulle, who resigned as president in 1969 after losing a referendum on regional government. President Chirac said that he could reply to that question in one word: Non.

    While it seems to be a traditional rallying cry of the French, it is hardly a stirring endorsement of the EU constitution.

  • UN Approves Nuclear Terrorism Treaty

    You can sleep soundly tonight, safe under the warm, fuzzy blanket of security provided by the United Nations.

    The United Nations has approved a treaty aimed at preventing nuclear terrorism. Passage of the measure ends seven years of negotiations.

    In the end, no vote was necessary. The 191-member General Assembly adopted the “International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism” by consensus.

    There, there, rest your little head. We’re all snug and safe now. The vigilant UN is immediately on the case to deal with a threat.

    The measure is the 13th U.N. anti-terrorism convention, and the first adopted since the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States.

    Well, please realize that “immediately on the case” leaves a lot of room for interpretation.

    The treaty adopted Wednesday obligates governments to prosecute or extradite anyone who possesses or threatens to use radioactive materials with intent to cause death or injury.

    The accord is to be opened for signatures on September 14, during a summit of world leaders in New York. It needs ratification of 22 countries to become international law.

    I expect it to become international law. I expect it to look nice, printed in a good font, adorned by meticulously-drawn signatures on the finest of paper. I also expect its enforcement to show it’s not worth the cost of that paper.

  • Shareholders Vote Down Bulldozer Resolution

    Well, this is an abrupt end to an attempt to have far-left politics intrude on a business.

    Caterpillar Incorporated officials say their shareholders have soundly rejected a resolution that would have directed the company to investigate the use of its bulldozers by the Israeli army.
    The resolution was defeated today at the heavy equipment manufacturer’s annual meeting 97 percent to three percent.

    It stated that Israel has used Caterpillar equipment to destroy more than three-thousand Palestinian homes in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since 2000.

    The fact the the vote was such an overwhelming landslide merely demonstrates it wasn’t a matter of bottom line vs. social justice, but rather a case of rationality vs. lunacy.

  • Iranian Pleads Guilty in Smuggling Attempt

    If you’re going to get caught trying to smuggle weapons, I guess it’s best to make it worth your while. You know, something like an entire F-14.

    One has to admire the ambition. Now throw away the key.

  • U.S. Indicts Three in Terror Plot

    The U.S. has brought charges against three potential terrorists who are alleged to have been aiming at key American financial targets.

    Federal authorities unsealed an indictment Tuesday against three men in British custody in connection with scouting financial targets in the United States as preparation for a possible terrorist attack.

    Officials have identified the targets as the New York Stock Exchange and Citigroup Center in Manhattan, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, and Prudential headquarters in Newark, New Jersey.

    The three men — all British nationals — were arrested in England in August. At the time, U.S. law enforcement officials raised the terror threat level, citing evidence from “multiple sources” that al Qaeda members were planning another attack on the United States before Election Day.

    It will happen here again, though we stand a better chance now of catching grandiose schemes such as this than previously. The tragedy of 9/11 has objectively been more of a defeat than a victory for the radical Islamist terrorists, both in its enticement to them for greater acts more easily detected and in its spurring our bringing the war to them. That said, as I’ve repeatedly posted before, I believe it will happen here on a smaller, more personal scale.

    We need to steel ourselves to that eventuality. Also, we must remember that, no matter the effort, a huge tragedy could get through the defenses. We have to be right one hundred percent of the time; they only have to slip through once for a wealth of evil glory.

  • Poland Sets Date for Iraq Pullout

    There’s no real news here, other than a fairly certain timetable for the Poles’ withdrawal from their involvement on the ground in Iraq.

    Ending months of uncertainty over the precise timing, Poland announced Tuesday that it would withdraw all its troops from Iraq once the United Nations mandate for the multinational force expires in December.

    Defense Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski said the cabinet had decided to bring home the 1,700 troops, but he left open the possibility that the mission could be extended if the United Nations mandate were renewed.

    “At the time of the expiry of the Security Council’s mandate, meaning at the end of 2005, the operations of the Polish stabilization mission should be finished,” Szmajdzinski said after the cabinet meeting. He said that Prime Minister Marek Belka’s government would not in the meantime be committing troops to any new missions.

    This has been expected for some time. When a planned withdrawal was first announced, I expressed my gratitude for the Poles’ strong contribution (and have repeatedly called for them to be rewarded as a true ally). Now I thank them for withholding a timetable until significant progress had been made on the ground and in the Iraqi government.

    Today’s article goes on to show why I admire the Polish commitment and efforts — the motives have been as noble as the service.

    Poland’s decision to support the U.S.-led war in Iraq and then provide military assistance annoyed several of its European Union partners. But similar to other former communist countries, Poland said its own experiences of living under dictatorship influenced its decision to back the ousting of the former Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, and later provide military assistance and training.

    Additionally, the central and east European countries, some of which joined the NATO military alliance in 1999 and others last April, were much more Atlanticist than some EU countries, particularly France and Germany, which led opposition in Europe to the war in Iraq.

    What’s more, the Poles aren’t washing their hands of the matter, realizing that success in Iraq has long-term implications for Europe and the globe.

    But Poland said it would continue to be involved in helping NATO train Iraqi officers both inside and outside Iraq. A NATO spokesman said Tuesday that more than 1,000 Iraqi officers would be trained by the alliance inside the country during this year and a further 500 officers trained outside in military academies in several countries, including Germany.

    “All NATO countries in one way or other are involved in the training,” said the spokesman.

  • Rummy Warns Iraq Not to Purge Security

    Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld cautioned the new Iraqi government to not go the route of a mass purge of Sunnis and those affiliated with the Ba’ath party from the country’s fledgeling security forces.

    The US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, delivered a thinly veiled warning to Iraq’s government yesterday not to purge the security forces or abuse its power for patronage.

    On a visit to Baghdad Mr Rumsfeld signalled US disapproval of any attempt to sweep Arab Sunnis and former members of the Ba’ath party from the police and army.

    The Shia and Kurdish blocs that will dominate the new administration want to install their supporters in the security services and oust those who served under Saddam Hussein. But Mr Rumsfeld said, in effect, that such people were among the best qualified to tackle the insurgency.

    “It’s important that the new government be attentive to the competence of the people in the ministries and that they avoid unnecessary turbulence.”

    […]
    Mr Rumsfeld used his visit to lobby the newly appointed Kurdish president, Jalal Talabani, and Shia prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, over key issues. Having won the election and sealed their political ascendance after decades of oppression many Shia and Kurdish politicians want their rebel militias to take a leading role in the state security forces.

    They mistrust interior and defence ministry officials left over from Saddam’s time and accuse some of them of leaking intelligence to an insurgency drawn largely from the Arab Sunni minority.

    Critics say the “deba’athification” process could become a sectarian witchhunt against Sunnis who have the experience lacking in the hastily recruited security forces.

    With the interior and defence ministries offering vast scope for patronage there is also concern that a purge could be an excuse to dole out jobs and contracts to cronies.

    “We have an opportunity to continue to make progress politically, economically … anything that would delay that or disrupt that as a result of turbulence, or lack of confidence or corruption in government, would be unfortunate,” said Mr Rumsfeld.

    Mr Jaafari responded politely but vaguely: “I am sure we are going to form very good ministries. So I think we can cooperate, all of us, and face these challenges successfully.”

    The leading paragraph, with its talk of a “thinly veiled warning,” comes across more harshly than the rest of the story, but that’s the best chance for a reporter to color the news.

    Rummy’s words seem wise — a mass purge or a move to squeeze out Sunnis would be a horrid move, both in terms of public stability and loss of competence. However, the Iraqi government has, to date, been extremely inclusive in its formation, and there is no reason yet to think that this will not continue. Admittedly, I am certain the security forces still contain many of questionable loyalty that should be investigated, watched and possibly removed. However, that does not conflict with Rummy’s wise cautioning against mass purges along religious or political lines.

  • Latest Blogroll Additions

    Sorry for the delay this evening but I’ve been busy as a pager-slave. It was my lousy luck to be oncall after a major software upgrade at work this weekend.

    Anyway, last night I finally got around to adding some blogs to my blogroll that I’ve been checking out for a while. Some of you may already be familiar with them; if not, I would encourage you to visit them. The new additions are as follows: