Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Our "Winds of War" coverage of the global War on Terror is a separate briefing today, and both are brought to you by Glenn Halpern of HipperCritical.

TOP TOPICS

• Last week, President Bush traveled all the way to Iraq to offer a Thanksgiving greeting to the American troops. SFC Ski, one of the troops on site, offers his thoughts here on Winds of Change.NET.

• A team of Spanish intelligence agents was ambushed by guerillas in an area south of Baghdad. 7 agents have been confirmed dead, and hostages may have been taken. Details of the assault are murky, even for the guerillas, but one thing is for sure: the resolve of the Spanish government will be tested over the next few days, a la Italy.

• As Bill Hobbs notes, however, other recent ambushes turned out very badly for the Fedayeen.

Other Topics Today Include: Iraqi blogger's Eid greeting; Advance in trauma care; Japanese diplomats assassinated; Iraqis demonstrate against terror; Jordan-Chechnya terror connection; Where are the Husseins?; Ba'ath Poker; Blix berates the US; Support the Troops (Updated!); Iraqi Toy Drive.

Read The Rest...

PollKatz: you may or may not agree with his views, but it's difficult to not admire his tracking of public opinion.

A recent PollKatz graphic that I've found increasingly interesting: the 7-day moving average of daily coalition fatality rates in Iraq. Because it's too difficult to identify the actual trend by reading the daily news. Here's a thumbnail; click to see the full image.

From CNN: U.S. troops thwart an attempt to ambush a military convoy in northern Iraq, killing 46 attackers in the ensuing battle, sources with the Army's 4th Infantry Division said.

The Baltimore Sun is reporting to US KIA from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment ... their task force was hit Saturday by rocket-propelled grenades and automatic fire east of the border town of Husaybah, 180 miles northwest of Baghdad.

Xinhuanet (China) is reporting that Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi indicated Sunday that Japan will send troops to Iraq as planned despite the attack on two Japanese diplomats.

Writer-at-large and Atlantic Monthly contributor P. J. O'Rourke has a man on the street article in this month's Atlantic, but it's print only. Next time you pass a newsstand, purchase a copy. In the interim, he has an interview at the Atlantic's web site, which you may read here. One passage in particular struck me:

In thinking of all the problems that we're having with the occupation and reconstruction and resistance, it's instructive to remember that the United States alone had more than 1.5 million troops in postwar Germany. That's not counting the French, the British, and of course, the Russians. That many troops in a country that had a lot of infrastructure—both social and civil. This, as opposed to the 130,000 troops that we have Iraq. It just isn't anywhere nearly enough.

The other thing, of course, is that soldiers aren't cops. Those are two different things, as we learned at Kent State thirty-odd years ago. Soldiers are not policemen, and it's very unfair, even for those soldiers who have some police training, to burden them with police duties. It's not what they're trained for, or equipped for.

So say the New York Times, with this lead:

In the months before the Iraq invasion, Iraqi exile leaders trooped through the White House, the Pentagon and the State Department carrying a message about the future of their homeland: without a strong plan for managing Iraq after toppling Saddam Hussein, widespread looting and violence would erupt.

"On many occasions, I told the Americans that from the very moment the regime fell, if an alternative government was not ready there would be a power vacuum and there would be chaos and looting," said Massoud Barzani, leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and a longtime ally of the United States. "Given our history, it is very obvious this would occur."

It appears diplomats are the targets of the day; the two Japanese diplomats were killed near Tikrit. As with the Spaniards, their car was ambushed. Many news sources reporting; the most recent is here from the AJC.

... over there on the right (below the ol' Ace of Spades).

For those who have interest, here is a Google-translated link to the home page of the Spanish Intelligence Service, the CNI. As of this posting, it makes no reference to today's CNI deaths in Iraq, but does offer the biography of Don Jose Antonio Bernal Go'mez, who was killed in Baghdad on 9 October.

At least seven Spanish intelligence agents were killed in an ambush Saturday evening south of Baghdad, the Spanish Defense Ministry said.

The Spanish Defense Ministry confirmed the death toll at seven and said another agent was wounded. They were all from Spain's National Intelligence Center and were not soldiers, the ministry said.

Full story [CNN]...

Police in Italy and Germany have arrested three North Africans suspected of recruiting suicide bombers for attacks linked to al-Qaeda in Iraq.

Also:

An ongoing anti-terrorist investigation in London turned up a house with explosives yesterday, where they arrested a man suspected of being an al-Qaeda operative; today another house in the same neighborhood is being searched for explosives as well. Police have said that one of the men arrested has links to "shoe bomber" Richard Reid.

Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Today's briefings are brought to you by Dan Darling of Regnum Crucis.

TOP TOPICS

* Former Iraq resident Abu Musab Zarqawi may have ordered the Istanbul bombings according to the Asia Times and CNN. The CNN story also establishes the first definitive link between al-Tawhid (Zarqawi's own organization, which is in of itself part of the larger al-Qaeda the same way that the Egyptian groups are) and the Turkish Hezbollah, which is not to be confused with the larger Lebanese organization of the same name.

* Regular readers of this site already know about my analysis of the Weekly Standard memo re: Iraq & al-Qaeda that have been appearing on a daily basis over the course of the last week. Several hours before the first of these was going to be published, I learned about Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball's Newsweek web exclusive and promised to address the points that it raised. You can find my rebuttal to Isikoff and Hosenball here as well as my conclusion that what they are putting forth is essentially a straw man argument.

Other Topics Today Include:Iraq Briefing; Iran Reports; USA Homeland Security Briefing; al-Qaeda's Algerian bases; Mohammed Hamdi al-Ahdal arrested in Yemen; 5 US soldiers killed in Afghan helicopter crash; Indo-Pakistani truce on Kashmir; reaping the fruits of al-Qaeda's training camps; a Turkish jihadi's interview; progress in the war on terror in East Africa; UN assessing security in Eritrea; JI regrouping; Bashir blames Australia; and more political correctness run amok.

Read the Rest..

In a poignant contrast to recent events in London, there have been protests and demonstrations in Iraq after President Bush's visit. From the AAP via the Sydney Morning Herald :

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 we must condemn" and "Cooperating with the criminal Saddam is a crime against humanity".
[...]
The demonstration occurred one day after US President George W Bush made a brief, surprise visit to US troops at Baghdad's international airport.

From the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :

A general in Saddam Hussein's army has died during interrogation by US forces.

An American military statement says Major General Abed Hamed Mowhoush, an air defence officer, died of natural causes.

It says he collapsed after complaining of feeling unwell.

The soldier questioning the general tried to revive him and called for a doctor, but resuscitation attempts failed.

According to the Associated Press:

President Bush made a surprise Thanksgiving visit to American troops in Baghdad Thursday, flying secretly to violence-scarred Iraq on a trip tense with concerns about his safety.

It was the first trip ever by an American president to Iraq.

Air Force One landed in darkness at Baghdad International Airport. Security fears were heightened by an attack last Saturday in which a missile struck a DHL cargo plane, forcing it to make an emergency landing at the airport with its wing aflame.

Bush was to spend only two hours on the ground, limiting his visit to a dinner at the airport with U.S. forces. The troops had been told that the VIP guests would be L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator in Iraq, and Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of coalition forces in Iraq.

Bush's trip -- on the large plane he most frequently uses -- was a well-guarded secret -- announced only after he landed in Baghdad.

In a ruse staged in the name of security, the White House had put out word that Bush would be spending Thanksgiving at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, with his wife, Laura, his parents and other family members. Even the dinner menu was announced.

Instead, Bush slipped away from his home without notice Wednesday evening and flew to Washington to pick up aides and a handful of reporters sworn to secrecy. Plans called for the trip to be abandoned if word had leaked out in advance.

Updates below:

There are some more details in this AP update:

"You are defending the American people from danger and we are grateful," Bush told some 600 soldiers who were stunned and delighted by his appearance.

The president's plane -- its lights darkened and windows closed to minimzie chances of making it a target -- landed under a crescent moon at Bagdad International Airport.

[...]

The news of Bush's trip was not released until he was in the air on the way back to the United States. "If this breaks while we're in the air we're turning around," White House communications director Dan Bartlett told reporters on the flight to Baghdad.

The Reuters version is up.

U.S. forces detained one of the wives and a daughter of Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, number six on the coalition's list of 55 most-wanted Iraqis and believed to be key in the planning and financing of the anti-coalition insurgency, a U.S. military spokesman told CNN Wednesday.

The two women were taken into coalition custody, along with the son of al-Duri's physician, after a raid Tuesday morning near Samarra, about 75 miles (120 km) north of Baghdad, according to Lt. Col. Bill McDonald, spokesman for the 4th Infantry Division in Tikrit.

[CNN]

A homemade videotape given to a French journalist showed a man firing a surface-to-air missile at a DHL cargo plane, moments after a U.S. helicopter flew overhead - apparently without noticing him.

The tape appeared to record the insurgent operation Saturday in which a missile struck the wing of a DHL cargo plane, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing at Baghdad's airport. It was the first time insurgents struck a civilian plane in Iraq. The U.S. military said there were no injuries to the three-member crew.

Full story....

In what's becoming an almost expected occurrence, large blasts were heard in Baghdad within the last hour.

Following the blast, which occurred after 8 p.m., sirens could be heard briefly from the west bank of the Tigris River, where the green zone is located. Sporadic small arms fire could also be heard from the same area.

From the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) via the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :

The letter written by the current President of the Iraqi Governing Council, Jalal Talabani, confirms the intention to elect a new transitional Government before the end of June next year and that this body will then make preparations for a constitutional convention and ultimately general elections before the end of 2005.

From the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :

The head of US central command in Iraq says an American presence will no longer be needed once a future Iraqi government is able to guarantee the country's security.

"When we are no longer needed, we will leave," General John Abizaid said.

"It doesn't mean we'll rush out, it means that we will in a careful and in a certain manner train Iraqi security forces to be responsible."
[...]
"These offensive actions in the past two weeks have actually driven down attacks on coalition forces... I would say the attacks are down by about half," he said.

"But unfortunately we have found that attacks against Iraqis have increased."

From the AFP via the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :

Three Iraqi insurgents were killed by US troops as they planted a roadside bomb on a highway's central reservation, the US military said on Tuesday.

The troops "killed three enemy personnel emplacing an improvised explosive device (IED)" on Monday night at around 8:30pm (local time), said a statement issued by the US Central Command.

It said soldiers on a patrol "determined that the individuals were emplacing an IED and initiated direct fire."

Three were killed and two others managed to escape.

One of the Middle East’s biggest television news networks agreed Monday to halt reports from Iraq after the U.S.-appointed government raided its offices, banned its broadcasts and threatened to imprison journalists. The government accused Al-Arabiya of “inciting murder” for broadcasting an audio tape a week ago of a voice it said belonged to Saddam Hussein.

“WE HAVE issued a warning to Al-Arabiya and we will sue,” said Jalal Talabani, the current president of the Iraqi Governing Council

Two U.S soldiers were pulled from their vehicle while waiting in traffic in Mosul. The attackers slit their throats.

A 4th Infantry Division soldier was killed Sunday and two others were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded in Baqouba.

[Sources: Boston.com, MSNBC]

From the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :

A 45-year-old Australian man suspected of being a Saddam Hussein loyalist has been taken into custody in Iraq.

He was apprehended by the British army after a raid on a house in the southern port city of Umm Qasar.

[Australian]Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says the man had been working with an international company in Iraq.

He will not release the man's name, but says British authorities will outline what they plan to do with him on Tuesday.

Mr Downer says he could be charged under the Geneva convention, "if he is seen to be participating with Saddam Hussein elements attacking coalition forces."

UPDATE: He's since been released. The Brits had overwhelming evidence that he was just an innocent bystander, in the wrong place at the wrong time.

It's a thankless job being an Iraqi sapper. From The Australian :

Iraqi bomb experts say they have come across increasingly sophisticated booby traps and other makeshift devices since insurgents stepped up their resistance against the US-led coalition in August.

The 13-strong team, that patrols the Iraqi capital Baghdad day and night, suspects most of the remotely detonated, timer-controlled bombs are concocted by Iraqis, unlike the explosive-packed cars they believe are driven by foreign militants ready to sacrifice their lives.
[...]
"I can't tell you who does it but cars full of explosives rammed into buildings by suicide bombers are not very Iraqi-like," says Mustafa.

"Look at the five suicide bombings last month. One of the bombers who failed to blow up his car was a Yemeni holding a Syrian passport," says Ismail.

He was referring to a wave of bombings that hit four police stations and the International Committee of the Red Cross last month killing 42 people in the capital.

Coalition military officials said they suspected all five suicide attacks were perpetrated by foreigners. A sixth attack by a Yemeni would-be bomber was thwarted when Iraqi police fired at him as he was driving towards their station.

"We don't like what these people are doing, whether they are Iraqis or foreigners. They hurt and maim innocents," says Ismail.

"Mind you, we do our job for our country. We don't work for the Americans," he says.

"As a matter of fact, they couldn't care less about what we do. They don't help us out," he adds, barely concealing his disappointment.

"We've asked them for robots. They know we need them but they haven't gotten back to us yet."

A few days ago, the deminers were given five flak-jackets and two demining outfits by US troops but Ismail says he "won't be fooled".

"It's too little too late. It won't shield us at all if a large bomb goes off. Why do you think four of my guys want to quit?" he asks.

"We have to contend with the resistance that probably hates us by now and with the Americans that have little respect for the work we do," pipes in Mustafa.

"At best they think that because we only use pliers, screwdrivers and cutters we are retards.

"At worst they think we planted the bombs ourselves!"

Kyodo News [ Full story »» ] reports:

Iraqi police have detained a suspected al-Qaida member in the southern Iraqi city of Samawah, where Japan is considering sending ground troops to help rebuild the country, for allegedly planning a bomb attack on Dutch troops there, a senior police officer told Kyodo News on Friday. This was the first detention in Samawah of a suspected member of the international terrorist network. A Japanese fact-finding team now in the city for investigations in preparation for the dispatch of Self-Defense Forces is paying close attention to the arrest.

Deutsche Welle [ Full story »» ] reports:

An Airbus jet belonging to the German courier service DHL makes an emergency landing in Iraq after being fired upon by a surface-to-air missile.

Fox

Iraqi police stations in Baqouba and Khan Bani Saad came under attack on Saturday, killing at least 14, the U.S. military and Iraqi officials said.

The first blast rocked the station in Baqouba, a city about 35 miles northeast of Baghdad. Minutes later, the second bomb detonated in Khan Bani Saad, a crowded market town about 12 miles south of Baqouba on the road to Baghdad.

Capt. Ryan McCormick of the 4th Infantry Division said the explosion in Khan Bani Saad killed 10 people, including six policemen, three civilians and the bomber. Iraqi police said one of the dead was a 5-year-old girl. Ten people were wounded, McCormick said.

McCormick said a police guard fired on the approaching vehicle but could not prevent the blast. He said there were no U.S. or other coalition casualties.

In Baqouba, three policemen and the driver were killed. One policeman was missing, Lt. Wisam Ahmed said. Officials said at least 10 civilians were hurt.

Al-Qaeda training chief Abu Mohammed al-Ablaj to Saudi magazine al-Majallah, May 25, 2003:

"Allah has turned to him [Saddam Hussein] with forgiveness. He declared jihad and did not recognize Israel. There is nothing to bar cooperation with a Muslim who has made jihad his course and way for liberating the holy lands."

By now, I expect that just about everyone in blogosphere has heard from one source or another about the memo that was leaked to the conservative Weekly Standard that provided a considerable listing of evidence regarding a connection between Iraq and al-Qaeda.

What I'm now going to do is to examine the memo excerpts that were provided by The Weekly Standard and endeavor to see whether or not the raw data is consistent with what we already know or can reasonably deduce from reported stories in the press. This is a far from ideal method of verifying the excerpts in the Standard's piece, but short of full declassification of all US intelligence in relation to al-Qaeda (something that might happen around 2025 or so), it's probably the best that we're going to get here in the blogosphere.

Because of the length and detail required, this is a 6-part series. Part 2 deals with Iraq's alliance with al-Qaeda in more detail, esp. as it applies to Saddam's self interest and the defense of his regime. We'll also be returning to this topic in the final installment.

Read The Rest...

Fox

Attackers used the colorful donkey carts presumably because they are so common in Baghdad and attract little attention from security forces on alert for car bombs. Painted on one of the carts was a traditional inscription: "My heart is with you, my dear."

After the explosions, U.S. soldiers were seen searching donkey carts around Baghdad.

Just so you know.

Insurgents attacked three high-profile places in Baghdad: The Palestine and Sheraton Hotels and the Oil Ministry.

Two rockets hit the Palestine Hotel - where members of the media stay - and one ricocheted off the Palestine and hit the Sheraton Hotel nearby.

No one was believed to be at the Oil Ministry at the time of the attacks; no word yet on injuries or casualties from the hotels.

Fox reports that more than a dozen rockets were fired from donkey carts.

Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from Iraq that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Our Winds of War coverage of the global War on Terror is a separate briefing today, and both are brought to you by Dan Darling of Regnum Crucis.

TOP TOPICS

• Websites are popping up showing video footage of attacks on US forces in Iraq. If this Reuters story is accurate, these websites are likely at the very least ideologically affiliated with al-Qaeda - one of the other propaganda films purported to be listed on the website, "Russian Hell in Chechnya," is a propaganda film produced by the organization intended to recruit Muslims to fight Russian forces in Chechnya.

• JK: On which topic, Dan Darling examines the memo excerpts that were provided by The Weekly Standard re: Iraq & al-Qaeda, and tries to see if the raw data is consistent with reported stories in the press over the last 8 years. Part 1 of a 6-part series.

• General John Abizaid is reporting that the number of insurgents active inside Iraq is estimated at 5,000, though one might point out that similar long-running insurgencies in areas such as Chechnya, the Palestinian terrorities, and Aceh have been sustained for years with similar numbers of insurgent fighters.

Other Topics Today Include: Nasiriyah bombing aftermath; Operation Iron Hammer; assassination attempt on Kirkuk deputy governor; the hunt for al-Douri; Shi'ites to form the bulk of the new Iraqi military; Iraqi police back on the job; law and order in Hilla; anti-terrorist demonstration in Nasiriyah; agreement between Coalition Provisional Authority and Iraqi Governing Council; no plans to pull US troops out of Iraq; Ramadi rethinking its position; Baghdad graffiti; UK may deploy more troops; Italians to stay in Iraq; Italian anti-war group sending cash to the insurgents; US to revamp MEK; Iraq isn't Vietnam; more data on Iraqi WMD program; Kay says two Iraqi scientists helping the coalition on Iraqi anthrax program.

Read the Rest...

Dan Darling says:

"By now, I expect that just about everyone in blogosphere has heard from one source or another about the memo that was leaked to the conservative Weekly Standard that provided a considerable listing of evidence regarding a connection between Iraq and al-Qaeda.

What I'm now going to do is to examine the memo excerpts that were provided by The Weekly Standard re: Iraq & al-Qaeda, and endeavor to see whether or not the raw data is consistent with what we already know or can reasonably deduce from reported stories in the press. Because of the length and detail, this will be a 6-part series. Part 1 deals with The Pentagon Memo, and begins to look at the relationship between Iraq and al-Qaeda, in particular Zawhiri's Egyptian Islamic Jihad."

The level of detail and the media sources he manages to bring into the discussion are impressive. As usual.

Dan's analysis is part of Winds of Change.NET's regular "Winds of War" features, of course, and his work is also linked in both today's Iraq Report, and the Winds of War report that covers the global war on terror.

U.S. troops shot dead 10 people who ambushed a coalition civilian convoy south of Samarra in north-central Iraq, the 4th Infantry Division said Thursday.
....

Military officials said attackers using small arms fired at the convoy Wednesday near Samarra, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of Baghdad. Nearby U.S. forces responded with tanks.

Full story at CNN

Entire text:

For the first time in decades, the Iraqi people are enjoying the taste of freedom. Iraqis are starting to rebuild their country and can look to a brighter future. They are free of Saddam Hussein and his vicious regime; they can speak freely; practice their religion; and start to come to terms with the nightmare of the last 35 years, in which hundreds of thousands of Iraqis were murdered by their own government.

But Iraq is still threatened by followers of the former regime, and by outside terrorists who are helping them. The struggle is difficult. Yet we shall persevere to ensure that the people of Iraq will prevail, with the support of the new and strengthening Iraqi security forces: the police, the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps, the Facility Protection Service, the border police, and the New Iraqi Army. We salute the courage of those Iraqis and the coalition forces engaged in the struggle against reactionary elements in Iraq who want to turn back the clock to the dark days of Saddam's regime.

We reaffirm the resolve of our two countries, with many friends and allies, to complete the process of bringing freedom, security, and peace to Iraq.

We warmly welcome the Iraqi Governing Council's announcement of a timetable for the creation of a sovereign Iraqi Transitional Administration by the end of June 2004, and for a process leading to the adoption of a permanent constitution and national elections for a new Iraqi government by the end of 2005.

This announcement is consistent with our long-stated aim of handing over power to Iraqis as quickly as possible. It is right that Iraqis are making these decisions and for the first time in generations determining their own future. We welcome the Governing Council's commitment to ensuring the widest possible participation in the Transitional Assembly and constitutional process.

We reaffirm our long-term commitment to Iraq. The United States and United Kingdom stand ready to support the Transitional Administration in its task of building a new Iraq and its democratic institutions. Our military participation in the multinational force in Iraq will serve the Iraqi people until the Iraqis themselves are able to discharge full responsibility for their own security. At the same time, we hope that international partners will increasingly participate in the multinational force.

Our long-term political, moral, and financial commitment to the reconstruction of Iraq was underlined at the Madrid Donors Conference last month. Although the Coalition Provisional Authority will come to an end once the Transitional Administration is installed, the United States and United Kingdom will continue to provide assistance as part of the international support effort. In these tasks, we welcome the involvement of other nations, regardless of earlier differences; of the United Nations and the International Financial Institutions; and of the many non-governmental organizations who are able to make an important contribution.

Great challenges remain in Iraq. But the progress we have made this year has been enormous. Iraqis no longer live in fear of their own government, and Iraq's neighbors no long feel threatened. Our resolve to complete the task we set ourselves remains undiminished. Our partnership with the Iraqi people is for the long-term.

Thoughts?

NYT:

An explosion at the offices of a Kurdish political party in the northern town of Kirkuk killed four people on Thursday, and officials said a pro-U.S. politician was assassinated in the southern port city of Basra, the latest in a string of attacks against Iraqis who support American efforts in Iraq.

Jalal Johar, an official with the party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, said several other people had been injured in the blast which he attributed to a bomb. All the casualties were civilians, he said.

The PUK is a group that supports American efforts in Iraq. Party chief Jalal Talabani is the current head of the U.S.-installed Iraqi Governing Council.

I almost never post an article from a blog - it's one of the rules in contributing to TCP that:

Do not post information from other blogs unless you link that blog and they cited a credible media source. Cite and link both: "Instapundit reports that CNN is saying..."

But Tim Blair has an article on the lives and families of the 17 US soldiers killed when their two helicopters collided in Iraq under circumstances that are still obscure. An article that should be read by everyone so they know the price being paid for Iraqi freedom, and the calibre of the people on the ground there. In it he quotes from, and posts links to, sources as varied as the Twin Cities Pioneer Press and the Mississippi Clarion-Ledger. From this Australian's viewpoint (and from Tim's too), the USA in microcosm.

So please go read the article, and all its links.

A spokesman for the Education Ministry in the capital said Hmud Kadhim, the ministry's director general in Diwaniyah province, 100 miles south of Baghdad, was shot to death by unknown assailants on Tuesday. An investigation was under way, the spokesman said.

Guerrillas have warned that they will assassinate Iraqis who collaborate with occupation authorities, including officials such as Kadhim whose job made him one of the top officials in Diwaniyah province.

Full story at Fox

Welcome! Our goal at Winds of Change.NET is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday... but there were some technical difficulties yesterday, so we're running this today instead. Today's Iraq Reconstruction Report is brought to you by sometime Guest-Blogger Robin Burk.

Note that this briefing offers only her own opinions, and does not reflect any official position of the U.S. Army, DoD or the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

TOP TOPICS

• A leaked intelligence report details longstanding contacts and recent cooperation between Iraq and al Qaeda. Money quote from before the start of the war:
  
  "Sensitive reporting indicates senior terrorist planner and close Al Qaeda associate al Zarqawi has had an operational alliance with Iraqi officials. As of Oct. 2002, al Zarqawi maintained contacts with the IIS to procure weapons and explosives, including surface-to-air missiles from an IIS officer in Baghdad. According to sensitive reporting, al Zarqawi was setting up sleeper cells in Baghdad to be activated in case of a U.S. occupation of the city"

• Check out Sgt. Stryker's new Iraq: The Good, Bad and Ugly blog for links to a wide variety of the newspapers in Iraq and surrounding countries.

Other Topics Today Include: Iraqi newspapers; Full reconstruction roundup; Iraqi Council reports; Iraqis take the initiative; Basra on the rise; oil through Israel?; Oil to Jordan; Transforming the US military; a bride for Dennis.

Read The Rest...

Breaking on Sky News:

The US Army claims to have evidence that Saddam Hussein's deputy, Izzat Ibrahim, is behind some of the recent attacks on Coalition forces inside Iraq.

...Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt said: "We are getting more intelligence that suggests he was directly implicated in the killing of some Coalition soldiers.

U.S Forces killed six "insurgents" and captured others as part of their massive operation in and around Baghdad.

In Baghdad, troops were searching house-to-house for weapons. Sources say that residents were told to leave their houses and take their personal belongings with them before the raid.

Also, troops captured Kazim Mohammed Faris, an organizer of the Fedayeen insurgents.

[Various sources; full stories at Fox and NYT]

The Iraqi scientist who headed Saddam Hussein's long-range missile program has fled to neighboring Iran, a country identified as a state sponsor of terrorism with a successful missile program and nuclear ambitions, U.S. officers involved in the weapons hunt told The Associated Press.

Dr. Modher Sadeq-Saba al-Tamimi's departure comes as top weapons makers from Saddam's deposed regime find themselves eight months out of work but with skills that could be lucrative to militaries or terrorist organizations in neighboring countries. U.S. officials have said some are already in Syria and Jordan.

Full story at Fox