Babylon & Beyond

IRAQ: A mother's poem about a Marine sniper

Tony Perry — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 14:11:34 -0700

When Marines at Camp Pendleton are charged with misconduct in Iraq, their families rally to their defense.

The mother of Robert Pennington, one of the Hamdaniya defendants, testified about watching her son deteriorate psychologically in the brig.

The sister of Trent Thomas, also one of the Hamdaniya defendants, testified about the hardships of growing up poor and black in East St. Louis and how her brother dropped to his knees and thanked God when he was accepted into the Marine Corps.

The mother of Justin Sharratt, one of the Haditha defendants, told reporters that in her heart she knows her son killed Iraqis only in self-defense. "I'd rather get a phone call from my son (saying he is facing charges) than have two Marines come to my door telling me he's dead."

At his preliminary hearing this week at Camp Pendleton, the family of Sgt. Johnny Winnick was there in force: mother, father, two sisters, one brother, one brother-in-law.

Winnick, a sniper, is accused of manslaughter and assault in killing two Syrians and wounding two others in the Lake Tharthar region. He says he opened fire because he thought the men were trying to bury an improvised explosive device, or IED, to kill Marines.

After hearing last month that her son faced charges, Dorothy Winnick wrote a poem entitled "I Sent My Son To War." The full poem, chronicling her son's enlistment at 17, four deployments, and criminal case at age 24, is posted on the website www.johnnywinnick.com.

One section deals with her son's experience during the battle for Fallouja in 2004. It may -- or not -- explain why he reacted so quickly when he saw the Syrians last year burying what he thought was an IED.

He fought in the biggest and deadliest battle of the war, the battle of Fallujah
He stormed houses. He searched for the enemy
The explosions were tremendous, the gunfire relentless, and blood covered the streets
He fought, he prayed, I prayed, he was hit but nothing happened, he stepped on an IED but nothing happened.
I prayed, he prayed.

-- Tony Perry, at Camp Pendleton

Photo: Sgt. Johnny Winnick, facing charges for misconduct in Iraq. Credit: family website

IRAQ: Consulates to open in San Diego, Detroit

Doug Smith — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 10:30:51 -0700

Coming to California: The consulate of Iraq. Well, a consulate, anyway.

To help expatriates scattered around the United States and to take the strain off the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, the Foreign Ministry has decided to open two consulates in the U.S.

“Yes, there’s quite a big community in Detroit,” Foreign undersecretary Labid Abbawi said.

The other will be in — not Los Angeles or San Francisco -- but San Diego.

“Also we have quite a big number in San Diego as well,” Abbawi said. “There are also in Los Angeles a lot, but we thought San Diego was more suitable.”

According to the 2000 census, there were 3,705 Iraqis in Detroit, 2,039 in Los Angeles and 822 in San Diego.

But there are also Iraqi communities in East San Diego County, particularly Chaldeans, who are Christians. Many small-market owners and professionals are Iraqi. Some estimate that, including second generation, there are 25,000 Iraqis in the county.

Those numbers are sure to increase in the years ahead as the U.S. State Department gears up its postwar refugee program. The Bush administration set a goal of admitting 12,000 Iraqi refugees this year.

The San Diego consulate should open before the end of the year, Abbawi said.

It will assist Iraqis with documentation, passports, visas and other consular services.

Americans flying from the West Coast to Iraq will also find it convenient. Now they’ll only have to drive to San Diego to pick up their visas. That could be preferable to waiting a day or two Amman, Jordan, to get the necessary papers.

So maybe it’s only reporters and military contractors who would care. But if Iraq has turned the corner on security, as Abbawi believes, tourism is soon to follow.

“We hope the day will not be too long where you’ll be able to come and have a walk in Baghdad quite freely,” Abbawi said. “I hope this will not be long.”

-- Doug Smith in Baghdad

IRAN: Seeking spiritual advice on nuclear technology

borzou — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 09:18:59 -0700

As world powers studied Iran's response to a package of proposals meant to convince it to stop enriching uranium, a curious series of meetings took place today in Iran.

Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili (pictured at left), took a trip from Tehran today to the holy city of Qom, home to some of the most powerful clerics in the Shiite Muslim faith, which is prevalent in Iran and Iraq.

That's according to the usually rather reliable Persian-language news website Tabnak, but other sources also confirmed the information.

In Qom, he visited three key Iranian clerics for closed-door meetings. They were Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi, Ayatollah Lotfullah Safi Golpayegani and Ayatollah Jaffar Sobhani.

All are staunchly pro-Islamic Republic but have been critical of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's handling of the economy. All are "marja," sources of emulation at the top of the Shiite clergy. No reporters were allowed in for photo-ops, which is unusual, and the state-controlled news outlets were mum about the sessions.

Iranian politicians often seek political and religious cover before making bold moves, in case something backfires.

Analysts say that when Iranian political leaders such as Ahmadinejad, experienced council chairman Ali Akbar Rafasanjani or parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani visit Qom to consult with the marja, it is sometimes to appease them or gain their blessing ahead of a major change in policy. Examples include Iran's 2003 decision to temporarily halt uranium enrichment or its 2006 decision to meet directly with Americans over Iraq.

Jalili is close to Ahmadinejad, whose circle has been the most strident voice arguing against halting enrichment, which the U.S. demands as a precondition for negotiations. Today, Gholam Hossein Elham, the spokesman of Ahmadinejad's government, told reporters "that nothing has changed" with regard to Iran's stance on nuclear technology, which presumably includes the hot-button issue of enrichment.

But his words shouldn't be taken too seriously. He made similar remarks when the package was first presented last month, and was largely ignored.

Analysts offered a number of possibilities for Jalili's secretive visit:

To the chagrin of Ahmadinejad, powerful moderates in the government want to bend on the issue of enrichment, either by accepting the so-called "freeze-for-freeze" proposal to stop adding new uranium-enriching centrifuges, or by suspending enrichment altogether. Jalili and his camp, led by Ahmadinejad, want political backing for going up against them.
Ahmadinejad wants to do a U-turn and accept some kind of compromise with the West, but needs some political cover.
Jalili is a relative political newcomer. Unlike his well-connected predecessor, Larijani, he doesn't have the political standing to make any bold moves, and wants to improve his ties to the clergy in order to do so.

— Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran and Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Photo credit: Islamic Republic News Agency

IRAQ: Barbecues and Re-enlistment mark holiday

LATimes — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 18:09:49 -0700

Some barbecued. Some re-enlisted.

As friends and relatives back home slept, members of the U.S. armed forces marked Independence Day in outposts, camps and forward operating bases.

More than 1,200 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines gathered from across Iraq to take the oath of re-enlistment at Al Faw Palace at Camp Victory. Sgt Major Marvin L. Hill said it was the largest re-enlistment ceremony since the all-volunteer force began in 1973.

Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of the multi-national forces in Iraq, administered the oath.
"Volunteering to continue to serve our nation, while deployed,is both noble and inspiring," he said.

Not far from the Al Faw Palace, one of the surviving symbols of the excesses of former dictator Saddam Hussein, the headquarters company of the 716th Military Police Brigade held its July 4th barbecue in a more modest setting.

About 70 soldiers gathered under a cloth canopy inside an enclosure of concrete blast walls. Before the barbecue began, they stood erect for half an hour as their commanding officers handed out commendations to about a dozen soldiers, then re-enlisted two who had missed the morning ceremony.
Three officers made speeches that were mercifully short.

Capt. Nathan Brookshire, the company commander, advised the troops to enjoy the holiday, but to be prepared to get back to work afterwards. The soldiers barbecued steaks and hot dogs in 100-plus heat.

“I volunteer every time; I just love to grill,” said Sgt. First Class Wayne Ebenreiter of Chicago, whose Army T-shirt was dripping sweat. Ebenreiter also doubled as the vocalist, belting out songs about combat in a grunge style.

Like most of the soldiers, Ebenreiter talked wistfully of home—barbecue and baseball. “At home this is how I cook every day,” he said.

He’s from Chicago: “ChiTown, my Cubbies. Nothing but the best. I wish I was sitting there right now by Wrigley Field.”

Soldiers ate at rickety wooden tables that had been made by hand. They talked quietly as a band played for an hour. There was no dancing on the gravel courtyard. In two hours it all broke up. Time to get back to work.

--Doug Smith in Baghdad

IRAN: Israel accused of holding diplomats missing from Lebanon

borzou — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 11:08:14 -0700

Iranians claim they have documents and testimony proving that four Iranian diplomats who disappeared in Lebanon during the war-ravaged 1980s are still alive and languishing in Israeli prisons.

Iranian authorities announced this week that the mystery of four Iranian diplomats might be revealed soon. The three diplomats and a state-employed photographer were allegedly kidnapped by Christian militiamen in 1982.

Earlier, the formerly pro-Israeli Lebanese Forces militia leaders who detained the four Iranians during the 1982 Israeli invasion of Beirut have said they were executed in Lebanon.

But the issue is surfacing again. Israel is supposed to hand over information about the fate of the missing diplomats to the United Nations as part of a prisoner swap between the Jewish state and the Shiite militant group Hezbollah over the next few weeks.

At a ceremony this week marking the 26th anniversary of the disappearance of the diplomats held in Beirut, the Iranian Charge d'Affaires Mojtaba Ferdowsi-Pour accused Israelis of secretly holding the diplomats:

Our brother diplomats kidnapped in 1982 during the Zionist invasion of Lebanon are still detained in Israel and all news which has been provided to us proves it.

Also present at the ceremony was the son of one of the missing diplomats, Raed Mousavi, who said that they got information from former prisoners held in Israeli jails:

Documents and testimonies by detainees in Israeli prisons, and the fact that Israel has not published any documents proving their martyrdom, shows our loved ones are still alive.

Meanwhile, media in Israel have quoted Israeli officials as dismissing the Iranian statements about the diplomats as "nonsense." An Israeli government official was quoted in the Jerusalem Post in an article posted today on the newspaper's website:

This is not serious.... It is a fabricated claim. They did not disappear here, but in Lebanon. We have nothing to do with the matter.

— Raed Rafei in Beirut

Photo: Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki sits in front of a portrait of four Iranian diplomats who disappeared in Lebanon 26 years ago. Credit: File photo

AFGHANISTAN: 30 days to scrounge more troops?

Tony Perry — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 09:15:39 -0700

For months, commanders in Afghanistan have been saying that more troops are needed to train the Afghan army (pictured) and thwart a resurgent Taliban.

On Thursday, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced that the 2,200 Marines of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit will remain in Afghanistan an extra 30 days -- returning to Camp Lejeune in November rather than October.

Thirty days in a struggle with complex issues, brutal weather, rugged terrain and seemingly intractable cultural divides?

Andrew Lubin, journalist, author and journalism professor, is just back from six weeks embedded with Marines in Afghanistan. He thinks the 30 days is meant to give Gen. David McKiernan more time to beg, borrow or otherwise scrounge another military unit from the U.S. or NATO to continue the fight.

Lubin was with Marines fighting to wrest control of Helmand province from the Taliban. Helmand is the center of Afghanistan's poppy growing region. The Taliban uses profits from the opium trade to finance their fight to topple the U.S.-backed government in Kabul.

''We could see the area improving daily," Lubin e-mails. "But there is NO unit -- Marine, Army, Canadian or Brit -- scheduled to backfill. If they (U.S./NATO troops) leave, control of that area goes back to the Taliban.''

Lubin's reporting from Afghanistan can be seen on www.getthegouge.com.

Tony Perry, in San Diego

Photo: Afghan soldiers being trained by U.S. Marines; credit: Marine Corps.

IRAQ: The voice of a Marine

Tony Perry — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:39:24 -0700

A highpoint of press coverage of proceedings at Camp Pendleton involving allegations of Marine misconduct in Iraq comes when the accused makes a statement.

Such statements are usually unsworn, meaning the defendant cannot be cross-examined by prosecutors.

Reporters think it's important to describe not just what the Marine said but how he said it.

Take the preliminary hearing this week for Sgt. Johnny Winnick, the sniper accused of manslaughter and assault in the killing of two Syrians and wounding of two others.

The hearing officer will make a recommendation to the commanding general about whether the case should go to court-martial.

In his statement, Winnick, 24, of San Diego, said he fired on the Syrians because he thought they were planting a roadside bomb that could kill Marines.

And how did he deliver his statement? Take your pick:

North (San Diego) County Times: "in a clear, calm voice."

Los Angeles Times: "in a clear, strong voice."

San Diego Union-Tribune: "in a shaky voice."

— Tony Perry, at Camp Pendleton

Photo: Sgt. Johnny Winnick, accused in killing/wounding of Syrians. Credit: Winnick family

AFGHANISTAN: American casualty identified

LATimes — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:53:23 -0700

Spc. Estell L. Turner, 43, of Sioux Falls, S.D., died Wednesday at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of wounds caused by a roadside bomb June 28 in Malikheyl, Afghanistan, the Defense Department announced. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Ft. Campbell, Ky.

ISRAEL: Avenging the Caterpillar attack with more Caterpillars?

Ashraf Khalil — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 10:01:17 -0700

In the aftermath of Wednesday's earthmover rampage in downtown Jerusalem, Israelis grappled with a familiar question: what, if anything, to do to the home of Hussam Duwayaat, the Palestinian construction worker who killed three people and injured dozens more.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak publicly advocated destroying the Duwayaat family home in Sour Baher, an Arab village on the southern outskirts of Jerusalem. Likud Party Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu, a leading candidate for the premiership if Olmert's shaky coalition falls, followed suit, calling for "an iron fist, in order to prevent, deter and punish."

During the second intifada, specially armored Caterpillar bulldozers routinely demolished the homes of suicide bombers. But the practice was largely discontinued in 2005 in the face of international condemnation and following an Israeli military panel's conclusion that the demolitions did little to deter future bombers.

Meanwhile Duwayaat's family was ordered to dismantle a traditional mourning tent for the 30-year-old father of two. Israelis were enraged in March when the family of Alaa Abu Dheim erected a similar tent, including Hamas flags, after Abu Dheim killed eight young Jewish seminary students. A government request to demolish the Abu Dheim family home has been tied up in red tape for months.

The Duwayaat family's Israeli lawyer expressed remorse for Wednesday's rampage and offered the family's condolences to the victims. The lawyer, Shimon Kukush, accused Israeli politicians of "sparring for the credit of who will demolish the family's house first."

Some of Duwayaat's cousins groped for alternative explanations, with one speculating that Duwayaat
may have panicked after accidentally hitting a car with his construction vehicle. Others said Duwayaat had a history of legal problems, drug addiction and a quick temper.

Relatives and neighbors said Duwayaat had no strong political and religious leanings, and pointed out that he once had a serious Jewish girlfriend. Israeli media anonymously interviewed the ex-girlfriend, who said he had many Jewish friends, but also a violent temper that led to a 20-month prison sentence for assaulting her.

-- Ashraf Khalil in Jerusalem

Photo: An Israeli bulldozer at the Hatzerim airbase. A specially modified and armored version was once commonly used by the Israeli army to demolish the homes of suicide bombers. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

IRAQ: Wounded Marine's death a 'probable' suicide

Tony Perry — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 09:03:14 -0700

For a year, Marine Sgt. Sean Webster had been assigned to the Wounded Warrior Battalion at Camp Pendleton, the Marine Corps' effort to make sure Marines and sailors wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan get the medical and psychological care they need.

Webster, 23, was severely injured by an anti-tank mine explosion in September 2005 near the Iraqi border with Syria. He underwent 14 surgeries to repair an arm and leg ripped apart by shrapnel.

At the Wounded Warrior Battalion, he felt at home. He was the barracks manager and provided encouragement to the other guys, urging them not to get despondent. Forty-one troops live at the barracks. Staffers are tracking another 600 to make sure they're getting appropriate help.

"I'm a wounded Marine and I know what these guys are going through," he told the North (San Diego) County Times in a story published June 20.

Like many wounded Marines, Webster wanted to remain in the Corps. "What I'd really like to do is stay as a staff member here," he told the newspaper.

On June 23, Webster's body was found in an isolated part of the base. His funeral is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at Christ Episcopal Church in Charlottesville, Va.

The Naval Criminal Investigate Service is probing the death as a "probable" suicide.

-- Tony Perry, at Camp Pendleton

Photo: Marine Sgt. Sean Webster worked with wounded Marines. Credit: Associated Press

SAUDI ARABIA: Labor minister teaches a lesson in work ethics

borzou — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 07:44:25 -0700

The dude serving hamburgers at a fast-food restaurant in Jeddah recently was neither a Filipino nor a Pakistani but, for once, a Saudi.

And not just any Saudi; It was the labor minister himself. Ghazi Alghosaibi acted as a waiter for three hours at a fast-food restaurant last week to encourage all Saudi young men and women to accept jobs generally regarded by locals as low-level or demeaning, according to the Saudi Gazette.

Saudi Arabia relies heavily on foreign labor in the service sector and for construction work. For the last few years, however, Saudi authorities have adopted a national policy known as Saudization to encourage their nationals to participate more actively in a private sector dominated by guest workers from South and Southeast Asia.

But observers say that the policy has not been very successful.

The minister's symbolic stunt was meant to reach out to Saudi youths. According to Persian Gulf media reports, Alghosaibi drew attention to many successful businessmen and politicians who did small jobs before becoming prominent in their fields:

We should see enjoyment in all types of jobs. Hard work, endurance and enthusiasm are important factors to be developed by young Saudi job-seekers. ... They were simple men who rose to heights of fame and popularity through steady effort and hard work. Some of them worked even in restaurants while studying abroad.

Algosaibi asked for tips jokingly and kissed another waiter on the head in a gesture of appreciation.

-- Raed Rafei in Beirut

Photo: Saudi labor Minister Ghazi Alghosaibi, left, serves fast food at a restaurant in Jeddah. Credit: Saudi Gazette

LEBANON: Save your bullets for the enemy

borzou — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 07:35:55 -0700

The Lebanese heard a shocking sound after a major televised political speech yesterday: Almost nothing.

Usually every time a political leader makes an appearance here, there is a spree of heavy celebratory gunfire that shakes the skies of Beirut.

This tradition results in frequent injuries and occasional deaths. But after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah finished a news conference lauding the prisoner swap with Israel as a great victory late Wednesday afternoon, it was unusually calm in the capital.

That's because Nasrallah dedicated the last part of his talk to exhorting people not to fire in the air during ceremonies or after political speeches:

We cannot bear anymore that with every occasion or appearance of a political leader, there are victims and wounded. This is a very dangerous matter, very painful and catastrophic. ... I say openly to the people listening to me, ... every person who fires a bullet in the air at an occasion like this is really firing at my chest, my head and my turban. ... Firing is equivalent to firing at the resistance and our martyrs and achievements. ... I reiterate that this is dangerous and serves the enemy.

The Hezbollah leader added that his enforcers on the streets were cooperating with neighborhood residents to suppress the celebratory gunfire. Right before yesterday's news conference, the Shiite militant group had issued a statement warning that legal action would be taken against every person who shot in the air during the occasion.

The gunfire is particularly provocative now because it exacerbates already volatile political tensions on the streets.

— Raed Rafei in Beirut

Photo: Supporters of a Lebanese politician fire their weapons into the air in celebration. Credit: Patrick Baz / AFP/Getty Images

EGYPT: Concerns over Iraqi Shiites

Jeffrey Fleishman — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 07:24:03 -0700

The Egyptian interior ministry called on Sunni religious leaders to train state security officers on how to fight the proliferation of Shiite doctrines, according to a news report that appeared Thursday in the well-respected El-Masry El-Youm daily .

The report quoted a prominent scholar at Al-Azhar University as saying that the state security apparatus is concerned about the creeping influence of Shiite Islam since the influx of thousands of Shiite Iraqis to Egypt.

Egypt has been one of the major destinations of Iraqis who fled the violence at home. About 150,000 Iraqis are believed to have moved to Egypt since the 2003 outbreak of the war in Iraq and last year, when Egypt closed its borders.

Sheikh Mohamed Abdel Moneim El-Berry told the paper that his lectures to police officers focused on the dangerous nature of Shiite beliefs and the dire need to protect Egypt’s national security against such a threat. Several Shiite groups have already settled in a number of Egyptian provinces and have filed requests with the government to build their own mosques, added El-Berry.

Egypt has predominantly Sunni Muslims; however, the number of Shiites is estimated at 1% of the country’s 76 million inhabitants. Like other minorities in Egypt, Shiites are usually discriminated against and their loyalty is often questioned.

However, the Sunni-Shiite animosity has recently become more of a sensitive issue in most Sunni Arab countries due to the rising regional influence of Shiite Iran and the growing popularity of Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah group.

-- Noha El-Hennawy in Cairo

Photo: Shiite pilgrims visit shrines in Karbala, Iraq. Credit: Getty Images

IRAQ: To shoot or not to shoot is the question

Tony Perry — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:37:37 -0700

In the end, the criminal case against Marine sniper Sgt. Johnny Winnick (pictured) may boil down to the simplest but yet most confounding question facing troops in Iraq: When can a Marine or soldier use deadly force against a suspected insurgent?

It's a question not even supposed experts can agree on. During the preliminary hearing completed Wednesday, a Marine lieutenant testified that he asked two majors — one a lawyer, the other a battalion executive officer — and got contradictory explanations.

Winnick is charged with manslaughter and assault for killing two Syrians and wounding two others.

Winnick says he opened fire because he believed the men were planting a roadside bomb, but no bomb was found. His superiors say he lacked the "positive identification" and "reasonable certainty'' needed to squeeze the trigger.

But what do those terms mean, particularly for snipers whose job is to kill the enemy from ambush at long range?

Winnick's attorney, Gary Myers, tried to get one of Winnick's fellow snipers to define "reasonable certainty." The young Marine said that, well, reasonable certainty means being reasonably certain.

"This is all words," said an exasperated Myers.

An officer testified that reasonable certainty means being "85% certain." Another said it means being "pretty damn sure."

A Pentagon expert called by Myers disagreed with the "85% certain" rule. He thinks young troops are being given confusing and contradictory guidelines by their superiors. He's written about his concerns in a tome titled ''Combat Self-Defense: How to Save America's Warriors From Risk-Adverse Commanders and Their Lawyers."

The hearing officer in Winnick's case will send a recommendation within 10 days to Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland about whether the case should go to court martial, be dropped or handled administratively.

Helland may have his own views. He began his military career as an enlisted soldier attached to Army Special Forces in Vietnam.

— Tony Perry, at Camp Pendleton

Photo: Sgt. Johnny Winnick, with sniper rifle in Iraq. Credit: Winnick family

IRAN: Remembering Iran Air 665 and the Vincennes

borzou — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:37:16 -0700

Iranians on Wednesday marked the 20th anniversary a U.S. missile attack on an Iranian civilian passenger plane that killed 290 people over the Persian Gulf toward end of the Iran-Iraq war.

The guided-missile cruiser Vincennes shot down Iran Air 665 shortly after it took off from the airport in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas en route to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

U.S. officials later described the shooting as a mistake but refused to apologize.

The incident took place on July 3, 1988, but its 20-year anniversary falls on July 2, 2008, in the Iranian calendar.

Iranians released pigeons into the sky and threw flowers into the Persian Gulf to commemorate the tragedy, according to the Associated Press.

Mourners chanted “Death to America.”

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking at a Cabinet meeting, called the attack a "crime" rooted in an "ideology which allows them to commit any crime in order to attain their goals."

Iran said it received $130 million in compensation for the crash in a settlement eight years later but remains bitter because the ship’s commander, retired Capt. William C. Rogers III of San Diego, was never prosecuted.

— Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Photos:

Top, Iranians release pigeons to commemorate the shoot-down of Iran Air flight 665 in a U.S. missile attack 20 years ago. All 290 passengers and crew died. Credit: Abdolhossein Rezvani / Fars News Agency.

Bottom, an Iranian stamp commemorating the tragedy. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

IRAN: Jumbo jet diplomacy versus fighter jet possibilities

borzou — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:52:36 -0700

First anonymous U.S. officials tell reporters they’re interested in maybe, possibly expanding the minuscule Iranian interests section in Tehran.

Then Condoleezza Rice says publicly that she believes there should be more people-to-people exchange between Iranians and Americans, even as Tehran and Washington are embroiled in a huge fight over Iran's nuclear program.

Now comes word that Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran’s foreign minister, is pushing a proposal to resume direct flights between Iran and the United States to facilitate the visits of Iranian nationals living in America and tourists who might be interested in visiting the Islamic Republic, and confirmed earlier reports that Iran would consider the expansion of its interest section.

Mottaki's remarks to a big of group of reporters in New York were summarized on the website of Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs:

Contacts between Iranians and the American people will be a useful step for better understanding of the two nations. Iranian academics and students have invited their American counterparts to the country to share their research and scientific achievements. By visiting Iran, the American people can acquire the truth about Iran.

Iran is currently mulling a package of European and American-backed economic, political and security incentives meant to convince Tehran to halt its production of enriched uranium, a process which can be used to produce fuel for a nuclear power plant or explosive material for an atomic bomb.

It could be that the softened tone among diplomats -- as opposed to think tank or military folks -- is a prelude to a breakthrough in Iran-U.S. relations.

But far more likely, both sides are trying to paint themselves as positively as possible in the eyes of European diplomats and world public opinion in case Iran either:

Outright refuses to halt its uranium enrichment program and flatly turns down the package of incentives.
Produces a counter-offer that falls short of halting uranium enrichment and lures the Europeans but is turned down by the U.S.

In either case, the crisis between Iran and the U.S. may dramatically deepen, leading to another round of sanctions on Iran and perhaps bringing the two countries to the edge of armed conflict.

At that point, public perceptions in the Middle East and among European negotiators as to who's been diplomatic and who's been belligerent will matter greatly.

Iranian officials are well aware of this dynamic. The Times reported today on comments to a newspaper by Ali Akbar Velayati, a high-level adviser to Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urging Iranian officials to tone down their rhetoric and choose their words carefully.

— Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Photo: Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki addresses the international conference on the Persian Gulf in Tehran last month. Credit: Atta Kenare / AFP/Getty Images

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

EGYPT: The trouble with Mugabe

Jeffrey Fleishman — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:52:27 -0700

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe flew into the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheik nattily dressed and unapologetic, and left the same way, avoiding censure last night by the 53 nations attending the African Union summit.

Some of his peers chastised him for violently stealing the June 27 election that silenced opposition parties and won Mugabe his sixth term. But many African leaders remained publicly quiet, reacting to the 84-year-old former guerrilla the way one winces at a friend who shows up with trouble behind his smile.

Perhaps it was a desire to avoid comparison. Egypt and Libya, for example, have also been criticized repeatedly over the years for repression, torture and jailing political opposition figures. Washington has vilified Mugabe and is seeking broader U.N. sanctions against Zimbabwe. Meanwhile, the Bush administration gives about $2 billion in annual military and economic aid to the government of President Hosni Mubarak, a strategic ally in the region.

In a satirical piece today in Egypt’s independent El-Dostour newspaper, Khaled Mahmoud Ramadan wrote:

What Mugabe did was already done before by many African leaders but by different means.... Nobody could ask Mugabe to be more democratic. For example, neither the Libyan President Muamer Qaddafi who has been in power for almost forty years, nor the president of Qabon, who is considered the dean of African leaders, could do that. Nor Mubarak, the host of the summit who spent almost 27 years in power could be expected to condemn his dear friend Mugabe for only seeking to serve for another term by defying his people's will, and the international community.

The same attitudes were posted by on the website of Egypt’s El Masry El-Youm newspaper. Hossam El-Malt wrote that Africa leaders "are all similar. All of them are authoritarian, all of them hold the helm of state by force and usurp people's resources."

Another reader weighed in: "There is a Mugabe everywhere; there is one in Libya, one in Sudan, one in Algeria, one in Morocco and many Mugabes in the Gulf. Anyway, Mr. Mugabe, you are most welcome in your second country Egypt and trust me Egypt is no different from Zimbabwe."

-- Jeffrey Fleishman and Nohan El-Hennawy in Cairo

Photo: President Robert Mugabe after his reelection in June. Credit: AFP

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

IRAQ: Burnishing Baghdad

Doug Smith — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 16:31:23 -0700

Since the 2003 invasion, piles of rubble and filth have become the new icons of Baghdad.

Broken sidewalks, gaping potholes, hulking neighborhood ramparts, concertina wire and other impediments have made movement through the city, either by car or on foot, slow, hazardous and demoralizing.

At last there are signs of change. This year, the Baghdad Municipality received $1 billion through the national budget for public works. Half of it is going to sidewalk and street repairs.

The city has hired thousands of independent contractors to complete small-scale projects that are beginning to dot the shattered cityscape.

With the level of violence down, pallets of paving stones lined up on some of Baghdad’s major streets have become more a more common sight than burned-out cars.

Monuments are being repaired and landscapers are restoring vegetation to traffic medians.

Much of the work is done by hand.

Last week a crew on the Karada district’s main thoroughfare toiled through a 100-degree day, hauling sand on their shoulders, tamping the bedding with their feet and pounding pavers into place one by one with rubber mallets.

Elsewhere in Karada, a giant anteater-like machine scraped away old asphalt to prepare for a new road surface. Work is often interrupted for maintenance of the aging machine.

Curbstones that had lain topsy-turvy since the invasion five years ago are being replaced across the city.

Iraqis build their curbs with pre-cast concrete blocks, rather than pouring cement them as Americans do.

The blocks, weighing more than 200 pounds apiece, are set in place, leveled and cemented together, all by hand.

While offering the earliest signs of momentum in civic life, the construction projects also provide badly needed jobs.

Mahoud Mahdi, the foreman of a crew laying three miles of curb in Baghdad’s battered downtown business district, has two sons working for him.

He said he paid for their military deferrments, their schools and their weddings and now they’re paying him back.

Ultimately, he said with a smile, all of the money will go to them anyway.

Skeptics say the beautification effort is superficial and wasteful. Eventually, they say, all the work will have to be torn out when the city finally comes to grips with the almost complete breakdown of its heavy systems for water and electricity.

Tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars must be spent to dig up and replace most of the city’s sewer system and rebuild the electrical grid. And it won’t be done by hand labor.

Perhaps a hundred miles of temporary concrete blast walls will have to be hauled away.

The still-standing hulks of buildings disabled by bombs or canon fire will have to be demolished and rebuilt.

Even with improving security, the task will take years.

But for now, a few splashes of color and smooth surfaces are offering some relief for tired eyes and feet.

— Doug Smith in Baghdad

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

ISRAEL: The Good Humor Men visit

Batsheva Sobelman — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:07:33 -0700

So, these four American guys walk into an Israeli bar ... what, not funny? Well, depends who the guys are.

Last week, these were stand-up guys and comics Avi Liberman, Dan Naturman, Lowell Sanders and Harland Williams -- and they most certainly were funny.

The four U.S. comedians performed in a series of shows to benefit the Crossroads Center in Jerusalem, an outreach and support center for at-risk Anglo teens.

L.A.'s Avi Liberman left Israel in his early childhood but Zionist upbringing kept him in touch. Struck by the dismal air when morale had hit rock bottom at the peak of the second intifada around six years ago, he started thinking of ways to provide some first-aid comic relief and teamed up with childhood friend Caryn Green, who directs the Crossroads Center, to come up with combining comedy and good cause.

Sure, everyone supports a good cause. But not always enough to travel to Israel in the days when most plane tickets involving Israel were one way -- and "in" wasn't it. Non-Jewish performers were reluctant to travel to a perceived war-zone, and Jewish performers weren't that enthusiastic either. Wayne Federman and Dan Naturman (the latter taken by Liberman 'sight unseen') were among those crazy enough to come in the first years, and the Crossroads Comedy Tour was born.

These days, Avi doesn't have to beg big names to join him on the tour. "I'm not afraid to come to Israel," Lowell Sanders told the crowd. Never mind three years in the navy: "I'm from Detroit."

Humor, theater and the arts are deep-seated parts of Jewish culture, says Liberman, but the material doesn't have to be Jewish or Israeli. "Funny is funny, is all," he says.

Harland Williams has his doubts about the "Whaling Wall," where he assumes big mammals are being harpooned, Liberman has an irreverent top 10 countdown of things you'll never hear in the Ultra orthodox neighborhood of Mea She'arim (which I won't repeat), Naturman offered dating advice for the professional loser (which I can't repeat), Sanders seemed surprised by Bethlehem ('they're selling everything -- I think they're closing') -- and the mostly English-speaking crowd packing the Maabada ('the lab') theater-plus-bar in Jerusalem were cracking up.

High-profile artists are once again beginning to include Israel in their tours but there were lean years when politics and security concerns kept performers away. A tad claustrophobic, Israelis always crave a whiff of abroad. And the English speakers, who usually get their comedy on TV complete with a network logo and subtitles, seemed grateful for some real-time, mother-tongue-in-cheek laughs.

Avi Liberman has visited Sderot several times, sometimes schlepping other comedians with him to the southern town that has been targeted by Gaza rockets for seven years to show support and to spend some money raised by members of his L.A. congregation at Young Israel of Century City. Of course, they do it the funny way -- buying gum for $50 and blowing off the change. Another thing Liberman blows off is the odd raised eyebrow. Dangerous? Maybe. But the people living there are suffering and it's uncool not to make it down there for one hour. To him, "it's a no-brainer."

Taking laughter on the road, Liberman also performs for U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. "I don't view any of this as political," he says, explaining this is his way of supporting those who protect the way of life he lives in America. They do their job, he does his. And there's no contradiction between American patriotism and Israeli expatriatism either.

Besides gathering new material, Avi Liberman hopes his fellow funny men will come away with something else: a positive experience in Israel. People may not believe everything they hear on the news, but if someone like Harland Williams with his star power will tell people guns are not going off everywhere, they might consider believing him -- if he keeps a straight face. (I spent part of the potential good-will ambassador's set cowering in the back, hoping he'd pick on someone else, which he did.)

Anyway, these four American guys walk into an Israeli bar ...

-- Batsheva Sobelman in Jerusalem.

Photos: top, left to right: Sanders, Naturman, Liberman and Williams, at the Crossroads benefit in Jerusalem.

bottom left and right: touring Jerusalem's Old City sites and market.

Credit: Jeremy Wimpfheimer/Crossroads Center

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

IRAN: Telecom executive accused of spying for Israel is sentenced to death

borzou — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 09:36:42 -0700

Iranian authorities this week sentenced the manager of a telecommunications company to death on charges of spying for Israel.

Ali Ashtari, who sold communications and security equipment to the Iranian government, was arrested about 18 months ago on charges of "engaging in espionage for [Israel's] Mossad intelligence service," Iranian news agencies reported.

The 45-year-old allegedly confessed to the crime and asked for mercy. He told the judge he accepted a $50,000 "loan" from Israelis to get him out of financial trouble, according to news agencies. The website of an state-owned Iranian television station quoted an anonymous intelligence official alleging that Ashtari handed Israelis sensitive information about Iran's communications system and nuclear program.

He's got 20 days to appeal his capital sentence.

In Iran, it's tough to figure out who's an actual spy and who's a casualty of political infighting. The tubby, balding Ashtari hardly seems like a swashbuckling secret agent. And any foreign correspondent or geologist working in the field will quickly recognize the satellite telecommunications equipment shown in the courtroom picture as standard tools of the trade, stuff you can buy on the open market.

Since the beginning 1979 Islamic revolution, figures within Iran's fractured leadership have hurled charges of espionage to take out opponents or sully the reputation of a rival factions.

But the U.S. and Israel have vowed to try to undermine Iranian government by ramping up intelligence and covert operations. Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, citing unnamed U.S. officials, reported this week of a $400-million budget allocated for covert intelligence and sabotage operations in Iran. Ashtari appeared perfectly positioned to help gather intelligence.

— Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Photo: Ali Ashtari sits in a Tehran courtroom near equipment he allegedly used in espionage for Israel. Credit: Hassan Ghaedi / Fars News Agency

P.S. The Los Angeles Times issues a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East. You can subscribe by registering at the website here.

IRAQ: In the numbers

Alexandra Zavis — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:28:21 -0700

The number of Iraqi civilians killed in violence dropped from 504 in May to 448 June, despite several high-profile bombings last month, according to figures released by the government.

The number of U.S. service members killed in the same period rose from 19 to 29, according to the independent website icasualties.org. A soldier from Georgia and another from Azerbaijan also died in June.

The American toll in May was the lowest since U.S.-led forces invaded Iraq in March 2003, according to the website. It followed a spike in the number of U.S. deaths to 52 in April, which coincided with an uprising of Shiite Muslim militants in the Baghdad district of Sadr City.

The U.S. military says that the number of attacks nationwide is at its lowest level since 2004, but warns that insurgents remain capable of lethal strikes.

Here are the figures released by the Iraqi government on Monday:

The Ministry of Health reported that 448 Iraqis were killed in June, compared to 504 in May.
The Ministry of Interior reported that 41 policemen were killed in the same period, compared to 32 in May.
The Ministry of Defense said that 21 Iraqi soldiers were killed in June, compared to 27 in May.

The Baghdad Operations Center reported that 123 suspected militants were killed and 948 arrested for the month. In May, 192 suspects were killed and 2,419 detained.

-- Alexandra Zavis in Baghdad

AFGHANISTAN: 4 American casualties identified

LATimes — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:29:46 -0700

The Defense Department identified three soldiers and a Marine who died in Afghanistan, where at least 537 American military personnel have lost their lives since 2001.

Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey M. Radamorales, 32, of Naranjito, Puerto Rico; Master Sgt. Shawn E. Simmons, 39, of Ashland, Mass.; and Sgt. James M. Treber, 24, of Imperial Beach, Calif., died Sunday in Khosrow-E Sofla from injuries sustained when their vehicle rolled into a canal. They were assigned to the Army's 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Ft. Bragg, N.C.

Staff Sgt. Edgar A. Heredia, 28, of Houston died Thursday while supporting combat operations in Farah province. He was assigned to 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command.

*Read about the record number of U.S. and allied forces killed in June here.

IRAQ: Group pleads for judge to release Marine

Tony Perry — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:21:55 -0700

A group supporting Marine Sgt. Jermaine Nelson has written to U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson pleading with the jurist to order Nelson released from jail in San Bernardino.

Larson ordered Nelson jailed last week after he refused to answer questions from a federal grand jury about the alleged killing of prisoners during a battle in Fallouja in 2004. The jury is particularly interested in former Sgt. Jose Nazario, who faces manslaughter charges in federal court.

By law, Nelson could remain in jail during the term of the grand jury, which is 18 months. Nelson faces charges in the military court system and is concerned that his testimony to the grand jury will be used by military prosecutors. He has also said he won't testify because Nazario saved his life during combat.

The letter writers note that Nelson has served three tours in Iraq and was also part of a humanitarian mission to the Philippines. The group suggests that keeping Nelson in jail will demoralize active-duty personnel and discourage young people from enlisting.

"Please consider the service of this young man, and the damage to his future, to the future of the United States military, and most importantly, to the future of the United States of America if he remains jailed with hard-core criminals (murderous gang members, drug dealers and rapists) simply because he remains loyal and faithful to his nation and the U.S. Marine Corps as he has been trained to do."

Signing the letter were Penny Alfonso, a registered nurse; retired Marine Col. G.I. Wilson; retired attorney Carolyn Blashek; and William McNulty, secretary of the Marine Corps Intelligence Assn., a group of active-duty and former Marines involved in intelligence gathering and analysis.

-- Tony Perry, in San Diego

Photo: Marines during battle in Fallouja. Credit: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

IRAN: Word of Bush's alleged covert war hits Tehran

borzou — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:17:00 -0700

New Yorker magazine investigative journalist Seymour Hersh’s article this week alleging a major upping of the American campaign to fund and back covert operations against Iran became major news in Tehran today.

The 6,000-word article alleged a secret campaign to fund ethnic separatist groups fighting the Iranian government and U.S. commandos scooping up intel on clandestine forays onto Iranian soil.

But for both supporters and opponents of the Iranian government one thing stood out in the report above all else: the price tag.

Hersh alleges that the U.S. Congress secretly OKd up to $400 million to fund such activities.

To Iranians, that’s a lot of cash that you can throw around at a lot of people to do a lot of things.

Television news shows went bonkers with the report. “Sabotage of the U.S. in Iran and a new wave of psychological warfare,” was the title of one televised roundtable discussion.

One expert on the show called the Americans’ alleged move “state terrorism” that violated international law and the U.N. charter forbidding interference in the affairs of other countries.

Others called the U.S. Congress’ alleged approval of so much money late last year a strategic milestone that the Iranian government would have to address.

“We understand that the US administration is sending conflicting signals,” Iranian lawmaker Kazem Jalali said. “On the one hand they send signals to say they want to negotiate. On the other hand, they try to bully.”

Iranian moderates and dissidents worry that that news of the price tag would bring civil society and pro-democracy groups under even greater suspicion.

Here’s Mohammad Marandi, head of the North American studies department at Tehran University, in a brief interview today with the Los Angeles Times:

From now on, the authorities in Tehran can refer to the article and say this is evidence that America is supporting the separatists and subversive groups. If the U.S. is looking to open the space in Iran, these kinds of budgets are counterproductive. From now on the social and political groups will be under more scrutiny, and the wall of mistrust between the two countries will be greater than before.

For his own sake, Marandi said he’s going to be extra careful to vet all invitations from abroad to make sure he’s not being brought to a U.S. government sponsored event and all requests for visiting American scholars to make sure they’re not spooks.

Human rights attorney Mohammad Ali Dadkhah said word of the cash was bad news for those fighting slowly for change in Iran. He once turned down an offer from Holland to fund a human rights center where he works. “In our norms and tradition, only bad and corrupted politicians are under payroll of foreigners, no matter which country,” he said in an interview.

Even if the government doesn’t crack down, the news of the cash will strain ties between dissident leaders and ordinary people.

“People are very sensitive to any penny received by their intellectuals and dissidents from abroad for democracy,” Reza Kaviani, a student activist, told The Times.

Of course, there’s always the possibility that the article or parts of it are wrong, or that even though Bush got cash approved, he hasn't spent it yet.

For their part, U.S. officials have either remained mum or denied some of the allegations in the article, particularly the claim of cross-border commando raids into Iran from southern Iraq.

Abul-Fazel Amoee, a Tehran political scientist close to the hardliners, was a skeptic. He told the Times he thought the article was probably nothing more than psychological warfare, and that Hersh was a has-been:

Seymour Hersh is not well-reputed in Iran any longer. His credentials have been tarnished because of his incorrect predictions regarding attacks on Iran. The U.S. government leaks news of the $400 million, and he writes the article. The U.S. administration is somehow continuing its psychological warfare operations.

— Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran and Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Photo: Seymour Hersh in 2006. Credit: Stanford University news service

EGYPT: Lawsuits over Egypt-Israeli gas deal

Jeffrey Fleishman — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 07:19:51 -0700

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has been sued by a citizens group over his government’s deal to sell natural gas to Israel at bargain prices. The suit is the latest in a national protest by the succinctly, if long-windedly, named Popular Campaign for Stopping the Export of Egyptian Natural Gas to Israel.

The group’s campaign includes a petition drive, mock trials of government officials and attempts to persuade clerics to issue fatwas against the deal. Since its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, Egypt has had strained relations with its Jewish neighbor, especially over the Palestinian question. Many Egyptians would prefer to tear up the accord rather than carry on with what they regard as a peace that exists on paper, but not in their hearts.

The gas deal, an attempt to further normalize relations with Israel, has become an embarrassment to the Mubarak regime at a time of widening public anger over corruption, low wages and inflation. One of those leading the opposition to the sale is Anwar Esmat Sadat, the nephew of former President Anwar Sadat, who was assassinated by Islamic radicals two years after making peace with Israel during the 1979 Camp David talks.

The energy agreement reportedly calls for Egypt to annually sell 1.7 billion cubic meters of gas to the Jewish state at a much cheaper rate than it could charge on the world market.

“Banning the export of natural gas to Israel has become an issue which concerns all Egyptians,” reformist judge Mahmoud El-Khodeiri told Al-Ahram Weekly. “You can hardly find an Egyptian who approves selling gas to Israel or dealing with such a state in any way or form.”

— Jeffrey Fleishman in Cairo

Photo: Egyptian Oil Minister Sameh Fahmi, left, and the Israeli Minister of Infrastructure Binyamin Ben Eliezer as posted on citizens group's blog.