Tuesday: 15 Iraqis Killed, 63 Wounded

Updated at 9:59 p.m. EST, Dec. 15, 2009 Bombs targeted Baghdad governmental institutions today, exactly a week after “Bloody Tuesday” left hundreds dead or wounded. Mosul was equally affected, but those attacks were directed at Christian targets instead. At least 15 Iraqis were killed and 63 more were wounded across the country. The attacks also indirectly affected Camp Ashraf as a number of journalists heading to the immigrant camp were awaiting transport together near a blast site. Also, the ongoing PKK difficulties claimed two more lives in Turkey. Meanwhile, an epidemic of veteran suicides is plaguing soldiers who have returned home only to battle emotional enemies.
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Hezbollah Fortifies Frontier Against Israel

NABATIYEH, Lebanon - In the mountains towering above this southern city, Hezbollah (Party of God) is building a new line of defense on lands where a fierce war was once fought between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel. An asphalt road rising up...

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Parting Thoughts, for Now

This will be the last "On War" column, at least for the foreseeable future. I will (unexpectedly) retire from the Free Congress Foundation, where I have worked for 22 years, at the end of this month. Once I am reestablished, either with a new institution or...

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Monday: 8 Iraqis Killed, 32 Wounded

Updated at 8:50 p.m. EST, Dec. 14, 2009 At least eight Iraqis were killed and 32 more were wounded in the latest violence. One small attack took place last week, but the delayed account highlights the difficulties in reporting casualties in the war-torn country. Meanwhile, female servicemembers who have returned home to the United States report having difficulties transitioning back into society. Also, Iran says it will try three American hikers who crossed into the country from Iraq, and new details arose from an investigation into the Bloody Tuesday bombings.
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The Dust Bowl of Babylon

[This report appears in the winter 2009/10 issue of World Policy Journal and is posted here with the kind permission of the editors of that magazine.] BAGHDAD - From his mud brick home on the edge of the Garden of Eden, Awda Khasaf has twice seen his country's...

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Prussia in Palestine

A short historical quiz: Which state: Arose after a holocaust in which a third of its people were destroyed? Drew from that holocaust the conclusion that only superior military forces could ensure its survival? Accorded the army a central role in its life, making it...

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The Af-Pak Train Wreck

When President Barack Obama laid out his plan for winning the war in Afghanistan, behind him stood an army of ghosts: Greeks, Mongols, Buddhists, British, and Russians, all whom had almost the same illusions as the current resident of the Oval Office about Central...

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The Taxi Driver Who Drove Us to War

Over on the other side of the pond, the British are doing something we would never ever do – aside, that is, from spreading Marmite on a tea biscuit and actually consuming it. They are investigating the origins of the Iraq war. They want to know how did they get lured...

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