Despite US claims of progress in quelling the insurgency in Iraq, it remains as robust as ever and could grow a good deal stronger, according to a new study released Thursday.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11196.htm

Two of America's allies in Iraq are withdrawing forces this month and a half-dozen others are debating possible pullouts or reductions, increasing pressure on Washington as calls mount to bring home US troops.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120205L.shtml

Robert Parry: Despite pretty words about democracy and freedom, George W. Bush's "victory" plan in Iraq is starting to look increasingly like an invitation to genocide, the systematic destruction of the Sunni minority for resisting its US-induced transformation from the nation's ruling elite into second-class citizenship.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120105B.shtml

Despite the allocation of billions of dollars of US government money for "reconstruction," Iraqis are struggling to exist amidst soaring prices, unemployment, a devastated infrastructure and cuts in services.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120105R.shtml

Cato Institute
by Ted Galen Carpenter

12/02/05

There always has been a dearth of evidence to support the 'international rescue' thesis. Contrary to the wishful thinking of both the Bush administration and its liberal opponents, other countries are not eager to spend their money on transforming Iraq. They are even less willing to sacrifice the lives of their military personnel on the altar of nation-building. Russian President Vladimir Putin succinctly expressed the attitude of most governments on the eve of the invasion when he responded to a reporter's question about whether Russia would join in the venture. 'Yeah, like we're really that stupid,' he replied. The brutal reality is that the Bush administration has conducted the Iraq intervention in the only way it could have proceeded -- as an overwhelmingly U.S.-British venture with a handful of good wishes and token contributions from the so-called coalition of the willing. The hope for a truly international mission always was a non-starter -- and it remains so to this day...

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=5228


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Las Vegas Review-Journal

12/01/05

Two of America's allies in Iraq are withdrawing forces this month and a half-dozen others are debating possible pullouts or reductions, increasing pressure on Washington as calls mount to bring home U.S. troops. Bulgaria and Ukraine will begin withdrawing their combined 1,250 troops by mid-December. If Australia, Britain, Italy, Japan, Poland and South Korea reduce or recall their personnel, more than half of the non-American forces in Iraq could be gone by next summer...

http://tinyurl.com/9uz6m


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

http://tinyurl.com/b27hg


From Information Clearing House

Video Broadcast of Kidnapped Members of Christian Peacemaker Team:

They were the first people to publicly denounce the torture of Iraqi people at the hands of U.S. forces, long before the media revealed what was happening at Abu Ghraib.

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/30/153252



US, UK blamed for Iraq kidnappings:


The US- and Canada-based Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), has blamed the "illegal" occupation of Iraq by US and British troops for the kidnapping of its four workers in Iraq.

http://tinyurl.com/9adf6


From Information Clearing House

There is much speculation about the endgame in Iraq. Most of it assumes that the United States and its allies will pull out as soon as "the job is done", a meaningless phrase concocted by PR consultants and designed to help politicians avoid answering the question, "when will the troops come home?"

http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/iraq-the-imperial-solution/2005/11/30/1133311100129.html
http://tinyurl.com/7fae7


From Information Clearing House

President George W. Bush Wednesday unveiled a new strategy of neo-Vietnamization to win the Iraq war.

http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20051130-123345-7097r



Victory In Iraq:

The following document articulates the broad strategy the President set forth in 2003 and provides an update on our progress as well as the challenges remaining.

http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2005/images/11/30/iraq.strategy.pdf



Retired general said withdrawal of troops must begin by September:

Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey said President Bush's newly released strategy for Iraq is a signal that he is in a "race against time" to restore the public's confidence in the war effort by withdrawing some troops by September.

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/special_packages/iraq/13293867.htm



Largest Iraq veterans' group says Bush plan falls short:

As a Veteran of this war and someone who talks to other Veterans everyday, I can say that in the eyes of the Troops, this plan still falls short in two important ways.

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Largest_Iraq_veterans_group_says_Bush_1130.html


From Information Clearing House



Mike Whitney: Cheerleading at Annapolis:

It’s pathetic to see the world’s most powerful man, shunted into prearranged venues so he can pitch his snake-oil to college aged boys. That said, Bush’s appearance today at the Naval Academy has got to be a new low for the White House public relations team.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11181.htm