Minaret of Freedom Weblog

While an amalgam of pork-politics and demi-criticism of the war passes 218-212 despite lack of support from some leftist Democrats and conservative Republicans…

• House OKs Timetable for Troops in Iraq: Bill Promptly Draws Veto Threat from President Bush (Washington Post)

… the troops vote with their feet as the desertion rate approaches 1%:

• Army Revises Upward Number of Desertions in ’06 (NY Times)

Iran demands “an “immediate explanation from London over the violation of its territorial waters…”

• Iran Detains British Sailors, Hardening Standoff with West (AFP)

… as a French judge bans “Total chief executive Christophe de Margerie from meeting the former Iranian president and his son:”

• Total Bribe Probe Targets Rafsanjani Entourage: Sources (AFP)

Unity government threatened by continued violence:

• Officer from Fatah Security Force Killed in Gaza (Reuters)

The “new cadre of respected and successful pro-peace Palestinians who have joined up with compatriots in Hamas in the hope of reestablishing relations abroad and staving off a civil war at home“ provoke a new climate:

• New Voices Temper Palestinian Rule: US And European Diplomats Are Now Talking To Moderate Ministers In The Once-Isolated Hamas-Led Government (Christian Science Monitor)

Still unwilling to address the Palestinians’ right to return to their homes explicit in the Arab League peace proposal, “in recent months, under U.S. prodding, [Israeli officials] have expressed support for a vaguer version of the offer once articulated by Saudi King Abdullah.”

• On Mideast Trip, Rice To Try a New Formula (Washington Post)

Locals begin to show an end of patience with foreign militants:

• Pakistan’s Embattled President Touts Gain in War on Terrorism: Musharraf May Finally Be Reaping the Success of His Agreement with Local Tribes near the Afghan Border (Christian Science Monitor)

Whatever the reason for their leaving, the end of hostilities was not among them:

• British Leave, Battle Erupts Over Basra (Christian Science Monitor)

Administration officials say that Gates argued that “Guantánamo’s continued existence hampered the broader war effort:”

• New to Job, Gates Argued for Closing Guantánamo (NY Times)

This entry was posted on Friday, March 23rd, 2007 at 5:05 pm and is filed under news and analysis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.