Member of prominent Shi’a party calls for a complete withdrawal of all foreign troops and rejects permanent foreign military bases, but also supports greater decentralization of the Iraqi government, while Australia calls for snap election with the front-runner party declaring support for a complete withdrawal from Iraq:
- Top Shi’ite Seeks Total US Pullout (Agence France Presse/The Peninsula Qatar)
- Australia Calls Federal Election (Al-Jazeera International)
A New York Times editorial finds that once again the Bush administration has been exaggerating the threat of terrorism to scare Congress and the American people into passing unconstitutional and anti-privacy legislation, however one report finds that the administration was allegedly secretly seeking such power even before 9/11:
- Spies, Lies and FISA (New York Times)
- Former Phone Chief Says Spy Agency Sought Surveillance Help Before 9/11 (New York Times)
Political infighting within Somalia’s weak transitional government only adds to its woes as its insurgency and refugee problems continue to intensify:
- Somalia’s Political Swords are Drawn (BBC News)
Some good news from Iraq: “one small tactical victory in need of a much larger strategic or political triumph:”
- Getting Iraq To Work (Washington Post)
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