IRAQ: French Unofficially Say, We Told You So

Revelations that the U.S. and British governments ”sexed up” a threat from weapons of mass destruction in Iraq to justify the invasion have brought some comfort to the French.

POLITICS-AMERICAS: Powell Assails Cuba at OAS Assembly

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell spoke out against the Cuban government Monday during the 33rd general assembly of the Organisation of American States (OAS), and he insinuated that differences with some Latin American countries about the Iraq war are a thing of the past.

POLITICS-IRAQ: Blair Cornered but Confident

For a leader who has so recently been proved wrong by intelligence reports he made confident assertions about, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is once again confident that weapons of mass destruction will be found.

IRAQ: Insecurity Still Threatens U.N. Relief Operations

A surgeon and professor at the Basra teaching hospital recently watched a vendetta carried out in a hospital room.

POLITICS: Views of U.S. Plummet in Europe, Muslim World – Poll

While the speed of the U.S. conquest of Iraq and the general belief that Iraqis are better off without former President Saddam Hussein were moderating factors, the image of the United States is far more negative in Europe and the Muslim world than a year ago, according to a poll of 20 countries released here Tuesday.

IRAQ-U.S.: Credibility Gap Anyone?

When all three major U.S. newsweeklies - 'Time', 'Newsweek' and 'U.S. News & World Report' - run major features on the same day on possible government lying, you can bet you have the makings of a major scandal.

IRAQ: U.S. Faces Growing Charges of War Crimes

When General Tommy Franks, who coordinated the recent U.S.-led military attack on Iraq, was asked about civilian casualties, he shot back: ''We don't do body counts.''

IRAQ: No Place Yet for Women in Reconstruction

Early this month, U.S. President George W. Bush proclaimed from the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln that, ''the United States and our allies have prevailed ... And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing" Iraq.

POLITICS-U.S.: A Threadbare Emperor Tours the World

With U.S. President George W. Bush embarked on his first tour of major world capitals since the war in Iraq, his handlers are predictably depicting his stature as something akin to Shakespeare's Julius Caesar ''bestrid(ing) the world like a Colossus''.

POLITICS-MIDEAST: Shiism in Iraq Doesn’t Mean Iranian-style Gov’t

It has become fashionable to say that Saddam Hussein's fall would prompt Shiite-dominated Iran to export of its kind of Islamic government to Iraq, but analysts say this is too simplistic - and reflects a poor understanding of the mix of religion and politics in the Middle East.

AUSTRALIA: Attack on Broadcaster’s Iraq Coverage Raises Fears

The attack by an Australian minister on what he calls the anti-U.S. coverage of the Iraq war by the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) is raising concerns about independent reporting by the national broadcaster.

MEDIA-U.S.: Hollywood or Hearst – The Jessica Lynch Story

An attractive and spirited young woman, held captive by sadistic foreigners and saved by coolly efficient, red-blooded, all-American males - it is a story straight out of romance novels, not to mention the ''yellow journalism'' that propelled the United States into the Spanish-American War and global empire just over a century ago.

IRAQ: IAEA to Send Inspectors to Nuclear Plant

The IAEA is sending a team of seven inspectors to Iraq this week to investigate reports of illnesses around the Tuwaitha Nuclear Research Centre south of Baghdad.

IRAQ: Unease Grows in Washington Over Fruitless Weapons Search

The failure of the U.S. military to find any strong evidence of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD), let alone links between former President Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, is creating growing unease within both Congress and the administration of President George W. Bush.

DEVELOPMENT: Iraq Rift May Harm Africa at G8 Summit

As G8 leaders prepare to meet next Sunday in Evian-les-Bains in the French Alps, the fall-out of the diplomatic rift over Iraq is threatening to push Africa to the fringes.

IRAQ: Librarian Left Out of Visit to Libraries

A UNESCO team had to leave a senior librarian out of a visit to Iraq this month because U.S. occupying forces denied him a visa.

POLITICS-U.S.: Neo-Cons Move Quickly on Iran

Reports that top officials in the administration of President George W. Bush will meet Tuesday to discuss U.S. policy toward Iran, including possible efforts to overthrow its government, mark a major advance in what has been an 18-month campaign by neo-conservatives in and out of the administration.

IRAQ: UN Resolution Overlooks Key Human Rights Issues, Groups Say

While member states of the United Nations Security Council congratulated themselves for lifting 12-year-old sanctions against Iraq on Thursday, global human rights group say the U.N. body missed an opportunity to examine possible rights abuses in the nation.

IRAQ: NGOs Decry ‘Bribes’ and ‘Threats’ Behind U.N. Vote

A coalition of over 150 peace groups and global non-governmental organisations (NGOs) is lashing out at the U.N. Security Council for adopting a resolution that virtually legitimises the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and endorses the foreign occupation of a U.N. member state.

IRAQ: Civil Society Lags as Economic Gurus March on Mideast

As international financial institutions (IFIs) race to carry economic initiatives to the Middle East, groups that monitor the spread of corporate globalisation are at risk of falling behind, raising concerns that the region could end up an unmonitored corporate playfield.

IRAQ: Bechtel Launches Road Show for War Profiteers

Engineers and executives from San-Francisco-based Bechtel, one of the world's largest construction firms, will kick off a road show this week for companies that want to win profitable contracts in the reconstruction of Iraq.