APS Diplomat Strategic Balance in the Middle East articles from March 2007

APS Diplomat Strategic Balance in the Middle East archives from March 2007

IRAQ - The Challenges Of Terrorism - Part 19 - Iraq & The Neo-Salafi/Sunni Threats.
March 26, 2007... In January, when President George W. Bush announced his plans to reinforce US troops in Baghdad, Shi'ite militias were seen as the main worry. Analysts predicted that bloody clashes with Shi'ite militants in the Sadr City in north-eastern...

IRAQ - US Politics.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... The Democrats in the US are looking for a showdown with President Bush over his handling of the Iraq war. But Bush officials have pointed out that the challenges to the US in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere in the Middle East were too great for...

IRAQ - Bush Asks For Patience.(George W. Bush)
March 26, 2007... On March 19 President Bush implored the Congress and the US public to show patience as the Iraq war entered its fifth year. With US troops still flowing into Iraq, he said, his new plan to secure Baghdad would "take months, not days or weeks",...

IRAQ - Only 18% Of Iraqis Trust US Forces.
March 26, 2007... A poll on March 19 showed only 18% of Iraqis had confidence in US-led forces, as Bush faced anti-war protests at home. Defence Secretary Gates on March 18 said it was too early to evaluate whether the US strategy was working but "so far, so...

IRAQ - Children Used As Neo-Salafi Decoy.
March 26, 2007... The Iraqi police on March 21 said children had been used in a March 18 car bombing in which the driver gained permission to park in a busy shopping area after he said he was leaving his children in the back seat. The account confirmed one given...

IRAQ - Maliki Might Be Ousted.
March 26, 2007... The Associated Press on March 13 reported "close associates" of Maliki as saying the PM feared the US will torpedo his government if parliament did not pass a law to fairly distribute Iraq's petroleum wealth among Iraqis by end-June (see...

IRAQ - Kurds To Raise Oil E&P Operations.
March 26, 2007... The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) wants to raise from five to 15 the number of international oil companies (IOCs) operating in its region by end-2007 regardless of whether Iraq's parliament passes the petroleum law. The FT on March 23...

IRAQ - Iran Seizes UK Sailors.
March 26, 2007... The UK and Iran on March 24 were heading for a major diplomatic showdown after Iranian forces on March 23 seized 15 British sailors and marines in the northern Gulf. The incident heightened Middle East tensions and drove oil prices to...

IRAQ - Blast Shakes UN Chief.(Ban Ki-moon)(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on March 22 was shaken but unhurt in Baghdad after a Katyusha rocket landed just metres from a building where he had a news conference. Moments after talking to journalists, a blast sent shockwaves through the...

IRAQ - GCC Fears Iran's Nuke Threat.
March 26, 2007... Gulf News on March 21 quoted the Director of the Abu Dhabi-based Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) Dr Jamal al-Suwaidi as saying the Arabs must seek their own nuclear bomb as long as Iran continued its programme and...

IRAQ - Saddam's VP Hanged.
March 26, 2007... Saddam's former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan on March 20 was hanged for crimes against humanity, the third top aide of the ousted dictator to go to the gallows since he was executed in December. Ramadan was sentenced in November to life...