1 May 03
Four Israelis have been killed by two alleged British-Muslim suicide bombers.
In what seems a miracle comparable to finding a "9/11 hijackers'" passport in the ruins of the World Trade Center, the two "suicide-bombers'" passports were recovered (thus "proving" their identities). According to the story, Israelis pulled the clothes off one of them or something.
The brother of one of the "suicide bombers" described him a a "teddy bear"; he didn't believe he was at all the type for this kind of thing. ...
In what is evidently a reprisal, the Israelis have killed eight Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Oh yes, and the US "road map to peace" has been delivered to the Israelis and Palestinians.
'INDIA WINS SARS-FREE STATUS FROM WHO
'India has been declared free of the potentially fatal Sars virus by the World Health Organisation.
'A WHO spokesman said none of the cases reported in India fitted its definition of Sars.
'The Indian government on Wednesday [30 April] 10 new cases, taking the total to 20, but later said it was being "very, very cautious".
'China has reported 11 more Sars deaths and Canada two suspected new cases.'
(BBC Ceefax, 1 May 03, p.119)
This news seems to reinforce the possibility that SARS is a political disease, degree of infection depending on the degree of favour or disfavour with which the US cabal regards a particular country.
It reminds of the story, "The Crime Wave That Wasn't", about two late 19th-century American newspapers who went into competition to report the most crimes, raking up every last crime in their regions to do so, and puzzling the local police department, who had no awareness of the apparent "crime wave".
Many of the anthrax attacks too were phony. (But the phony attacks were an integral part of the terror-pattern.)
A US employee at a Saudi naval base, George Babols, was shot by an attacker who "fled the scene". He is said to be in good condition.
'The US embassy in Riyadh warned on Wednesday [30 April] that terrorists may be in the "final phase" of planning attacks on American interests in Saudi Arabia.
BBC Ceefax, 1 May 03, p.121)
So if the US doesn't carry out its lately-promised military withdrawal from Saudi, it can blame "Saudi terrorists".
And likewise for the Israelis vis-a-vis the "road map to peace" and the terrorist attacks there.
It's the old, old trick.
Rumsfeld is in Kabul to declare an end to major combat missions in Afghanistan, which by an amazing coincidence concurs with a similar declaration due for Iraq. [And made on 2 May.]
2 May 03
Four Israeli policemen have gone on trial for beating to death an 18-year-old Palestinian in a "reprisal attack".
Whether they're ever convicted is another matter.
Building on yesterday ...
The World Health Organization has taken the US and the UK off the SARS list. (Ceefax)
Meanwhile, US intelligence agencies have "credible" evidence of an al-Qaeda plot to hit US targets in Saudi Arabia, a US official said. (Ibid.)
'TELEGRAPH[:] Two British suicide bombers [it's already decided]] had posed as peace activists, acting as "human shields" for Palestinians.'
(ITV Teletext, p.328, reviews of British papers)
Presumably as part of the same group that Israeli troops use for target practice.
A British freelance journalist, James Miller, was killed in Rafah (Gaza Strip) by gunfire from an Israeli tank. Witnesses said he had been filming a documentary on the Israeli army's house demolitions at the time. The tank that shot him also carried him off.
'SUICIDE BOMB PROBE : FIVE HELD
In Britain, in connection with the alleged British-Muslim suicide bombers in Israel. No weapons or explosives were found.
(ITV Teletext)
3 May 03
British PM Tony Blair says, "I'm ready to meet my Maker and answer for those who have died as a result of my decisions". (The Times)
Is this a subconscious admission that he deserves death for the war crimes he has helped to perpetrate?
Bush plans to carve Iraq into three sectors
Tim Reid, The Times, 3 May 03
'The Bush administration is planning to divide Iraq into three military sectors overseen by US, British and Polish troops and bolstered by forces from six European countries.
'At the same time, the United States and Britain are drafting a resolution to present to the United Nations Security Council that would give the UN a humanitarian but not a peacekeeping role in Iraq.
'The six European countries — Spain, Italy, Denmark, Bulgaria, Ukraine and the Netherlands — have agreed to contribute troops to the British and Polish sectors, the Bush Administration said last night.
'The troops forming the stabilisation force ... will augment rather than replace the 135,000 American troops already in Iraq. ...
'The US element of the force is expected to number 20,000, but the strength of the other two sectors has yet to be determined. The force would be under General Tommy Franks, the US war commander.
'Donald Rumsfeld, the US Defence Secretary, said yesterday that the more troops other countries contribute, the fewer US troops will be needed in Iraq. ...'
'US Secretary of State Colin Powell is in Syria to try to persuade it to stop supporting militant Palestinian groups.'
(ITV Teletext, 3 May 03, p.110)
'F[inancial ]T[imes:] Saddam Hussein appears to have shut down or destroyed large parts of his weapons programme before the war in Iraq, a US administration source said.'
(Ibid, p.328, reviews of British papers)
See also Marian Wilkinson, 'Vilified weapons inspectors may have got it right', smh.com.au, 1 May 03:-
'President George Bush's National Security Adviser, Condoleezza Rice, is now acknowledging that Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program is less clear-cut, and probably more difficult to establish, than the White House portrayed before the war. ...
'According to Dr Rice, the weapons programs are "in bits and pieces" rather than assembled weapons. "You may find assembly lines, you may find pieces hidden here and there," she said. Ingredients or precursors, many non-lethal by themselves, could be embedded in dual-use facilities.
'She had a new explanation too for Iraq's ability to launch these weapons that were not assembled. "Just-in-time" inventory, as she put it. [LOL!] ...'
It's the US junta's programme of lies that's coming to pieces.
'AL-QAEDA TERROR PLOT WARNING
'US intelligence say they have uncovered a plan by al-Qaeda terrorists to crash an explosives-laden aircraft into the American consulate in Pakistan.
'The news prompted the US Homeland Security Department to warn about possible attacks back in the US.
[#Back in the US — back in the US — back in the USSR#. The USA is the USSR of today.] ...'
(ITV Teletext, 3 May 03, p.309)
Not content to rest on their laurels, the junta continues to crank the handle on its agitprop machine ...
But surely on a reduced level from late-winter/early-spring, when (as the year before) the pace became frenetic — a manifestation of the cabalistic breeding season.
4 May 03
'Donald Rumsfeld has said the US will have to rely on low-ranking members of Saddam Hussein's geovernment to disclose the existence of banned weapons.
'The US Defence Secretary said there is little chance the weapons — the alleged existence of which was the main basis for war — would be found independently.
'"I never believed we'd just tumble over weapons of mass destruction in that country," Mr Rumsfeld said.'
(ITV Teletext, p.309)
We can look forward to a summer of amusing "terror revelations" from this "source" — like we had last year from "Qaeda captives".
5 May 03
US Secretary of State Colin Powell has warned Syria there will be "consequences" if it doesn't co-operate ...
(BBC World Service news at 1am BST)
'TELEGRAPH[:] Britain's two suicide bombers smuggled plastic explosives into Israel from Jordan inside copies of the Koran, Israel's defence minister has said.'
(ITV Teletext, 5 May 03, p.328, reviews of British papers)
And The Telegraph is happy to reproduce the agitprop of this most hardline member of the Israeli government.
BLUNKETT MAKES IDENTITY CARD VOW
'[British] Home Secretary David Blunkett hopes to speed up the introduction of ID cards in the UK after winning G8 backing for more detailed data on passports.
'He said details such as fingerprints and iris patterns [on passports] would help the fight against illegal immigration, terrorism, organised crime and "identity theft".
'Mr Blunkett said he would be presenting a paper on his plans for "entitlement cards" to the cabinet over the summer.'
(ITV Teletext, 5 May 03, p.306)
6 May 03
'Anthrax gene code unravelled'
BBC News online, 30 April 03
'The complete genetic sequence of the feared bacterium which causes anthrax has been de-coded by scientists.
'The breakthrough could help doctors come up with better ways to help people in the event of a bioterror attack.
'A team from The Institute for Genomic Research (Tigr) spent four years unravelling the genome of the virulent Ames strain of Bacillus anthracis, and their results are described in the journal Nature.
'The Ames strain is the variety most commonly associated with anthrax biological weapons, and was used in the mail attacks in the US in late 2001 which killed five people.
'Some studies predict a kilogram of anthrax spores dropped on a city of 10 million people would result in more than 100,000 deaths — even if every infected person were given antibiotics. ...'
(Other studies dispute this. I believe there was an accidental blowout of a large quantity of anthrax spores over a Soviet city, but it produced no noticeable effect.)
'LABOUR SUSPENDS MP GALLOWAY
'Glasgow Kelvin MP George Galloway has been suspended from the [British] Labour Party over claims he urged Arab nations to fight against UK and US troops in Iraq.
'Labour received complaints over remarks the MP made in an Arab TV interview in which he branded PM Tony Blair and US president George Bush "wolves".
'Mr Galloway blasted the "completely unjust" suspension, saying he had been "stabbed in the back" by the party.
(ITV Teletext, 6 May 03, p.303)
'WHITE HOUSE "HIJACK ATTEMPT" [on 9/11]
'FBI agents quizzing al-Qaeda operatives now suspect thee was a plan to hijack a fifth jet on September 11 to attack the White House, it has been reported.
'The theory arose from interviews with Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the terror plot, and suspected financier Mustafa al-Hawsawi.
'They are being interrogated as part of the probe into alleged 20th hijacker Zacarias Mouassoui [sic, i.e. Moussaoui].'
(ITV Teletext, 6 May 03, p.314)
'Israel will not press ahead with a US-backed peace plan until PM Ariel Sharon has voiced objections to George Bush in a White House meeting.'
(ITV Teletext, 6 May 03, p.318)
'NEW ENVOY TO BAGHDAD APPOINTED BY BUSH
'President Bush has appointed former State Department official Paul Bremer to be his new envoy in Iraq.
'It is believed Mr Bremer will take on the role of civilian administrator of the country, senior to the current reconstruction chief Jay Garner.
'Mr Bremer's first job will be selecting a new Iraqi interim administration.
'President Bush has said Mr Bremer is someone with enormous experience who knows how to get things done.'
(BBC Ceefax, 6 May 03, p.111)
How often does an ambassador get to appoint the government he is an envoy to!
In 1989 Bremer retired from the State Department, and became managing director at Kissinger Associates, "the global consulting firm run by ... Henry Kissinger". [Kissinger is also a member of the Pentagon's key foreign-policy-making Defense Policy Board.]
"In 2000, while testifying in front of Congress, [Bremer] warned against the possibility of an extremely destructive terrorist attack on the United States, comparable with the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbour." [My emphasis.]
('At the Helm in Shattered Iraq: Lewis Paul Bremer III, New York Times, c.7 May 03; 'Counterterror expert to Iraq, 6 May 03)
'The Daily Mail reveals that Israel is responding to the Tel Aviv suicide attack involving two Britons by "stepping up" Mossad UK operations.
'Israeli leader Ariel Sharon believes "murderous Islamic fanatics" are being allowed to operate freely" [in Britain], it adds.'
(BBC Ceefax, 6 May 03, p.148, reviews of British papers)
7 May 03
SARS may be even more deadly than thought. A British study indicates that 20% of sufferers in Hong Kong are dying from it, including about half of those over sixty (compared with about 1% in this age-group for the average respiratory infection).
(BBC Ceefax)
Western scientists are working hard to soup up SARS' bioterror role. Not just the WHO (heavily payrolled by the US).
HALLIBURTON HAS CONTRACT FOR DISTRIBUTING IRAQI OIL
The Pentagon has admitted that Halliburton's contract in Iraq (exercised via a subsidiary) includes a hitherto-secret part for the distribution of Iraqi oil. (Up to now only the bits for putting out oil fires and repair of facilities have been admitted.) The contract is "temporary, for two years", and other — American — companies will be allowed to compete for contracts from August. The US Army's Engineering Corps has something to do with it.
US Vice-President Dick Cheney was chief executive of Halliburton for five years.
(British Channel 4 News, 7 May 03 at 7pm BST)
The US junta's "liberation theology" now appears even more clearly as a cloak for petro-imperialism.
But as "compensation" the Pentagon have produced a claim that they found (in April) a probable "mobile bioweapon lab" in Iraq. They say they cannot think of any other plausible use for the trailer as a whole. The "lab" closely matches descriptions of such labs given by Colin Powell to the UN before the war. No trace of bioweapons has been found in the trailer, which had been "cleaned out with a caustic agent". The "lab" is now to be dismantled — for further examination, of course.
8 May 03
More about the Halliburton Iraqi oil contract ...
'Halliburton's role in rebuilding Iraq grows despite flak'
Larry Margasak, Associated Press, in Mercury News, 8 May 03
'WASHINGTON - The no-bid contract that Halliburton received to put out Iraqi oil-well fires has risen to $76.7 million, pushed higher after the government gave vice President Dick Cheney's former company the added [but cf. below] job of restarting Iraq's oil industry. [Now, put that way, it sounds most charitable ...]
'The expanded role has accounted for $24 million of the contract total so far.
'Rep[resentative] Henry Waxman, D[emocrat]-Los angeles, disclosed Tuesday [6 May] that Halliburton's KBR subsidiary would have more work than initially indicated in the March announcement of a contract to extinguish oil fires. [Slightly!]
'The Bush administration denies there is any connection between Cheney's former role in running the Houston company and the Iraq contract work. Cheney, who led the company until August 2000, has had no role in the company's government contracts, the vice president's office has said. [And I believe in Santa Claus ...... A man dressed all in oilskins.]
'... White House press secretary Ari Fleischer ... directed questions to the contracting agency.
'That agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, acknowledged playing down the extra work in comments to the news media and Congress.
'Scott Saunders, an agency official, said his organization did not emphasize the additional work because it was only a contingency [!!!!!] in the original contract. [My emphasis throughout.]
'"We didn't think the initial contract would be involved with operating facilities and distribution of the product so we didn't play that up in the beginning in correspondence to Capitol Hill and in speaking to the news media," he said. ...' — Perhaps in any subsequent trial of justice, he can persuade prosecutors that he's six years old.
'Democratic presidential candidate Bob Graham accused the Bush administration Thursday [8 May] of stonewalling on the public release of a congressional report on the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
'"The only reason that delay has occurred is because the administration does not want our report to be available to the American people," said Graham, Florida's senior senator and the former chaiman of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
'After months of investigation and a series of congressional hearings last year, the House and Senate Intelligence panels wrapped up their report Dec. 20 and released a summary. The full report is still under review at the FBI and CIA, which are trying to determine whether any disclosure of information might pose a risk to national security [i.e. to their own plot-stained asses] and should remain classified.
'Graham, who chaired the committee at the time the report was completed, said he thinks the White House is behind the delay.
'"They don't want this report to come out," he said. "There has not been, in my memory, and I would question whether there has been in modern American history, an administration that was so committed to secrecy as this Bush administration."
'The White House made no immediate comment. ...'
'QUEEN'S AUSTRALIAN ENVOY DENIES RAPE
'The Queen's envoy to Australia has denied raping a woman when he was a clergyman in the 1960s.
'Governor-General Peter Hollingworth said a woman seeking financial payment had made these claims in a case now before a Victorian state court.
'He is facing mounting calls to resign for mishandling child sex abuse complaints in the church in the 1990s [when he was Archbishop of Brisbane].
'"I did not know this woman. I did not rape her," Mr Hollingworth said.'
(BBC Ceefax, 8 May 03, p.142)
Hollingworth's is the only significant case I know of ("mishandling of") child-sex-abuse in the Anglican church — as distinct from the Catholic Church.
The governor-general is the chief executive officer of Australia, and is appointed de facto by the Australian Prime Minister.
'India has rejected the Pakistani foreign ministry's suggestion that both countries give up their nuclear weapons. ...' (Ibid, p.117)
'The death toll from the Sars virus has reached 507 after China reported five new fatalities and Hong Kong four more. ...' (Ibid, p.119)
'The Israeli Prime Minister [Ariel Sharon] has said he is ready for peace negotiations with Syria "without preconditions". ...' (Ibid, p.119)
Now that America has softened Syria up.
London Mayor "Red" Ken Livingstone has called Presidnet Bush the most corrupt US leader since the 1920s, and said he would welcome his downfall as much as Saddam Hussein's. (Ibid, p.122)
9 May 03
'US AND UK BID TO CONTROL IRAQI OIL [revenue]
'The US and Britain have asked the UN to back a resolution lifting sanctions on Iraq and giving the coalition control over the country's oil revenue [for a year to start with, apparently].
'US ambassador John Negroponte has officially introduced the eight-page resolution during a closed Security Council meeting.
'Without a resolution, the legal right of Iraq or the UN to export oil to raise revenue will expire on June 3.'
(ITV Teletext, p.303)
Last night's BBC Newsnight reported that the occupying powers want disposal of the revenue to be outside the law, or something.
Meanwhile, 'The UN must have a central role in running post-war Iraq, French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin insists. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 9 May 03, p.104)
And the Jews must have a central role in running Nazi Germany ...
'GERMANY CHARGES SECOND MAN OVER SEPT 11
'A second Moroccan man has been charged in connection with the September 11 terror attacks by German prosecutors.
'Federal prosecutors said they had charged Abdelghani Mzoudi, 30, with being and accessory to 3,066 murders.
'He is also charged with being a member of a Hamburg-based al-Qaeda cell which allegedly planned the attacks.
'In February, a German court jailed Moroccan Mounir al-Motassadek, 28, for 15 years for being a member of the cell.'
(BBC Ceefax, 9 May 03, p.115)
'BUSH UNVEILS MID-EAST FREE TRADE PLAN
'President Bush has announced plans for a free trade area between the US and Middle Eastern countries within 10 years as part of a drive for peace. [A piece of the action, more like.]
'Speaking at the University of South Carolina, Mr Bush said the aim was to reward nations that pursued reform.
'He also called on Israel to take "tangible steps now" to ease the plight of the Palestinians.
'He gave his personal commitment that the US would work to achieve two states.'
(BBC Ceefax, 9 May 03, p.105)
Free trade seems to work in favour of the rich, and in the 21st century this technique will be brought to its full potential. The whole Middle East is to be a milch cow for junta America (if you can imagine a cow that gives oil).
In much the same fashion, Egypt was the grain basket of the Roman empire.
'BUSH WAS LIKE HITLER, SAYS WEAPONS MAN [Scott Ritter]
Hannah Cleaver, Daily Telegraph, 7 May 03
'Scott Ritter, a former United Nations inspector, has compared the invasion of Iraq to Hitler's invasion of Poland.
'He told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper that 130 Americans had died "for a lie", adding : "I see no difference between the invasion of Iraq and the invasion of Poland in 1939." [I see one. The invasion of Poland resulted directly in a world war; the outcome of the Iraqi invasion is one of craven acquiescence. A better comparison might be Hitler's occupation of the Saarland.]
'Both invasions were based on what he said was an artificial argument of self defence. President George W Bush had used the September 11 attacks as Hitler used the 1933 burning of the Reichstag to repress domestic dissidents.
'Mr Ritter, who resigned as an inspector in 1998 saying Saddam Hussein's regime was hindering his work, said he did not now believe there were weapons of mass destruction in the country.
'He called for inspectors to be sent back to obtain confirmation, so that UN sanctions could be lifted.
'"The inspectors have to finish their work," he said. 'This time they must also have the courage to say that the US has not told the truth."'
These comments do not obviate the suspicion that Ritter is a pseudo-oppositionist (see remarks on Ritter, Feb. 03). Such comments have already been widely made; Ritter is breaking no new ground.
10 May 03
'US Secretary of State Colin Powell is in Israel to help implement the "road map to peace".
On the road that vanishes in the distance.
11 May 03
'US ARMS INSPECTION TEAM "TO QUIT IRAQ"
'US weapons inspectors are pulling out of Iraq after failing to find any weapons of mass destruction, according to reports in the Washington Post.
'The 75th Exploitation [!!] Task Force is expected to pull out next month after seven weeks of looking for weapons.
'The team has searched all but two of the 19 top weapons sites named by US Central Command at the start of the war. [Will this be like a Ferdinand Marcos Philippines election, with pro-regime votes materializing at the last second?*]
'The hunt will continue under the much larger US-led Iraq Survey Group. [The King is dead, long live the Emperor.]'
(BBC Ceefax, p.106)
See 'Suspected bioweapons labs found', MSNBC News, 11 May 03.
'US CHIEF "TO QUIT IRAQ"
'Retired US general Jay Garner — who is heading the US-led authority in Iraq — will be pulled out of the country, a US newspaper has claimed.
'The moves come just a few days after US President George Bush named former counter-terror chief Paul Bremer [my emphasis] as the top civil administrator in Iraq.
'[British] Lib Dem foreign affairs spokesman Menzies Campbell said it was "an admission of failure" by the Americans.'
(ITV Teletext, 11 May 03, p.303)
Barbara Bodine, the US-appointed administrator for central Baghdad, is also being withdrawn.
'It is not exactly clear why ..., but Iraqis are frustrated that their lives remain in chaos, a BBC correspondent says.
'Basic public services like rubbish collection have not yet been restarted.
'Paul Bremer ... is due to arrive [in Iraq] next week.'
(BBC Ceefax, 11 May 03, p.107)
Australian Governor-General Peter Hollingworth is to stand aside while rape allegations are investigated, Aussie PM John Howard says.
(Ibid, p.109)
'OIL REVENUES "A CURSE" IN POOR COUNTRIES
'Wealth generated by oil is more often a curse than a blessing for many countries, a new report has said.
'The Christian Aid study concluded it had led to more poverty, corruption and chance of war [!!] in developing countries.
'An investigation and new regulations were needed into the role of oil, the report added.
'It also called for trust funds to be set up to safeguard oil revenue for future development in poor countries.'
(BBC Ceefax, 11 May 03, p.111)
Christian aid are objective allies of US petro-imperialism in this report. Oil is a curse in that it makes its possessors targets for conquest.
13 May 03
There has been a series of "suicide" car-bombings in the Saudi capital Riyadh at the residential compounds of foreign workers. The attacks occurred just hours before US Secretary of State Colin Powell was due to visit Riyadh as part of his Mideast tour.
Initial reports (c. 1am BST) said at least three people had died, and at least 40 Americans had been injured. Later in the day the Saudi government announced 29 deaths.
These figures were obviously not good enough to satisfy the US junta. The State Department announced, then withdrew, a figure of 90 deaths. Then Vice-President Dick Cheney reinstated a figure of "91". The deaths are said to include 10 Americans.
Clearly, the junta must have an "unprecedented" terrorist attack in Saudi Arabia if it is to develop plans to subjugated this largest oil country to its petro-empire.
The State Department has now (9pm BST) accepted the Saudi figure of 29 deaths. But it is still optimistic that the toll may rise as high as 50.
And of course it almost goes without saying that "al-Qaeda" is responsible.
'TEL AVIV BOMB PROBE — POLICE FIND BODY
'The British embassy in Israel is checking reports that a body found on the shore of Tel Aviv is British suicide bomb suspect Omar Khan Sharif.
'Sharif, 27, of Derby, is alleged to have helped Briton Asif Hanif who died in the bombing, along with three others.
'Israeli police have been hunting Sharif since the attack on April 30.
'The Foreign Office has confirmed the checks, but added the body was not likely to be identified until Wednesday.'
(BBC Ceefax, 13 May 03, p.112)
It must have been a powerful suicide bomb! Or perhaps he was fired out the barrel of an Israeli tank.
Either way, there's no-one left alive to contradict the official story. Oh yes, apart from the relatives, put on trial in London a few days ago.
16 May 03
'US-FRENCH RIFT DEEPENS
'France has claimed that the US has mounted an organised campaign of slights and disinformation against it.
'French officials said false allegations of complicity with deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein have come from within the Bush administration.
"Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld denied the claims, on the same day as the Pentagon said it would cut back its support for June's Paris Air Show.'
(ITV Teletext, p.306)
At least they haven't said the French are all paedophiles — have they?
(ITV Teletext, 16 May 03, p.318)
The US has warned of a "stream" of terror attacks in Saudi Arabia.
Amnesty International has said it is investigating claims by Iraqi PoWs that they were tortured by their British and American captors. Several have alleged night beatings, and one claimed he was beaten with electrified cable. Amnesty says it will present the UK and US governments with the results of its investigation.
The People's Council of National Resistance (the Iranian opposition group otherwise known as the Mujahedin-e-Khalq) claims it has a list of secret Iranian WMD sites which it is giving to the UN.
'INTERNET SNOOPING "HAS NO BASIS IN LAW"
'Officials in the UK make around a million requests per year for access to people's internet and email data, a conference in London has been told.
'The forum, held to debate plans to widen government poweres, has called for curbs on official internet snooping.
'"The government says it has a right to data. That has no basis in law," said Simon Davies of Privacy International.
'The Government wants to increase the number of authorities with data accesss.'
(BBC Ceefax, 16 May 03, p.154)
'EAST AFRICA WARNING EXTENDED
'The British Government has warned of a "clear terrorist threat" in six further east Africa countries.
'The Foreign Office warning — covering Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Somalia, Eritrea and Djibouti — followed the suspension of UK flights to Kenya.
'Britons were cautioned to be on their guard in these six nations but were not advised to cancel all non-essential travel — as is the case in Kenya.'
(ITV Teletext, 16 May 03, p.305)
A series of car-bomb attacks in Casablanca, Morocco, has left at least 40 dead. The figure is said to include 10 suicide bombers. Targets included a Jewish community centre, a Spanish restaurant, and the Belgian Consulate.
Jewish and Spanish targets are understandable, if the attacks were about Iraq as well as Palestine, but the Belgians opposed the Anglo-Saxon invasion of Iraq; and a Belgian lawyer has said he will indict Gen. Tommy Franks for "war crimes" in that country. The Americans warned of consequences for Belgium if he went ahead. ...
'The U.S. Congress has a make-or-break opportunity to live up to its Congressional responsibilities by shooting down Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's "emergency" legislation, which would effectively scrap the 100-year-old Civil Service system, eliminate collective bargaining rights, and greatly weaken protections against discrimination, and strong-arming of whistle blowers, among the nearly 700,000 civilian Defense Department employees [my emphasis]. At stake in the fight over H.R. 1836, the Civil Service and National Security Personnel Improvement Act [my emphasis], is more than the fate of Federal employees. The larger issue is whether Congress will stand up on a bipartisan basis to defeat a flagrantly unconstitutional power-grab by the same Straussian gang in the Executive Branch that was behind the Iraq War and the drive to permanently transform the United [States} from a Constitutional Republic into a caricature of the Napoleonic or Roman Empire.
'The Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz cabal at the Pentagon is dead set on ramming through this piece of fascist legislation (Adolf Hitler imposed almost the identical civil service "reforms" in Nazi Germany in Spring 1933, as part of his consolidation of dictatorial power). In a clear signal of this, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz himself appeared before the House Armed Services Committee on May 1, and the House Government Reform Committee on May 6, the day before that committee's markup. Other big guns the Pentagon deployed to turn up the heat on Capitol Hill included Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen/ Richard Myers, Vice Chairman Gen. Peter Pace, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Vern Clark, and Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness David Chu. The four hearings — an April 29 hearing before the Government Reform Committee's Civil Service Subcommittee, the May 6 hearing of the full committee, and two hearings of the Armed Services Committee on May 1 and May 2 — were highlighted by sharp attacks by the Democrats of both committees, who attacked both the bill's railroad speed and its content. ...'
My thanks to Brian Quincy Adams for pointing this article out to me.
18 May 03
'WEST BANK AND GAZA SEALED OFF BY ISRAEL
'Israel has again sealed off the West Bank and Gaza Strip following two suicide bomb attacks.
'The Israeli cabinet made the decision at an emergency session after attaacks in Jerusalem which left nine dead. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, p.108)
Israeli PM Arial Sharon cancelled talks with President Bush in Washington on the "road map to peace" as a result.
(Ibid, p.109)
I watched the BBC Panorama programme tonight on the neocons as a leading driving force in US policy.
19 May 03
'BODY IS FAILED BRITISH BOMBER
'A body found off the Israeli coast is that of a Briton involved in a suicide bomb attack which killed three people.
'Isreali police said the body of Omar Sharif, 27, was identified by DNA testing after it was found floating near Tel Aviv last week.
'Father-of-two Sharif, from Derby, was part of a two-man team from Britain but his explosives failed to detonate in the April 30 attack on a Tel Aviv bar.'
(ITV Teletext, p.304)
Judge, jury ...
Meanwhile, four people were killed in another suicide bombing, in northern Israel.
'Controversial plans to limit trial by jury [in Britain] have survived a key vote by MPs, despite a Labour backbench rebellion.
'A total of 33 Labour MPs were among 227 MPs who opposed allowing a jury to be replaced by a judge in complicated fraud cases, while 299 backed the move. ...' [I.e. the opposition Conservatives also voted against.]
(BBC Ceefax, 19 May 03, p.111)
'IRAQIS PROTEST OVER US GOVERNMENT PLANS
'Up to 10,000 Shi'ite Muslims have protested in Baghdad over plans for a US-installed regime.
'The demonstration took place a day after Iraq's civilian administration, Paul Bremer, vowed to push ahead with plans to set up an interim government.
'Protesters carried banners reading: "No to foreign administration".'
(BBC Ceefax, 19 May 03, p.108)
'UN WARNS OF NUCLEAR EMERGENCY FOR IRAQ
'A nuclear emergency may be developing in Iraq, the UN's nuclear watchdog Mohammed ElBaradei has warned.
'Urging the US to allow his experts back into Iraq, he said he was "deeply concerned" by reports of looting and destruction at nuclear sites.
'Mr ElBaradei also warned that stolen radioactive material could end up in the hands of terrorists. [This surely is the idea. Not the actuality, of course, but the appearance.]
'He added the US had not responded to fears he voiced in two letters in April.'
(BBC Ceefax, 19 May 03, p.122)
20 May 03
I've just read the report, Graham: Bush Admin. Blocking 9/11 Report (Associated Press, on ABCNEWS.com, 8 May 03). (See above, under 8 May, for interesting extracts.)
'UK CLOSES RIYADH EMBASSY
'The British embassy in [the] Saudi capital Riyadh is to close to the public because of an "imminent" terrorist threat, the Foreign Office has said.
'The closure follows a similar move by the US over fears that terrorist attacks are "imminent", after 34 people died in blasts in the capital. [Aren't these moves a little belated?]
'The British consulate in Jeddah and trade office in al Khobar will also close, the Foreign Office said.'
(ITV Teletext, 20 May 03, p.303)
'US RAISES HOME TERROR ALERT
'The US has raised its terror alert level to orange — the second highest level — amid fears terrorist attacks overseas will spread to home territory.
'Department of Homeland Security officials have advised cities, states and companies to step up security.
'The alert was raised after anti-terror officials reviewed intelligence reports suggesting domestic terrorist attacks were possible.'
(ITV Teletext, 20 May 03, p.304)
This is what the age of libertarian idealism, the beacon of the Free World, has come to. Force-paced petro-imperialism, naked except for a fig-leaf or diaphanous veil of "enemy terrorism". This mask becomes ever smaller or more transparent as the US junta continually hammers away at its targets of conquest, progressively undermining their moral and preparing its own public for the mass annexations of the incipient future. The facade of the "Islamist enemy", epitomized with true American subtlety by "al-Qaeda" — the CIA's own protege and client.
'US TO FINGERPRINT ALL FOREIGN VISITORS [well, most ...]
'All visitors travelling to the US on visas are to be fingerprinted and photographed from next year in a bid to stop terrorists entering the country.
'The £250m system could have stopped two of the September 11 hijackers, the US Homeland Security under-secretary said.
'It will not affect UK tourists or short-term business travellers.
'The high-tech system aims to help monitor foreign visitor movements and check them against terror watch lists.'
(BBC Ceefax, 20 May 03, p.106)
'SARS WARNING ISSUED BY US HEALTH CHIEF
'The Sars virus is likely to kill people all over the world, the US health secretary has warned in Brussels. [In The Great Dictator, was it Garbitch who kept going to Adenoid Hynckel (alias Hitler, alias Charlie Chaplin) with his latest war inventions, such as a new gas ("It will kill everyone!")?]
'Tommy Thompson said he believed it was possible there would be deaths from the illness in the US and Europe, which have so far reported no fatal cases.
'He also said there could be more deaths from the pneumonia-like disease later this year, even if it levels off now.
'Sars has killed hundreds of people and affected thousands, mainly in China.'
(BBC Ceefax, 20 May 03, p.142)
SARS is just one more terror-weapon in the junta's arsenal. Terror without a cause, to paraphrase the James Dean movie. Of course, they can always declare it a Red Chinese bio-experiment gone wrong ...
21 May 03
'POST-WAR IRAQ RULE "ILLEGAL"
'The government is facing fresh claims that Britain and America have acted illegally in post-war Iraq.
'A leaked memo to PM Tony Blair from Attorney General Lord Goldsmith [printed in the New Statesman] suggests action in the absence of a new UN resolution was unlawful.
'Everything the coalition has attempted to do following the conflict, including efforts to form an interim government, may have been invalid, it suggests.'
(ITV Teletext, p.303)
'France, Russia and Germany will vote in favour of [an amended] UN resolution to let the US-led coalition run Iraq until a recognised government takes over. ...'
(Ibid, p.304)
AL-QAEDA CHIEF "URGES ATTACKS"
'... Al Jazeera broadcast an audio tape of Ayman al-Zawahri, a man it said was a top aide of Osama bin Laden.
'The message called for attacks for attacks on the embassies and commercial interests of the UK, US, Australia and Norway.'
'"Consider your 19 brothers who attacked Washington and New York [in that order!!] with their planes as an example," the tape said.'
(BBC Ceefax; ITV Teletext : 21 May 03)
Of course, he may have named Washington before New York because it is the US capital. But both timewise and in terms of human destruction, the Twin Towers rank ahead of the Pentagon. Perhaps the ordering gives away the true origin of this message.
And thus has something to say about that of "al-Qaeda's" little messages in general. As well as the location of the control panel behind this CIA protege and client.
'AL-QAEDA BUSY IN IRAN, RUMSFELD SAYS
'There is "no question" senior al-Qaeda leaders have been busy in Iran, US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says.
'Mr Rumsfeld was speaking after thanking the crown prince of Bahrain, Sheikh Salman Bin Hamad al-Khalifa, for his country's support in Iraq.
'On Tuesday [20 May], Mr Rumsfeld suggested the May 12 bombings in Saudi Arabia were directed by al-Qaeda leaders in Iran.
'Tehran dismissed any claims al-Qaeda was operating in Iran as "unfounded".'
(BBC Ceefax, 21 May 03, p.106)
22 May 03
'NEW UN RESOLUTION LIFTS IRAQI SANCTIONS
'The UN Security Council has voted-in the new resolution on Iraq, which will see an end to 13 years of sanctions.
'There were 14 votes in favour of the US-drafted resolution. The 15th member, Syria, boycotted the vote.
'Resolution 1483 asks US and UK forces to help form an Iraqi-led interim administration and sets out a process for the distribution of oil revenue.
"It also asks Secretary-General Kofi Annan to appoint a UN envoy for Iraq.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.107)
The US junta (with its UK sidekick) has got what it wanted — control of Iraqi oil revenue — with a few token concessions to its UN opponents. Appeasement, as they called it in the 1930s.
'UK FIRMS INVITED TO APPLY FOR IRAQ WORK
'British firms are to be briefed on how they can apply for sub-contracting work [scraps from the master's table] in the rebuilding of Iraq.
'The briefing in London will be given to senior managers of Bechtel, which has been awarded a £400m contract to reconstruct the country by the US.
'The US engineering and construction firm will be repairing water and sewage systems, ports and airports.
'US Embassy officials will be detailing other projects at a separate briefing. [My emphasis.]
(BBC Ceefax, 22 May 03, p.108)
And we all know how the Halliburton "reconstruction" contract turned out (see above, under 7 and 8 May). But should anyone have been surprised? Halliburton's speciality is oil. What about Bechtel?
'UK NEVER ACTED ILLEGALLY IN IRAQ — [British] PM
'Britain has never acted illegally in its role in the US coalition in post-war Iraq, Tony Blair has insisted.
'He was responding to a leaked memo said to be from the Attorney-General.
'The New Statesman printed the memo, from early in the war, which said a UN resolution "is needed to authorise imposing reform and restructuring".
'The PM said it was completely wrong to say the Attorney General had suggested the Government was acting unlawfully.'
(BBC Ceefax, 22 May 03, p.106)
"If I hold one finger up to the public, but say I'm holding two ...".
But the new UN resolution has legalized it anyway, so it's all swept under the carpet.
'CIA EXAMINES WEAPONS INTELLIGENCE
'The CIA is to conduct an inquiry into the quality of intelligence assessments on Iraq, delivered before the war.
'Officials say the inquiry was planned even before the war had started.
'But it comes as critics have suggested that allegations of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq were exaggerated [What's the matter, newswriter? Afraid to add "or fabricated"?] in order to make the case for war.
'Four retired senior intelligence analysts [who are surely — not — blind, deaf and senile] will look at the work of the CIA and other US intelligence agencies.'
(BBC Ceefax, 22 May 03, p.109)
'IRAQ WAR COMMANDER [Tommy Franks] TO RETIRE
'The US General who commanded his troops victories in Iraq and Afghanistan is retiring after 36 years in uniform.
'defence officials said Gen Tommy Franks will step down as commander of Central Command "in the weeks immediately ahead" and will retire in the summer.
'Gen Franks' retirement was rumoured after he turned down the role of Army chief of staff, saying last month the post was "not on my scope".'
(ITV Teletext, 22 May 03, p.305)
I had him all pegged for overall proconsul of "Levantia", the emerging Mideastern first province of the American world empire.
'ISRAEL SEIZES WEAPONS BOAT
'The Israeli navy has seized a ship off the coast of Lebanon carrying weapons which it claims were being smuggled by the terrorist group Hezbollah.
'The vessel was towed to the port city Haifa, where "suspicious objects" were found on board, including "directives for carrying out terror attacks.
'Israel said the boat, intercepted on its way from Lebanon to the Gaza Strip, was carrying a Hezbollah operative.'
(ITV Teletext, 22 May 03, p.310)
Reminiscent of that other shipload of arms, "to the PLO", in January last year, for which Arafat eventually took general, collective responsibility.
Perhaps he couldn't be sure whether somebody in his loose-knit organization was responsible or not.
23 May 03
'PARLIAMENT SECURITY INCREASED
'Security around the Houses of Parliament has been beefed up to boost defences against the threat of terror.
'Concrete blockers have been erected by the road outside the Palace of Westminster and further measures are planned by police across London [including Heathrow Airport, again].
'The blockers aim to protect the areas in the event of [car-bomb attacks, as in Saudi on 12 May], but officials insist there is no specific threat.'
(ITV Teletext, p.307)
The US has already redeployed missile launchers around Washington — to "defend against the terrorists", presumably.
What legislation might our own dear puppet-junta be trying to railroad through Parliament? On the lines, maybe, of the anthrax attacks-railroading of the "Patriot Act" through Congress.
The head of MI5, Eliza Manningham Buller, has met CIA chief George Tenet, about "security issues". (BBC News 24, 23 May 03 at 3am)
'Israeli PM Ariel Sharon has said Israel can accept an international "roadmap" for peace with the Palestinians and the plan will go before [the] cabinet on Sunday [25 May]. ...
'[But] Israel flatly rejected a provision to halt settlements in occupied areas. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 23 May 03, p.104) 'UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has named his human rights chief [Sergio Vieira de Mello] as special envoy to Iraq for a four-month period. ...'
(Ibid, p.110)
'US/JAPAN WARN N KOREA OVER NUCLEAR ARMS
"President Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi have told North Korea that they will not allow the regime to possess nuclear weapons.
'The pair made the statement at a US-Japanese summit at the Bush ranch in Crawford, Texas.
'Mr Bush warned North Korea would face "tougher measures" if tensions in the current nuclear stand-off escalated.
'The stand-off began last year when the North "admitted" to a bomb programme.'
(BBC Ceefax, 23 April 03, p.111)
24 May 03
'TIMES[:] Many of London's most popular tourist landmarks are to be surrounded by concrete after CIA-MI5 talks [see yesterday] called for action to guard against al-Qaeda."
(ITV Teletext, p.328, reviews of British papers)
The British Home Secretary, David Blunkett, is to introduce legislation in the autumn for identity cards for all adults.
Mueller Orders Outside Review of FBI's Disciplinary Practices
Susan Schmidt, Washington Post, 24 May 03, p.A15
As exercised by the FBI's Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).
Bremer Iraq assignment was hurried affair
United Press International, 24 May 03
So in thinking his appointment was part of Kissinger's Machiavellian master plan of global petro-imperialism, I was just being a paranoid conspiracy weirdo?
'CANADA[:] Officials are monitoring five new possible cases of the deadly Sars virus, just a week after a travel alert on the city was lifted.'
(ITV Teletext, 24 May 03, p.318)
25 May 03
'WORLDWIDE SARS TOLL TOPS 700
'Taiwan has announced 12 new deaths from Sars — taking the world toll to more than 700 — as Toronto geared up for a re-emergence of the disease.
'Taiwan rejected rival China's offer to help the island battle Sars and criticised Beijing for blocking it from joining the World Health Organisation.
'In Toronto, health officials said an apparently undiagnosed Sars case at a hospital might have infected 33 people.'
(ITV Teletext, p.307)
'VENEZUELA[:] One person was killed and 17 injured after an opposition party held a protest in Catia, which is considered a stronghold of President Hugo Chavez.'
(Ibid, p.318)
26 May 03
Seventy-four people were killed when a Ukrainian military transport plane crashed at Trabzon, north-east Turkey, "in thick fog". Sixty-two were Spanish peacekeeping troops returning from Afghanistan. The cause of the crash "is not known".
Once again, a fatal aircrash has occurred "in thick fog" in eastern Turkey. Not this time during the preliminaries to the Iraq war, but instead of a military aircraft. Cf. Jan. 2003 diary, under 8 Jan.
US SENDS AL-QAEDA WARNING TO IRAN
'The US is pressing Iran to hand over al-Qaeda suspects believed by American intelligence to have been working in Iranian territory, it was reported.
'US officials said the message was sent shortly after the suicide attacks in Saudi Arabia which killed 34, including nine Americans and two Britons.
'Intelligence picked up signs that al-Qaeda members in Iran may have been involved in the bombings, they said.'
(ITV Teletext, 26 May 03, p.307)
'"WAR CRIMES" CLAIM DISMISSED
'Downing Street has rejected allegations that Prime Minister Tony Blair and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw are guilty of war crimes over the Iraq conflict.
'The claims — in a complaint the Athens Bar Association plans to file with the International Criminal court — were dismissed as "groundless".
'A Number 10 spokesman insisted: "The British Government has acted in accordance with international law".
'... The Athens Bar Association said it was compelled to file the claims with the International Criminal Court due to an "ethical and juristic responsibility".
'The association's document excluded the United States, which has challenged [in fact, repudiated] the court's jurisdiction over Americans.'
(ITV Teletext, 26 May 03, p.310)
27 May 03
'[US] HAWKS PUSH TOUGH LINE TO PROMPT REGIME CHANGE IN IRAN
Roland Watson, The Times, 27 May 03, p.12
'Pentagon hawks will use White House talks today to push for a more aggressive US policy towards Iran in the hope of triggering a popular uprising.
'The session on strategy towards a member of President Bush's "axis of evil" highlights the deterioration in Washington's views of Iran in recent weeks. ...'
'Diplomatic cars carrying representatives of Sweden, UK, Greece, Austria and Switzerland were shot at by Israeli troops at a Gaza roadblock.'
(ITV Teletext, 27 May 03, p.318)
'AL-JAZEERA DENIES RUMOURS OVER SACKING
'Arab broadcaster al-Jazeera has denied that its replacement of its chief executive was linked to reports it had been infiltrated by Iraqi intelligence. [Iraqi ...!]
'The Sunday Times claimed documents found in Iraq showed three Iraqi agents had been working for al-Jazeera.
'A spokesman for the Qatar-based station said Mohammed Jaseem al-Ali was handing over day-to-day management.
'He will stay a director of the channel, which he has led since its 1996 launch.'
(BBC Ceefax, 27 May 03, p.109)
'The Ministry of Defence has launched an investigation into the disappearance of two ITN [Independent Television News] staff who went missing after a shoot-out in the Iraq war on March 22.
'Cameraman Fred Nerac and translator Hussein Oman have not been seen since a clash of Iraqi and coalition forces that killed ITN reporter Terry Lloyd.
'The MoD has confirmed that the Royal Military Police will conduct the probe.
'ITN has been critical of the apparent lack of action over the missing men.'
(BBC Ceefax, 27 May 03, p.119)
Terry Lloyd was shot by the Americans. The MoD's "lack of action" tends to confirm US military skulduggery.
'USA[:] Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was involved in a minor car crash while being driven from the Pentagon to an air force base. No one was injured.'
(ITV Teletext, 27 May 03, p.318)
Donald Rumsfeld has threatened drastic action if Iran doesn't stop "interfering" in Iraq.
(BBC World Service news)
28 May 03
'ANTHRAX SHOCK AT US ARMY BASE [Fort Detrick]
'The Pentagon has discovered more than 2,000 tons of hazardous waste including anthrax and other dangerous bacteria at a US Army base near Washington DC.
'Investigations at Fort Detrick in Maryland say the items are believed to be left over from a US germ warfare programme that was ended in 1969.
'The Pentagon said it had no record of the agents dumped at the site, which is being excavated as part of a £15m plan.'
(ITV Teletext, p.310)
Fort Detrick experimented with the strain of anthrax used in the mailing attacks of autumn 2001. Are the current "discoveries" supposed to be viable or not?
This "discovery" is perhaps comparable to Gorbachev's patently insincere ones about past Soviet evildoing (what must have been common knowledge among the Soviet elite all along). Or was it an "opposition" exposure to embarrass the Bush administration, which has failed to discover any WMD to justify its occupation of Iraq?
There must be a long line of (black) jokes that could be made about the "discovery", e.g., "So THAT'S where the Iraqis have been hiding their bioweapons! The cunning devils!"
BR>
'... The anthrax was a non-virulent strain, and the discoveries ... merited only a local news item in the Washington Post. ...
'[But] there was no documentation about the various biological agents disposed of at the US bio-defence centre at Fort Detrick. Iraq's failure to come up with paperwork proving the destruction of its biological arsenal was portrayed by the US as evidence of deception in the run-up to the war. ...'
(Julian Borger, 'US finds evidence ...', The Guardian, 28 May 03)
'... digging began in April 2001 ...
'From time to time, other government institutions sent trash to Detrick's landfill. They included, [Detrick's disposal supervisor] Kaempf said, the Central Intelligence Agency, which, a declassified government report shows, tested biological agents at Fort Detrick. ...
'Frederick Mayor Jennifer Dougherty ... remembered a phone call from [Col. John] Ball[, Fort Detrick garrison commander] a year ago, the day the anthrax turned up. "He said, 'We found a vial...'" she recalled. "At that point, your mind just races."
'Ball remembered thinking, "This could be bad, but let's wait for the testing." It showed that the vial contained "a vaccine strain of anthrax," which could not cause the disease. The Fort Detrick team found identifying biological materials a costly, uncertain process. ...'
(Elizabeth Williamson, 'Ft. Detrick Unearths Hazardous Surprises ...', Washington Post, 27 May 03, p.B01)
29 May 03
'TORONTO SARS CASES COULD RISE FIVE-FOLD
'The number of Sars cases in Toronto could rise five-fold after it was told to reclassify how it counts cases, a leading doctor has said.
'Dr Donald Low, chief of microbiology at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, warned the numbers could reach 70 — up from 12.
'Under World Health Organisation rules, Toronto will now include patients with pneumonia where there is no clear cause. [!!!]
'Toronto is the only place outside Asia where people have died from the virus.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.109)
This shows, if doubt remained, the administrative nature of the SARS "disease".
'USA[:] former President Bill Clinton has called for a constitutional change to allow two-term presidents to return to office later in life.'
(ITV Teletext, 29 May 03, p.318)
Just a hint that Caesarism isn't confined to the Republicans.
30 May 03
The spokesman of the opposition Socialist Party in Portugal was arrested (last week?) in connection with the children's-homes child sex-abuse scandal (which surfaced there last year).
(BBC World service news at 1am)
Further evidence that paedophile accusations have become a weapon of the (hard) right against its political opponents?
F[inancial ]T[imes :] US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld is spearheading efforts to make "regime change" in Iran the official policy goal of the Bush administration.'
(ITV Teletext, 30 May 03, p.328, reviews of British papers)
The Ministry of Defence in Britain is to launch an inquiry after photographs showing apparent mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners-of-war were found on a film handed in for development by a soldier. Photography-shop staff contacted the police. The initial response was advice to replace the staff concerned and keep silent about the matter. But The Sun newspaper was contacted.
(BBC 1 TV, 30 May 03, 6 O'Clock News)
US deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz has said that the choice to present "weapons of mass destruction" as a reason for invading Iraq was a bureaucratic one, one that all parties could agree on.
31 May 03
Tenet Defends Iraqi Intelligence
'... Our role is to call it like we see it, to tell policymakers what we know, what we don't know, what we think, and what we base it on," Tenet said in a statement released by the CIA. "The integrity of our process was maintained throughout and any suggestion to the contrary is simply wrong."
'Tenet's statement came in response to the release on Thursday [29 May] of a "memorandum" to President Bush posted on several Internet sites by a group of retired CIA and State Department intelligence analysts. The analysts said there is "growing mistrust and cynicism" among intelligence professionals over "intelligence cited by you and your chief advisers to justify the war against Iraq."
'The group, which calls itself Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, said the failure to find weapons of mass destruction after six weeks of searching "suggests either that such weapons are simply not there or that those eventually found there will not be in sufficient quantity or capability to support your repeated claim that Iraq posed a grave threat to our country's security."
'The group called on the president to allow United Nations inspectors to return to Iraq, saying, "If the U.S. doesn't make undisputed discoveries of forbidden weapons, the failure will feed already widespread skepticism abroad about the motives for going to war."
'It added that intelligence in the past had been "warped for political purposes but never before has such warping been used in such a systematic way to mislead our elected representatives into voting to authorize launching a war." ...'
'US STEPPING UP SEARCH FOR IRAQI WEAPONS
'The US has announced a "significant expansion" of its search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
'The Pentagon is sending in a new 1,400-strong inspection team, made up of Americans, Britons and Australians.
'They will interview low-level officials and ordinary Iraqis who may have been given the task of hiding weapons. ["Morning, Mrs Hadji! We've just come to check your drains for hidden nukes."]
'US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld recently suggested that Iraq may have destroyed its WMDs just before the war. [
That was yesterday. Today he changed his mind and said they were well hidden. No doubt his hands were flapping all over, pushing his glasses back, etc etc, as he was saying it.]'
(BBC Ceefax, 31 May 03, p.107)
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[A few months after 9/11 and the anthrax attacks, with a strain used by the US Army and at Fort Detrick ... Yes, your mind would race.]
[This reminds me of the "anthrax phials washed up" at various locations on the British south coast last January. A medical expert interviewed on BBC TV said that the "vaccine" contained "live virus" to stimulate an immune reaction. See Jan. 2003 diary, under 20, 21 Jan.]
CIA Chief Rebuts Allegations of Pressure From Administration Before the War
Walter Pincus, Washington Post, 31 May 03, p.A01