U.S. forces filling jails in pre-vote crackdown (8000 held)

[leftchick]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002158914_iraqdig24.html

MOSUL, Iraq — U.S. forces have been mounting aggressive raids, patrols and other operations to crack down on insurgents in Sunni Muslim enclaves throughout northern and central Iraq in advance of Sunday's national-assembly election, with the hundreds of arrests contributing to a surge in prisoners in Abu Ghraib and other U.S. lockups.

The military said almost 8,000 detainees are being held — a new high.

"We want to eliminate as many of these guys as possible to stabilize things for the election," said Capt. Sean Kuehl, assistant intelligence officer for the 2nd battalion, 5th Regiment, 1st Marine Division, which is based in the restive city of Ramadi, west of Baghdad.

Nowhere are the results of the crackdown more dramatic than in Mosul, a northern city of almost 2 million that was on the brink of complete lawlessness a month ago. In the past month, U.S. troop strength in Mosul has been increased by one-third; the Iraqi military presence has been doubled.

[Art_from_Ark]

1. Say, wasn't SADDAM reputed to have done similar things before an election?

Round up the opposition to intimidate supporters

[okoboji]

2. wow

so much for Freedom and liberty

[R Hickey]

3. So what are we charging our newest prisoners with? Loitering?

Will we let these new prisoners go after the "election," or are we just going to torture them to death?

[illflem]

4. Wonder if they'll be allowed to vote?

Could be the safest precinct in the the country.

[slor]

5. Just when you think...

they could not fuck it up anymore, they turn around and present another nugget of stupidity. I'm telling you, I really think they are hoping for a civil war.

[wildwww2]

15. Hoping for a civil war (crime)? I would say they are in the middle of one.

Right now. And putting 8,000 potential torture victums in jail. Will not stop it. It may help Bu$h and his nazi`s pull off their fake election. But the Iraqi`s know Abu Grahib and similar war crimes better than the ill informed American public does. They will have their revenge. And the civil war crime will continue. What a mess for the sake of American corporate profits.
Peace
Wildman
Al Gore is My President

[w4rma]

24. I think they've been brainwashed by their own propaganda and can't think

logically and independently of the Republican warmongering nutjobs micromanaging this freakshow. In fact I think they are punished if they try to think logically.

[elehhhhna]

6. Change the dateline to read "Florida".

[soup]

17. Yep.

I read some time ago that Baghdad's charter is being based on either Florida's Pinellas County or St. Petersburg (darn memory fails).

Guess they're now taking it one step further.

[elehhhhna]

19. Too bad it looks more like Punta Gorda, thanks to Hurricaine Rumsfeld.

[Oversea Visitor]

7. Hey

FREEDOM and LIBERTY all roll in one big 8000 detainees. Wonder how long they going to keep them in jail. What is their crime.

So what is going to happen after the election on Jan30th? Will all this voilence stop?

Bush say he just want to get rid of Saddam. He did that long ago. Mission Accomplish.

I guess he be saying US need to stay in Iraq to protect the FREEDOM and the LIBERTY of the Iraq people.

[leftchick]

8. Of course the US is staying...

The US is not pouring Billions of dollars into US bases, an embassy and a huge communications system just to up and leave! Watch what they do not what they say.

[Oversea Visitor]

21. Oh

I know US is staying. Well maybe until they figure that the oil is more expensive then its worth it. I think when they did the calculation they didnt calculated the degree of resistance.

[leftchick]

25. the neocons running the show are insane...

they are not acknowledging the costs are too high and they will lose this untidy venture into the Middle East. Hell they already have lost it and still ask for more billions to spend. Cheney et all think they can do it! It will take a very long time because they will not stop, until someone else stops them. I don't see many Democrats in congress acknowledging it is lost.

:scared:

[Oversea Visitor]

26. Stay cool

They should fired their accountant. Well they will, cause with all this mess the oil will be too expensive. Of course driving up the oil price would maybe help them recover some of the initial investment.

Bottom-line is the oil is just not worth if for the cost needed to pump them out.

They cant keep this up for long. Sad part is many innocents people will die just for this. US will have to withdraw.

You cant beat an opposition that is fighting for a cause. They don't fight for money and they willing to die for it. So where is the threshold for them. However US has a very low threshold. Its a done deal US has lost this battle.

[bullimiami]

9. ahh freedom.

guilty of dissent.

[llmart]

10. At this rate.....

the only "Iraqis" left to vote will be those in other countries, especially the US, who have never even stepped foot in Iraq. But the MSM will show some teary-eyed Iraqis and interview them and they'll talk all about how "wonderful it feels to be able to vote." AND they'll probably talk about how wonderful George W. Bush is for giving them democracy and freedom.

Oh, and I forgot - the US sheeple being too dumb to put two and two together will eat this up.

Oh, and I also forgot - George W. Bush will say "See, I told you it was worth it."

[malaise]

11. Bingo n/t

[NYC]

12. That's a shame.

A peaceful election is to be had by imprisoning people. Be prepared for the next election in the U.S.

[KDLarsen]

13. You know what the best part of this whole 'elections' farce is?

.. there are over 8000 candidates - how many do you think have come out with their name & face in the public? Not very many. So the Iraqis are essentially going to vote for people they have never heard of & parties they don't even know.

[livvy]

14. Between the number of people being killed daily,

the number who refuse to participate, and now these that they are tucking away for safekeeping, it should be a very successful vote and the results should be so reliable (sarcasm here!). This "vote" is a ridiculous sham. *'s stubbornness once again intersects with reality with the usual negative results.

[leesa]

16. Let freedom ring...democracy in action.

This, of course, is what Republicans would like to do here, and probably will next time, since we let them steal elections with more and more brazen behavior each time.

[frictionlessO]

18. stupid stupid stupid stupid.... ad nauseum (sp?), and nausea!

Are we really this dumb?

[74dodgedart]

20. If you are being held without Due Process, can you vote ?

Freedom is on the march

[jmcgowanjm]

22. More wierdness-who cut the water to W Baghdad?

And why is this article the first to mention it?

Water flowing again to thousands of homes

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Fresh drinking water flowed in thousands
of Baghdad homes yesterday for the first time since Jan.
15, when insurgents blew up pipes leading from the Karkh
water plant that serves the entire western half of the
city.

Nothing works'

"Nothing works - there's no power, no water, no fuel, no
phone service. It's a disaster," according to Namidh, a
security guard who said his family had been without water for
a week.

You know, the above coud be a definition
for the Dark Ages w/ the Stone Ages on the horizon.
And this is where we're going to get all
that energy to power the Western World?

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/CF37A1C0-C838-4B87-BD73-E2604EAD90AF.htm

BTW IRR 012305

Iraqi Resistance Command proclaims Victory in
al-Fallujah, evacuates city to fight
elsewhere.

The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam in al-Fallujah on
Sunday reported that the Iraqi Resistance on Saturday
evening had reached a tactical decision to withdraw from
the southern parts of the city, most of which they have held
since before the American assault that began on 8
November 2004. The Resistance has decided to pull out of
the southern parts of al-Fallujah, withdrawing to outside
the ash-Shuhada’ and al-Jubayl neighborhoods and the parts
of the an-Nazal neighborhood that they control after having
taken it back in heavy fighting during the last two
days.

At 3pm Sunday the last of the jihadi detachments left al
Fallujah via the city embankment and the Euphrates River
with all their weapons, indeed with more, since the
Mafkarat al-Islam correspondent saw hundreds of
American weapons being carried by the Resistance fighters
on their shoulders. Yet the southern neighborhoods that
had been controlled by the Resistance still had no
American presence when the correspondent wrote up his
report (posted at 8:40pm Mecca time).

[Solly Mack]

23. Gee, let's arrest people and keep them from voting

Democracy on the ri..uh...run.