Clerics lay blame for Iraq's strife on U.S. mistakes
By Solomon Moore, Times Staff Writer
6:48 PM PST, November 25, 2006
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Shiite and Sunni clerics, among the last vestige of authority in a country rapidly losing faith in politicians, charged Saturday that Iraq's plight was the result of U.S. mistakes and pleaded with their faithful to stem the bloodshed that followed a devastating attack on a mainly Shiite Baghdad slum.In interviews Saturday and recent sermons, clerics articulated one message that appears to be gaining traction on both sides of Iraq's civil war: The U.S. presence is making matters worse, and the Americans should go home.
Iraq insurgency now financially self-sustaining-NYT
NEW YORK, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The Iraq insurgency has become financially self-sustaining, raising tens of millions of dollars a year from oil smuggling, kidnapping, counterfeiting, corrupt charities and other crimes, The New York Times reported in Sunday editions.
According to a classified United States government report, a copy of which was obtained by the newspaper, groups responsible for many of the insurgent and terrorist attacks are raising an estimated $70 million to $200 million a year from illegal activities.
Some $25 million to $100 million of the total comes from oil smuggling and other criminal activity involving the state-owned oil industry aided by "corrupt and complicit" Iraqi officials, the Times said, citing the report.
As much as $36 million a year comes from ransoms paid over hundreds of kidnappings. Unnamed foreign governments -- identified in the past by senior U.S. officials as including France and Italy -- paid kidnappers $30 million in ransom last year alone, the report said.
The Times also quoted the report as saying: "If recent revenue and expense estimates are correct terrorist and insurgent groups in Iraq may have surplus funds with which to support other terrorist organizations outside of Iraq."
The report, completed in June, was provided to the newspaper by U.S. officials in Iraq who told the Times they had done so in hopes that the findings could improve U.S. understanding of the challenges faced in Iraq.
IN A RECENT conversation with a Marine that had returned from Iraq in October, I learned there are at every border/road check point, men that supervise the trucks that cross the border. Everyone knows it exists and yet nothing is or can be done about it. The road supervisor asks about $200 (US) for a toll. In exchange for that toll the truck driver can move his vehicle to the front of the line. The supervisor then arranges for that truck to be allowed to cross first. There is a lot of money and no way to stop it. After paying all those funds, the truck drivers have a vested interest in the border crossing and their place in line.
The Marine stated one line was 10 miles long and every truck had already paid a toll. The Marine was patrolling along the Syrian border. The USA military intervenes when an argument breaks out to suppress the violence. At that point it doesn't matter if a truck driver has waited 3 days to cross the border without paying an illegal toll, if he started the assault then he is arrested.
2 American soldiers die in Iraq, 3 wounded
BAGHDAD, Iraq: A U.S. soldier was killed and three others were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle north of Baghdad, the military said Wednesday. Another soldier died of non-hostile injuries in the same area.
The bomb exploded on Tuesday as the four soldiers were involved in a military operation in Salahuddin province, where Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit is located, the U.S. command said. The three wounded men were transported to coalition medical treatment facilities.
The four Task Force Lightning service members were assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.
Another soldier with the same division died Tuesday of non-combat injuries in Salahuddin province, the military said.
The names of the soldiers were withheld pending notification of their relatives.
The two deaths raised to at least 2,867 the number of U.S. servicemen who have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
So far this month in Iraq, 49 American service members have been killed or died.
