Freeman Withdrawal Marks Victory for Israel Lobby By Daniel Luban and Jim Lobe
Amb. Chas Freeman withdrew from consideration for a top intelligence post in the Obama administration on Tuesday, following a vitriolic battle that pitted Republican lawmakers and pro-Israel hardliners opposed to his appointment against liberals and members of the intelligence and diplomatic communities who had come to his defence. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22190.htm === The Tactics Of the Israel Lobby By Charles Freeman I do not believe the National Intelligence Council could function effectively while its chair was under constant attack by unscrupulous people with a passionate attachment to the views of a political faction in a foreign country. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22192.htm === U.S. analyst withdraws from top post after criticism for anti-Israel views: Since news of Freeman's nomination, Jewish organizations have leveled criticism at the pick due to his history of opposition to Israel's policies in the Palestinian territories. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1070041.html === Freeman: US run by Israeli Lobby: "The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those that it favors," http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=88235§ionid=3510203 === Demonizing Chavez: Israel to use 'anti-Semitic' card against Chavez?: Tel Aviv embarks on a quest to turn its allies against Caracas after President Hugo Chavez ordered a break in diplomacy with Israel. http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=88203§ionid=351020202 === Why the U.S. Under Obama Is Still a Dictatorship By Andy Worthington It's one thing, I suppose, to keep your options open, but quite another to defend the indefensible. Instead of fudging, in anticipation of future emergencies, President Obama and Attorney General Holder need to spell out clearly that no president will ever again treat suspected terrorists, either Americans or foreigners, arrested on American soil as "enemy combatants." http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22191.htm === The American Criminal Injustice System By Paul Craig Roberts The US has the highest incarceration rate and the biggest prison population of any country in the world. With 5 percent of the world's population, the US has 25 percent of the world's prison inmates. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22189.htm === Women's Day losing popularity A must-watch short video clip from the BBC International Women's Day is widely celebrated in the former Soviet Union, but many women are beginning to turn their backs on it. http://bbctags.headshift.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=main.home&url=1/hi/world/europe/7930945.stm === Galloway granted honorary Palestinian citizen British lawmaker George Galloway has been awarded an honorary Palestinian citizenship after his "Viva Palestine" convoy broke the Gaza siege. http://www.presstv.com/Detail.aspx?id=88256§ionid=351020202 === Iraq suicide car bomber kills 33: A SUICIDE bomber drove a car into a crowd of Iraqi tribal chiefs killing 33 people, including two journalists, in the second major attack around Baghdad in two days, officials said. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25170205-401,00.html === Three Iraqi soldiers killed in Mosul bombing: A roadside bomb struck an army patrol in Iraq's Mosul Wednesday, killing three soldiers and injuring 10 more people including two soldiers, police said. http://snipurl.com/dltdf === Two killed in Kirkuk: - Two people were killed and seven were wounded when a car bomb exploded near a police patrol in Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/LSGZ-7Q2JEM?OpenDocument === Iranian Shelling Kills Kurdish Child on Iraq Border: Mayor: Iranian shelling of Kurdish border villages in northern Iraq left one child dead, a local official told AFP on Wednesday. http://www.asharqalawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=1&id=16019 === Bomb explodes in Iran mosque: A bomb exploded in a mosque in the southeastern Iranian city of Zahedan on Tuesday, in the second such attack on the place of worship in a month http://www.focus-fen.net/?id=n173743 === Ahmadinejad says Iran can talk to U.S. without mediators: "There is no need for any mediation," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said. He reiterated however that Tehran was only prepared to hold talks with the U.S. on the basis of "justice and mutual respect." http://en.rian.ru/world/20090311/120520979.html === 15 killed in Afghan attacks: Eight militants and seven soldiers of a special force were killed in two separate incidents of violence in Afghanistan, officials said on Wednesday. http://snipurl.com/dltgs === Minister survives attack that kills six in Pakistan's north west: A senior minister in Pakistan's troubled North Western Frontier Province (NWFP) on Wednesday narrowly escaped a gun and bomb attack that left six people, including the attackers, dead, a police official said http://snipurl.com/dlthh === More tribes sign peace deal with Pakistan: official: The new signings mean that 80 percent of Bajaur's population of 900,000 have agreed to return to normal life in the region, where the military has sought to flush out the Taliban, said local government official Shafirullah Khan. http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090311/wl_afp/pakistanafghanistanunrest === Pakistan detains opposition members: Pakistani authorities have launched a crackdown on lawyers and political activists before a planned protest march in the eastern province of Punjab, police say. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2009/03/200931162815144397.html === Pakistan bans protests in political crackdown: Police raids target dissidents and activists, and the government forbids public rallies. Critics say the move could backfire. http://snipurl.com/dltl3 === Sharif warns Pakistan is sliding into a crisisview list: Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif today warned that the country was moving towards a state of political crisis. Mr Sharif defied a government ban on protests and held a massive rally in Abbottabad where he urged people to come forward and save the country from further turmoil. http://snipurl.com/dltm9 === Pak crisis: Army chief Kayani meets PM Gilani: Amidst political turmoil in Pakistan, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday dismissed reports of an army takeover of the troubled country once again. http://snipurl.com/dlto0 === Long march to nowhere: As bickering politicians bring paralysis to Pakistan, will Washington give the army its backing? http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/mar/10/pakistan === UN to investigate secret prisons: The UN has launched an investigation into secret detention centres around the world, including those run by America's Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2009/03/2009310187361258.html === Blast kills Somali security official, 3 soldiers: The remote-controlled explosion ripped through the men's car as they traveled through the Somali capital, Mogadishu, said police spokesman Abdullahi Hassan Barise. Among those killed was Ubeyd Ali Fidow, who worked as a bodyguard for the prime minister. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/03/11/africa/AF-Somalia.php === Africa 'faces increased poverty': Millions of Africans could be pushed back into poverty and conflict as a result of the global financial crisis, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said. http://english.aljazeera.net/business/2009/03/20093108392738860.html === Ireland's economy 'to shrink by 6%': "This is likely to result in an unemployment rate averaging over 11 per cent for the year. However, risks to this outlook remain to the downside." http://snipurl.com/dltya === Worst collapse in UK manufacturing in four decades: The "horrendous" scale of Britain's industrial recession has been laid bare by figures showing that manufacturing output is declining at the fastest rate since records began more than 40 years ago. http://snipurl.com/dltzf === Bank to begin 'printing money' to boost economy: The Bank of England will start pumping newly created money into the economy today by buying £2 billion in gilts as it embarks on "quantitative easing" in an effort to boost the economy. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/economics/article5885617.ece === Seven states post jobless rates above 10 percent: Michigan was saddled with the nation's highest jobless rate in January, 12.5 percent in statistics that were not seasonally adjusted. It had been the only state to rise above 10 percent during the previous month, December 2008. http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2009/03/09/daily43.html === Freddie Mac posts USD 50.1bn loss Freddie Mac, the ailing US mortgage finance giant seized by the government, reports a 2008 net loss of 50.1 billion dollars. http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=88276§ionid=3510213 === US army recruiting ex-militants The US officials in Iraq are recruiting former PKK members to join the US army for military operations in Afghanistan, a report reveals. http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=88248§ionid=3510203 === US companies pull out of retirement contributions: A wave of US companies are suspending payments to their staff 401(k) retirement plans in a bid to cut costs amid the economic downturn. http://snipurl.com/dlu2b ===
