Bush's War of Diminished Expectations

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Iraqis Launch Independent Radio and Television Station

With jumper cables and a 12-volt battery, a Saddam-era radio station roared to life last week and now four Iraqis are doing what has never been done as they launch independent radio and television in war-torn Iraq.

"We respect the Maliki government and all religious leaders," says Rafed Mahmood, general manager of the Independent Radio & Television Network (IRTN). "But our voice is independent. No one tells us what to say."

Four Iraqis -- two Sunnis and two Shia -- say they are looking to become the voices of sectarian reconciliation, unity and freedom. Their 3000kw Italian radio transmitter is cabled up the 350-meter tower that the Japanese built for hanged Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein in 1986.

"The terrorists are nothing more than criminals. They promise thepeople safety and protection but only deliver death," says Mahmood of those committing violence in Iraq. "It's time for Iraqis to stand up and say enough. We must fight for our own freedom."

On March 25th, IRTN launches their UHF television broadcasts.

"Bush and Blair are freedom fighters," says Samir Kamies, television station manager. "The sons and daughters of America and Britain have died on our soil for our freedom. We are grateful but soon they must go home. Now every Iraqi must stand up for freedom."

U.S. State Department Global Outreach advisor Paul McKellips has been living with the Iraqis at the media compound since February 3rd. "Programming blocks, news shows, cultural programs and new techniques forcamera and editing. They chose the substance. I help with style," he says.

Donia Abdul Lateef says she dropped out of law school as violence in Diyala Province escalated. The 20-year old Shia woman hopes to inspire young girls and women of all ages to pursue college and find careers in Iraqi business and government.

IRTN radio is on the air 14-hours a day and reaches nearly 11 million Iraqis, the broadcasters say. They launched their website this week and hopethat through a combination of advertising sales, licensing and eCommerce they can generate enough revenue to sustain their operations.

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General: Iraq Esclation 'Too Little, Too Late'

President Bush's so-called "surge strategy" to increase U.S. troop strength in Iraq is unlikely to succeed, retired Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Hoar told lawmakers.

"The addition of 20,000 troops is too little too late. This is still not enough to quell the violence and without major changes in the command and control of forces within Baghdad, the current set-up of shared control is unsatisfactory," Hoar told lawmakers at a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

President Bush earlier this month unveiled a so-called surge option to increase U.S. involvement in the conflict in Iraq. More than 3,000 U.S. service personnel have lost their lives in Iraq, a conflict that has now lasted longer than World War II. More than 34,000 Iraqis lost their lives in the sectarian violence that increasingly has consumed Iraq since the ouster of since-hanged Iraq strongman Saddam Hussein.

Retired Army Lt. General William Odom, former director of the National Security Agency, believes the assumptions behind President Bush's new strategy in Iraq is flawed.

"It is strategic error of monumental proportions to view the war as confined to Iraq. Yet this is the implicit assumption on which the president's new strategy is based," Odom says. "We have turned it into two wars that vastly exceed the borders of Iraq. First, there is the war against the U.S. occupation that draws both sympathy and material support from other Arab countries. Second, there is the Shiite-Sunni war, a sectarian conflict heretofore sublimated within the Arab world but that now has opened the door to Iranian influence in Iraq. In turn, it fore ordains an expanding Iranian- Arab regional conflict. Any military proposals today that do not
account for both larger wars, as well as the Iranian threat to the Arab states on the Persian Gulf, must be judged as wholly inadequate if not counterproductive."


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Amnesty International Criticizes Saddam's Executions

Human rights group Amnesty International is criticizing the recent execution of former Iraq leader Saddam Hussein.

"Amnesty International has long documented the massive human rights abuses carried out under Saddam Hussein's rule. The organization hasconsistently called for Hussein to be held accountable through fair trial proceedings, and strongly contests that his execution symbolizes justice served," says Larry Cox, executive director, Amnesty International USA.

"The rushed execution of Saddam Hussein is simply wrong," Cox continues. "It signifies justice denied for countless victims who endured unspeakable suffering during his regime, and now have been denied their right to see justice served. It is a failed opportunity to establish the rule of law in Iraq,and raises concerns that egregious flaws during Hussein's trial proceedings will now set a strong precedent against a fair and independent judiciary. It will doubtless have a devastating impact on other related trials, as the key witness who could most compellingly shed light on the chain of command will have been silenced. Finally, Amnesty International opposes the death penalty, regardless of method, in all cases, and regards it as the ultimate, irreversible human rights abuse."

Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death in Iraq following a lengthy trial. The former strongman was ousted during the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 and was captured the following year.

Amnesty International also cites concern that Saddam Hussein's death could inflame the ongoing sectarian violence in Iraq.

"Amnesty International is concerned that Hussein's execution may inflame already volatile sectarian divisions, and urges all parties to protect the human rights of civilians in Iraq," Cox says.


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