As usual, there are simple claims and then a truth that's a little more complex:
IRAQ: Once again it appears that #Baiji still hasn't been full captured by the ISF, despite media reports.
Yet yesterday, the Hash al-Shaabi militia's Muhammed al-Eqabi was quoted by CNN stating, "We can announce that Baiji city is completely liberated and the Iraqi flag was raised over the governor building."
Though Mosul's been held for over a year now and though the more populated city of Ramadi was attacked at the same time as Baiji, Baiji was the focus for a rescue.
What makes Baiji so special?
As we noted in "Editorial: What (still) matters in Iraq," Baiji has oil.
That's really all.
And if you're not getting that, there's this.
Iraq to form special 'oil army' to fend off Isil threat http://tgr.ph/1IoEnPp
The Iraq War remains about oil.
And lies.
It remains about lies.
That's driven home when J.J. Green (WTOP) reports on a conversation with Iraq's Ambassador to the US Lukman Faily:
“You had one Bin Laden in Afghanistan, but now you will have thousands like Bin Laden (fighting) with ISIS all over the world. People say the homeland is not threatened and therefore this is not our problem. This is a regional problem. This is not helpful for the U.S. or Iraq moving forward,” Faily said.
Acknowledging Iraq is largely responsible for rise of ISIL, Faily said the proliferation of the group’s violent ideology is not an internal Iraqi problem.
“Granted, we have our own political, social and economic problems which in part led to this, I give you that. But the majority of the jihadists came over from Syria, while other countries allowed them to come over from Syria.”
In the conversation, Faily tries to use scare tactics with the suggestion that IS will or could come to the US.
But in the section above, he's saying that US action/inaction "is not helpful for the US or Iraq."
But Haider al-Abadi, prime minister of Iraq, refusing to move towards a political solution in all his months in office?
That's not helpful.
Yet Faily dismisses it with, "Granted, we have our own political, social and economic problems which in part led to this, I give you that."
That's where the focus needs to be -- on resolving the internal problems. But that gets dismissed.
New content at Third:
- Truest statement of the week
- Truest statement of the week II
- A note to our readers
- Editorial: What (still) matters in Iraq
- TV: Binging
- Barack realizes a downside of The Drone War
- 10 films we want to see remade
- Variety lies again (Ava and C.I.)
- Best news of last week
- This edition's playlist
- Plea from Cindy
- Highlights
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