Saturday, June 29, 2013

McCain visits Iraq as at least 17 people are killed

US Senator John McCain visited Iraq today:


    1. 9h
      Spirited conversation with Prime Minister Maliki today in
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      10:49 AM - 29 Jun 13 · Details

 Is there a reason no one's reporting that, by the way?

I don't mean the Iraqi press, they're reporting it.

But no one else appears to know McCain was in Baghdad today -- no US outlets.  National Iraqi News Agency, for example, reports:



In the meeting, Maliki stressed that there is no solution to the struggle other than political, though it is not easy; he called for dealing with the area's crisis with cautiousness, because of their complications.
For their part, members of the Senate delegation stressed the need for cooperation and coordination between Iraq and the United States to face up the ongoing challenges, asserting readiness to support Iraq in facing such challenges, especially it fight against terrorism, the statement concluded.


 But the US press, where are they?

Apparently, still working overtime to sell war on Syria.

The death toll in Iraq over ten years hasn't been enough to satiate their blood lust.

Through Friday, Iraq Body Count counts 581 violent deaths in Iraq so far this month.  Today's violence?  National Iraqi News Agency reports a Falluja armed attack left 3 police officers dead,  1 person was shot dead in Mosul as he left his home,  a Mosul suicide car bombing left 2 police officers dead,  am armed attack on a Mosul shop left 3 people dead, a downtown Baghdad market bombing left 2 dead and eight injured, a Diyala Province bombing targeting a football field left 2 dead and ten injured, a bombing of a Taji auto repair shop left five people injured, and, dropping back to last night, 3 Sahwa were killed in Tikrit.  Xinhua notes the death toll from the Baghdad market bombing has risen to 3 with eleven injured. That's 17 reported deaths and twenty-six injured.






Meanwhile Mustafa Habib (Niqash) reports:

Shortly after provincial elections that saw Iraq’s PM lose sway in many parts of the country, parliament has struck another blow against their controversial leader. Laws giving provincial authorities more power and more money than ever were passed late last week.

Last weekend, a new law passed by the Iraqi Parliament in Baghdad, granted the provincial authorities more power than they have ever had before. This momentous move is seen as another step toward decentralization and a move away from the centralized power that current Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has been pushing for.  


Up until now what provincial governments can do has been regulated by Iraq’s Law 21, passed in 2008 and also known as the Provincial Powers Law. Last week, a series of new amendments were made to this law.


“These new powers given to the provinces will entrench the principle of decentralization in Iraq,” Kurdish MP Mohammed Kayani, head of the Regions and Provinces Committee in Parliament, told NIQASH; Kayani is a member of Iraqi Kurdistan’s opposition Change movement. “The law gives huge administrative and financial powers to local governments - including the appointment, supervision and punishment of senior officials. In addition, it gradually transfers the powers of seven service provision ministries [in Baghdad] to local governments over a period of two years.”


The new amendments to the law gave provinces that are not semi-autonomous regions like Iraqi Kurdistan a host of new political, economic and security-related powers. Provincial authorities may now make more far reaching decisions in these areas without any interference from the central government in Baghdad.

In other news, the Iraq Times notes Iraq has placed on another list -- Foreign Policy and Fund for Peace's Failed States list.  (It's ranked number 11.  You want to be far, far away from number one on the failed state list.)  To give you some perspective, Syria?  The country Barack wants to arm so-called rebels in?  It's rank is 21.  Yes, Iraq is worse off on the failed state list than the country the US press can't stop obsessing over.





The following community sites -- plus Cindy Sheehan, Antiwar.com, Susan's On the Edge and Pacifica Evening News -- updated last night and today:





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