Juan Cole - 09/18/05

Security Situation in Baghdad Sinking like the Titanic

An observer in Iraq writes to me:

"The situation has deteriorated in Baghdad dramatically today. Five neighborhoods (hay) in Baghdad are controlled by insurgents, and they are Amiraya, Ghazilya, Shurta, Yarmouk and Doura. It is very bad. My guys there report that cars have come into these neighborhoods and blocked off the streets. Masked gunmen with AKs and other weapons are roaming these areas, announcing that people should stay home. One of my drivers in Amiraya reports that his neighborhood is shut down totally, and even those who need food or provisions are warned not to go out.

52 Dead, Dozens Wounded

Guerrilla violence, including a massive car bomb, killed 52 Iraqis on Saturday. The biggest incident occurred at a market at Nahrawan, a town just east of Baghdad that is largely Shiite, where a car bomber killed 30 persons and wounded another 38. Another bombing took place at Baqubah, killing at least one and wounding 17. Another batch of bodies was found, probably killed by the guerrillas for being Shiite.

More on Hitchens and Cole

I've now seen a transcript showing that Christopher Hitchens in his debate with George Galloway said that I "claimed" to know "farsi" but had "never stepped foot in the region." As I noted on Friday, these are bizarre things for him to say. To say that someone "claims" something, according to the Fowler usage manual, is to suggest that the assertion is open to question.