ISM Office Raided
International Solidarity Movement, May 9, 2003
[Beit Sahour, Occupied Palestine] Israeli forces raided the ISM office this morning, confiscating equipment and material and snatching three women. At 12:30pm on Friday, May 9, approximately 20 military vehicles, army jeeps and a large armored personnel carrier (intended for many arrests) surrounded the ISM media office in Beit Sahour. Dozens of soldiers, border police and civilian police officers raided the ISM office, confiscating all computers, not only in the ISM office but in the nearby office of the Palestinian Centre for Rapprochement.

Gaza visitors must sign waiver in case army shoots them
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
The Israeli military yesterday began obliging foreigners entering the Gaza Strip to sign waivers absolving the army from responsibility if it shoots them. Visitors must also declare that they are not peace activists.

Israeli Army announces its intention to deport two ISM members
The Electronic Intifada/International Solidarity Movement,  May 9, 2003
The IOF has formally announced its intention to forcibly deport Alice Coy and Nicholas Durie (UK) after detaining the two for 20 hours at Erez Checkpoint at the border of Gaza Strip.

IDF assassinates senior Hamas activist in Gaza
Haaretz, May 9, 2003
Israel yesterday assassinated Iyad Beik, a senior activist in Iz a Din al-Kassam, the military wing of Hamas. Beik, who was involved in a series of terror attacks that claimed the lives of 20 Israelis, was killed in a missile strike on his car.

U.S. slams IDF strike on Hamas man in Gaza Strip
Haaretz, May 9, 2003
The United States criticized Israel on Thursday for the assassination of a top Hamas activist in the Gaza Strip earlier in the day, saying that such measures were an obstacle to peace. While Israel has the right to defend itself, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said, such "targeted killings" made it harder to achieve peace.

Qassam Brigades attack army bases injuring 5 israelis
Palestinian Information Center, May 9, 2003
Gaza - Qassam Brigades announced this morning that they launched a rocket attack against the illegal Jewish settlements of Agdarot, Erez and Kfar Ezza. The statement said that seven rockets were fired in retaliation to Israeli occupation atrocities.

Britain slams new IDF 'waiver' policy
Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2003
A move by the IDF to demand that all foreign nationals entering the Gaza Strip sign a safety waiver is unacceptable, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said on Friday.

Proposed boycott of Israeli academics rejected
Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2003
A teachers' union rejected a proposal on Friday to have British universities sever all ties with Israeli academic institutions to protest Israel's alleged violation of the rights of Palestinians. Two-thirds of the 200 delegates at the annual conference of the Association of University Teachers rejected the proposal.

Bush Proposing Mideast Free Trade Area
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush is promoting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by dangling an attractive economic prize: the removal of U.S. trade barriers for countries in the Middle East within the next decade.

Civil Servants Union to go on strike Sunday
Globes, May 9, 2003
The Civil Servants Union today announced its intention to go on strike, as of Sunday morning, in protest of the Ministry of Finance's promised actions...The strike will include National Insurance, Income Tax, National Employment Service, Population Administration and the Driver's License Bureau.

Hezbollah Chief Denies Pressure From Lebanon, Syria to Disarm
Arab News, May 9, 2003
BEIRUT, 9 May 2003 — Neither Syria nor Lebanon is exerting any pressure on the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah to disarm in response to US demands, its leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said in remarks published yesterday.

Evicted Palestinians in Baghdad to receive UNHCR aid
The Electronic Intifada/UNHCR,  May 9, 2003
The UN refugee agency announced today that it has sent a convoy of aid to help newly-displaced Palestinian refugees in Baghdad amid concerns of a backlash against them in post-war Iraq.

EU under pressure to shun Arafat on Mideast trip
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
BRUSSELS - Israel and Washington are piling pressure on the European Union to shun Palestinian President Yasser Arafat during a high-level trip to the Middle East next week, diplomats said on Friday. But the 15-nation bloc is determined to keep channels open to Arafat who -- although he has ceded power to a new prime minister devoted to democratic reform -- it believes has retained a weighty influence on Palestinian peacemaking.

UN Settlements Agency to Establish Special Programme in Occupied Territories
Palestine Chronicle, May 9, 2003
UNITED NATIONS - The governing body of the United Nations agency dealing with human settlements and the problems of rapid urbanization ended its current session today with an unprecedented move - adopting a resolution which would establish a special Human Settlements Programme in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Yedioth's Gilat submits to court Appel-Gilad Sharon contract
Haaretz, May 9, 2003
A multimillion-dollar consulting contract between businessman David Appel and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's son, Gilad, was made public yesterday when journalist Mordechai Gilat submitted his defense to a libel suit filed by Industry and Trade Minister Ehud Olmert three months ago.

High-Tech Hezbollah Has Its Defenders
Washington Post, May 8, 2003
They have their own militia, political party, and TV station. They have their own Web sites, hospitals and computer games. They are Hezbollah, the "Party of God" that represents hundreds of thousands of Shiites in Lebanon -- and worries Bush administration officials in Washington.

Israeli Army Raids Pro-Palestinian Group
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
JERUSALEM (AP) - The Israeli army raided the West Bank offices of a foreign pro-Palestinian group on Friday, confiscating computers and documents and arresting an American and an Australian, witnesses and a group spokeswoman said.

Israeli Forces “Invade” Foreign Pacifists HQ, Arrest Three
Islam Online, May 9, 2003
BETHLEHEM, West Bank, May 9 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Israeli occupation forces gate-crashed Friday, May 9, the main office of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), arrested two female peace advocates and a Palestinian employee in addition to confiscating equipment and six computers.

Israel/Occupied Territories: Amnesty International delegates denied access to Gaza
Amnesty International, May 9, 2003
Amnesty International today condemned the Israeli authorities' decision requiring foreigners entering Gaza to sign "waivers" that absolve Israel from responsibility should they be killed or injured. "The organization is categorically opposed to any attempt to get people to sign away their rights," Amnesty International said.

Text of new IDF declaration to be signed by foreign nationals entering Gaza
The Electronic Intifada, May 8, 2003
Introduction: The Electronic Intifada has obtained the text of a document distributed by the Israeli military to foreign diplomatic representatives. The document is entitled "Form to be filled out and submitted to IDF authorities prior to entry to the Gaza Strip" and is aimed at excluding foreign peace activists from undertaking nonviolent direct action against Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip.

Crack-down on foreign entry to territories; ISM office raided
Haaretz, May 9, 2003
Israel implemented a series of measures Friday to crack down on the activities of foreign nationals in the Palestinian territories, and raided the West Bank offices of a pro-Palestinian organization.

Karameh Campaign launched to defend Palestinian solidarity organizing
The Karameh Campaign, May 8, 2003
The Karameh Campaign has been launched in Montreal, Canada to respond to the ongoing attempt to criminalize Palestinian solidarity organizing at Concordia University, other universities and communities, throughout Montreal and around the world.

Israel restricts Gaza access
BBC, May 9, 2003  
The Israeli army has been tightening security in Gaza -- Foreigners and Israeli civilians entering the Gaza Strip will have to sign waiver forms absolving the army of responsibility if they're killed or injured in military operations. The form requires all foreigners, including United Nations relief workers, to acknowledge they are entering an unsafe area.

Hamas member killed in Gaza
BBC, May 8, 2003
Rockets fired from an Israeli helicopter have struck a car in Gaza City, killing a member of the armed wing of Islamic militant group Hamas. Palestinian sources named the dead man as Iyad al-Bayk who was reportedly responsible for securing and hiding militants..."One [rocket] hit the car from the front and the other from behind," witness Imad Mouhmmed told AP news agency. "There were pieces of human flesh flying into the air."

Two Palestinians killed as Hamas bombs Israeli town; US slams Israeli assassination policy
Al-Bawaba, May 9, 2003
Hamas fired six home-made Qassam rockets at Israel on Friday morning. A woman and a girl were lightly injured after two of the rockets landed in the southern town of Sderot. Meanwhile, the United States criticized Israel on Thursday night for the assassination of a top Hamas activist in the Gaza Strip earlier in the day, saying that such measures were an obstacle to peace.

Palestinians fire rockets at Israeli 'town'
USA Today, May 9, 2003
JERUSALEM (AP) — Palestinians fired six crude rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel on Friday, lightly injuring a 10-year-old girl, while Israeli troops demolished eight Palestinian homes near an area where a car bomb exploded earlier.

Suicide bomber dies in foiled attack near Kfar Darom
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
A suicide attack was foiled last night near the Kfar Darom settlement. One attacker was killed and a second escaped on foot; no Israel Defense Forces members were injured....As soon as the tank arrived, a car driven by another terrorist suddenly came toward it. The car exploded about 10 meters from the tank, but no soldiers were injured.

Explosions, shots in Palestinian camp in Lebanon
Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2003 
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Fatah guerrillas exchanged fire with attackers in Lebanon's largest refugee camp early Friday and two dynamite sticks exploded elsewhere in the lawless area, Palestinian officials said.

Palestinian PM's power shift weakens Arafat's hold on security
Sydney Morning Herald, May 9, 2003
The Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas, has given a key aide broader powers to curb anti-Israel violence, loosening Yasser Arafat's security grip in line with demands by international peace mediators. A memorandum circulated on Wednesday said Mr Abbas authorised Mohammed Dahlan, a cabinet minister who has clashed with Mr Arafat in the past, to restructure the Palestinian Authority's Interior Ministry.

Peretz, Netanyahu meet into night as new strike looms
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
Hours after the Histadrut announced plans for an open-ended state employees' strike beginning Sunday, Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Histadrut labor federation chairman Amir Peretz met in a "decisive" midnight meeting.

Sharon praises Palestinian peace 'partner'
Reuters, May 8, 2003
JERUSALEM, May 8 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon praised new reformist Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday as a "partner" for peace and said he was ready to revive negotiations with Syria.

Sharon Ready for Talks With Syria
Arab News, May 9, 2003
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, 9 May 2003 — Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday he was ready to reopen peace negotiations with Syria without preconditions, three years after talks broke down over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Falashmura families ask court to rebuke Interior Ministry over `footdragging'
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
The Falashmura community of Addis Ababa, along with the "South Wing of Zion" - an advocacy organization active in the Falashmura's struggle to be recognized as Jews by Israel's religious authorities and brought to Israel from Ethiopia - yesterday asked the Supreme Court to take action against Interior Minister Avraham Poraz and the head of the Interior Ministry's Population Authority, Herzl Gadj, for failing to carry out a court ruling handed out last year.

Bush optimistic as Powell arrives in Israel
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
U.S. President George Bush yesterday expressed confidence that an agreement would be reached between Israel and the Palestinians in negotiations brokered by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, who arrives in Israel tomorrow.

Relatives of Tel Aviv would-be bomber charged in London court
Al-Bawaba, May 9, 2003 
Three relatives of a Briton wanted for a suicide bomb attack in Israel are appearing Friday in a London court charged in connection with the blast. According to Sky News, the wife, brother and sister of Omar Sharif, 27, were arrested in Derbyshire under anti-terrorism laws.

US: international law as a hindrance to resolving world problems
Arabic News, May 9, 2003
Asked about the continuation of murders and assassinations by Israel of Palestinians, the US Department Of State spokesman, Richard Boucher, yesterday was unable to say that Israel is in violation of international law. -- The US, in line with previous practice, continues to clearly indicate that international law is a hindrance to solving world problems, and that back door politics are a better way than straight and open talk.

AL delegation visits Garang; Khartoum renews accusation to Israel of supporting its rebels
Arabic News, May 9, 2003
A delegation representing the Arab League held talks with the leaders of the rebel movement in southern Sudan for the first time since 1953, while the spokesman for the Sudanese forces Lt. Gen. Muhammad Bashir Suleiman renewed accusations against Israel of supporting the southern rebels led by John Garang.

Palestinian group absent of Moroccan festival, failed to obtain Israeli authorization
Arabic News, May 9, 2003
A Palestinian group of drama arts will not take part in the festival of the Arab drama spring part of "Rabat, capital of Arab culture," held from April 2 to May 27 in Morocco, because its members failed to obtain an Israeli authorization to leave the Palestinian occupied territories.

Jordanian King to hold talks with the American President in June
Arabic News, May 9, 2003
The Jordanian King Abdullah II will visit the US in June to hold talks with the US President George Bush on the implementation of the roadmap, according to a Jordanian official source yesterday.

Act On Road Map: Kingdom
Arab News, May 9, 2003
MOSCOW, 9 May 2003 — Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and his Saudi counterpart Prince Saud Al-Faisal made a joint appeal yesterday for the rapid implementation of an internationally backed road map for peace in the Middle East, during talks in the Russian capital.

Chacour named Vatican consultant for Christian-Jewish dialogue
Come and See, May 9, 2003
Pope John Paul II has appointed Father Elias Michael Chacour as a consultant to the Holy See committee promoting dialogue between Christians and Jews, making him the first Palestinian to be appointed to the five-year post.

Mitzna tours illegal outpost
Haaretz, May 9, 2003 
Outgoing Labor chairman Amram Mitzna, pictured above, accompanied by members of Peace Now and Labor Knesset member Yuli Tamir, yesterday toured the illegal Nofei Nehamiya outpost close to Nablus.

New order bans opening fire if it endangers abducted soldier
Haaretz, May 9, 2003
The Israel Defense Forces announced yesterday that it had changed the wording of the rules of engagement that allowed troops to fire on a vehicle carrying a kidnapped soldier in an effort to stop it, even at the cost of harming the abducted individual...."Many gripes came from soldiers in the field who understood the old order as an instruction to harm their comrades," a high-ranking officer told Haaretz. Following the discussions, we worded a new order, which banned opening fire of any kind on people in a manner that is likely to endanger the life of an IDF soldier among them."

Former deputy Mossad head: Palestinian state a positive development
Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2003 
In a lecture at Haifa University Friday, former deputy Mossad head Amiram Levin stressed that Israel must begin setting ground rules in its conflict with the Palestinians, Israel Radio reports..."Israel should announce to the Palestinians that if two more Qassams fall, we will take a ruler, measure the range of the missiles, and expel the entire population living in the area and raze it with bulldozers," he said.

Palestinian Exhibit Depicts Paradise
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
NABLUS, West Bank (AP) - Plastic trees, goldfish swimming in a generator-powered fountain, posters of the dead on the wall: This is a model of the paradise Islamic militants say awaits those killed in fighting with Israel, including suicide bombers.

Other Middle East News

UN Agencies Concerned at Potential Cholera Epidemic, Palestinian Evictions
Palestine Chronicle, May 9, 2003
"UNHCR fears that more of the 60,000 to 90,000 Palestinian refugees believed to be living in Iraq may lose their homes, as other landlords reclaim property they were forced to rent out .." -- UNITED NATIONS - United Nations relief agencies expressed concern today over a potential cholera epidemic in Iraq’s second largest city, Basra, and a growing eviction of Palestinian refugees that could eventually leave up to 90,000 people homeless.

Liberation, one month on: Chaos on the streets, cholera in the city and killings in broad daylight
The Independent, May 9, 2003
Every war has its winners, and the sparkling eyes and vulpine grin of Uday Qais al-Sa'aba confirmed that he considered himself among them. "Welcome to my new home," he cried, arms outstretched, as he stood in his doorway.

Cholera fears grow in Iraq
BBC, May 9, 2003 
The World Health Organization says it is increasingly concerned about the danger of cholera in Iraq and the difficulties of diagnosing it. A spokeswoman said hot weather, poor hygiene and bad-quality water meant that conditions were ripe for an outbreak in the southern city of Basra.

Basra problems run deep
BBC, May 9, 2003  
Restoring security may be the only way to prevent a cholera epidemic -- You have to give credit to the people of the southern Iraqi city of Basra. If there is a problem, they have a way to deal with it. It might not be legal or good for them, however. Water, for example. Although supplies are almost back to pre-war levels, some homes are still not connected.

U.S. Asks U.N. to Lift Iraq Sanctions
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The United States took its postwar plans for Iraq to the United Nations on Friday, trying to persuade the Security Council to lift sanctions against the battered nation and give U.S. and British administrators control over its oil revenues.

Horse-trading on sanctions begins at UN
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
The United Nations is poised for a round of intense negotiations today when Britain, the US and Spain present a draft resolution calling for the lifting of sanctions on Iraq and the phasing out of the oil- for-food programme.

Main points of draft UN resolution
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
The US, Britain and Spain are today presenting a new draft resolution to the UN on Iraq. Reporters have seen details of the proposed resolution and it is expected to comprise the following key points..

Draft of new UN resolution on Iraq
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
A US-supported draft resolution on Iraq being considered today by the United Nations security council, taken from a draft copy circulated among UN diplomats ahead of the meeting.

U.S. Seeks Surrender Of Iranian Group
Washington Post, May 9, 2003
Policy Is Reversed on Exiles in Iraq  -- The Bush administration, increasingly concerned about the activities of an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq, has decided to actively seek its surrender, just weeks after the U.S. Central Command arranged a cease-fire that allowed the group to keep many of its weapons and maintain its camps.

Up in Arms in Baghdad
Washington Post, May 9, 2003
Remnants of Iraq's Forces Battle U.S. Indifference to Problems -- BAGHDAD, May 8 -- A squat, bald Iraqi army colonel named Salem Yassin screams in deafening rage, trying to be heard over a sweaty mob of military men. They've come to stage yet another protest, one of many that unfold daily here as Iraqis loudly exercise their newfound rights to freedom of speech and assembly.

Pentagon challenged over cluster bomb deaths
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
Iraq Body Count, a group that monitors the numbers of civilian deaths in the recent war and its aftermath, is challenging the Pentagon's claim that only one civilian was killed by a cluster bomb. The group, which keeps track of reports of fatalities on its website [http://www.iraqbodycount.net], said this week that at least 200 civilians had been killed by this type of weapon and castigated last month's Pentagon statement as prompting "widespread incredulity".

Baghdad waits in fear for rebuilding to start
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
A month after the symbolic toppling of Saddam's statue, the optimism of that day has all but gone -- The pedestal on which the Saddam statue stood now has a message to the US in red letters: "All Done, Go Home". Rafid Hamid, who makes his living selling tea on the pavements of Baghdad, helped topple Saddam Hussein last month. Seeing his neighbours struggle to climb on to Saddam's statue in Paradise Square, he fetched a ladder from his lock-up, allowing his friends to clamber up.

U.S. General May Censor Iraqi TV Station's Programs
Washington Post, May 9, 2003
"Yes, what we are looking at is censorship," he said, "but you can censor something that is intended to inflame passions." -- Control over the content of a television station in Mosul has become a sensitive issue for the commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division who is running that part of northern Iraq.

U.S. Starts Remake of Iraqi Judicial System
Washington Post, May 9, 2003
Political Pressure, Graft Were Common During Hussein's Rule -- BAGHDAD, May 8 -- Inside a small courthouse, Judge Walid Khalid wore a suit and tie and chatted idly with several men who had come to pass the time. His wooden desk was clear. There were no law books on his shelves, no dockets to define his day. In the file room, four banged-up gray steel cabinets were empty, as was the dingy courtroom down the hall.

Iraq's Marsh Arabs battle for survival
BBC, May 8, 2003
During several days travelling around Iraq's former marshlands, we did not meet anybody who still lived where their ancestors had. Saddam Hussein's regime killed perhaps 20% of the Marsh Arab population, and scattered most of the rest, leaving only small groups of people alive.

Franks stresses Iraq instability
BBC, May 8, 2003 
The United States top commander in Iraq, General Tommy Franks, says he expects "rough behaviour" to prevail there for the foreseeable future. General Franks made the statement in Washington, where he is briefing the administration and Congress about efforts to improve security in Iraq.

Looted Iraqi artefacts 'returned'
BBC, May 8, 2003  
Many items were 'stored, not stolen' -- US customs agents working in Iraq say they have recovered thousands of items looted from the national museum in Baghdad following the fall of Saddam Hussein. They report that about 40,000 manuscripts and 700 other artefacts have been retrieved after being stolen from the museum, which housed one of the Middle East's most comprehensive archaeological collections.

Rumsfeld: No Timetable for Leaving Iraq
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
WASHINGTON (AP) - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Friday it is not possible to know how long U.S. forces will have to remain in Iraq and suggested that stabilizing the newly liberated country could take longer than a year.

Iran Rejects U.S. Charges of Nuke Plans
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
GENEVA (AP) - Iran on Friday rejected U.S. claims it is developing nuclear weapons and said the allegations stem from more than two decades of tense relations between the two countries.

Iranians enriching uranium, US says
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
The Bush administration is calling for the UN's nuclear agency to declare Iran in violation of the non-proliferation treaty amid suspicions that it is secretly enriching uranium.

U.S., Iran in talks over al-Qaida suspects
UPI, May 8, 2003
WASHINGTON, May 8 (UPI) -- The United States is engaged in intense, secret negotiations with Iran for the transfer of suspected members of al-Qaida who fled from northern Iraq into Iran during the just-concluded war, United Press International has learned.

Nasrallah: Hizbullah not to be disarmed, ready to help Iraqi resistance
Al-Bawaba, May 9, 2003
Hizbullah leader said Thursday his group might join Iraqis if they decide to launch an insurgency against U.S. forces. "It is a matter first for the Iraqi people to decide," Hizbullah Secretary-General Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said on the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera TV.

No evidence of plan to use banned weapons in war
Sydney Morning Herald, May 9, 2003
The United States Army commander in Iraq has said that while there is documentary evidence to suggest that the country had an active program for chemical and biological weapons, nothing has been found to show the country's military was prepared to use them on US forces.

The thief of Baghdad
Sydney Morning Herald, May 10, 2003
One of the small but troubling puzzles in the debate about postwar Iraq is why one document that may prove critical to the political future of the country has still not surfaced in Washington. The document is an English-language translation of the 213-page judgement passed by a Jordanian State Security Court in 1992 convicting Dr Ahmad Chalabi, in absentia, in two cases of fraud involving more than $US60 million ($93.5 million) that went missing when the Petra Bank collapsed in Amman.

Bush, Blair nominated for Nobel prize for Iraq war
MSNBC, May 9, 2003
OSLO, May 8 — A Norwegian parliamentarian nominated U.S. President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair for the Nobel Peace Prize on Thursday, praising them for winning the war in Iraq....However, Geir Lundestad, the director of the Nobel Institute where the five-member committee meets, said Simonsen's proposal would have to wait for the 2004 award because the deadline for nominations for 2003 passed on February 1.

Iraqis battle long lines in gas search
KansasCity.com, May 9, 2003
BAGHDAD, Iraq - When Salah Alwiha got to the gas station, the line snaked around the block. Seven hours later, when he finally pushed his car to the front, the news was enough to make him scream: The pumps were empty. Although Iraq has the world's second-largest proven oil reserves after Saudi Arabia, residents of this chaotic capital are spending long, sweaty hours in the hammering sun every day in a frustrating - and often futile - search for fuel.

An American force to fighting terrorism in Djibouti
Arabic News, May 9, 2003
American officials announced yesterday that the unit of terrorism fighting operations in the African Horn area is transferring its headquarters to the land in Djibouti [from] a high- tech ship and is sending additional forces to the region.

TV Not Concerned by Cluster Bombs, DU: "That's just the way life is in Iraq"
CommonDreams/Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting, May 6, 2003  
WASHINGTON - May 6 - Media have been quick to declare the U.S. war against Iraq a success, but in-depth investigative reporting about the war's likely health and environmental consequences has been scarce. Two important issues getting shortchanged in the press are the U.S.'s controversial use of cluster bombs and depleted uranium weapons.

Ship Carrying Bush Delayed Return
Washington Post, May 8, 2003
Carrier That Spent Night off San Diego Could Have Gone Straight to Home Port -- Pentagon officials said yesterday that an aircraft carrier waited within sight of San Diego last week while President Bush slept aboard, instead of heading straight to port after 10 months at sea. A Pentagon official said the USS Abraham Lincoln made "lazy circles" 30 miles at sea and took 20 hours to cross a distance that could have been covered in an hour or two.

The two faces of Rumsfeld
The Guardian, May 9, 2003
2000: director of a company which wins $200m contract to sell nuclear reactors to North Korea / 2002: declares North Korea a terrorist state, part of the axis of evil and a target for regime change -- Donald Rumsfeld, the US defence secretary, sat on the board of a company which three years ago sold two light water nuclear reactors to North Korea - a country he now regards as part of the "axis of evil" and which has been targeted for regime change by Washington because of its efforts to build nuclear weapons.

Senate Deal Kills Effort to Extend Antiterror Act
New York Times, May 9, 2003
WASHINGTON, May 8 — Senate Republicans backed down today from an effort to make permanent the sweeping antiterrorism powers in a 2001 act, clearing the way for passage of a less divisive measure that would still expand the government's ability to spy on foreign terrorist suspects in the United States.

Livingstone's Bush jibes savaged
BBC, May 9, 2003 
The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats round on the London mayor for his verbal assault on US President George W Bush. Mr Livingstone called the US leader "corrupt" during an address to schoolchildren in a debate on the Iraq war. He said he would get as much pleasure from Mr Bush being forced out of office as he had done from the downfall of former Iraq leader Saddam Hussein.

Hard core weighs next step
San Francisco Chronicle, May 9, 2003
The war in Iraq is largely over, but some Bay Area peace activists say their battle is just beginning -- President Bush says the combat in Iraq is over, but hard-core peace activists have no intention of leaving the battlefield. These hard-cores are well-spoken, highly educated, and they're not afraid of being arrested. Either they're students or they have jobs flexible enough to take time off to protest.