Incisive-View

Welcome to our final instalment of our Sunny Hundal expose. Remember, please contact Sunny Hundal to give him your views, or post on his blogs; websites or Guardian 'comment is free'. He can be contacted at Email: sunny@pickledpolitics.com. Remember to post your comment on this thread also.

Freedom of Speech - Zionist Style
Sunny is celebrated by the pro-Israeli blog stated below, which states: "Sunny Hundal of Asians in Media has published an interesting article on the aftermath of the Observer and Panorama investigations into the politics of the Muslim Council of Britain. His conclusion is that, as a consequence of the documentary, " the window of dissent on Muslim leadership has been closed even further", as religious-political organisations have put their differences aside in order to present a united front in a time of crisis: In the world of Asian religious organisations, only people of the same faith are allowed to criticise each other, albeit quietly. Go too far or become too open and suddenly you get accused of trying to disunite everyone or, in the case of the Muslim community, being part of the 'Zionist conspiracy' - S Hundall.
(Source: http://hurryupharry.bloghouse.net/archives/2005/09/01/leadership.php.).

Rich, considering it is a fact that Zionists try, and are usually, very successful at censoring the politicians and media against any anti-Israeli sentiment, no matter how justified. In addition, they actively propagate Islamophobic media bias to ensure Israel retains its 'victim' status. You will struggle to find any brave voices of dissent against Israel and its war crimes and human rights violations; instead the pro-Israeli lobby tends to go on the offensive and attacks Palestinian 'terrorists' and their supporters, the human rights defenders. Damn it, they dare to oppose oppression and fight for their freedom. Any brave Jew that dares to speak out against Israel is proclaimed a self-hating Jew. See the vicious attacks that have been launched against the new and brave group 'Independent Jewish Voices'.

Here is what the mother of all Zionists, yep, that infamous unhinged Islamophobe, Melanie Phillips had to say "The launch of ‘Independent Jewish Voices’ has sent a shudder through the mainstream Jewish community in Britain...They say Jews blindly support Israel regardless. But these signatories blindly condemn Israel regardless. They say Israel’s supporters never breathe a word of criticism of its behaviour. But they never breathe a word in its defence, nor ever condemn either its Palestinian attackers or the distortions, double standards, faked video coverage and all the rest with which it is so unjustly demonised...At a time when the west is being softened up for genocide by the demonisation of Israel, Jews who reinforce the Big Lie about the Jewish state are helping pave the way for a second potential holocaust." (Source: http://www.melaniephillips.com/articles-new/?p=486).
Get a grip love. A few academics speak the truth and you're predicting a second potential holocaust? See what we mean about censorship and the Zionists' need to maintain Israel's victim status to ensure it can break every UN resolution meekly proposed against it and terrify a nation that has perpetrated no acts of genocide against it? Israel on the other hand has a whole list of war crimes, for which it will never be held accountable.

Let's give you some facts about Israel the “victim”. One of Ariel Sharon's bloodiest crimes against Palestinian refugees was in Sabra and Shatilla in Lebanon. "Israel wished to destroy the PLO and force Lebanon to acquiesce to Israel and so they invaded Lebanon on 1981. This war cost 20,000 Palestinian lives and to this day parts of Lebanon are still occupied by Israel. From 6pm on the 16th of September 1982 to 8am on the 18th of September 1982, the Sabra and Shatilla refugee camps were invaded by Phalange Militia, a group that had very close ties with Israel. Sharon and his troops had full control over the camps and the parameters and ensured that the camps were surrounded so that no one could escape. They had full view of the grotesque murders and carnage that occurred in the 62 hours during which the Militia occupied the camps. The victims had no arms with which to fight and no way to escape. No one was spared. Civilians were lined up against walls and shot. Women and girls were raped then murdered. Men were disembowelled then murdered. Some victims were mutilated before or after they were killed. In total, 2,750 Palestinians were murdered," (Source: http://www.aqsa.org.uk/leafletsdetails.aspx?id=37).

Funny how Sunny forgets to refer to these acts of genocide and terrorism. Here's another fact about Israel's inability to recognise Palestinians as human beings:
"During April 2002, under the government of Sharon, Israeli forces launched an assault on all the residents of the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank. For days, they fired shells from tanks and missiles from apache helicopters into the densely populated camp. Simultaneously, Israeli snipers assassinated targeted Palestinians one by one. When the army retreated, they left behind them approximately 600 dead Palestinians. The exact number may never be known, because the Israelis made every effort to cover up their tracks. Using giant armoured 60-ton bulldozers, they tore down every house in the huge central area of the camp where most of the murders took place, burying some people alive, along with most of the corpses of those who were already dead. Also under Sharons government, dozens of assassinations have taken place. The 'assassination' of Sheikh Salah Shehadeh of Hamas took not only his life but the lives of a dozen sleeping children as well. Sharon described that operation as one of Israel’s "biggest success." (Source: http://www.aqsa.org.uk/leafletsdetails.aspx?id=37).

Now you tell us Sunny, who needs to recognise whose right to exist? As a vegetarian, Sunny appears to value the life of God's creatures, but clearly not the Muslim variety.

Feel free to continue posting extracts of his warped views about Muslims on this thread, there is plenty of material to chose from! We urge you to use your freedom of expression, to challenge Islamophobes and Zionists, otherwise they will continue to publicly demonise and marginalise Muslims through their high profiles in politics and the media. Our Muslim organisations may not be perfect, but at least they try to defend us and challenge those that attack us. Our uniting is clearly the thing that scares them the most. Time to fight back my friends, the pen is mightier than the sword, get writing and defend our Ummah!!

As promised the second instalment of our Sunny Hundal expose. Remember, please contact Sunny Hundal to give him your views, or post on his blogs; websites or Guardian 'comment is free'. He can be contacted at Email: sunny@pickledpolitics.com. Remember to share any emails you send to him with us by posting them on this thread.

Flying the Flag for Israel
Sunny is happy to fly the flag for Israel, he posts on Islamaphobic and racist websites, and dismisses Islamaphobic attacks by Zionists by saying that MCB and its 'extremist' supporters see everything as a big 'Zionist conspiracy'. Well, it is mate, including your drivel (only it’s actually no secret how active Israel’s supporters are in politics and media!). He criticises most Muslim organisations, who seek to defend the rights of Muslims; has friends like Zia Haider Rahman, a self-hating Muslim; Yusuf Smith, who has attacked Muslims and reportedly even revealed sensitive information to the Zionists and keeps quiet in the face of Israeli war-crimes and human rights violations, proving where his political allegiances lie.

"While I don’t agree with Israel’s unilateralist approach by ignoring pretty much everyone on UN conventions or the ‘roadmap for peace’, Erekat can’t really get away without mentioning Hamas’s continued calls for the destruction of Israel. Nobody would really want to negotiate with a terrorist organisation. Israel, on it’s part, cannot pretend it can put off negotiating the two-state settlement forever. The more it drags everything out the more things worsen on both sides,"
(SH - Source: http://www.pickledpolitics.com/archives/336).
Now Sunny, quite obviously is no expert on the Middle-East. Note how he adopts the Israeli stance with regards to his subjective criticism of Hamas, dismissing them as a terrorist organisation, but makes no comparable criticism of the State sponsored terrorism conducted by Israel, their policy of targeted assassinations, which results in hundreds of innocent victims also being murdered. Is bull-dozing people's homes not a form of terrorism? Shooting journalists dead and mowing down peace activists with bulldozers with full impugnity not terrorism? How about wiping out 7 members of a family enjoying a picnic on the beach?

"Israel is understandable cautious about giving up land when the circling enemies are still happy to destroy it completely. I don’t envisage Israel going back to the 1967 borders until Hamas, Iran and all the rest have recognised its right to exist on those borders."
(SH - Source: http://www.pickledpolitics.com/archives/336).
Who after all is the aggressor? Who has stolen whose land through vicious acts of terrorism and genocide and still wants more? Who propagates the eternal victim status whilst being the only nuclear power in the region? Who with the USA's full support acts with aggression and impunity undertakes 'pre-emptive' attacks on sovereign states on the pretence that they are developing WMDs? Who has a powerful ally who props up its economy and fights its wars? We all know the answers, but only some of us have not sold our souls to the devil and therefore can continue to champion the rights of the Palestinians to self-determination and to enjoy the same God given human rights as the rest of us. Sunny is naive in that no Palestinian can deny that Israel exists, their slow starvation and unbearable existence under occupation is a testimony to the fact that they are forced to live in concentration camp-like circumstances by the Israelis.

The Jewish people have been greatly wronged for centuries, but the European crime of the Nazi Holocaust, does not give them the right to oppress and forcibly expel another people from their land, when they had nothing to do with the shameful catastrophe. Where is the justice? How have we got to this stage where the likes of Sunny and far more important media representatives can try and propagate the Palestinians as the aggressors and Israel as the peace-loving victim?

Muslim bashing is a popular national sport, especially amongst the pro-Israeli poodles. An easy way to buy yourself media coverage and get on, is to fly the flag for Israel and dump your conscience and respect for the human rights of every human being regardless of their ethnicity or religion.

A menace who is becoming increasingly irritating is Sunny Hundal. He is a Punjabi Sikh of Indian origin and has written for leading British newspapers including The Guardian, The Financial Times, and The Independent and has been interviewed by ITV News, Sky News, and Channel 4 News. Sunny Hundal is the founder and editor of the 'Asians in Media' magazine. He also runs the "Pickled Politics" weblog, and the "Barfi Culture" community website, both of which he believes deal with issues concerning the British Asian community. He features as a 'Comment is Free' columnist on the Guardian website, writing and debating on the issues that mean most to him and his Zionist friends.

As a clever chappie, who likes the sound of his own voice, he is careful to appear 'balanced' in his writing, but the overriding torrent of abuse he hurls against Muslims and Muslim organisations, in particular, MCB and Hizb-ut-Tahrir and more recently MPACUK, gives away his agenda.

If you would like to share your views about his endorsement from the BNP; unquestioning support for Israel and relentless criticism of Muslims, please contact him at Email: sunny@pickledpolitics.com.

For those of you who want a flavour of the warped ideology he aims to propagate, here are some choice comments and links he has to some very unsavoury pro-Israeli activists, his blogs and websites feature plenty more, we have spilt our article across 3 postings to make for a more palatable read, ok so you don't fall asleep! We respect freedom of expression, but this must not be abused to propagate hatred, Islamophobia, which is divisive and politically motivated and only serves to fracture already sensitive community relations.

BNP Honour Sunny Hundal
"Well this has never happened before - a BNP march just in my honour. The story I posted last week about Pakistani guys targetting white girls in Keighley has been picked up by them, and now they’re planning a march." (SH - Source: http://www.pickledpolitics.com/archives/51)
Sunny is obviously keen to exploit racial tensions against Pakistani men, which he knows are predominantly Muslim. Says a lot about his agenda when the BNP who have only one policy - to spread Islamophobia give him their resounding endorsement.

What is his Problem with Muslim Organisations?
"But I have a suggestion. Dump the media circus and don't pay any attention to the MCB's continuous boycott (of the Nazi Holocaust Memorial Day). You see, the MCB actually enjoys this controversy and the stance it takes because it helps maintain credibility with extremist supporters who think everything is a big "Zionist conspiracy".

"It is part of an ongoing race to have the "most victimised minority" badge that the MCB wants. Why should the Jews get all the attention while Muslims are being victimised? They want recognition dammit, even though the number of people dead in Kashmir, Palestine and Chechnya combined does not come close to the number of holocaust victims."
(SH-Source:http://www.asiansinmedia.org/news/article.php/current_affairs/1208).

His sneering belittles the real breaches of civil liberties Muslims in particular are facing since 9/11; albeit a few weeks later he seems to grow up and admit that the implementation of the new terror laws will result in " Innocent Muslims constantly get ‘named and shamed’ in the press, to later be released quietly due to a lack of any evidence"
(SH -Source: http://www.asiansinmedia.org/news/article.php/current_affairs/1228).

There is no competition for the 'most victimised minority' badge, any oppression and victimisation is wrong and we must all oppose it. However, the world has learnt nothing as oppression and the abuse of basic human rights are being conducted against the people of Palestine, and the West not only stands by, but it participates by providing political and economic support. 'Never again' obviously must only apply to the Jewish people, the West seems content to allow other ethnicities to be massacred.

Next post in a few days time Inshallah, in the meantime, keep blogging and defending the Ummah.

Former collaborator discloses details of US-ordered assassinations, sectarian bomb attacks targeting Iraqi civilians

An Iraqi who asked not to be identified had disclosed some of the US activities such as assassinations and bombings in markets that aim at sparking sectarian fighting among Iraqis so as to facilitate the partition of the country.

He pointed out that he that he worked with the US occupation troops for about two and a half years and then was able to flee from them to an area outside Baghdad where, he hopes, the Americans will not be able to get to him.

The former Iraqi collaborator recalled: "I was a soldier in the Iraqi army in the war of 1991 and during the withdrawal from Kuwait I decided to seek asylum in Saudi Arabia along with dozens of others like me. That was how began the process whereby I was recruited into the American forces, for there were US military committees that chose a number of Iraqis who were willing to volunteer to join them and be transported to America. I was one of those," he said.
The former collaborator went on: "In 1992 I was taken to America, specifically to an island where most of the establishments were military. I was with a number of other Iraqis, one of them the former governor of an-Najaf, 'Adnan adh-Dharfi. We received military training and intense courses in English and in how to carry out tasks like assassination," he recounted.

The former collaborator said that during the 2003 invasion and subsequent war, he was transported back to the interior of Iraq to carry out specific tasks assigned him by the US agencies.

"During the last war that led to the occupation of Iraq," he recalled, "I was with a group of my comrades who had received training in America in how to spread chaos in the ranks of the Iraqi army. We were brought into Iraq across the border from Saudi Arabia. We put on Iraqi army uniforms and our mission was basically to spread rumors among the Iraqis, such as that the American army had already got into such-and-such a city, or that it is on the outskirts of Baghdad and other such things, which were part of the reason for the rapid collapse of the Iraqi forces," he said.

The former collaborator went on: "the unit that I was with settled in the presidential palace in the al-A'zamiyah district. We were allowed to visit our relatives and relations in Baghdad once a month, and so I would go visit my family in 'Madinat as-Sadr’ in eastern Baghdad. But after things began to get worse and the armed men began to shoot at everyone leaving the palace, I asked my family to come to the palace every now and then so I could see them. My job was being a guard, but after a time that situation changed and the American occupation forces put me in charge of a group of a unit that carried out assassinations in the streets of Baghdad," he said.

"Our task was to carry out assassinations of individuals. The US occupation army would supply us with their names, pictures, and maps of their daily movements to and from their place of residence and we were supposed to kill the Shi'i, for example, in the al-A'zamiyah, and kill the Sunni in the of 'Madinat as-Sadr’, and so on."

"Anyone in the unit who made a mistake was killed. Three members of my team were killed by US occupation forces after they failed to assassinate Sunni political figures in Baghdad. A US force that had been so-ordered eliminated them. That took place two years ago," the former collaborator recalled.

The former collaborator said that the Americans have a unit for "dirty jobs." That unit is a mix of Iraqis, Americans, and foreigners and of the security detachments that are deployed in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities. This unit doesn’t only carry out assassinations, but some of them specialize in planting bombs and car bombs in neighborhoods and markets. This unit carries out operations in which wanted people whom the American army does not want killed are arrested.

The former collaborator said that "operations of planting car bombs and blowing up explosives in markets are carried out in various ways, the best-known and most famous among the US troops is placing a bomb inside cars as they are being searched at checkpoints. Another way is to put bombs in the cars during interrogations. After the desired person is summoned to one of the US bases, a bomb is place in his car and he is asked to drive to a police station or a marked for some purpose and there his car blows up."

The testimony of the former collaborator is consistent with some western reports that have disclosed the involvement of US military personnel in bombings that target Iraqi civilians. The British reporter Robert Fisk, AMSI noted, had recently met with Iraqis in Syria concerning such "black operations" carried out by the Americans.

The Egyptian writer and former editor of al-Ahram, Muhammad Hasanayn Haykal, also noted in an interview with al-Jazeera satellite TV that there are mercenaries who practically make up an army second only to the regular US army in Iraq in terms of their numbers and equipment. This force is now called the "Knights of Malta" Haykal said, and they are the cause of many of the attacks that target Iraqi civilians. Haykal noted that there are Iraqis and Lebanese working in the ranks of that force.

Our View: Most of us would expect nothing less from the US army, a key colonial tactic is to divide and rule and get traitors to do your dirty work. Shame there are so many willing traitors available. One day Inshallah, Iraq will be free again and not governed by a puppet US-installed and controlled regime and then where will these shameful traitors hide.

A traveler once came to the mosque to see the Prophet Mohammad (SAW). After greeting the Prophet he was asked where he was from. The traveler replied that he came from very far just to get a few questions answered. Following is the dialogue between the traveler and the Prophet.

Traveler: I do not want adhaab to be written in my account.
Prophet: Behave well with your parents

Traveler: I want to be known amongst people as an intelligent person.
Prophet: Fear Allah always.

Traveler: I want to be counted amongst Allah's favorites.
Prophet: Recite Quran every morning and evening.

Traveler: I want my heart to always be enlightened.
Prophet: Never forget death

Traveler: I never want to be away from Allah's blessing.
Prophet : Always treat fellow creatures well.

Traveler: I never want to be harmed by my enemies.
Prophet: Always have faith in only Allah.

Traveler: I never want to be humiliated.
Prophet: Be careful of your actions.

Traveler: I wish to live long.
Prophet: Always do Sile Rahm. (Goodness towards blood relations)

Traveler: I want my sustenance to increase.
Prophet: Always be in Wudhoo.

Traveler: I wish to stay free of adhaab in the grave.
Prophet: Always wear pure (Paak) clothes.

Traveler: I never want to burn in hell.
Prophet: Control your eyes and tongue.

Traveler: How do I get my sins forgiven.
Prophet : Always ask forgiveness from Allah with a lot of humility.

Traveler: I want people to respect me always.
Prophet: Never extend your hands of need at people.

Traveler: I want to always be honored.
Prophet: Never humiliate or put down anyone.

Traveler : I don't want to be squeezed by fishare qabr.( squeezing in the grave)
Prophet: Recite sura e mulk often.

Traveler: I want my wealth to increase.
Prophet: Recite Sura E Waqia every night.

Traveler: I want to be safe and at peace on day of judgement.
Prophet: Do Zikr of Allah from dusk to night.

Traveler: I want to be in full attention and concentration during namaaz.
Prophet: Always do Wudhoo with concentration and attention

"Allah does not change the circumstances of any people until they have changed what is within themselves"(Surah AR'RAD V11)

Al-Qaeda and Iranian allies 'plan Hiroshima attack' Source: The Daily Telegraph April 23, 2007


"AL-QAEDA leaders in Iraq are planning the first "large-scale" terrorist attacks on Britain and other western targets with the help of supporters in Iran, according to a leaked intelligence report.

Spy chiefs warn that one operative had said he was planning an attack on "a par with Hiroshima and Nagasaki" in an attempt to "shake the Roman throne", a reference to the West, according to The Times newspaper in the UK.

Another plot could be timed to coincide with Tony Blair stepping down as prime minister, an event described by al-Qaeda planners as a "change in the head of the company".

The report, produced earlier this month and seen by The Sunday Times, appears to provide evidence that al-Qaeda is active in Iran and has ambitions far beyond the improvised attacks it has been waging against British and American soldiers in Iraq.

There is no evidence of a formal relationship between al-Qaeda, a Sunni group, and the Shiite regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but experts suggest that Iran’s leaders may be turning a blind eye to the terrorist organisation’s activities," reports The Times.

The intelligence report also makes it clear that senior al-Qaeda figures in the region have been in recent contact with operatives in Britain.

It follows revelations last year that up to 150 Britons had travelled to Iraq to fight as part of al-Qaeda’s "foreign legion". A number are thought to have returned to the UK, after receiving terrorist training, to form sleeper cells.

The report was compiled by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) - based at MI5’s London headquarters - and provides a quarterly review of the international terror threat to Britain. It draws a distinction between Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaeda’s core leadership, who are thought to be hiding on the Afghan-Pakistan border, and affiliated organisations elsewhere.

The document states: "While networks linked to AQ (al-Qaeda) Core pose the greatest threat to the UK, the intelligence during this quarter has highlighted the potential threat from other areas, particularly AQI (al-Qaeda in Iraq)."

The report continues: "Recent reporting has described AQI’s Kurdish network in Iran planning what we believe may be a large-scale attack against a western target.

"A member of this network is reportedly involved in an operation which he believes requires AQ Core authorisation. He claims the operation will be on 'a par with Hiroshima and Naga-saki' and will 'shake the Roman throne'. We assess that this operation is most likely to be a large-scale, mass casualty attack against the West."

The report says there is "no indication" this attack would specifically target Britain, "although we are aware that AQI . . . networks are active in the UK".

Analysts believe the reference to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where more than 200,000 people died in nuclear attacks on Japan at the end of WWII, is unlikely to be a literal boast. (Just remember, no Muslim power has ever used WMD or been responsible for genocides such as the Nazi Holocaust).
"It could be just a reference to a huge explosion," said a counter-terrorist source. "They (al-Qaeda) have got to do something soon that is radical otherwise they start losing credibility." (No mate, you lose credibility in terms of being exposed for fabricating the scale of an Islamic terror network and threat).

Despite aspiring to a nuclear capability, al-Qaeda is not thought to have acquired weapons grade material. However, several plots involving "dirty bombs" - conventional explosive devices surrounded by radioactive material - have been foiled.

Last year al-Qaeda’s leader in Iraq called on nuclear scientists to apply their knowledge of biological and radiological weapons to "the field of jihad".

Details of a separate plot to attack Britain, "ideally" before Blair steps down this summer, were contained in a letter written by Abdul al-Hadi al-Iraqi, an Iraqi Kurd and senior al-Qaeda commander. (I thought the Kurds would hate Al-Qaeda given they are supposed to be Sunnis and they were long persecuted by Saddam Hussein and his regime - inconsistency creeping in here?)

According to the JTAC document, Hadi "stressed the need to take care to ensure that the attack was successful and on a large scale". The plan was to be relayed to an Iran-based al-Qaeda facilitator.

The Home Office declined to comment." (Funny that?)
Source: The Daily Telegraph

Iraqis protest building of wall around Sunni neighborhood

By Alissa J. Rubin and Jon Elsen Published: April 23, 2007


BAGHDAD: Large crowds demonstrated in the Adhamiya neighborhood in Baghdad on Monday, protesting plans to build a wall around the mostly Sunni neighborhood, a day after Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki said he was ordering a halt to construction of that wall.

Maliki made his comments from Egypt, where he was on a state visit. But American officials did not say whether the wall's construction would be halted.

Crowds gathered near the mosque of Abu Hanifa, overlooking the Tigris River, then marched in the streets of the Sunni Arab enclave, bordered by Shiite areas.

Adhamiya often comes under mortar attack and suffers incursions from the surrounding neighborhoods. It has also been a stronghold of militant Sunni Arab groups, and the wall would help the Iraqi security forces to control their movements.

"We denounce the building of the wall, which will increase the sectarian rift," said Um Muhammad, a teacher in Adhamiya. "We demand that occupation forces should remove it, and not to build any similar wall in other areas."

A leaflet distributed at the demonstration said the wall would "turn the city into a big prison." Banners said "No Shiites, No Sunnies, Islamic Unity."
Maliki said Sunday that construction of the wall reminded people of "other walls." His announcement that construction would be halted appeared intended to allay the mounting criticism from both Sunni Arab and Shiite parties about the project.

"I oppose the building of the wall, and its construction will stop," Maliki told reporters during a joint news conference with the secretary general of the Arab League, Amr Moussa. "There are other methods to protect neighborhoods."

America's ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, defended the wall on Monday, saying it made "good security sense" to build barriers where there were clear fault-lines and "avenues of attack" between Sunni and Shiite areas, Reuters reported.

Neither he nor a U.S. military spokesman, Rear Admiral Mark Fox, would say whether construction of the Adhamiya wall would be stopped, according to Reuters. Fox said the erection of barriers around Baghdad's markets and neighborhoods was approved by Iraq's government.

Maliki did not specify in his remarks what other walls he referred to. However, the separation barrier in the West Bank being erected by Israel, which Israel says is for protection but greatly angers Palestinians, is a particularly delicate issue among Arabs.

"This wall makes us feel as if we were in Palestine," Akram al-Ani, of Adhamiya, said at the demonstration on Monday. "And this is the same wall that separates Palestinians from Israelis."
Eman Khudair 48, a widow who lives with her family near the wall, said she feared that government forces controlling access to the neighborhood might collaborate with militias that want to enter. And she feared that the government might close off the area and prevent supplies from entering.

Sameer al-Abeidi, the sheikh of the Abu Hanifa mosque, said he welcomed Maliki's call for putting a halt to construction of the wall. "We shake hands with the government in such stands and hope that the occupation forces would not abort these stands," he said.

On Sunday, the spokesman for the American military in Iraq sought to allay criticism of the project and explain its intent by saying that it was meant to be only a temporary barrier to improve security.

The military does not have a new strategy of building walls or creating "gated communities," the spokesman, Major General William Caldwell IV, said in a written statement. He described it as a tactic being used in only a handful of neighborhoods and not an effort to divide the city, much less the country.

However, American military officials said last week in a statement that the Adhamiya wall was "one of the centerpieces of a new strategy." They also said that the wall was aimed at separating Sunni Arabs in Adhamiya from Shiites to the east.

Source:International Herald Tribune

My view: Walls have caused much misery and hardship for the Palestinians and the US seems to want to inflict even more misery on the long-suffering people of Iraq. Time to wake up and smell the coffee, the myopic Americans just don't get the fact that they have illegally invaded a country and the only thing that will allow this country to get back on its feet is if they leave!! They have set this country back many decades, which as far as Israel is concerned is probably considered a job well done. Olmert's probably telling Bush to hurry up and sign all the oil reserves over to Dick and co and shut up shop and come home and keep pretending they went to Iraq to remove a dictator (who was previously their man, until he stopped doing what he was told!) Oh actually I forgot, the good ole US with all its technology actually invaded Iraq due to the WMDs, that they knew didn't exist. Probably dodgy Israeli intelligence fed to the UK that led to that fatal spin.