Tariq Ali on the West’s gloriously clueless war in Libya: Libya is yet another case of selective vigilantism by the US and its attack dogs in the west. They can rely on the French as well. Sarkozy was desperate to do something. Unable to save his friend Ben Ali in Tunisia, he’s decided to help…
Showing all posts tagged Britain
Just how many Western “security” firms helping repressive regimes?
In my book The Blogging Revolution I document a range of companies that sell equipment and software to dictatorships to help them monitor mobile phone calls, text messages and web traffic. I’m currently updating the book in light of the recent Arab revolutions – it’ll be released in Australia and a new overseas edition later…
Why can’t we just leave glorious and triumphant Sri Lanka alone?
The world post 9/11 is polluted with “terrorism experts”, usually academics who love to be romanced by armies in the business of brutally killing declared “enemies”. Rohan Gunaratna is intimate with the thugs in Colombo. In an interview with a Sri Lankan newspaper he offers advice for the government to avoid having to take accountability…
Let’s not be surprised that al-Qaeda works with British intelligence
Oops: An al-Qaida operative accused of bombing two Christian churches and a luxury hotel in Pakistan in 2002 was at the same time working for British intelligence, according to secret files on detainees who were shipped to the US military’s Guantánamo Bay prison camp. Adil Hadi al Jazairi Bin Hamlili, an Algerian citizen described as…
Arab officials invited to British royal wedding
The Angry Arab expresses the appropriate response: They are asked to bring buckets of blood from their victims. Here’s the list.
Insider’s view of Libya’s unlikely revolutionaries
UK Guardian journalist Chris McGreal – whom I know and respect from his fine reporting in Palestine and South Africa – writes about the latest revolution; Libya: Few revolutions have been more inspiring. After years of reporting uprisings and conflicts driven by ideology, factional interests or warlords soaked in blood — from El Salvador to…
Iraq war all about oil? Well, who knew?
No kidding: Plans to exploit Iraq’s oil reserves were discussed by government ministers and the world’s largest oil companies the year before Britain took a leading role in invading Iraq, government documents show. The papers, revealed here for the first time, raise new questions over Britain’s involvement in the war, which had divided Tony Blair’s…
What happens when West “liberates” Libya
Chaos, disorganisation, lack of clarity, dishonesty and pain: The International mission in Libya appeared to be running out of momentum yesterday as Barack Obama admitted the situation on the ground had reached a military “stalemate” and France conceded a new UN resolution might be necessary to oust Muammar Gaddafi from power. As the regime’s rockets…
British government more than happy to allow Serco et al into the tent?
What are good friends for? Legal loopholes in the Health and Social Care Bill could leave health services open to exploitation by profiteering outsiders [such as Serco], and to misinterpretation by politicians and interest groups keen to capitalise on its uncertainties, according to independent policy experts. The Bill is permissive, not prescriptive, allowing a variety…
We dismiss Wikileaks at our intellectual peril
Last night here in Sydney I helped launch – MC really alongside author Andrew Fowler and journalist Kerry O’Brien – a wonderful new book on Wikileaks and Julian Assange, The Most Dangerous Man in the World. Go buy immediately! What was clear during the discussion was the significance of Wikileaks challenging the media class in…