Stories about War & Conflict from April, 2007
Sri Lanka: Cricket and LTTE
LTTE choses to attack on the day that Sri Lanka played for World Cup. Vindicated13 says “Last night all us Sri Lankans both at home and away came together to support the home team and suffered the contemptible brunt of cowardice of “freedom fighters” as they call themselves, who tell...
Iraq: The Sound of Bombs
“If this morning’s blasts have an explanation last night’s explosions remain of unknown origin and nature. Last night there were more than two dozen explosions that could be heard from somewhere around the city. Some sounded like artillery shelling, others like air strikes. There’s still no word anywhere about what...
Lebanon: Art, Water and Tensions
This week was marred by the kidnapping and killing of two Lebanese youth, bringing back memories from the dark years of the Lebanese civil war. This was the topic updated and analysed by most Lebanese bloggers. In addition to this sad event, there are blog posts featuring paintings, poetry and political analysis about the expected water crisis in the Middle East as well as the huge billboard with photos of the captured Israeli soldiers that was place on the southern Lebanese borders.
Serbia: Blogosphere Reacts to Protect Press Freedom
Two hand grenades were placed on a window sill of Serbian journalist Dejan Anastasijevic's apartment on Saturday, April 15. The explosions caused material damage but no injuries. There were numerous comments about who might have stood behind the attack. Bloggers started a petition requesting prompt reaction of the police for the sake of press freedom.
Japan: Interview with Sankei Shimbun Editor about Comfort Women Issue
Trans Pacific Radio reports on an interview with Sankei Shimbun Editor Yoshihisa Komori, conducted in late-March for the PBS series Foreign Exchange with Fareed Zakaria, on the “Comfort Women” issue. TPR notes that “three things struck me [about Komori]: He looks off camera quite a bit, he brings up every...
Iraq: Why are the Democrats Doing This?
Iraqi blogger Omar doesn't mince his words when addressing the Democrats. “Why are the Democrats doing this?” he rants. Instead of trying to come up with ideas to help they try to halt the sincere effort to stabilize Iraq and rescue the Middle East from a catastrophe. I am Iraqi...
Iraq: The Wall of Segregation
Iraqi blogger Emad Khadduri links to a post by another Iraqi blogger - Riverbend- on the controversial wall being erected around Iraqi towns. “According to plans the Iraqi puppets and Americans cooked up, it will ‘protect’ A'adhamiya, a residential/mercantile area that the current Iraqi government and their death squads couldn't...
Israel: Controversarial Articles
Israeli blogger Desert Peace discusses the controversy which surrounded articles he had posted on a peace solution for the Israeli-Palestinian stand-off.
Colombia: Paramilitary Scandal, Crimes, and Media ‘Coincidences’
Colombian bloggers react to a special section in the El Tiempo newspaper devoted to gruesome accounts of human rights abuse at the hands of paramilitary forces. [ Warning: The article contains graphic descriptions of violence and human rights abuse ]
Moldova: Coverage of Transdniestria
A comprehensive overview of coverage of the situation in Transdniestria, over at Scraps of Moscow.
Estonia: “A Russian Rebellion”
As Tallinn seems to have entered the second night of rioting over the removal of a Soviet war memorial, here's a blogger's recap (with photos, RUS, by LJ user mrprophet) of what happened the previous night: A Russian rebellion Today I've been to a true Russian rebellion, senseless and relentless....
“What Kind of Lebanon Do We Want?”
As Lebanon's political leaders offer up their usual litany of what he says is useless rhetoric, French-Lebanese blogger Frencheagle asks his readers to remember one question: “What kind of Lebanon do we want?” (Fr). The problem of coexistence, he says, is one that an international tribunal on the civil war...
Sri Lanka: LTTE and the Government
Indi.ca explains LTTE's strategy. “The LTTE is the most efficient terrorist organization ever. They don’t even hit anything, they just take off or hit something nearby, the government panics, and it gets reported as an attack on the airport. More important, it gets perceived as an attack at the airport.”
Papua New Guinea: Remembering The Veterans
On ANZAC day, Islandbaby remembers the unacknowledged veterans who fought the Japanese in the Second World War. “And this year I Remember. I remember those who fought with the ANZACs and remain unacknowledged by many. Specifically the Australian Aboriginal veterans and from my corner of the world, the 55,000 fuzzy...
Japan: Thoughts on the Abe “apology”
Japan, Beyond the Tamagawa reminds readers, with respect to recent comments by Prime Minsiter Abe Shinzo about the Comfort Women issue, that Abe “didn't intend [his comments] to raise such a stink. He did say what he personally has said he believed for years. Japan's Imperial Army did not force...
Japan: Reflections on postwar “Child's Play”
Debito reproduces a passage from John Dower's famous book “Embracing Defeat” dealing with the games children played in post-WW2 Japan, including “holding a mock black market, playing prostitute and customer, and recreating left-wing political demonstrations.” Debito comments that Dower's account “is something rarely considered in historical accounts: The barometer of...
Iraq: Satirical Stats
I have found a great Arabic Wiki called Beidipedia (lit. Eggepedia) about the Middle East in general but is predominantly focused upon Iraq, its approach is to present satirical items in the traditional neutral news/encyclopedia approach a la The Onion, writes Iraqi blogger Konfused Kid, who is based in Jordan.
Somalia: Mogadishu Tech Massacre
Espresso Royale Commentaries discusses “Mogadishu tech massacre”: The Mogadishu massacre was bigger in number but lesser known to most people because it didn’t make to be a prime media piece. This massacre was even worse. It was Virginia Tech shooting multiplied by 100 and it is repeated daily and ongoing....
Kurdistance: A Week Like Any Other
The news coming out of the Kurdish blogs this week is as varied as the landscape of Kurdistan itself. From predictions on Syrian Kurd alliances with Israel, to censorship in Turkey; from explorations of Northern Iraq, to essays on intolerance, the Kurdish bloggers cover it all. But for this week, I think we will begin with why, to Kurds, April is considered as the "Bride of the Year".
Pakistan: Roadmap to Peace
At The Pakistani Spectator, an Indian living in Doha talks of the roadmap to peace. “In my conversations with both Pakistani and Indian taxi drivers is that both Indians and Pakistanis are fed wrong ideas about the others by their respective governments, My interactions with Pakistanis from Peshawar or Lahore...
Sketches of Contradictions, Complexities, and Beauty of Life in Uganda
Here are some sketches that detail the contradictions, complexities and beauty of daily life in Uganda. In Apac, two women go in search of vegetarian food: Thus it began: the most epic search for food I have ever experienced. We didn’t ask for much: beans, rice, maybe chapatti — something...
