Turkish troops destroyed five bridges on the Avashin or Blue River in an incursion into Iraqi Kurdistan to hunt PKK rebel fighters, Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said Feb. 22. "We don't expect that a large incursion is taking place, as it's a remote and inhospitable region," Zebari said, estimating that "hundreds, rather than thousands" of Turkish troops were involved in the operation. Earlier, Ankara announced a "limited operation" into Iraqi territory. (AFP, Feb. 23) The president of Iraqi Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani, issued a statement warning that if Turkish forces target civilians or damage any civilian infrastructure they will face large-scale resistance. (VOA, Feb. 23)

Now why is it? When the question is posed (as it always is) in terms of supporting the war, it is absolutely mandatory that we all "support the troops." If Congress doesn't endlessly fund the military adventure, it is accused of betraying the troops. Those of us who want to bring the troops home, out of Iraq's killing fields and back to their loved ones, are by some twisted logic accused of "betraying the troops." Military websites like AmericaSupportsYou.mil urge citizens to do sacrifice-free things like send e-messages of encouragement to the troops—which then allows us to feel good about supporting a policy that keeps the troops in a situation where they are getting shot at and blown up by IEDs. But the people who are actually in a position of responsibility for getting the troops what they need to beat the odds of getting killed or maimed are allowed to totally screw over the troops. From AP, Feb. 17:

A joint press release from US Labor Against the War and Oil Change International, Feb. 15:

Stop the Theft of Iraq’s Future – Iraqi Oil for the Iraqi People
In Iraq, the on-going war and occupation has led to hundreds of thousands of Iraqi deaths, widespread devastation, relentless insecurity and crippling poverty. Foreign oil companies are scrambling to use this opportunity to secure access to massive profits from Iraq’s large untapped oil reserves at the expense of the Iraqi people.

In a "rare burst of productivity," Iraq's parliament Feb. 13 passed three key laws and approved them as a package, ending months of deadlock. Two of the laws—providing for a general amnesty for thousands of Iraqi prisoners and defining the powers of Iraq's provinces—are among the "benchmarks" set by the US Congress. The third, Iraq's delayed $48 billion budget for 2008, is considered vital for the government to continue to function and initiate reconstruction projects. Immediately after the unanimous vote, parliament declared a five-week holiday, deferring further progress toward other benchmarks—such as a new oil law. (Chicago Tribune, Feb. 14)

From the Iraq Freedom Congress (IFC), Feb. 12:

Once Again US Troops Desperately Attempt to Suppress the Voice of Freedom in Iraq
The occupying troops have made another attempt to eliminate the voice of freedom from Iraq by raiding the IFC headquarters in Baghdad today at 2:00 AM, when they forced themselves in, verbally and physically assaulted the guards and stood them out in the rain for several hours.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Iraq Feb. 10 just before the first anniversary of the troop "surge." Gates said in Baghdad that he supports a pause in troop draw-downs from Iraq after about 30,000 soldiers have been sent home by July. His comment that the security situation in Baghdad remained "fragile," was emphasized by two car bombings that left 19 people dead. "I think that the notion of a brief period of consolidation and evaluation probably does make sense," he told reporters after a two-hour meeting with the US commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus. The 157,000-strong US force is officially on track to come down from 19 brigades to 15 by July, a reduction of at least 20,000 troops plus another 7,000 to 10,000 members of support units. (AFP, Feb. 12)

From the Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI), Jan. 6:

As a result of the continuous efforts and collaboration between the Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI) and the workers of the water supply trade unions in Basra, we were able to achieve some of our demands; including the main demand which is hiring the contract employees as permanent employees with full benefits. This achievement came as a result of a demonstration held by the workers on site and following the meeting between the head of FWCUI, Subhi Albadri, and the officials of the ministry of the water resources in addition to the warning that was issued by the workers in which they stated that they will stage a strike on-site unless the ministry responds to their demands.

Turkish F-16 fighter planes Feb. 4 struck suspected PKK targets in northern Iraq, carrying out what Turkey's Hurriyet daily counts as the fifth over the border operation in recent months. The Turkish military's General Staff said the air raids, launched from bases in Diyarbakir, lasted 12 hours and hit a total of 77 targets. The PKK's notorious "Hakurk Camp" that was also targeted in the December and January raids was hit again. The villages of Avashin and Basyan were also reportedly hit. No casualties were reported, as residents had abandoned the villages after the previous bombardments. Meanwhile, clashes between Turkish security forces and the PKK left ten guerillas dead outside the southeastern Turkish city Bingol. (Hurriyet, AHN, Feb. 5)