A confidential record of a meeting between President Bush and Tony Blair before the invasion of Iraq, outlining their intention to go to war without a second United Nations resolution, will be an explosive issue for the official inquiry into the UK's role in toppling Saddam Hussein.
The memo, written on 31 January 2003, almost two months before the invasion and seen by the Observer, confirms that as the two men became increasingly aware UN inspectors would fail to find weapons of mass destruction (WMD) they had to contemplate alternative scenarios that might trigger a second resolution legitimising military action.
Bush told Blair the US had drawn up a provocative plan "to fly U2 reconnaissance aircraft painted in UN colours over Iraq with fighter cover". Bush said that if Saddam fired at the planes this would put the Iraqi leader in breach of UN resolutions.
Confidential memo reveals US plan to provoke an invasion of Iraq
Agents say DEA is forcing them illegally to work in Afghanistan
s the Obama administration ramps up the Drug Enforcement Administration's presence in Afghanistan, some special-agent pilots contend that they're being illegally forced to go to a combat zone, while others who've volunteered say they're not being properly equipped.
In interviews with McClatchy, more than a dozen DEA agents describe a badly managed system in which some pilots have been sent to Afghanistan under duress or as punishment for bucking their superiors.
Iraq war inquiry could reveal secrets, lies and the rush to war
When Tony Blair told the Commons that he hoped conflict with Iraq could be averted, he already knew the White House had picked 1,500 targets for its bombers. Gaby Hinsliff, Paul Harris and Jamie Doward report on the gaps between what the public were told and what politicians were discussing in private, as the government prepares for a closed inquiry.
CIA has Distributed 400 Million Dollars Inside Iran to Evoke a Revolution
Former Pakistani Army General Mirza Aslam Beig claims the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has distributed 400 million dollars inside Iran to evoke a revolution.
In a phone interview with the Pashto Radio on Monday, General Beig said that there is undisputed intelligence proving the US interference in Iran.
“The documents prove that the CIA spent 400 million dollars inside Iran to prop up a colorful-hollow revolution following the election,” he added.
At V.A. Hospital, a Rogue Cancer Unit
Had the government responded more aggressively, it might have uncovered a rogue cancer unit at the hospital, one that operated with virtually no outside scrutiny and botched 92 of 116 cancer treatments over a span of more than six years — and then kept quiet about it, according to interviews with investigators, government officials and public records.
Microsoft chief: In 10 years, computers will know your intent
Expect to see as much development in computing through the next 10 years as there was in the past 10, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told a group of technology workers in Charlotte on Friday.
He described computer systems that can figure out what you meant to do and devices as flexible as a sheet of paper as the technologies that would change the way we live in the next few years.
Back to Eden
The Bible teaches “whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). But is a carnivorous diet consistent with Judeo-Christian values? Is eating meat glorifying to God? Many Christians I have discussed this topic with, contend that God permitted humankind to eat animals; usually starting with the verse in which God gave humankind dominion over the animals (Genesis 1:28), and ending with Jesus’ comment that the food one uses to fill their belly does not defile the individual (Mark 7:15). I believe that these arguments are shallow in analysis of Scripture, and completely miss the mark for what God had intended for His creation.
D.C. Expands List Of Allowed Guns To Avert Lawsuit
The new regulations, which come as the District continues to grapple with last year's Supreme Court decision that threw out the city's gun ban, will allow residents to legally obtain at least 1,000 additional types and models of handguns.
City leaders sought to play down the effects of the new regulations, but gun rights advocates said they were another boost to their efforts to undo the District's long-held restrictions on personal possession of weapons.
CIA seeks laid-off bankers in N.Y. recruitment drive
Starting salaries range from around $60,000 for a new graduate to $100,000 for somebody with more experience, and top out at $160,000. Generous benefits are included.
Patrick said the agency would welcome worthy applicants from Wall Street, whose reputation has been tarnished by the financial crisis and revelations of lavish lifestyles and multi-million dollar bonuses at banks blamed for the meltdown.
"Typically the people that come to the CIA want to serve the government, they want to serve their countries. It's a different mindset perhaps than serving a company or serving profit as a bottom line," he said.
"As long as they can make that attitude switch from profit being the motivator to serving their country, I think they'll fit in very well with us."
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