Kathleen Ridolfo

Also by Kathleen Ridolfo

• August 02, 2005

  Iraq: U.S. Ambassador Announces Seven-Point Plan For Country

  Ambassador Khalilzad In his first major speech since assuming his diplomatic post two weeks ago, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad announced that a seven-point plan has been reached with Iraqi leaders to address "common efforts" toward building a democratic, secure Iraq, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq (RFI) reported on 1 August.

• July 29, 2005

  Iraq: De-Ba'athification Commission Backs Away From Tribunal Purge

  Judge al-Juhi (left) received President Talibani's support this week The Iraqi de-Ba'athification commission appeared to back away from its attempts at purging more members of the Iraqi Special Tribunal this week after nine judges senior staff members of the tribunal were fired on the grounds that they were former members of Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party. Nineteen other tribunal judges had been threatened with dismissal by the commission headed by Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Chalabi.

• July 28, 2005

  Iraq: Draft Constitutions Signal Loss Of Rights

  An Iraqi woman holds up a 'Constitution' banner during a recent protest in Baghdad At least two unofficial versions of Iraq's draft constitution have been leaked to the press in recent days, leaving many to speculate on what the future holds for Iraqi citizens in terms of individual and minority rights.

• July 20, 2005

  Iraq: Turkey Proposes Cross-Border Action To Rein In Kurdish Fighters

  Flying the Kurdish flag Turkish officials have been increasingly vocal in recent days over their desire to launch cross-border operations to rein in Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK or Kongra-Gel) based in the mountainous areas straddling Iraq and Turkey. After months of what they deemed as stalling on the part of the U.S. and Iraqi governments to deal with the PKK, Turkish officials proposed two new plans. Officials first contended that Turkey would carry out cross-border operations with or without the consent of the Iraqi government. They then suggested at a 19 July meeting of the foreign ministers of Iraq's neighboring countries that Iran, Syria, and Iraq join forces to help eliminate the Kurdish group, which is considered by its supporters a rebel group, and by the governments involved, including the United States, a terrorist organization.

• July 20, 2005

  Sunnis Drafting Constitution Gunned Down In Iraq

  The scene of the assassinations in Baghdad Prague, 20 July 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Three Sunni men connected to the Iraqi National Assembly's constitutional drafting committee were gunned down outside a Baghdad restaurant yesterday, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq reported.

• July 14, 2005

  Iraq: Blurred Line Between Terrorism And Honorable Resistance

  A victim of the resistance Community leaders in Iraq have been calling for months for a distinction to be made between two core groups that both call themselves "honorable resistance." The first group is the so-called nationalist forces -- former Ba'athists and other secular Sunni groups. The second group consists of a number of Sunni Islamist groups including Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi's Al-Qaeda-affiliated Tanzim Qa'idat Al-Jihad fi Bilad Al-Rafidayn; the Ansar Al-Sunnah Army, Muhammad's Army; and the Islamic Army in Iraq.

• July 13, 2005

  Iraq: Can Baghdad Protect Foreign Missions?

  Ihab al-Sharif The insurgency in Iraq has been targeting diplomats in Baghdad in recent weeks, in an apparent attempt to frighten Arab and Muslim countries from establishing diplomatic relations with the interim government. The tactic is another way in which anti-government forces are doing all they can to undermine Iraq's progress in areas such as reconstruction, security, and political development.

• July 07, 2005

  World: Europe Proving To Be Growing Base For Al-Qaeda

  A group calling itself the Al-Qaeda of Jihad in Europe has claimed responsibility for the 7 July attacks on the London transport system that left at least 37 dead and hundreds wounded, according to a statement posted on the Internet.

• July 03, 2005

  Iraq: Christians Face Threats From All Sides

  Christians in a Baghdad church As Iraqis work to draft a permanent constitution that may deem Islam a source of legislation for the country, the Christian community faces the prospect of a life where they may worship freely, but will have little representation or benefits from government.

• June 28, 2005

  Iraq: Country Marks One Year Of Self-Rule

  CPA head L. Paul Bremer and interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi at formal handover on 28 June 2004 Prague, 28 June 2005 (RFE/RL) -- One year has passed since the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) transferred power to Iraqis on 28 June 2004. While the ongoing terrorism against civilians and Iraqi and multinational forces dominates the media coverage, slow but steady progress has been made on the political front.

• June 25, 2005

  Iraq: Brussels Conference Is All Support, Little Action

  De Hoop Scheffer (file photo) The 22 June Iraq donors conference in Brussels achieved what participants hoped it would in terms of drumming up support for Iraq's transitional phase. Though participants voiced overwhelming support for the transitional government, few new commitments were made. The overwhelming phrase echoed by some 80 nations and international organizations was "We will do more, when the security situation allows it."

• June 22, 2005

  Iraq: Minister Has Ambitious Plans For Oil Sector

  Insurgent attacks against pipelines have scared off investors In May, transitional Oil Minister Ibrahim Bahr al-Ulum set an ambitious program to encourage productivity and foreign investment in the oil sector. The plan calls for reducing attacks on Iraq's oil infrastructure, reducing corruption in the oil sector, and improving fuel availability at home.

• June 21, 2005

  Iraq: Country To Call On Donor States To Follow Through

  Iraqi President Jalal Talabani 21 June 2005 (RFE/RL) -- An Iraqi delegation to the donors conference in Brussels on 22 June is expected to make a hard sell in an effort to persuade donors to follow through with earlier financial commitments. Some $33 billion in grants and loans were pledged to Iraq at the 2003 Madrid donors conference (see "RFE/RL Iraq Report," 24 --> http://www.rferl.org/reports/iraq-report/2003/10/44-241003.asp and 31 --> http://www.rferl.org/reports/iraq-report/2003/10/45-311003.asp October 2003). Iraqi officials estimate, however, that only about 10 percent of the $13 billion in aid pledged by countries other than the United States has actually been delivered.

• June 17, 2005

  Iraq: Constitutional Deal Spells Opportunity For Broader Sunni Views

  The recent breakthrough --> http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/06/967fc731-2ec0-49b5-89a7-c778e4a57836.html over the makeup of a committee to draft a new Iraqi constitution followed weeks of political wrangling, and could assist the process greatly. But the ultimate success of the deal should be measured on the basis of whether it ushers in a fuller spectrum of Sunni views, in addition to legal and negotiating expertise.

• June 16, 2005

  Iraq: Baghdad Working With U.S. To Bring Insurgents To The Table

  Ibrahim al-Ja'fari (file photo) The United States and Iraqi officials have reportedly begun discussions over the drafting of an amnesty policy for insurgents wishing to lay down their arms and participate in Iraq's political process. The policy remains in its early stages, and officials from both countries have remained rather tight-lipped about any future policy.

• June 08, 2005

  Iraq: Tribunal Insists No Trial Date Set For Saddam Hussein

  Saddam Hussein at his mid-2004 arraignment (screen capture) 8 June 2005 (RFE/RL) -- The Iraqi Special Tribunal set the record straight on 6 June about claims made by President Jalal Talabani and other members of Iraq's transitional government that former dictator Saddam Hussein would go on trial in the next two months.

• June 01, 2005

  Iraq: Kurdish Parties Agree To Convene Parliament

  Flying the Kurdish flag The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) have agreed to convene the Kurdistan parliament following months of political wrangling over the presidential post and leadership of a unified Kurdish administration. At issue were the term length and duties of the president, the command over a unified peshmerga, and, according to some media reports, who would control the finances of a unified administration. Both parties had agreed in December 2004 that KDP head Mas'ud Barzani would serve as president of the administration.

• May 24, 2005

  Iraq: Sunnis, Shi'a Still Must Build Working Relationship

  The announcement on 21 May by more than 1,000 Iraqi Sunni political, religious, and tribal leaders of the formation of a united political bloc represents the first unified step that Sunnis have taken within the political process since the fall of Saddam Hussein regime. While the move has been welcomed by Sunnis and Shi'ite leaders, much more needs to be done in terms of establishing a firm working relationship between those two sides.

• May 20, 2005

  Iraq: Sunni-Shi'ite Political Rift Intensifies

  Two children were killed last night when this Shi'ite mosque was bombed Al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist leader Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi might well have been pleased with the turn of events this week in Iraq. While his insurgency cannot take sole credit for the escalation of tension between Sunnis and Shi'a, his 18 May statement justifying the killing of innocent Muslims and labeling Iraq's Shi'a as collaborators who have betrayed the Muslim cause has added momentum to a rift that appears to be reaching crisis proportions. Meanwhile, attempts by the transitional Shi'ite-led government to respond appear to have been drowned out by political accusations on both sides.

• May 18, 2005

  Iran/Iraq: Tensions Linger Beneath Iranian FM's Visit To Baghdad

  Foreign Minister Kharrazi As Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi arrived in Baghdad on 17 May to stress Iran's support for a stable, unified Iraq, Iran's Arabic-language Al-Alam television station was broadcasting footage showing desecrated Korans strewn across a mosque floor in Iraq.

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