Ethnic Cleansing in a Baghdad Neighborhood?




U.S. soldiers have uncovered evidence that one Shi'ite militia is engaged in a systematic campaign of violence and intimidation to clear out Sunni residents
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The place was empty when U.S. soldiers burst in, raiding a house in Baghdad's violent Washash neighborhood in the hopes of finding killers involved in sectarian murders. By the look of things, no one had been there for some time, even though neighbors in the area reported seeing people dragged inside in recent weeks. But apparently someone involved in the area's sectarian violence had been there recently: left behind was a leather-bound day planner that gave a disturbing picture of the systematic nature of Baghdad's bloodshed.

Though the book was largely blank, inside were several sheets of loose paper covered in Arabic writing. Back at Camp Taji, a massive U.S. Army base north of Baghdad, translators sifted through the papers and found evidence backing up what some U.S.troops who patrol Washash have come to suspect — that Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army are conducting what amounts to an ethnic cleansing campaign in Washash, a predominantly Shi'ite area with pockets of Sunni residents.

Sadr's militia, the document suggests, are systematically driving Sunni families from their homes around Washash, which some U.S. troops who patrol there have taken to calling Little Sadr City. Among the papers found in the raid is a list of 65 houses around Washash where Shi'ite families have replaced Sunni families. On other pages were drafts of threat letters clearly intended for delivery to Sunni homes. And there was a roster of "virtuous families" in the Washash area with house numbers written next to their names, so the militia relocation agents could keep track of people deemed fit to stay.

"They're very well organized," said Capt. Johnny Sutton, whose troops head up U.S. patrols in Washash.

U.S. forces moved into Washash and surrounding neighborhoods about three weeks ago, as rising sectarian violence left bodies surfacing on the streets almost daily. Initially the mounting death toll looked simply like the results of a spasm of violence in the neighborhood. But as soldiers began piecing together bits of information they uncovered about the killings, a pattern emerged.

Some Sunni families around Washash have been getting threat letters from militant Sadr operatives, who typically set a deadline for them to clear out of their homes. There's a DVD version as well, with demands for a family to move out accompanied by images of houses exploding. Often that's enough to scare a family into moving. Sometimes the Mahdi operatives go further, however. U.S. soldiers I joined on patrols in Washash say Shi'ite militiamen will sometimes abduct and murder the main male figure in a Sunni household, leaving his family unable to afford their home or too terrified to stay. It appears these targeted Sunnis make up much of the body count on the streets in Washash.

How many Sunni families have been driven out is impossible to say. But it's safe to assume that the list U.S. soldiers found represents only a fraction of the Shi'ite families who've been moved into Washash from elsewhere in Baghdad by Sadr's militia. Sutton says his troops, who work closely with Iraqi security forces, plan to contact the Shi'ite families listed in the Madhi Army housing log for Washash to see what they know.

"Some of these people may be unwitting," said Sutton. "They may not have realized what had happened and how they ended up there. Some of them may have."

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Israel police abuzz over sex-toy theft



Israeli police said on Wednesday they were on the lookout for 40 vibrators and a $200 dildo after thieves plundered the automobile of a noted sexologist in Tel Aviv.

"Thieves broke into her car and apparently stole from her a caseload of vibrators," police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld said. "It's difficult to say the exact value of the items stolen, but obviously we're searching for these items just as with any other incident of theft."

The thieves were likely surprised by the contents, Rosenfeld said.

The two metal cases stolen from Shelly Pasternak's car on Friday resembled those used for expensive audio-visual equipment, but instead contained massage oils, dildos, whips, Chinese balls and handcuffs, as well as vibrators.

In all, the thieves made off with about $2 000 worth of sex toys, Pasternak said, adding that the most valuable item was an elaborate vibrating dildo that sells for $200.

"It's a very unique one because it gives very high pleasure to women," she said.

However, Pasternak said she was most concerned about a book of receipts inside the case that contained the names of customers who purchased sex toys, many of whom prefer to remain anonymous.

Pasternak (32) is a sexologist who hosts a sex programme on Israeli television, holds workshops and lectures at bachelor and bachelorette parties.

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Porn CD case: Anara seeks CBI probe

Jammu - Anara Gupta, the former Miss Jammu, today filed a writ petition in the High Court here seeking CBI investigation into the much publicised porn CD case, which was reopened again on the direction of a lower court.

Accompanied by her mother Raj Rani, Anara filed the petition in which she said she did not have faith in police probe and hence wanted a CBI probe.

She was arrested on October 24, 2004 and allegedly kept in illegal confinement and tortured by police.

Jammu and Kashmir Crime Branch police, after completion of investigation in the matter, filed a final report before the High Court and Jammu chief judicial magistrate for closure of the case as nothing was found against her.

While the HC allowed the closure of the case in December 2005, CJM Sanjay Dhar rejected the plea and directed the Director General of Police (DGP) in May 2006 for fresh investigations into the case.

The DGP constituted a special investigation team in August 2006. The team has not started investigations so far.

A similar petition filed by social activist Amit Chouhan for a CBI probe is pending before a Division Bench at Srinagar.

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Today in history - Oct. 25


The Associated Press

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 25, the 298th day of 2006. There are 67 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 25, 1854, the "Charge of the Light Brigade" took place during the Crimean War as an English brigade of more than 600 men, facing hopeless odds, charged the Russian army during the Battle of Balaclava and suffered heavy losses.

On this date:

In 1400, author Geoffrey Chaucer died in London.

In 1760, Britain's King George III succeeded his late grandfather, George II.

In 1918, the Canadian steamship Princess Sophia foundered off the coast of Alaska; some 350 people perished.

In 1939, the drama "The Time of Your Life," by William Saroyan, opened in New York.

In 1951, peace talks aimed at ending the Korean Conflict resumed in Panmunjom after 63 days.

In 1962, U.S. ambassador Adlai E. Stevenson presented photographic evidence of Soviet missile bases in Cuba to the U.N. Security Council.

In 1971, the U.N. General Assembly voted to admit mainland China and expel Taiwan.

In 1983, a U.S.-led force invaded Grenada at the order of President Reagan, who said the action was needed to protect U.S. citizens there.

In 1986, in Game 6 of the World Series, the Boston Red Sox lost to the New York Mets 6-5 on a wild pitch and an error in the tenth inning, forcing a seventh game, which the Mets ended up winning.

In 2002, U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., was killed in a plane crash in northern Minnesota 11 days before the election.

Ten years ago: Federal judge Richard Matsch granted Oklahoma City bombing defendants Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols separate trials.

Five years ago: A day after the House signed on, the Senate sent President Bush the USA Patriot Act, a package of anti-terror measures giving police sweeping new powers to search people's homes and business records secretly and to eavesdrop on telephone and computer conversations. Ford Motor Co. settled one of the industry's biggest auto defect cases, agreeing to pay for repairs on millions of cars and trucks with an ignition-system flaw that could cause the vehicles to stall in traffic.

One year ago: U.S. military deaths in Iraq reached the 2,000 mark. Iraq's election commission declared that final results from the Oct. 15 referendum showed the new constitution was ratified by a huge margin, paving the way for elections. In the World Series, the Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros began playing Game 3, which turned into a 14-inning marathon that did not end until well after midnight with Chicago winning 7-5.

Today's Birthdays: Former baseball player Bobby Thomson is 83. Former American League president Dr. Bobby Brown is 82. Actress Jeanne Cooper is 78. Actress Marion Ross is 78. Country singer Jeanne Black is 69. Singer Helen Reddy is 65. Author Anne Tyler is 65. Rock singer Jon Anderson (Yes) is 62. Singer Taffy Danoff (Starland Vocal Band) is 62. Rock musician Glen Tipton (Judas Priest) is 58. Actor Brian Kerwin is 57. Rock musician Matthias Jabs is 50. Actress Nancy Cartwright ("The Simpsons") is 49. Country singer Mark Miller (Sawyer Brown) is 48. Rock musician Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 44. Actress Tracy Nelson is 43. Actor Michael Boatman is 42. Actor Kevin Michael Richardson is 42. Singer Speech is 38. Actor Adam Goldberg is 36. Rock musician Ed Robertson (Barenaked Ladies) is 36. Country singer Chely Wright is 36. Violinist Midori is 35. Actor Mehcad Brooks ("Desperate Housewives") is 26. Actor Ben Gould is 26. Rhythm-and-blues singer Young Rome is 25. Singer Ciara is 21. Actress Conchita Campbell ("The 4400") is 11.

Thought for Today: "Life is not a spectacle or a feast; it is a predicament." — George Santayana, Spanish-born philosopher (1863-1952).

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