You turn to us for voices you won't hear anywhere else.

Sign up for Democracy Now!'s Daily Digest to get our latest headlines and stories delivered to your inbox every day.

HeadlinesJuly 28, 2003

Watch Headlines
Media Options
Listen

15 More U.S. Soldiers Die In Iraq Over Bloody 8-Day Period

Jul 28, 2003

A U.S. soldier was killed this morning south of Baghdad becoming the 15th U.S. soldier to die in the last eight days, the deadliest period since President Bush announced major combat to be over. Most of the soldiers have died since the U.S. assassinated the two sons of Saddam Hussein, Uday and Qusay. Five troops were killed on Saturday alone.

Today’s killing came as the U.S. intensified its hunt for former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. The Associated Press reports the military has been raiding farmhouses near Tikrit and claim they came within 24 hours of capturing him.

But the search has not been without mistakes. The New York Times reports that a U.S. special ops team accidentally shot and killed up to five Iraqi civilians on Sunday.

In Karbala, hundreds protested Sunday against the U.S. at the Imam al-Hussein Shrine. They charged U.S. forces had shot a 51-year-old restaurant worker at the shrine, Iraq’s second-holiest site for Shi’ite Muslims.

Report: Iraq Occupation Could Turn Into “The Third Gulf War”

Jul 28, 2003

A new report by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies reports “the United States may end up fighting a third Gulf war against the Iraqi people.” The report concludes, “It is far from clear that the United States can win this kind of asymmetric war.”

U.S. Soldiers Charged With Beating Iraqi POWs

Jul 28, 2003

Meanwhile the U.S. military has charged four of its soldiers with punching, kicking and breaking the bones of Iraqi prisoners of war. The four officers, all from a Pennsylvania-based Army Reserve unit, are the first known U.S. troops to face such charges in Iraq. Last month human rights group Amnesty International issued a study that had found the U.S. was violating international law by subjecting Iraqi prisoners to “cruel, inhuman or degrading’’ conditions.

Blair to Face ICC Charges Over Iraq War

Jul 28, 2003

At the International Criminal Court in the Hague, a group of attorneys from Greece are expected to file a lawsuit today against British Prime Minister Tony Blair and other top British officials for their role in the Iraq invasion, which the lawyers say was illegal under international law.

U.S. Pressures India To Send Troops to Iraq

Jul 28, 2003

General Richard Myers, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived in Delhi today to pressure the Indian government to provide troops to the Iraq occupation. India has so far refused such requests saying they must be made by the United Nations not the United States.

Meanwhile in Japan, lawmakers voted Friday to send troops to Iraq despite protests. Opposition parties charged the deployment of troops violates the country?s pacifist constitution that was drafted after World War II.

Weapons Inspector Nuns Sentenced

Jul 28, 2003

On Friday three Roman Catholic nuns were sentenced to up to almost three and a half years in prison for damaging property at a nuclear missile silo in Colorado last fall. The nuns, 55-year-old Carol Gilbert, 68-year-old Jackie Hudson and 66-year-old Ardeth Platte broke into the missile site. They walked up a Minuteman III silo, swung hammers at the weapons and painted a cross on the structure using their own blood. They talked about turning swords into plowshares. [ See archived Democracy Now! coverage]

A day after the sentencing, hundreds of people took part in vigils and protests spread across at the 49 Colorado missile sites and at three missile sites in Nebraska. At one base, protester drove up carrying signs that read “Citizen Weapons Inspector.” A plane also flew over another site carrying a sign reading, ’’We found the weapons of mass destruction here in Colorado.”

Bush Prepares Troops For Liberia

Jul 28, 2003

President Bush Friday ordered three U.S. warships to the coast of war-torn Liberia but he warned the U.S. troops would only be deployed to support an African-led force being assembled by Ecowas or the Economic Community of West African States.

U.S. Prison Pop. Jumps 3.7%; 2M in jail

Jul 28, 2003

A new Justice Department report finds that the U.S. prison population jumped by almost four percent last year meaning an increase of about 700 inmates every week. The total U.S. prison and jail population is just over 2 million. One out of every 143 residents is behind bars. African American men between the ages of 20 and 39 accounted for about a third of all sentenced inmates.

The Justice Policy Institute warned against the rapid increase which comes at a time that crime is decreasing and state budget deficits are soaring. A director at the Institute said, “As legislators are struggling to fund education, health care and stave off spending cuts, many are continuing to choose to pay for an expensive justice system that damages communities and does not produce safe, healthy neighborhoods.”

Florida Man Dies In Suspected Lynching

Jul 28, 2003

The NAACP has called for an investigation into the possible lynching of a 32-year-old African American in the small agricultural Florida town of Belle Glade.

The family of Feraris “Ray” Golden found his body in May dangling from a tree outside his grandmother?s home. They said he was found with his hands tied behind his back. Police though concluded that Golden had killed himself and said his hands were by his side. At the time of his death, Golden was dating a white policeman’s daughter.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a lynching hasn?t been documented in over 20 years in the United States.

Israel to Free 500 Palestinian Prisoners

Jul 28, 2003

This news from Israel, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has announced the release of up to 500 Palestinian prisoners including over 200 members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Israel also announced it is dismantling several checkpoints in the West Bank. The Los Angeles Times reports 10 checkpoints have been dismantled but the Washington Post puts the tally only at three.

Israeli Troops Shoot at Protesters Near Security Wall

Jul 28, 2003

Also this weekend, President Bush, during a meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Abu Mazen, strongly criticized Israel for illegally constructing a wall through the West Bank

Today in the West Bank Israeli troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets at a group protesting the construction of the so-called security wall. _ Haaretz_ reports that five pro-Palestinian activists were injured, three of whom were internationals. One American was struck in the leg at close range and was hospitalized.

Meanwhile the _ Guardian_ of London reports today that Israeli troops have been targeting Palestinian children. On Friday, a four-year-old Palestinian boy became the most recent victim when he was shot dead.

Aide: Nixon Ordered Watergate Break-in

Jul 28, 2003

A former senior aide of President Richard Nixon has come forward to say it was Nixon himself who personally ordered the 1972 Watergate break-in of the Democratic party headquarters.

Until now it had been long assumed that Nixon helped the cover-up of the break-in but did not order it to happen.

The aide, Jeb Magruder, said he overheard Nixon talking about the break-in plan on the phone with Attorney General John Mitchell on March 30 1972.

White House Criticized for Censoring Sept. 11 Report

Jul 28, 2003

On Sunday a leading Republican, Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama called on the Bush administration to release the classified 28 pages of the Congressional 9/11 report.

The _ New York Times=_ reports that the classified pages show that Saudi Arabia funneled hundreds of millions of dollars into charitable groups and other organizations that may have helped finance the Sept.11 attacks and raises new concerns about the hijackers.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top