'Prisoners were bound, blinded, gagged. Many had terrible bruises and burns. One room contained hoses, broken lamps (electric shock) and chemicals'

Captain Jarrell Southall,
Oregon National Guard

Lieutenant Colonel Dan Hendrickson, the battalion commander, then “radioed up the chain of command in the Army’s 1st Cavalry Division, relaying what he had seen and asking for instructions …
It wasn’t long before the order came: Stand Down.

Photos from the January 25th meeting of the Santa Cruz City Council. In the face of significant opposition, councilmembers voted 4-3 in favor of approving a $30million project that would replace the Coast Hotel with a new hotel, conference center, and six-story parking garage.

On Friday, February 4th at 7:30pm in the Veterans Memorial Building in downtown Santa Cruz, activists and musicians will speak and perform at an event to promote and benefit a new open voting system.

Contrary to US plans, Moktada Al Sadr continues to be recognized as a leader by the Iraqi people. Today he is at the forefront of protests in the capitol that have continued peacefully for over a week. "The government has given nothing to the Iraqi people, and all the political parties say yes to the Americans. The elections are useless. They will do nothing for us," said Nizar Khanjar, 27.... "Only the Sadr office is defending the rights of the people."

With the fall of the Saddam regime, Iraqis have seen harder times than they had even under sanctions, and the interim government of CIA fledgling Allawi has been largely powerless to help them. Since 1964, the CIA has acted as if a deity in the selection of Iraqi leadership, but they appear to have underestimated the power the Sadr clan, widely repected in both Iraq and Iran.

Donald Rumsfeld has cancelled plans to attend the Munich Security Conference in February. The prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe is examining a complaint naming Rumsfeld and others in allegations of crimes against humanity and genocide.

Center For Constitutional Rights Seeks Criminal Investigation in Germany into Culpability of U.S. Officials in Abu Ghraib Torture

German Prosecutor Asked to Meet Obligations under Law Requiring Investigation into Torture and War Crimes. Doctrine of Universal Jurisdiction Permits Prosecution of Suspected War Criminals Wherever They May Be Found