> Shalom writing in Z Magazine:
> Saddam Hussein is one of the world's great monsters.
>
> --what happened to the claim of Mike, Brian et al that the anti-
> imperialist
> crowd in the US was mourning saddam?....Let's see, any examples from
> Monthly
> Review, Z, Chomsky, Ali, etc.?
Rome's Iraqi resistance demo: We are tip of iceberg http://www.antiimperialista.com/en/ On Saturday, 13th December, 2003 the first larger manifestation in Europe in emphatic support for the Iraqi resistance against the US empire took place. Nearly one thousand people participated and even the main Italian bourgeois paper, “Corriere della Sera”, which was at the forefront of the media campaign against the mobilisation, had to admit the success. They spoke of 800 participants.
The manifestation took place amidst a tremendous McCarthyist witch hunt not seen since the 70s. The supporters of the Iraqi resistance were attacked as “terrorists” and as “Islamo-Nazi-Communist block”. The slander campaign was operated by a transversal front ranging from the far right (all the main Fascist organisations) to the far left (led by Rifondazione Comunista) passing by the two party regime (the forces of the Berlusconi government as well as of the centre left opposition).
Facing this extreme polarisation the mood of the participants was highly combative. Despite the fact that both the speakers as well as the participants originate from different political backgrounds an extraordinary sense of unity was to be felt having commonly repulsed the imperialist and Zionist enemy and its aides no matter in which disguise they have appeared. Between the speeches speaking choirs were shouted reaching their climax when Awni Al Kalemji, spokesman of the Iraqi Patriotic Alliance, entered the hall: “Free Iraq” and “long life the Iraqi resistance”.
He had to be broad secretly in order to avoid provocations. The hall was heavily guarded by riot police and plain clothed agents. Also provocateurs of the Iraqi quislings including the Iraqi Communist Party showed up – but their attempts to disturb were frustrated. <SNIP> http://www.antiimperialista.com/en/
-- Michael Pugliese