War in Iraq The top story for May 1, 2005 in the New York Times concerning Iraq was titled, "Iraq Insurgents Continue Wave of Attacks." The Chicago Tribune had no top stories on Iraq for this date and the Washington Post's only story on Iraq concerned Iraq's power grid problem. The LA Times' top story is titled "Iraq to Purge Corrupt Officers." Therefore the two domestic stories concerning Iraq come from the New York Times and the LA Times. The two foreign stories discussed were links found on the Iraq Daily web site. One is from The Independent Bangladesh and the other is from Dawn, a Pakistan English newspaper.

The New York Times article is an Associated Press report concerning the Sunday attacks in Iraq. It reports that insurgents' attacks are continuing for the third straight day and have included ambushes, car bombs, and drive-by shooting, bringing the death toll since Friday to "at least 79," including six American soldiers (Iraq pp). The article suggests that the recent attacks of violence are well coordinated and that the timing points to a deliberate attempt to deflate the hopes in "Washington and Baghdad that the installation of the Iraq's first democratically elected government would curb the uprising" (Iraq pp). The article continues with descriptive accounts of the recent attacks. In the Zafaraniyah neighborhood of Baghdad, a car bomb exploded, killing four Iraqi civilians and wounding twelve, while in another part of Baghdad, "insurgents in three parked cars opened fire with hand guns on a police patrol in the western Jihad neighborhood, wounding four policemen" (Iraq pp). A suicide car bomber attacked near a water pump station in southeastern Baghdad, and South of Baghdad, a roadside bomb exploded, wounding four civilians (Iraq pp). Iraqi and U.S. officials had hoped that by including members of the Sunni Arab minority in the new Shiite-dominated Cabinet, the violence would subside the violence, however, approval of the Cabinet Thursday has been followed by an onslaught of bombings (Iraq pp). On Saturday April 30, at least five car bombs rock Baghdad, the heart of the Iraqi government and American occupation, and six more exploded...

McDonnell and Solomon Moore, rather than a reprint of an Associated Press wire release. Although the article does reference the recent attacks in Iraq, the focus of the article basically concerns internal politics. Alarmed by the surge in attacks, Iraq's Shiite Muslim leadership plans to "purge suspected infiltrators and corrupt officers from the nation's security forces" (McDonnell, Moore pp). According to authorities, the most likely tactic will be the unleashing of well-trained Iraqi commandos, known for their effectiveness and brutality, in Baghdad and other trouble spots (McDonnell, Moore pp). However, whether additional Iraqi troops can tame an insurgency "that has not withered in face of massive U.S. military might remains to be seen" (McDonnell, Moore pp). However, Shiite leaders appear confident that Iraqi forces, with U.S. backup, can defeat the guerrillas (McDonnell, Moore pp). According to the writers, "the plan for Iraqi commandos' wider deployment is indicative of how the raging guerrilla conflict here is increasingly a war pitching Iraqis against Iraqis," evident in the decline in U.S. casualty rates as the Iraqi death toll soars (McDonnell, Moore pp). These counterinsurgency efforts is greatly unsettling to the Sunni Arab minority, a group that already feels besieged and disenfranchised in the new Iraq, hence, most Sunni Arabs boycotted the January 30th election, and their political representation is scant (McDonnell, Moore pp). During marathon talks to form the new government, Shiite leaders insisted on controlling the Interior Ministry, and plan to oust guerrilla informants and sympathizer of Hussein's Baath Party (McDonnell, Moore pp). U.S. officials, along with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, "have warned that a large-scale purge could sweep out capable officers as well as compromised ones," and fear a backlash among Sunni Arabs who might otherwise denounce armed conflicts and join the evolving political process (McDonnell, Moore pp). However, the new Shiite leadership appears determined to use its control of the Interior…