A woman, bracing herself for Iraq's third war in less than two decades, weeps as she waits for the return of Iraqi prisoners of war from Iran
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IRAQ FOCUS

Books Supplement

'The gates of hell'
How will history judge a war the world opposed, asks Hani Shukrallah

'Up against chaos'
On the eve of an almost certain US military invasion of Iraq, Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa spoke to Dina Ezzat about Arab efforts to stop the war

The other America
The United States is not the monolith many Arabs presume it to be. It is more accurate, writes Edward Said , to apprehend America as embroiled in a serious clash of identities whose counterparts are visible as similar contests throughout the rest of the world

A world united against war
Ayman El-Amir believes that the way in which the US has handled the Iraq issue has severely weakened the very foundations of the United Nations

Baghdad vertigo
Tarek Hassan witnesses the last days of the Iraqi capital under Saddam Hussein

The morning after
Only hours away from an imminent military onslaught on Iraq, the question remains: who will rule after Saddam? Omayma Abdel-Latif reports

Preemptive whims
The US government is aiming at a nuclear 'strike-first policy' which could be directed against any potential adversary, writes Aziza Sami

Anger in the valley
On the eve of war against Iraq Soha Abdelaty finds provincial Egypt far from sleepy

Lessons unlearned
By Mohamed Hassanein Heikal

Misleading roads
The US has just brushed off its roadmap for Palestine, but somehow made its initiative conditional on the war against Iraq. Azmi Bishara read the map and found its lines rather blurry

Joining hands
Can war become the crucible for more progressive alliances, asks Anouar Abdel-Malik

The demise of the UN
Mohamed Sid-Ahmed wonders whether Bush's unilateral decision to go to war has dealt the death blow to the United Nations

Americans as sitting ducks
The imminent US military occupation of Iraq is an invitation to Al-Qa'eda militants. Diaa Rashwan ponders a significant, if little discussed, fallout of invasion

What's to be done?
Hours before American missiles start falling over Iraq, Shaden Shehab samples the mood on the Egyptian street

The reformist illusion
The Palestinian leadership hoped the appointment of a prime minister would smooth the road to peace. But the road is still going nowhere, writes Graham Usher in Jerusalem

Hidden hunger
Jonathan Cook in Azzoun investigates the humanitarian crisis devastating the Palestinians

Murder in cold blood
American peace activist Rachel Corrie's death was no accident. Rasha Saad speaks to a witness to the tragedy