The Mutiny in Manila, Michael Meiring and the Baghdad bombing

[Minstrel Boy]

Given our speculating re the Baghdad bombing, I think it's worth to remember the Manilla mutiny, and the accusations of the junior officers: that Philippine military brass and the Arroyo government were conspiring with the United States in something called “Operation Greenbase”, which involves staging recent bombings on the island of Mindanao in order to justify the imposition of martial law and an increased US presence in the country. One mutineers said “We mean no harm. They are putting a death warrant on us. They want to suppress what we know.” The rebels are currently standing trial.

Here's a good, recent summary of the situation by Naomi Klein:

http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20030901&s=klein

Klein also touches on the mystery of Michael Meiring. Meiring's a shadowy, well-connected American, frequent visitor to Mindanao, allegedly a CIA operative, who nearly died last year when high tech explosives accidentally detonated in his hotel room in Davao City, Mindanao. He claimed, while screaming in pain, that a grenade had been lobbed through his window, but the evidence pointed to the explosion having originated in a metal box in his possession.

Despite arrest warrants and hold departure orders and the affront to Phillipine sovereignty, the FBI swooped in and whisked Meiring out of hospital and back to the safety of the United States. Why ever would they do that?

More on Meiring:
http://www.mindanews.com/2003/05/30nws-meiring01.html (links to other investigative reports in the series)

Just some background which informs my suspicions about today's bombing. A lot of questions go begging. Could it have been al Qaeda? But in the funhouse of US foreign policy, al Qaeda is both an enemy and an intelligence asset. As late as 1999, for instance, al Qaeda was abetting the US campaign to aid the KLA in Kosovo. And there's the intentional leak from French Intelligence, reported in Le Figaro, The Guardian and elsewhere, of two CIA agents meeting bin Laden in a Dubai hospital in July 2001.

Covert means often appear at cross purposes with overt ends.

De Mello had said recently that Iraqis needed to be quickly given tangible power, and that it was rightfully the UN, and not the US, which should control the spending of Iraqi oil revenues. I don't think it takes a tinfoil hat to believe the Bush Crew would stoop to assassination and proxy terror to wage their resource war.

[Minstrel Boy]

1. Sorry, wrong forum!

Please lock, I'll repost in General Forum.