Iraq's South Oil Co. Headquarters Torched

[aneerkoinos]

"BASRA, Iraq - Shiite militants loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr broke into the headquarters of Iraq (news - web sites)'s South Oil Co. on Thursday and set the company's warehouses and offices on fire, witnesses said.

The attack came after the militants had threatened to sabotage Iraq's crucial oil infrastructure to protest the ongoing clashes between militants and U.S. and Iraqi forces in the holy city of Najaf. "

Not much more:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040819/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_oil_attack&cid=540&ncid=1478


And the sweet crude jumps to 48,55/barrel...

[rawstory]

1. Did Sadr take classes from Ho Chi Minh?

Man, this Sadr must have taken a class from Ho Chi Minh. Frankly, I can't f***ing believe how successful he's been against the U.S., which I honestly think is sad because it means U.S. soldiers are dying, but there's always a perverse pleasure to be had when one's political opponent is caught in, well, a quagmire.

[bemildred]

3. Saddam was fond of Gen. Giap's book ...

Literacy is widespread in the 3rd world these days.
Racism makes you stupid, you underestimate your opponents.
This was all predicted well before we stepped into the quagmire,
and very publicly by various speakers and authors.

[readmylips]

11. Sounds like Puerto Rico beating US Millionaire Team...

..Are we really the mityest in the world? Those little guys with no sophisticated weapons are beating the crap out of the US. Even their tactical warfare and strategy are better than ours.

[htuttle]

15. Yeah, but we spend a LOT more than they do on defense expenditures

So there! We're STILL number one....in spending.

[govegan]

19. Funny, I was thinking the same thing.

So which Iraqi town is going to become al-Sadr City?

[lucky777]

2. Sooner or later they'll figure out how to beat us . . .

They were dumb to stand toe-to-toe with our army. Lately they have been moving toward snipers and sabotage.

[Barrett808]

4. Vote this one up: currently rated 1.68 with 34 votes n/t

[hadrons]

6. currently rated 1.68 ....

yup, if the story is hidden then it really didn't happen :eyes:

[Protected]

16. Freepers with their Yahoo rating spam again.

I guess there's nothing more important than spending a few hours logging onto Yahoo! with a bunch of different names and hiding the truth.

[tabasco]

5. More fix-it-up projects for Mr. Cheney's corporation.

What a coincidence that Helliburton is making billions in a war that Cheney helped start.

[Geo55]

7. We've come a long way from "dead enders"

Not very fair of them not to allow us the use of the infrasructure to steal the OIL.
Bad "insurgents" !! , bad.
They hate our freedom.

[ret5hd]

10. Dead enders...that's what kerry should start calling the bush* regime.

[Union Thug]

8. voted.. KICK!

[daleo]

9. Oil is proving to be very tough to steal

It looks like an armed and motivated population can prevent this resource from being exploited by invaders. There are just too many places where the infrastructure is vulnerable. Plus, oil burns.

[tedzbear]

12. Kick!

Viva Zapata!

[jimshoes]

13. As Condi might say....

If we had any idea they would put up such a fuss....

[hatrack]

14. Haven't you heard - "freedom is untidy!" nt

.

[David__77]

17. $60 or $70/barrel oil a real possibility.

I think an oil embargo against the US is also possible. If the US destroys the sites in Najaf, Iran could certainly enter the fray. Iran has a much stronger military than did Baathist Iraq. Their missiles could reach US military camps, perhaps with the aid of their assets within Iraq and Kuwait and elsewhere. Sadr is small potatoes compared with a pan-Shiite revolution.

Further, if the fascists in Venezuela initiate sabatoge and coup-plotting, it could stop production of oil there for a time. Certainly US meddling could result in an embargo.

[Dover]

18. Bushco and the oil corps benefit either way...they would be just as

happy controlling and exploiting Iraq, as they would existing in the chaos of continually rebuilding it and having a ready excuse for higher oil costs.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

20. 50 bucks a barrel any minute now.....