U.S. sends 3,500 more troops to Iraq
BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 30 (UPI) -- In response to insurgent activity in western Iraq, the U.S. military is deploying 3,500 reserve troops from Kuwait to the area, The Washington Post reports.
The soldiers will deploy in Anbar province, where Sunni tribal leaders had been cooperating with the U.S. military, the report said. However, since the beginning of the year, 11 of the leaders have been killed by insurgents in the regional capital of Ramadi, and last week, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad told CNN parts of Anbar were fully under insurgent control.
Much of the violence is linked to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, one sheik who asked not to be identified told the Post.
"He kills anyone who goes in and out of the U.S. base," the sheik said. "We have stopped meetings with the Americans, because, frankly speaking, we have lost confidence in the U.S. side, as they can't protect us."
In response, the 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, the main standby reserve force for the 130,000 U.S. troops in Iraq has been activated in Kuwait, the newspaper said.
Marine base rallies amid massacre probe
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., May 30 (UPI) -- Allegations U.S. Marines committed a massacre in Iraq last year have swept the Camp Pendleton, Calif., Marine base with disbelief, The New York Times reports.
Interviews with enlisted men and former Marines at the base found many simply don't believe it was a massacre of 24 civilians in Haditha in November, and others saying if it happened, it was on commanders' orders, the newspaper said.
The killing took place after a Marine corporal was killed by a roadside bomb, and the Pentagon is investigating claims the other Marines snapped and went on a killing spree.
Jerry Alexander, a Navy man who served with the Marines for 12 years, said hindsight is dangerous.
"If I saw my buddy laying there dead, there is no such thing as too much retaliation," he said. "I would not prosecute these young men because they were just doing their jobs."
Cpl. Michael Miller, 25, who has served two tours of duty in Iraq, said he doesn't believe the Marines acted on their own.
"In Iraq, everything you do has to be cleared with a commanding officer," Miller said. "You just can't go clearing houses without the permission of higher-ups."
Center-left dominates Italian elections
ROME, May 30 (UPI) -- Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi Tuesday solidified his center-left government with local election victories in Rome, Naples and Turin, ANSA reported.
Balloting was held in 23 major cities Sunday and Monday, and those aligned with Prodi's government won 14 contests outright. The center-right took four elections and runoffs were set in five others in two weeks.
Among provincial governments, five went center-left and three center-right, ending the 50-50 split among provinces.
"Apart from Milan, the most important other cities are all in our hands," Prodi said.
ANSA reported turnout was lower than expected, just 71.2 percent.
Supreme Court rules against whistleblowers
WASHINGTON, May 30 (UPI) -- A divided Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that government whistleblowers have no First Amendment protection for comments involving their jobs.
The justices ruled 5-4 against Richard Ceballos, a supervisor in the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office, who claimed that he had been subject to retaliation for a memo that said a police affidavit for a search warrant contained misrepresentations. The court, overruling an appellate decision, found that public employees making statements in the course of official duties "are not speaking as citizens for First Amendment purposes."
"Without a significant degree of control over its employees' words and actions, a government employer would have little chance to provide public services efficiently," the court said in a summary of the decision.
The National Whistleblower Center said that the ruling deprives whistleblowers of almost all protection.
"The ruling is a victory for every crooked politician in the United States," said Stephen Kohn, the center's director.
