Bush to Blair: Let's bomb al-Jazeera

Or "Smoking Gun #47." This story appeared yesterday, but I put off writing about it until some more information became available. And boy, did it become available. I'm normally the last one to buy into stories that sound far-fetched, or hint at conspiracy. But I've pretty much gotten to the point where, when this administration is concerned, I'm more inclined to believe the story. These people are so power-mad and amoral I wouldn't put anything past them anymore.

Claims that George Bush planned to bomb the Arabic TV news station al-Jazeera have fuelled concerns that an attack on the broadcaster's Baghdad offices during the war on Iraq was deliberate.

An international journalists group today demanded "complete disclosure" from the British and American governments over reports that the US considered attacking the al-Jazeera HQ in the Qatar capital, Doha.

The International Federation of Journalists claimed that 16 journalists and other media staff have died at the hands of US forces in Iraq, adding that the deaths had not been properly investigated.

Al-Jazeera cameraman Tarek Ayoub was killed when the station's Baghdad office was bombed during a US air raid on April 8 2003. On the same day a US tank shelled the Palestine hotel in the Iraqi capital, killing two other journalists.

It's important to note that papers are being threatened by the British government under the Official Secrets Act for printing parts of a leaked document that contains notes on the discussion between Bush and Blair. Not the sort of thing they'd pursue were the document a hoax.