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Pax Americana comes to the Middle East: the political aspirations of the Kurds may once again be sacrificed to great power interests in post-Saddam Iraq.

Article Excerpt
As the occupation of Iraq nears completion, the aims of the 'Pax Americana' become increasingly clear. While Bechtel and other American corporations are being given the job of restructuring Iraq in line with the needs of US capital, the Kurds, Shias and other oppressed groups in Iraq wonder what fate has in store for them. It would appear that the Washington administration has no intention of allowing the disparate peoples and ethnic groups that make up the population of Iraq much autonomy. This became even clearer on 6 May when Paul Bremer was appointed top civil administrator in Iraq, with the task of 'overseeing Iraq's transition to democracy'. Bremer has authority over retired general Jay Garner, previously in charge of reconstruction efforts, who has been seen as too pro-Kurdish in various quarters.

The Kurds of northern Iraq, having 'enjoyed' a decade of de facto self-rule, have begun to recover the lands from which they were forcibly displaced by Saddam Hussein....

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