Uphill Battle

This cartoon was originally posted in June 2004 and is one of 450 cartoons in our new book, Black & White World II, available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com and Quent Cordair Fine Art.

FoxNews reports: Allawi Warns on Vote Safety.

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Prime Minister Ayad Allawi publicly acknowledged for the first time Tuesday that parts of Iraq probably won't be safe enough for people to vote in the Jan. 30 elections, and he announced plans to boost the size of the country's army from 100,000 to 150,000 men by year's end.

Violence persisted, with at least 16 Iraqis killed in two bombings and the seizure of trucks carrying new Iraqi coins. A U.S. soldier was killed in action in Iraq's volatile western Anbar province, the military said.

The attacks this month have killed more than 100 Iraqis, mostly Iraqi police and security forces, who are seen by the militants as collaborators with the American occupiers.

Allawi discussed preparations for the election by telephone with President Bush on Tuesday, and both leaders underscored the importance of going ahead with the vote as planned, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

Posted by Forkum at January 11, 2005 09:02 PM