To the Point

After the Fall: Re-Establishing Order in Iraq

In Baghdad, a suicide bomber has injured four Marines near the Palestine Hotel, and in the southern city of Najaf, a prominent cleric who had just returned from exile has been shot and killed. In northern Iraq, Kurds have taken over the oil-rich city of Kirkuk. Secretary of State Colin Powell has given the Los Angeles Times details of administration plans for post-war Iraq, as American military officers on the ground are seeking local leaders for a series of meetings designed to allow Iraqis themselves to formulate a new government which will gradually take over. What about that -vital- role for the United Nations promised by President Bush and Prime Minister Blair? We hear about US plans for post-war Iraq from journalists in the US and Britain, a Middle East specialist from the World Policy Institute, a former CIA analyst, and an advisor to the Secretary General of the UN. Making News: Kurdish Forces Take Kirkuk in Northern Iraq In northern Iraq, Kurdish forces appear to have taken the oil-rich city of Kirkuk. Ilene Prusher of the Christian Science Monitor, who was in Kirkuk earlier today, reports on celebrations in that city, the low-profile of American forces there, and diplomatic wrangling between the US and Turkey over the possibility of Turkish observers in the region. Reporter's Notebook: Murdoch-s News Corp Acquires Majority Stake in DirecTV Rupert Murdoch-s News Corp will pay $6.6 billion in stock and cash to get control of the satellite service, DirecTV. The deal, which also fills a void in Murdoch-s worldwide satellite empire, makes Murdoch America-s second-largest provider of pay television, after Comcast. Though the numbers look good, But Porter Bibb, who runs Media Tech Capital Partners, says Murdoch-s money could have been much better spent.