BURYING THE LEDE: This story is about Iraq rejecting the French peace plan, but here’s the real news:

As 3,000 Iraqis took part in a protest against the war in Baghdad, the inspectors visited nine sites, including a Baghdad facility that produces rocket parts, as their hunt for chemical, biological or nuclear weapons continued.

They could only get 3,000 Iraqis to turn out against the war — in Baghdad? Then there’s this line:

Mr. Sabri claimed that any peace initiative that did not have Washington’s backing was doomed to fail.

Here’s your headline: Iraqi Diplomat Tells Truth! But wait, as Ron Popeil says — there’s more! Apparently, the Axis of Weasel is in danger of fragmenting, as Germany and Belgium are wavering. And the New Europe is standing up to the French:

In the meantime, Bulgaria has vowed to resist French attempts to bully it into withdrawing support for America’s plans to disarm Iraq. Last week the French ambassador to Sofia warned Bulgaria that its pro-American stance could jeopardise its efforts to join the European Union.

“Bulgaria has to consider carefully where its long-term interests lie,” Jean Loup Kuhn-Delforge said last week. “When people live in Europe they should express solidarity and think European-style.”

Solomon Pasi, Bulgaria’s foreign minister, condemned the French as neo-appeasers. “We all remember the hesitancy of the Allies, who weren’t sure whether to attack Hitler. They could have prevented so much,” he said.

“We’re in a situation where we have a moral imperative to act and act now.”

Perhaps Bulgaria has considered where its long-term interests lie. Because, ultimately, the French don’t bring that much to the table.