45 Dead in Turkey 'Blood Feud' Strike

First major violence after US troop pullout rattles Iraq

(NEWSER) - At least 63 people have been killed as powerful explosions ripped Baghdad early today in the first major violence in Iraq since US troops left. Nearly 200 people were wounded as bombers believed linked to Al-Qaeda in Iraq targeted schools, grocery stores and government buildings, reports the New York Times . The attacks come amid increasing upset in Iraq's fledgling government as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki threatens to abandon a government power-sharing arrangement. Observers fear that worsening relationships among the ethnic groups will inspire further terrorism that will plunge the country into chaos. More»

'Every city in India is vulnerable'

(NEWSER) - India still has no idea who was behind the three explosions that killed 18 people in Mumbai yesterday, and the government has admitted it had no inkling the attacks were coming. “Whoever planned this attack worked in a very, very clandestine manner,” Indian Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters yesterday, according to the Wall Street Journal . But he insisted that it was “not a failure of intelligence,” adding that policing such crowded areas is difficult. “Every city in India is vulnerable,” he said. More»

Shiites, Muqtada al-Sadr's office targeted

(NEWSER) - Bombs exploded throughout Baghdad today, targeting Shiite mosques and neighborhoods, including the office of anti-US cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. A neighborhood in Anbar province was also hit with six roadside bombs. At least 61 people have been killed and nearly 112 wounded, CNN reports. More»

Secretary of state says 'this is our struggle as well'

(AP) - Offering sympathy for victims of today's terrorist bombing, Hillary Clinton praised Pakistan's offensive against extremists and pledged US support at a critical point in the country's history. "Pakistan is in the midst of a struggle against tenacious and brutal extremist groups who kill innocent people and terrorize communities," the secretary of state said, just hours after a car bomb killed more than 90 people and wounded more than 200 at a Peshawar market. More»

(NEWSER) - Al Qaeda is weak militarily and “has been rejected by a great majority of Muslims,” Steve Coll writes in the New Yorker, but the terrorist organization and its affiliates can still create a “shock” like today's bombings in Jakarta. Despite the group's apparent inability to pull off a major attack like Sept. 11, “bombings like the one in Jakarta will recur for an indefinite time.” The only solution is for the US to assume “a posture of strategic patience about terrorism that is durable, vigilant, and proportional.” More»