Peace with Israel
will have to wait,
says columnist
New Republic Jun 18, 07 8:29 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
In the wake of Fatah's collapse in Gaza, and the subsequent takeover by Hamas, the US and its Mideast allies should focus on cleaning up corruption-tainted Fatah and making it more responsive to the Palestinian people, argues Dennis Ross in the New Republic . That is the only hope for a victory over the Islamic extremists of Hamas.
More »
End of embargoes bolsters Hamas-led emergency government
New York Times Jun 18, 07 8:28 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
The US and the EU demonstrated support for the emergency Palestinian government today through separate pledges to lift economic embargoes and renew aid to the Palestinian Authority. The promises follow Mahmoud Abbas' establishment of a pro-peace cabinet without members of Hamas, putting the US in the curious position of supporting the dissolution of a democratically elected government, the Times reports.
More »
Plotters led by former Laotian general and US military officer
Associated Press Jun 5, 07 4:43 AM CDT
(Newser)
-
Ten suspects were arrested in six Californian cities today for conspiring to overthrow the government of Laos. The plotters included a former general in the Laotian army and a former US military officer who was a covert operative during the Vietnam War, the AP reports. Most of the group were Hmong, an ethnic minority who supported the US during the war.
More »
Cold War fault lines rumble
at prelim G-8 summit
Washington Post May 31, 07 4:24 AM CDT
(Newser)
-
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US counterpart Condi Rice butted heads during a sit-down with G-8 foreign ministers yesterday, over US plans to grant Kosovo independence and build a missile defense shield in the region. The entire group endorsed freeing Kosovo from Serbian control, the Washington Post reports, except Lavrov.
More »
On the table: Iraqi security. Off the table: Iranian nuclear buildup, detainees.
BBC May 28, 07 6:15 AM CDT
(Newser)
-
Ambassadors for the US and Iran met for four hours today in Baghdad, in the first bilateral talks between the countries in decades. The US's Ryan Crocker was expected to press claims that Iran is providing training and weapons to Iraqi insurgents, and his counterpart Hassan Kazemi Qomi to raise accusations of US espionage.
More »
Troops surround refugee camp, prepare siege or incursion to rout out militants
CNN May 25, 07 9:49 AM CDT
(Newser)
-
The US has rushed military aid to Beruit, as the Lebanese army continues to battle Islamist militants holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp. The first shipment arrived today. Condoleeza Rice expressed support for Lebanon's government, if not confidence: "I certainly hope that the Lebanese government will be able to deal with these extremists," Rice said.
More »
Attempt to start Al-Qaeda cell in Iraq dates to 2005
Yahoo! May 23, 07 4:23 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
Osama bin Laden attempted to launch a terrorist cell in Iraq through which Al-Qaeda could attack the US, President Bush said today. The newly declassified information fleshed out a 2005 Homeland Security alert that Bin Laden directed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, then his top man in Iraq, to organize the unit as part of what he called a "war of destiny."
More »
Jury convicts California man of trying to send defense docs to China
CNN May 10, 07 9:01 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
A Chinese-American engineer could get up to 35 years for trying to funnel classified U.S. defense technology to China. A federal jury in California convicted 66-year-old Chi Mak, a naturalized citizen who worked for an Anaheim defense contractor, of conspiring to send top secret plans for submarine propulsion technology to Chinese authorities over several years.
More »
House Dems back bill easing resettlement
Washington Post May 10, 07 1:00 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
With Iraq war refugees numbering in the millions and as many as 70,000 joining their ranks each month, House Democrats will introduce a bill boosting the number of displaced Iraqis eligible for resettlement in the U.S. A total of 18 Iraqi refugees entered the U.S. in February and March, the Washington Post reports, while Sweden admitted 8,000.
More »
Economist May 9, 07 4:52 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
U.S. airstrikes killed 21 Afghan civilians in eastern Afghanistan late last night, just hours after the U.S. offered an official apology to the families of 19 killed in a March attack. The civilian deaths—as many as 1,000 in 2006 alone—are stirring unrest against NATO forces, even from on high, the Economist reports.
More »
Three-minute discussion focuses on Iraq, hints at Bush administration policy shift
International Herald Tribune May 4, 07 2:49 PM CDT
(Newser)
-
It didn't involve the American Secretary of State or the Iranian foreign minister, but a brief meeting of high-level diplomats today in Egypt signals a thaw in relations between the countries, the International Herald Tribune reports. U.S. ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker said the three-minute conversation concerned the situation in Iraq.
More »