OPINION
Bill Kristol thinks America will listen
Weekly Standard Nov 29, 08 2:39 PM CST
(Newser)
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Republicans have fallen out of favor, and there’s probably nothing George W. Bush can say in his final days to change that. “But he could do his party—and the nation—a service by reminding Americans of our successes fighting the war on terror,” writes William Kristol. If Bush publicly explains how his detention, interrogation, and surveillance efforts have kept America safe, Obama will be able to “back off rash promises and continue most of the policies.”
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ANALYSIS
Mumbai attacks a horrific reminder of the problems Obama must tackle
MarketWatch Nov 27, 08 4:56 AM CST
(Newser)
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The attacks in Mumbai are a stark reminder that some things are worse than a slumping economy, David Hallaway writes in Marketwatch . Barack Obama is also inheriting some huge foreign policy challenges, and the days of the war on terror taking a backseat to the financial crisis look certain to be short-lived, Hathaway warns.
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Times of India (India) Nov 26, 08 11:06 PM CST
(Newser)
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The death toll in the Mumbai terror attacks rose to 101, and government troops continued to exchange gunfire with militants holed up in two posh hotels, the Times of India reports. As dawn broke over India's financial capital, it remained unclear how many—or if any—Westerners were being held hostage. Of those killed, six were foreigners, and the US knows of no American casualties.
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Dallas Morning News Nov 24, 08 5:39 PM CST
(Newser)
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A Dallas jury found a Muslim charity and its ex-leaders guilty today on three dozen counts of terror funding, the Dallas Morning News reports. A retrial of the biggest terror financing case in US history, the case hinged on $12 million sent by the Holy Land Foundation to Hamas after the US declared it a terrorist organization in 1995. Analysts called the verdict a major victory for President Bush.
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Prison camp staff will offer more activities
to distract detainees
Miami Herald Nov 23, 08 7:49 PM CST
(Newser)
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Art class at Guantanamo Bay? Yes, it's in the works—along with geology class, Game Boys, access to newspapers, and more movie nights. The prison staff wants to keep prisoners "stimulated," Guantanamo's cultural adviser told the Miami Herald . "Once they are engaged and busy, they leave the guards alone." English classes are also planned, despite fears that they may help detainees eavesdrop on guards.
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Governments' classified case insufficient to justify further detention
New York Times Nov 20, 08 1:50 PM CST
(Newser)
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A federal judge today ordered the release of five Guantánamo Bay inmates, ruling that the US government’s evidence was not enough to justify their continued detention, the New York Times reports. The men were among the inmates who won a Supreme Court verdict in June that found they indeed had constitutional rights.
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First-ever visit to undisclosed locale 'helpful:' defense attorney
Associated Press Nov 20, 08 11:34 AM CST
(AP)
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Defense lawyers were allowed for the first time into a section of the prison at Guantanamo Bay so restricted that even its location on the US base is secret. The pair of military attorneys for an alleged Sept. 11 plotter went to Camp 7 to gauge the effects of the prison-within-a-prison on a man so unstable he believes his bed shakes.
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ANALYSIS
Could 'yes we can,' become dangerous optimism?
Daily Beast Nov 19, 08 5:33 PM CST
(Newser)
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President-elect Obama’s biggest decision in the war on terror is defining the nature and extent of the military commitment in Afghanistan, Russ Hoyle writes for the Daily Beast. While the US has Gen. David Petraeus' counterinsurgency strategy in Iraq, there is no unified, coherent plan for battling the resurgent Taliban—a strategic vacuum that has led to piecemeal, bad-PR-generating raids into Pakistan.
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OPINION
Coalition overthrown, country is now run by al-Qaeda allies
Times (UK) Nov 18, 08 9:35 AM CST
(Newser)
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Iraq and Afghanistan loom largest among the fiascos undertaken in the name of a "war on terror," Martin Fletcher writes in the Times of London, but there has been a third front in that offensive: Somalia. After 15 years of anarchy, the US helped destroy the country's first ever stable government, paving the way for "virulently anti-Western jihadists" who are now taking over. Fletcher calls it the "forgotten debacle" that has provided al-Qaeda with a new base.
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Insurgency strategy, successful for US in Iraq, boosts American confidence in ally
Washington Post Oct 23, 08 10:32 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Pakistan plans to give weapons to thousands of tribal fighters along its border with Afghanistan, the Washington Post reports—a strategy that has helped the US in Iraq. The move to link the militias—called lashkars—to anti-Taliban efforts is a boost to US confidence in Pakistan’s military efforts, and commanders say they’re seeing results across the border in Afghanistan.
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GLOSSIES
Weapons? Check. Liquids? Check. Terrorist propaganda? Check. Write got it all through.
Atlantic Monthly Oct 16, 08 3:49 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The Transportation Security Administration’s nearly $7 billion budget is a waste, Jeffrey Goldberg reports in the Atlantic . With the help of a security expert, Goldberg has, at various times, gotten through airport security using counterfeit passes, carrying potentially dangerous objects and liquids—not to mention a Hezbollah flag and an Osama bin Laden t-shirt—and acting as nervous as possible.
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Negotiation with radicals seems necessary, but Karzai's not the man for the job
Der Spiegel Oct 7, 08 3:24 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Germany’s government decided today to send 1,000 more troops to Afghanistan and to keep its forces there for 14 more months, Der Spiegel reports. But as Angela Merkel’s government recommits to the fight, the German press argues over whether a radical change in strategy—including diplomatic engagement with the Taliban—is necessary.
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OPINION
Counterinsurgency expert may need to learn a few new tricks to quell Taliban rebellion
Times (UK) Oct 6, 08 2:55 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Gen. David Petraeus faces an uphill battle in replicating the successes of the Iraq surge in Afghanistan, Michael Evans writes in the Times of London, “because the economic, social and political conditions are so different.” Afghanistan doesn’t have nearly the natural, fertile resources, and neither the US nor NATO allies can provide much in the way of troop reinforcements.
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