National Intelligence Estimate

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Insurgents Poised to Reclaim Afghanistan: Report

Kabul will be in crosshairs by 2015 if US leaves

(Newser) - Afghanistan's insurgents are on the verge of a resurgence. If the US fully withdraws from the country next year, militants will swiftly reclaim much of the country, threatening Kabul as early as 2015, according to the latest National Intelligence Estimate. Indeed, experts believe things will get worse even if...

China at Heart of Sweeping Cyberspying War on US

Economic espionage is costing America billions

(Newser) - The past five years have seen a mammoth international effort to spy on the computer systems of US businesses and other institutions, an intelligence report finds—and China is by far the biggest threat. The goal: to gather economic information to benefit the spying countries, the Washington Post reports. Targeted...

Weapon of the Future: Water

 Weapon of the Future: Water 
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Weapon of the Future: Water

US intelligence fears 'water-based state conflict' in not-so-distant future

(Newser) - Soon, the precious commodity that starts wars may not be oil: It'll be water. Thanks to fresh-water shortages, droughts, and floods, US intelligence thinks it's increasingly likely that water could be "used as a weapon" in war, with one state denying water to another, according to a...

Afghan Intelligence Report: We're Screwed

Reports contradict military's more upbeat view

(Newser) - The US is faring poorly in the Afghan war, with large areas of the country on the verge of falling to the Taliban, according to the latest National Intelligence Estimates on Afghanistan and Pakistan. The classified reports, which represent the collective wisdom of a dozen intelligence agencies, also say that...

US Spies Are Voice of Caution in Iran Debate

Israelis, Europeans believe Tehran is developing warheads

(Newser) - The global intelligence community is at odds over whether Iran is developing nuclear warheads, with US spies insisting it isn’t, and European and Israeli spies begging to differ. In what the New York Times calls a “mirror image” of the Iraq debate, the US say documents found by...

Iran Poised to Create Nuke Next Year

Country mastered warhead deployment in 2003: Times of London

(Newser) - Iran has the capability to build a nuclear weapon within a year, and has either started to do so or is waiting for the go-ahead from Ayatollah Khamenei, sources tell the Times of London. The 2007 US National Intelligence Estimate that reported that Iran had halted nuclear research in 2003...

Dems Blast Secret Iraq Report
Dems Blast Secret Iraq Report

Dems Blast Secret Iraq Report

Rosy picture aims to bolster White House, they charge

(Newser) - A new, top-secret intelligence report asserts that conditions on the ground in Iraq have markedly improved, reports the Wall Street Journal. Only a select number of House and Senate members have seen the report, but top Democrats are already blasting the document as an effort to bolster the administration's Iraq...

New Iraq NIE Likely to Remain Secret

Officials keen to keep report classified after Iran estimate flap

(Newser) - Intelligence officials may keep the results of a new assessment on Iraq confidential when it's completed next month, the Washington Post reports. The new National Intelligence Estimate will be given to Congress, but intelligence officials are gunshy about making it public because of the brouhaha that erupted when they released...

EU Experts Say Iran Closer to Nuke Weapon

Tehran a year away on uranium; separate UN report out today

(Newser) - A new report from a European Union agency concludes that Iran could have enough uranium to build an atomic bomb within one year. The EU results—which precede a major UN report coming out today—look nothing like the findings of the US intelligence community, writes Der Spiegel: the recent...

Bush to Israel: NIE Was Wrong
Bush to Israel: NIE Was Wrong

Bush to Israel: NIE Was Wrong

Prez privately telling Israel he doesn't believe Iran has shut down nukes

(Newser) - President Bush is privately assuring Israel’s leaders that he doesn’t believe the National Intelligence Estimate's conclusion that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. In disavowing December's NIE, Bush said the “conclusions don't reflect his own views,” a US official told Newsweek. The private pledge...

Iran Plans 19 Nuke Plants
Iran Plans 19 Nuke Plants

Iran Plans 19 Nuke Plants

Rejects calls to drop uranium enrichment

(Newser) - Iran has dismissed calls to drop uranium enrichment and plans 19 new nuclear power plants, Reuters reports. "US officials have talked of negotiations" on the condition that Iran stop the enrichment, "but we do not accept any preconditions for talks," Iran's Foreign Minister said today. The UN...

Iran Resumed Nuke Program, Says Group

Marxists join neo-cons in chorus against intelligence reversal

(Newser) - An Iranian opposition group claims that the US intelligence agency's recent reversal on the status of Iran’s nuclear program was in error, the Wall Street Journal reports. The group, which first identified Iran's nuclear program in 2002, agrees that Iran closed down its major research facility in 2003, says...

Angry Iran Blasts US for 'Espionage'

Minister attack US intel, denies past weapons program

(Newser) - Iran has blasted the US for spying and demanded “explanations for US espionage" in a letter sent to Washington, the BBC reports.  Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said today that a recent US intelligence report—which claims Iran's nuclear weapons program ended four years ago—was full of “...

U-Turn on Iran Will Shake Up Foreign Policy

News of nuke halt leaves hawks isolated; intel agencies undercut

(Newser) - The National Intelligence Estimate's findings yesterday that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 will have dramatic fallout at home and abroad, the New York Times reports, beginning with the collapse of the White House's recent campaign to portray Iran as an immediate threat to world peace. It will...

Iran Praises Nuke Report; Israel Skeptical

Barak says Tehran hasn't stopped, urges more US pressure

(Newser) - Iran trumpeted a US intelligence report released yesterday that said it suspended its nuclear weapons program in 2003, but Israel expressed skepticism, Reuters reports. "The condition of Iran's peaceful nuclear activities is becoming clear to the world," an Iranian official said of the report. Not so fast, said...

Intelligence Community Doubts Iraqi Leadership

Big insurgent offensive may be in the works

(Newser) - A National Intelligence Estimate released today reveals that the US intelligence community doubts Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki has the ability to lead the country effectively, CNN reports. Coming one day after President Bush defended Maliki in a speech, the report by US intelligence agencies also expresses worry over a possible...

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