As President Obama continues in earnest with his promised military “surge” in Afghanistan, which will double the number of American forces on the ground, it was expected that NATO would enhance its commitment to the seven year long military commitment as well. That seems increasingly unlikely. Indeed, most European leaders have promised at best only [...]
Joints Chiefs Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen warned that people should be “pretty careful” about making comparisons between the current military quagmire in Afghanistan and the previous American military quagmire in Vietnam. According to Mullen, “Afghanistan is much more complex.” The current war has already gone on for over seven years, already roughly half the time [...]
Reports have been swirling around for the past several days that the United States has been holding high-level but discreet talks with Iran even as the Obama Administration has publicly dismissed rumors of any official efforts to improve relations. Now, Iran too is denying that any contact is ongoing. “I have had no official or [...]
Hundreds of Afghan protesters took to the streets Sunday in protest over a US raid they said led to the deaths of at least two civilians, the latest in a string to US raids which have killed a large number of innocent civilians. During the US raid in the Ghazni Province of Afghanistan, soldiers forced [...]
In an interview with Newsweek magazine, IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei was asked why he didn’t condemn Syria and North Korea for “building a nuclear reactor” – referring to the alleged gas-graphite reactor some claim was being constructed along the Euphrates River. The undaunted ElBaradei replied that it was because the IAEA doesn’t have the evidence [...]
In an interview today on NBC, President Barack Obama was asked whether a “substantial number” of troops would be home in time for next year’s Super Bowl (to be held on February 7, 2010). Obama replied “Yes. We are going to roll out in a very formal fashion what our intentions are in Iraq as [...]
The Pakistani military continued its offensive into the restive Swat Valley today, and one official reported that at least 43 civilians were killed in the crossfire between soldiers and the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants which have taken over much of the region. With growing discontent in the region (and more and more of the [...]
While President Barack Obama reversed a number of the Bush Administration’s anti-terror excesses, the controversial tactic known as extraordinary rendition, the extralegal kidnapping and transportation of detainees, remains conspicuously legal. Only a cursory effort “to study and evaluate the practices of transferring individuals to other nations” with a task force was offered for what has [...]
Israeli warplanes bombed a Hamas security base in central Gaza tonight along with attacks on two other sites along the Egyptian border. The hits centered around Hamas targets as the group attempts to put the finishing touches on its Egypt-brokered ceasefire with the Israeli government. They came after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised a [...]
Early (and unofficial) projections show Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and allies gaining at the expense of the rival Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council. If this holds though the final count, which will not be available until likely late in the week, it will strengthen the prime minister’s chances in the national elections which will be [...]
