January 24th Morning Readbook

Bin Laden claims plane bombing bid




Report: New bin Laden tape emerges
A new audio tape allegedly from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden claims responsibility for an attempt to blow up a plane en route to Michigan on Christmas Day and warns the United States of more attacks.


Afghanistan postpones parliamentary election until fall
Afghanistan said Sunday it will postpone parliamentary elections from May until September. The election commission cited several reasons for its decision: security concerns, logistical challenges and a budget shortfall.


Taliban kill seven in Pakistan for being "U.S. spies"
Taliban militants killed seven Pakistani tribesmen in the volatile North Waziristan region on the Afghan border who they suspected of spying for the United States, security officials said on Sunday.


Gates Sees Fallout From Troubled Ties With Pakistan
Nobody else in the Obama administration has been mired in Pakistan for as long as Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates. So on a trip here this past week to try to soothe the country’s growing rancor toward the United States, he served as a punching bag tested over a quarter-century.


Iraq's PM orders probe on bomb detectors
An Iraqi official says the country's prime minister has ordered a probe into the use of bomb-detection devices Iraq bought from a British company. Nouri al-Maliki's order on Sunday came one day after Britain banned the export of the hand-held machine ADE651 following media reports challenging its effectiveness.


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