March 17th Morning Readbook

US moves to calm spat with Israel over settlements 




Allawi edges ahead of al-Maliki in Iraq vote count
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's bloc has edged ahead of the coalition led by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Iraq's parliamentary vote, election officials announced.


Followers of Sadr Emerge Stronger After Iraq Elections
The followers of Moktada al-Sadr, a radical cleric who led the Shiite insurgency against the American occupation, have emerged as Iraq’s equivalent of Lazarus in elections last week, defying ritual predictions of their demise and now threatening to realign the nation’s balance of power.


US missile strikes kill seven in Pakistan
US missile strikes killed at least seven militants in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, as attackers armed with rockets and petrol bombs killed five policemen in a pre-dawn ambush.


Why the U.S. must talk to the Taliban
While the Obama administration is watching the battlefield in Afghanistan, hoping for a quick weakening of the Taliban, regional powers are ratcheting up tensions in and outside that country. Pakistan and Iran in particular want to ensure that by the time the United States is ready to talk to the Taliban, the region's future will already be shaped by local powers, limiting Washington's options. Afghanistan's ethnic and sectarian divisions are being exacerbated in the process.


Tehran aiding al Qaeda links, Petraeus says
Iran is assisting al Qaeda by facilitating links between senior terrorist leaders and affiliate groups, the commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East told Congress on Tuesday.


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