March 23rd Morning Readbook

Karzai in talks with Taliban allies 




World Digest: Afghanistan's Karzai talks to representatives of insurgent faction
President Hamid Karzai held talks in Kabul on Monday with representatives of one of the key insurgent groups battling his government, as the president continues his high-stakes push for an eventual reconciliation among all of Afghanistan's warring factions.


Pakistan army chief begins US strategic dialogue
Pakistan's army chief Gen Ashfaq Kayani has met US defence leaders in Washington as the two countries begin a week-long strategic dialogue.


Pakistan asks court to let it reopen probe of nuclear scientist A.Q. Khan
The Pakistani government on Monday sought a court's permission in Lahore to reopen its probe into scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan and his role in nuclear weapons-related discussions and transactions with Iran and Iraq.


U.S. Officials Meet Iraqi Leader After Recount Call
The two top American officials in Iraq met Monday with Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki after his endorsement over the weekend of a recount in the parliamentary elections incited fears of a political crisis in a country not accustomed to peaceful transfers of power.


Iraq election front-runners court possible allies
With the complete results in Iraq's election just days away, there were signs Monday the two front runners were reaching out to other political parties, signaling the start of the jockeying to form the next ruling coalition.


U.S. judge orders release of Guantanamo detainee
A federal judge ordered on Monday that a man accused of having ties to some of the hijackers in the September 11, 2001, attacks, be released from the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.


Netanyahu disrupted at Aipac gala 
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister,  has been disrupted in Washington DC by activists protesting against Israeli policy in the Middle East.


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"Israel...seen as the problem"

The Anti-Defamation League, known for defending Israel's interests in the United States by raising antisemitism awareness, attacked General David Petraeus earlier this week. Out of all the statements to come out of Israel's attempt to bully the U.S., this action shocked me the most.


*NOTE- As with most counter-arguements devoid of any fact or intellectual merit, to avoid the "hate card" I will say up front that I am not antisemitic. I simply do not place the security of any nation before the security and welfare of my own.

You can read the full statement here.

Gen. Petraeus has simply erred in linking the challenges faced by the U.S. and coalition forces in the region to a solution of the Israeli-Arab conflict, and blaming extremist activities on the absence of peace and the perceived U.S. favoritism for Israel.  This linkage is dangerous and counterproductive.

Whenever the Israeli-Arab conflict is made a focal point, Israel comes to be seen as the problem.  If only Israel would stop settlements, if only Israel would talk with Hamas, if only Israel would make concessions on refugees, if only it would share Jerusalem, everything in the region would then fall into line.

This is propaganda in its purest form; truth twisted to advance a political agenda. There are only four sentences in which I quoted so I will address each individual one.

Gen. Petraeus has simply erred in linking the challenges faced by the U.S. and coalition forces in the region to a solution of the Israeli-Arab conflict, and blaming extremist activities on the absence of peace and the perceived U.S. favoritism for Israel.

I would like the ADL to identify an insurgent or terrorist group that does not link the challenges faced by the U.S. forces to perceived U.S.

This linkage is dangerous and counterproductive.

This linkage is dangerous and counterproductive for Israel. Unfortunately, it is rooted in more fact that this statement.

Whenever the Israeli-Arab conflict is made a focal point, Israel comes to be seen as the problem.

Suffocating a man in the hotel of a foreign country using a falsified passport of an individual belonging to a supposed "ally" will add to this perspective.

If only Israel would stop settlements, if only Israel would talk with Hamas, if only Israel would make concessions on refugees, if only it would share Jerusalem, everything in the region would then fall into line.

These are three requests being asked by nearly every nation in the world, all rejected by Israel.


In order to better understand our takfiri enemy, we need to understand the messages that resonate with a moderate audience. It it their solutions that are extreme, not always the perspectives. The last word goes to al Qaeda as they demonstrate on video how they manipulate American policies to remain a relevant opposition terrorist group.

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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March 15th Morning Readbook

US-Israel ties at risk? 




A week on, Maliki pulls ahead in Iraq race
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki pulled ahead on Sunday in early results of an election Iraqis hoped would end years of sectarian strife, but a divided vote suggested long and fraught talks to form a government are ahead.


Iraq's Nouri al-Maliki already wooing allies to try to form governing coalition
Buoyed by preliminary results from last week's parliamentary elections, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is courting allies in hopes of forming a new governing coalition that will allow him to keep his job.


Car bomb in Iraq's Falluja kills 7, wounds 20: police
A car bomb in Iraq's western Anbar province killed seven civilians and wounded 20 others on Monday, as Iraq struggles to end years of sectarian violence after a pivotal national vote.


A Tale of Two Taliban Reveals U.S. Afghan Dilemma
Abdullah Ghulam Rasoul and Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef were both held by the U.S. at Guantanamo. Both were senior Taliban commanders, and both say they were subjected to solitary confinement, sleep deprivation, countless interrogations and beatings. But when they were released back home in their native Afghanistan, the two men's paths diverged radically.


Pakistan intelligence calls for Afghan border to be closed
Pakistan's intelligence agency has demanded tighter control of the Afghan border by Nato troops to stop Taliban fighters escaping its operations in the North West Frontier.


Yemen air raid kills two Al-Qaeda leaders: official
A Yemeni air raid against a "terrorist cell" in the southeast of the country has killed two senior Al-Qaeda members, the defence ministry said early Monday.


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February 1st Morning Readbook

The Pakistani army said Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010 it was investigating reports that Mehsud died from injuries sustained in a U.S. drone missile strike in mid-January. (AP Photo/Ishtiaq Mehsud, File)


Pakistani troops kill 15 Taliban in Bajaur clashes
Pakistani forces backed by helicopter gunships have killed 15 Taliban in clashes that erupted after militants attacked a military post and convoy in the northwest of the country, an official said on Monday.


Pakistani Taliban Leader Is Reported Dead
Pakistani and American officials said Sunday that they were increasingly convinced that the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud, Pakistan’s chief domestic enemy and the man behind the suicide attack on a C.I.A. base in Afghanistan in December, had died from wounds sustained in a drone strike.


Karzai urges Taliban talks before U.S. pullout
Taliban fighters should drop their demand that U.S. and NATO forces withdraw from Afghanistan before peace talks can be held, President Hamid Karzai said on Sunday, saying talks would make it easier for troops to leave.


Afghanistan's hospitals ravaged by constant war




Afghan, Iraq wars shape Pentagon budget, US strategy
The Obama administration plans to unveil a defense budget on Monday that pours billions into drones, helicopters and special forces, reflecting a focus on fighting Islamist extremists rather than conventional armies.


Incremental Steps in Iraq to Let Kurdistan Oil Flow
The semiautonomous region of Kurdistan is the one place in battered Iraq that promised economic boom times, but some of the foreign oil companies that rushed in over the past few years are becoming increasingly restless.


Yemen Seems to Reject Cease-Fire With Rebels
Yemen on Sunday appeared to reject a cease-fire offer from the leader of the Houthi rebels, raising fresh questions about a festering conflict that has diluted the government’s ability to deal with a growing insurgency by Al Qaeda.


Dubai police say Mossad may have killed Hamas chief
Dubai's police chief said Sunday that Israel's spy agency, Mossad, could be behind the murder of a top Hamas leader in a Dubai hotel room.


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