National Security | News-Opinion
TOP NEWS: Nat’l Security / Foreign Affairs: September 26th, 2012
- Obama warns Iran on nuclear bid
- Will Obama Free the Blind Sheik?
- Training Afghan Allies, With Guard Firmly Up
- Qaeda Operatives Killed in Drone Strike, Official Says
- 3 Found Guilty of Aiding Libya’s Nuclear Weapons Program
Excerpts and more top news and analysis
GENERAL ASSEMBLY: Obama warns Iran on nuclear bid – AJE
US President addresses UN General Assembly in New York, vowing to “do what we must” to stop Tehran acquiring nukes.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY: U.N. Leader Opens General Assembly on Somber Note -NYT
The secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, said conflicts roiling the Middle East were a major concern.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY/MIDDLE EAST: Obama talks tough on Mideast extremism – FT
The president mixed tough words about Iran’s nuclear programme with an appeal for governments in the Middle East to stand up to extremists
GENERAL ASSEMBLY/MIDDLE EAST: Obama Tells U.N. New Democracies Need Free Speech – NYT
President Obama used his last major address on a global stage before the November election to deliver a defense of freedom of speech, challenging fledgling democracies to ensure that right. Obama’s Speech: Text | Video
GENERAL ASSEMBLY/SYRIA: Ban: Syria ‘calamity’ threat to world peace – AJE
UN General Assembly opens in New York, as unrest across Middle East is set to dominate discussion at the summit.
*MORE GENERAL ASSEMBLY NEWS BELOW
MIDDLE EAST: Will Obama Free the Blind Sheik? – RCP
Are senior Obama administration officials considering transferring to Egypt a poisonously influential Islamist cleric serving a life term in federal prison for trying to unleash a war of urban terrorism in the United States?
MIDDLE EAST: Critics Are Wrong About “Muslim Rage” – NEW YORKER, OPINION
STEVE COLL: …The notion that a generalized Muslim anger about Western ideas could explain violence or politics from Indonesia to Bangladesh, from Iran to Senegal, seemed deficient.
MIDDLE EAST: Protests Are as Mindless as Anti-Islam Film – BROOKINGS, OPINION
To say that I am upset by the copycat violent protests spreading around the Arab and Muslim world would be an understatement. I want to protest against the protesters.
EGYPT/MIDDLE EAST: Anti-American Sentiment in Egypt and the New Post-Arab Spring Reality – BROOKINGS
Egypt and the U.S. have had a decades-long alliance, but Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi says America now needs to change its approach to Egypt and the Arab world.
MIDDLE EAST/WORLD EDUCATION: A plea to protect schools in conflict zones – FT, OPINION
MOZA BINT NASSER: Education has come under attack – not just in Syria but worldwide from Afghanistan to Ivory Coast, Gaza to South Sudan.
AFGHANISTAN: Training Afghan Allies, With Guard Firmly Up – NYT
MATTHEW ROSENBERG: After recent attacks by Afghan forces against Western soldiers and Marines, American military advisers are extremely wary, laying bare the challenge of preparing the Afghans to fight on their own.
AFGHANISTAN: The Afghan Surge Is Over – By Rajiv Chandrasekaran – FP
RAJIV CHANDRASEKARAN: The U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan ended last week. You’d be forgiven if you didn’t notice. There was no proclamation of success from the White House, no fanfare at the Pentagon, no public expression of gratitude from Afghan President Hamid Karzai….So did it work?
AFGHANISTAN: The Real Pivot – By David Barno - FP, OPINION
It’s time to change our plans in Afghanistan.
AFGHANISTAN: Pakistani Papers Banned by Afghanistan in East -NYT
ROD NORDLAND and DECLAN WALSH: The Afghan Interior Ministry said the publications, in English, Pashto and Urdu, were “functioning as mouthpieces and propaganda tools for the Taliban.”
PAKISTAN: Qaeda Operatives Killed in Drone Strike, Official Says – NYT
ISMAIL KHAN and SCOTT SHANE: The strike, by a United States drone in Pakistan’s North Waziristan region, killed five people, including the two militants, a Pakistani official said.
PAKISTAN: Report Cites High Civilian Toll in Pakistan Drone Strikes – NYT
The report urges the United States to “conduct a fundamental re-evaluation of current targeted killing practices” in Pakistan including “short- and long-term costs and benefits.”
SWITZERLAND/LIBYA: 3 Found Guilty of Aiding Libya’s Nuclear Weapons Program – NYT
The men were found guilty on Tuesday of helping supply material and know-how to Libya’s atomic weapons program almost a decade ago.
LIBYA: As Libya Presses Some Militias to Disband, Fighters Attack a Hotel in Tripoli - NYT
DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK: The attack on a hotel housing newly elected lawmakers came as an American team arrived in Tripoli to investigate the death of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens.
LIBYA: Libya appoints army to control militia groups – AJE
President orders that all militias either join armed forces or be disbanded, amid public anger over death of US envoy.
SYRIA: Bombing at Damascus School Used by Syrian Security Forces – NYT
Several bombs went off Tuesday inside a school in the Syrian capital that activists say was being used by regime forces as a security headquarters.
SYRIA: Press TV correspondent killed in Damascus - AJE
Maya Nasser shot by “insurgents” while reporting on large blasts at the Syrian army’s headquarters, network says.
SYRIA: Blasts Hit Military Headquarters in Syria’s Capital - NYT
KAREEM FAHIM and ALAN COWELL: At least two explosions in central Damascus on Wednesday were followed by gunfire that left an Iranian television correspondent dead, his station reported.
SYRIA: West still cautious in support for Syria rebels – FT
Diplomats and analysts say a continuing and perhaps wider civil war is likely unless the regime’s collapse is precipitated by other surprise attacks
IRAN-ISRAEL: How to Save the Regime in Tehran – FP
Shirin Ebadi, Iran’s leading human rights activist, explains why on attack on the country’s nuclear program is just what the mullahs have been yearning for.
ISRAEL: Stop Blaming Bibi FP, OPINION
AARON DAVID MILLER: Benjamin Netanyahu is not the reason there is no Middle East peace.
IRAN: Iran Reveals More About What It Calls Foreign Sabotage - NYT
An announcement by the Intelligence Ministry did not specify the intended targets, but said they included nuclear, defense, industrial and telecommunications installations.
PALESTINE: Hamas at a Crossroads – CNN, OPINION
NATHAN THRALL: Hamas never has faced such major challenges and opportunities as those presented by the Arab uprisings.
JAPAN/CHINA: Near Disputed Islands, Japan Confronts Boats From Taiwan -NYT
The Coast Guard used water cannons Tuesday to disperse fishing boats from Taiwan in waters claimed by Tokyo, widening a territorial dispute that has already pitted Japan against China.
JAPAN: Olympus and Ex-Executives Plead Guilty in Accounting Fraud - NYT
The Japanese camera and medical equipment maker Olympus Corporation and three of its former executives pleaded guilty on Tuesday over charges related to a $1.7 billion accounting cover-up in one of Japan’s biggest corporate scandals.
CHINA/AI WEIWEI: Chinese Dissident Artist Says the Authorities Still Have His Passport -NYT
Without his passport, Ai Weiwei cannot travel to the United States next month for artistic events or start a job as a visiting professor in Germany.
CHINA: China commissions first aircraft carrier - AJE
Refurbished Soviet ship seen as symbolic tour de force amid tensions with neighbouring Japan over disputed islands.
SPAIN: Protesters clash with police in Spain – AJE
Enraged by austerity cutbacks and tax hikes, Spaniards call for fresh elections, claiming that ruling party misled them.
SPAIN: Protesters Take to Street in Madrid -NYT
Thousands besieged Parliament as Spain’s two largest regions posed challenges to the country’s leadership.
SPAIN: IHT Rendezvous: In Spain, It’s Not Just the Economy – NYT
Spain’s financial crisis has spurred discontent in Catalonia and other autonomous regions, prompting concerns for the unity of the Spanish state.
GREECE: Anti-Austerity Protests Erupt in Greece - NYT
Widespread protests erupted across Greece on Wednesday after trade unions called a nationwide strike to contest new salary and pension cuts being discussed by the government.
U.K.: Former Murdoch Aides Appear in Court – NYT
Two of the most senior former executives at newspapers owned by Rupert Murdoch, both close at one time to Prime Minister David Cameron, were set to appear in court on Wednesday.
U.K./AFRICA/: Report urges investigation of Trafigura – AJE
Rights group’s call on UK government to look into the alleged role of multinational company in dumping of toxic waste.
EUROZONE: ECB to face biggest test on euro gambit - FT
Central bank is keeping quiet on how far it will go if it starts buying a country’s bonds under the plan put forward by Mario Draghi
GERMANY/EUROZONE: Why exit is an option for Germany – FT, OPINION
MARTIN WOLF: After another reminder that the eurozone is set to be a miserable marriage, a separation, though disruptive, might be better.
SOMALIA: Kenyan fighter jets bomb Somali city – AJE
Aircraft target airport in southern city of Kismayo, where Kenya says al-Shabab is operating its last major base.
BRAZIL/ANTI-ISLAM VIDEO: Brazil moves against Google over videos – AJE
Court asks YouTube to remove anti-Islam clip while Google executive is arrested for failing to remove another video.
MORE GENERAL ASSEMBLY NEWS & ANALYSIS:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY/SYRIA: Qatari emir: Arabs must intervene in Syria - AJE
Sheikh Hamad says Security Council has failed, hours before twin bombings strike army headquarters in Damascus.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY/CHINA/JAPAN: China accuses Japan of ‘severe infringement’ - AJE
Both countries reiterate their claim to East China Sea islands in meeting on sidelines of UN General Assembly.
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