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U.S. Intensifies Airport Security In 14 Nations (New York Times)
Citizens of 14 nations, including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Nigeria, who are flying to the United States will be subjected indefinitely to the intense screening at airports worldwide that was imposed after the Christmas Day bombing plot, Obama administration officials announced Sunday.
But American citizens, and most others who are not flying through those 14 nations [...]
Cheering Crowds In Times Square Celebrate 2010 (New York Times)
Hundreds of thousands of revelers welcomed the new year in New York City’s Times Square, despite the rain, slushy streets and heightened security, capping worldwide celebrations that often emphasized the hopes for a more peaceful tomorrow.
The poor weather and tight security could not dampen the otherwise festive mood in midtown Manhattan, where the cast of [...]
U.S. Sends Emergency Aid To Pakistan
The United States is rushing emergency aid to Pakistan — an initial $5 million — to help people uprooted by the fighting against extremists, according to the State Department.
The United States urged the Pakistanis to launch the military action that in recent days drove hundreds of thousands of people from their villages.
Meanwhile, the Senate Foreign [...]
Taliban Invasion Is About Power, Not Islam In Pakistan
When black-turbaned Taliban fighters demanded in January that Islamic sharia law be imposed in Pakistan’s Swat Valley, few alarm bells went off in this Muslim nation of about 170 million.
Sharia, after all, is the legal framework that guides the lives of all Muslims.
Officials said people in Swat were fed up with the slow and corrupt [...]
Taliban Advances Toward Pakistan Capital Islamabad
Pushing deeper into Pakistan, Taliban militants have established effective control of a strategically important district just 70 miles from the capital, Islamabad, officials and residents said Wednesday.
The fall of the district, Buner, did not mean that the Taliban could imminently threaten Islamabad. But it was another indication of the gathering strength of the insurgency and [...]
Taliban Expand Pakistan Operations Despite Promise To Withdraw
The Taliban takeover of the district of Buner in Pakistan’s insurgency-plagued Northwest Frontier Province has accelerated as forces are fanning out through the region unopposed.
Security forces and the tribal lashkars, or militias, have not resisted the Taliban advance. “They have taken control of vast areas in Buner,” a witness told Dawn “They are freely moving [...]
Obama Wants Another $83 billion for Iraq, Afghanistan
The Obama administration will ask Congress for another $83.4 billion to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through the end of September, Democratic congressional sources said Thursday.
The request is expected to pay for those conflicts for the rest of the 2009 budget year, two Democratic congressional sources said.
The money would bring the running tab [...]
Obama Brings Afghan Plan to NATO Allies – Finds Little Support
NATO leaders have been reluctant to commit significant new military forces to the deadlocked conflict despite Obama’s plan to add 21,000 U.S. troops to the force of 38,000 fighting the rising insurgency. Europeans have been more enthusiastic about increasing humanitarian and development aid than adding soldiers.
“We totally endorse and support America’s new strategy in Afghanistan,” [...]
Taliban Courts In Pakistan Film ‘Flogging of Girl’
A video showing suspected members of the Taleban flogging a teenage girl is being circulated in Pakistan. The recording strengthens fears that the provincial government has capitulated to militants in the north-western Swat valley.
It has agreed to implement Sharia law there as part of a peace deal.The video shows men who appear to be from [...]
Petraeus Says Afghan-Pakistan Situation Bleak; More Troops May Be Needed
The situation in Pakistan and Afghanistan is “increasingly dire,” top defense officials told Congress Wednesday, and they said that President Barack Obama may have to send another 10,000 troops beyond the 21,500 he’s announced since taking office.
Michele Flournoy , the undersecretary of defense for policy, said the administration hasn’t yet developed benchmarks to measure progress, [...]
