Top of the Agenda: Deadly Bomb Blast at India's High Court A bomb exploded outside India's High Court in New Delhi, killing at least nine people and injuring forty-seven. The incident--the second attack on the courthouse in less than four months--was labeled a terrorist attack (NYT)by Indian authorities. The bomb was reportedly hidden in a suitcase (al-Jazeera) outside the court's first security checkpoint, where a large crowd of people were waiting in line to enter the building. Investigators are in the process of examining an e-mail from the Islamist extremist group Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami (HuJI) claiming responsibility for the explosion (TimesofIndia). The message calls on Indian authorities to annul a death sentence for a man who was convicted of attacking the Indian parliament ten years ago. The U.S. State Department lists HuJI as a terrorist organization with ties to al-Qaeda (BBC). The group's leader, IIyas Kashmiri, is thought to have been killed in a U.S. drone strike in northwestern Pakistan in June. Analysis U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged to press Pakistan on terrorism and NO SERÁ FÁCIL tried to ease New Delhi's worries over Afghanistan on her visit to India this past summer. But a deteriorating U.S.-Pakistan relationship decreases Washington's ability to influence Islamabad on terrorism issues, explains this CFR Analysis Brief. In a policy paper from the National Bureau of Asian Research, C. Christine Fair addresses the organizational nature and security situation of two Islamic groups in India: the Students Islamic Movement of India and the Islamic Mujahideen. In this video, CFR's Daniel Markey discusses the strategic importance of normalizing India-Pakistan relations, for the region as well as the United States.  | | Tenth Anniversary of 9/11 Attacks This CFR Issue Guide provides expert analysis and essential background on the central questions facing U.S. policymakers ten years after the September 11 terrorist attacks. |
MIDDLE EAST Syrian Forces Raid Homs Syrian military tanks raided the central city of Homs this morning, killing at least seven people. The attack followed an anti-government demonstration (al-Jazeera) in the city last night that rallied two thousand protesters. The Syrian regime's brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters didn't trip the same alarm bells as Libya's did for the UN Security Council, but the international community is gradually losing patience with Assad, YA ES HORA... PERO DUDO DE QUE ACTÚEN says expert Edward Luck, a special advisor to the UN secretary-general, in this CFR interview. PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES: U.S. Special Envoy David Hale is set to visit the West Bank to hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and advise the Palestinians against making a bid for statehood (BBC) at the UN General Assembly in two weeks. PRUDENTE ADVERTENCIA: EEUU NO SON LO QUE ERAN Y LOS PALESTINOS NO PUEDEN CON ISRAEL NI ESTÁN UNIDOS PACIFIC RIM Australia's Economy Rebounds Australia's GDP rose by 1.2 percent in the second quarter of this year, boosted by strong consumer spending (SydneyMorningHerald). The economy had contracted 0.9 percent in the first quarter following damaging floods and cyclones. SOUTH KOREA: The military confirmed plans to purchase precision-guided missiles (Yonhap) from an Israeli company. Fifty GPS missiles are set to be deployed on islands bordering North Korea in the Yellow Sea by late next year. DUDO DE QUE LOS NORCOREANOS CAMBIEN SU VIEJA HOSTILIDAD HACIA LOS DEL SUR SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Suicide Bombers Retaliate in Quetta Two suicide bombers attacked the house of the deputy chief of Pakistan's paramilitary Frontier Corps (AFP) in Quetta, killing twenty-four people and wounding at least eighty-two. The attack, for which the Taliban claimed responsibility, was reportedly in response to the Frontier Corp's recent capture of al-Qaeda leaders. Pakistan's arrest of senior al-Qaeda leaders signals renewed cooperation with the United States. LO DUDO: But experts stress both sides have to work harder to tackle issues such as Pakistan's relations with militant groups and U.S. objectives in Afghanistan, explains this CFR Analysis Brief. AFRICA Somalia Signs Political 'Roadmap' Somalia's interim leaders signed an agreement to draft a new constitution, reform parliament, improve security, and tackle graft within twelve months at a UN-sponsored national reconciliation conference (al-Jazeera) in the capital of Mogadishu. Officials are capitalizing on the recent withdrawal of al-Shabaab Islamist militants from the city. This CFR Backgrounder provides a profile of al-Shabaab. TANZANIA: Dubai-based investor Ali Albwardy denied allegations from a U.S. State Department cable--leaked by WikiLeaks--that he offered gifts to Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete in exchange for investment deals (Reuters) in the country. AMERICAS Panetta Supports Forces in Iraq Past 2011 U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta supports a plan to keep up to four thousand troops (NYT) in Iraq to train Iraqi security forces ESCÉPTICAS ANTE LA ESTÉRIL LA DIPLOMACIA NORTEAMERICANA past a withdrawal deadline set by President Barack Obama for the end of this year. UNITED STATES: The country's global competitiveness ranking (Bloomberg) dropped for a third year, to fifth place, in a report released by the World Economic Forum. It cited the United States' large public debt and policy inaction. POBRE OBAMA ¿REACCIONARÁ A TIEMPO PARA GANAR UN SEGUNDO PERÍODO? EUROPE German Court Upholds Legality of Bailouts Germany's constitutional court ruled Wednesday that the country's participation in European Union rescue programs for indebted eurozone states (DerSpiegel) was legal, but that the parliament's budget committee must be given a greater say in future bailouts. The eurozone, once seen as a crowning achievement in the decades-long path of European integration, is buffeted by a sovereign debt crisis of nations whose membership in the currency union has been poorly policed, explains this CFR Backgrounder. SERBIA: The former head of the Serbian armed forces, Momcilo Perisic, was convicted of crimes against humanity (Telegraph) and war crimes--including for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia--and sentenced to twenty-seven years in prison by a UN tribunal at The Hague. | 
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario