A newly declassified report from the 9-11 Commission–released five months late and heavily censored, with several passges blotted out by thick black ink lines–reviews Federal Aviation Administration daily intelligence briefings to airport administrators in the months leading up to the… Read more9-11 Commish FAA revelations: more fodder for conspiranoia mill
The current White House drive for intervention against Iran may actually have more to do with strategic control of oil and gas resources than Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. Pakistan’s Daily Times reports Feb. 11 that at the Third Asia Gas Buyers’… Read morePipeline politics behind Iran intervention drive?
At a massive Tehran rally marking Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution Feb. 10, President Mohammad Khatami pledged that no Iranian government would abandon the country’s program to devlop peaceful nuclear technology. (AP, Feb. 10) He promised a "burning hell" for any… Read morePro-nuke rally in Tehran
Now isn’t this interesting? A front-page headline in the Feb. 11 NY Times reads: "North Koreans Say They Hold Nuclear Arms; Assert They’ll Refuse to Rejoin Negotiations." The article states this stance could "bolster" those in the US administration who… Read moreNorth Korea: dialogue or “destabilization”?
The crushing of a rally for the restoration of democracy in Nepal Feb. 10 rated a tiny blurb of wire copy on page 10 of the next day’s NY Times. Meanwhile, the crisis in the Himalayan kingdom rapidly deepens. Security… Read moreNepal crisis deepens; AI sends high-level team
The BBC reported a glimmer of hope Jan. 27 from Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier Province, where Taliban-inspired movements have won local political control over the semi-autonomous Tribal Areas. Two local kids, Tariq Hussain Bacha and Zeeshan Khan (respectively 12 and 11), have… Read moreYoung music stars defy mullahs in Pakistan’s Tribal Areas
The Basque separatist group ETA reportedly claimed responsibility for a car bomb that exploded outside a Madrid convention center Feb. 9, injuring at least 40. The blast went off hours before Spain’s King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia were to… Read moreETA militants arrested after Madrid blast
A front-page story in the Feb. 10 NY Times notes that Saudi Arabia is holding its first national election that day–albeit with an "asterisk": women are barred from the vote, and even men only get to elect half the members… Read moreSaudi dissidents freed on eve of election
The first public protest for restoration of democracy in Nepal since King Gyanendra suspended civil government Feb. 1 was predictably shut down by police Feb. 10, as 12 members of the Human Rights and Peace Society were arrested upon arriving… Read morePro-democracy rally crushed in Nepal
The FBI-NYPD Joint Terrorist Task Force is investigating twin vandal attacks on Army recruiting centers in New York City–one in Manhattan’s Flatiron section, the other in the Parkchester district of the Bronx. David Seigel, 19, of Litchfield, CT, was arrested… Read moreAnarchist scare: feds probe arson attacks
Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel responded angrily to charges by US Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere Roger Noriega that his government’s new arms deal with Russia is intended for trafficking to Colombian guerillas. "Venezuela is a… Read moreVenezuela defends Russian arms purchases
With most of the international community condemnding King Gyanendra’s suspension of civil government and democratic rights in Nepal, Pakistan’s embassy in Kathmandu released a statement of support for the king, saying "Pakistan and Nepal share the objectives of combatting terrorism… Read morePakistan supports Nepal emergency powers
