Iraqis Line Up to Put Hussein in the Noose

One of the most coveted jobs in Iraq does not yet exist: the executioner for Saddam Hussein. The death sentence against Mr. Hussein is still under review by an appeals court, but hundreds of people have already started lobbying the prime minister’s office for the position….(New York Times, 9 Dec 06)

Somalia: Islamic Courts leader acquitted of terror

A judge in northern Somalia convicted nine people Saturday of crimes linked to plotting terrorist attacks against the breakaway republic of Somaliland, but acquitted the Islamic Courts' top leader and one other…(AP, Jerusalem Post, 9 Dec 06)

China, Shy Giant, Shows Signs of Shedding Its False Modesty

…With its $1 trillion in foreign exchange reserves, surging military spending and diplomatic initiatives in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Beijing has begun asserting its interests far beyond its borders. Chinese party leaders are acting as if they intend to start exercising more power abroad rather than just protecting their political power at home….(New York Times, 9 Dec 06)

Taliban gunmen kill 5 family members in attack on teachers in Afghanistan

Following up on a death threat, Taliban militants broke into a house and fatally shot two teachers and three family members, bringing to 20 the number of educators slain in attacks this year, officials and a relative said Saturday….(AP, 9 Dec 06)

Malaysia issuing biometric cards to track foreigners; part of anti-terror measures

…Next year, the immigration department will start issuing all foreigners residing in Malaysia hard-to-copy biometric identification cards, Home Affairs Minister Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said. Biometric documentation uses technologies that identify a pe person's unique physical characteristics such as fingerprints, retinas or facial patterns, for identification….(AP, 8 Dec 06)

Canada turns away former terrorist

Walid Shoebat, the former PLO terrorist and member of the Muslim Brotherhood who now warns the free world of the impending threat from Islamic terrorism, has been denied entry into Canada for a speaking engagement at a Simon Wiesenthal Center. …(World Net Daily, 8 Dec 06)

U.S. Prosecutors Move to Block Padilla's Questioning of Pentagon

Federal prosecutors asked a judge Thursday to prevent Jose Padilla's defense attorneys from questioning Defense Department officials or obtaining documents about his treatment during 3 1/2 years in military custody as an "enemy combatant."….(AP, 8 Dec 06)

Hussein trial testimony focuses on Iraqi Kurds

…With Hussein already sentenced to hang for the deaths — in the wake of a 1982 assassination attempt against him — of 148 Shiite Muslim men and boys from the village of Dujayl, and with horrific violence an everyday occurrence in Baghdad and beyond, Iraq is largely ignoring the former president's current trial over a 1980s military campaign against ethnic Kurds in which chemical weapons are said to have been used…(LA Times, 8 Dec 06)

Lebanese opposition puts on show of Muslim unity

…The Hezbollah-led opposition has besieged government headquarters for the past week to try to topple the Western-backed cabinet of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Shi'ite Hezbollah is the most powerful force in the opposition while Siniora and his main backer, parliamentary majority leader Saad al-Hariri, are both Sunnis….(Reuters, 8 Dec 06)

Are Saudis funding Iraq terror?

Private Saudi citizens are giving millions of dollars to Sunni insurgents in Iraq and much of the money is used to buy weapons, according to Iraqi officials and others. The U.S. Iraq Study Group report said Saudis are a source of funding for Sunni Arab insurgents. Several truck drivers interviewed by reporters described carrying boxes of cash from Saudi Arabia into Iraq, money they said was headed for insurgents. Two high-ranking Iraqi officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said most of the Saudi money comes from private donations, called zaqat, collected for Islamic causes. …(AP, 8 Dec 06)

French-Algerian Scholar Dr. Kamal Nait-Zerrad: 'After Christianity and the Inquisition… Today It Is the Muslims Who Have Taken Center Stage'

Dr. Kamal Nait-Zerrad is a professor of Berber language, literature, and civilization at the French National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations; in addition, he holds a Ph.D. in micro-optoelectronics….(MEMRI, 8 Dec 06)

Hezbollah chief 'plotting coup'

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has accused the leader of the Hezbollah militant movement of plotting a coup. He pointed to comments by Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah that the opposition would form an interim government without the existing administration.  Mr. Siniora said these were tantamount to a plot to overthrow the government….(BBC, 8 Dec 06)

Hamas Spokesman Praises Palestinian Grandmother Suicide Bomber, Calls for Suicide Attacks in Heart of Israel

In its November 27, 2006 issue, the Hamas biweekly Al-Risala published an article by Hamas spokesman 'Abd Al-Latif Al-Qanu' praising Fatima Al-Najjar, the Palestinian grandmother who blew herself up on November 23, 2006 near Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip…(MEMRI, 8 Dec 06)

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 32

…(MEMRI, 8 Dec 06)

Saudi warns of Mideast arms race

…"The fact that Israel has nuclear weapons is the most dangerous threat against Gulf security," Intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz told a security conference in Bahrain. "Consequently some countries in the region took part in the competition for ... nuclear weapons as this is currently witnessed,"…(Reuters, 8 Dec 06)

Pakistan Wants Proof From U.K. About Agency's Al-Qaeda Claims

Pakistan's government wants proof that al-Qaeda operatives are planning terror attacks from the South Asian nation after the head of the U.K.'s intelligence agency said it's a center for extremists….(Bloomberg, 8 Dec 06)

Egypt Expels 2 Belgian, 8 French Suspected Terrorists

Authorities expelled two Belgian and eight French suspected terrorists Thursday, but an American and another French citizen remained in Egyptian custody, officials said. The 12, along with an unknown number of Egyptians and Arabs from other countries, were arrested late last month for allegedly belonging to an Islamic terror cell plotting attacks….(AP, 8 Dec 06)

British, Danish Forces Detain 5 Iraqis

More than 1,000 British and Danish troops stormed five houses Friday in southern Iraq, using ground forces, boats, helicopters and jets in a raid that detained five Iraqis and confiscated a large cache of weapons, a spokesman said…(AP, 8 Dec 06)

Iraqis Say U.S. Raid Killed 32, Including 6 Children

Iraqi police and local officials said at least six children and eight women were among 32 people killed in a U.S. air strike on Friday which the U.S. military said killed 20 al Qaeda militants, including two women….(Reuters, 8 Dec 06)

Uneasy Havens Await Those Who Flee Iraq

… As they leave Iraq at a rate of nearly 3,000 a day, the refugees are threatening the social and economic fabric of both Jordan and Syria. In Jordan, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis are trying to blend into a country of only 6 million inhabitants, including about 1.5 million registered Palestinian refugees….(New York Times, 8 Dec 06)

Time out from a siege

In the years following their ouster in 2001, the Taliban waged a low-intensity war against foreign forces in Afghanistan, characterized by uncoordinated, sporadic attacks in which the Taliban suffered large losses….(Asia Times, 8 Dec 06)

Don’t Count on Iran to Pick Up the Pieces

As anticipated, the Iraq Study Group has recommended that the United States begin talks with Iran to solicit its assistance in stabilizing Iraq….(New York Times, 8 Dec 06)

U.S. Treasury names five alleged terrorist helpers

The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday designated five individuals for providing financial support to al Qaeda and other terror groups and for facilitating "terrorist" activity...Treasury released the following names:Najmuddin Faraj Ahmad: date of birth July 7, 1956, citizenship Iraq, address Oslo, Norway. Hamid Al-Ali: date of birth January 20, 1960, citizenship Kuwait. Jaber Al-Jalamah: date of birth September 24, 1959, nationality Kuwaiti. Mubarak Mushakhas Sanad Al-Bathali: date of birth October 1, 1961, citizenship Kuwait. Mohamed Moumou: date of birth July 30, 1965, citizenship Morocco and Sweden, address Sweden (various cities), London….(Reuters, 8 Dec 06)

Diversity of Opinion on Imams' Dispute With Airline

For years, the Minneapolis-St. Paul area has been known for its liberalism and tolerance, especially when it comes to religion. Many Muslims, including the largest population of Somalis outside of Mogadishu, make their home in the Twin Cities. The area just elected the nation's first Muslim congressman, Keith Ellison….(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

U.S.-Bound Cargo to Be Screened at Six Ports

U.S.-bound cargo will be scanned for nuclear and radiological material at six foreign ports starting in February under a pact with host governments announced by U.S. officials yesterday, including a port operated by an Arab-owned company that ignited a political storm in Congress…..(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

London court hearing scheduled over alleged terror plot

Fifteen suspects charged over an alleged plot to bomb U.S.-bound airliners with improvised explosives were scheduled to face a court Friday, prosecution officials said. Detectives rounded up the group on Aug. 9-10. over a purported plan to target trans-Atlantic air passengers…(AP, 8 Dec 06)

18 Ethnic Albanians Indicted on Terrorism Charges

Montenegro's special prosecutor for organised crime, Stojanka Radovic, on Friday indicted 18 ethnic Albanians, including five United States citizens, for planning terrorist attacks in the southern Malesia region, aimed at putting it under ethnic Albanian control….(AKI, 8 Dec 06)

Hill Accord Reached on Nuclear Fuel for India

Lawmakers reached agreement yesterday on allowing U.S. shipments of civilian nuclear fuel to India, clearing the way for overturning decades of American anti-proliferation policy….(AP, 8 Dec 06)

Intelligence Agencies 'Must Do Better'
The U.S. intelligence community has failed to provide policymakers with a clear understanding of the Iraq insurgency, the role of militias or the level of violence in that country, according to the Iraq Study Group….(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

It's still about oil in Iraq

…Page 1, Chapter 1 of the Iraq Study Group report lays out Iraq's importance to its region, the U.S. and the world with this reminder: "It has the world's second-largest known oil reserves." The group then proceeds to give very specific and radical recommendations as to what the United States should do to secure those reserves…(LA Times, 8 Dec 06)

Bush Backs Away From 2 Key Ideas of Panel on Iraq

President Bush moved quickly to distance himself on Thursday from the central recommendations of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, even as the panel’s co-chairmen opened an intensive lobbying effort on Capitol Hill to press Mr. Bush to adopt their report wholesale…(New York Times, 8 Dec 06)

Bush Appears Cool to Key Points Of Report on Iraq

President Bush vowed yesterday to come up with "a new strategy" in Iraq but expressed little enthusiasm for the central ideas of a bipartisan commission that advised him to ratchet back the U.S. military commitment in Iraq and launch an aggressive new diplomatic effort in the region….(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

Ex-Detainees Seek to Sue U.S. Officials
In a federal courtroom today, nine former prisoners at U.S. military prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan will seek through an unusual lawsuit to hold outgoing Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and top military commanders personally responsible for the torture they say they endured….(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

Guantanamo Detainees Going to New Prison

The U.S. military transferred the first group of detainees on Thursday to a new maximum-security prison at Guantanamo Bay designed to restrict contact among the prisoners and prevent attacks on guards….(AP, 8 Dec 06)

Costly Fleet Update Falters
A multibillion-dollar effort to modernize the Coast Guard's fleet has suffered delays, cost increases, design flaws and, most recently, the idling of eight 123-foot patrol boats that were found to be not seaworthy after an $88 million refurbishment….(Washington Post, 8 Dec 06)

The US counter-terror nerve centre

…After months of requests, he has granted us permission to visit one of America's newest and most secret establishments: the National Counterterrorism Center, the NCTC.  It is a nondescript building, but inside is the beating heart of America's counter-terrorism nerve centre.…(BBC, 7 Dec 06)

Turks Join the Jihad in Iraq and Afghanistan

While it is a long held maxim that Turkey is "with" the West in the war on terrorism—especially after the 2003 Istanbul bombings—the invasion of Iraq has made anti-Americanism vogue in Turkey. Some Turks believe that Jews blew up the World Trade Center and that the United States has secret plans to invade Turkey in order to create a Kurdistan on its territory.….(Global Terrorism Analyst, 7 Dec 06)

Jihadi Forum Outlines Use of Poisons for Terrorist Attacks

…One recent post on a jihadi website outlined a user's attempts at mixing chemical components to create deadly substances for terrorist purposes. The post, titled "The War of Poisons," was authored by a user with the pseudonym "Wajeh al-Qamar," who explained how to use different poisons against Americans in order to push them out of the Arabian Peninsula.….(Global Terrorism Analyst, 7 Dec 06)

Kenyan Muslims Deny Registering Young Muslims for Jihad
Kenyan Muslim heads have refuted that registration of young people going to take part in Somalia's jihad war against foreign troops in the country was going on. Al-Haji Yusuf Morigow, a senior head for Kenyan Muslims, said there were no recruiting operations of Kenyan young Muslims in Kenya, calling the claim false and baseless….(All Africa, 7 Dec 06)

Russia maintains contacts with Hamas, Hezbollah

Russia, one of the Quartet countries mediating the Middle East conflict, has consistently taken a softer line than Western powers on the Islamic group Hamas, which leads the Palestinian government, and Lebanon-based Islamic militant group Hezbollah, both of which are considered terrorist organizations by Israel and most Western countries…(RIA Novosti, 7 Dec 06)

The Kurdish Security Network in Northern Iraq

In spite of escalating violence in Iraq, the very region that served as the gateway for al-Qaeda in Iraq is now one of the most secure areas in the country.….(Global Terrorism Analyst, 7 Dec 06)

Accusations Fly After the Pierre Gemayel Assassination

In the aftermath of the war with Israel, Hezbollah and its allies (the Shiite Amal Party and Christian leader General Michel Aoun) are struggling to depose the Lebanese government of Sunni Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and his March 14 coalition of anti-Syrian Sunni, Druze and Maronite politicians.….(Global Terrorism Analyst, 7 Dec 06)

Germany pledges extra €5 million to train Afghan police

Germany will provide an additional €5 million (US$6.7 million) to fund the training of Afghanistan's much-maligned police force, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday….(AP, 7 Dec 06)

‘AQ Khan did not act alone’

The AQ Khan network could not have carried out its activities “without the awareness of the Pakistani government,” the Swedish Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission said in a report….(Daily Times, 7 Dec 06)

The Realists' Repudiation Of Policies for a War, Region

…The report urges direct talks with Iran and Syria, both of which the administration has largely shunned. It also calls for placing new emphasis on resolving the Israel-Arab conflict, including pressing Israel to reach a peace deal with Syria, on the grounds that the issue shapes regional attitudes about U.S. involvement in Iraq….(Washington Post, 7 Dec 06)

Panel Urges Basic Shift in U.S. Policy in Iraq

A bipartisan commission warned Wednesday that “the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating,” and it handed President Bush both a rebuke for his current strategy and a detailed blueprint for a fundamentally different approach, including the pullback of all American combat brigades over the next 15 months….(New York Times, 7 Dec 06)

Iran, Syria wary of proposed U.S. diplomacy on Iraq

Top Syrian officials said they were ready to consider a regional diplomatic push on Iraq, but Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters on a visit to the Netherlands that a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq was necessary before any diplomacy could be considered…..(Washington Times, 7 Dec 06)

Iraq Panel Concerned Over Al-Sadr's Army

The Iraq Study Group's grim report embraces the most worrisome estimates about Muqtada al-Sadr's private army: He has up to 60,000 fighters, and his followers are planted throughout the security forces protecting the Health Ministry and other Iraqi government institutions….(AP, 7 Dec 06)

Threats Wrapped in Misunderstandings

The Iraq Study Group's prescriptions hinge on a fragile Iraqi government's ability to achieve national reconciliation and security at a time when the country is fractured along sectarian lines, its security forces are ineffective and competing visions threaten to collapse the state, Iraqi politicians and analysts said Wednesday….(Washington Post, 7 Dec 06)

Jordanian Court Convicts 4 of Terrorism

A Jordanian military court convicted three Syrians and one Iraqi Thursday and sentenced them to death for firing rockets at two U.S. warships in August 2005. One of the Syrians, Mohammed Hassan Abdullah al-Sihly, is in police custody, but the other two Syrians, Abdul-Rahman al-Sihly and Abdullah al-Sihly, and the Iraqi, Amar al-Samera'i, remain at large and were tried in absentia….(AP, 7 Dec 06)

Hicks lawyers seek to force Australia to negotiate for Guantanamo release

Australia's Federal Court has agreed to hold a hearing next week to consider a petition [docket materials] filed Wednesday by lawyers for Australian Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks. Hicks' lawyers have asked the court to direct the federal government, including Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to negotiate Hicks' release from the US military facility…(Jurist, 7 Dec 06)

Gunbattle Kills 2 Guards in Saudi Arabia

Armed men shot and killed two guards Thursday outside a prison in the western city of Jiddah before taking cover in a residential building where they were surrounded by Saudi security forces, state-run media reported….(AP, 7 Dec 06)

Man accused in Taliban arrest ordered held without bail

A Houston man was ordered held without bail today after federal prosecutors told a judge the man had been privy to conversations about possible terrorist acts and had not notified authorities. U.S. Magistrate Judge Frances Stacy agreed with prosecutors that Shiraz Qazi, the cousin of a man who prosecutors say is an aspiring Taliban fighter, would be a risk to flee if he were granted bail….(Houston Chronicle, 7 Dec 06)

NATO Convoy Bombed in South Afghanistan

A suicide car bomber attacked a NATO convoy Thursday in southern Afghanistan, killing and wounding Afghan civilians in the seventh suicide attack in the area in less than two weeks…(AP, 7 Dec 06)

Sri Lanka Says Rebels Shell School, Wound Students

Tamil Tiger artillery fire hit a school and its surroundings in northeast Sri Lanka on Thursday, killing three civilians including a child and wounding 10 students….(Reuters, 7 Dec 06)

Christian leader in Mosul kidnapped and killed
The man was a leader of the local Presbyterian Church. There is still no news about a Chaldean priest who was kidnapped on Monday….(Asia News, 7 Dec 06)

Peacekeeping Force For Somalia Approved
The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a resolution authorizing an East African peacekeeping force to prevent an alliance of Islamic militias from overthrowing Somalia's fragile interim government….(Washington Post, 7 Dec 06)

Germany: New Mutual Funds Comply With Islamic Law

Deutsche Bank opened five mutual funds that comply with Islamic law to tap growing demand for Islamic investment products….(Bloomberg, 7 Dec 06)

The Taliban's rules

This is the time of year that fighting traditionally tapers off in Afghanistan as winter sets in, so it's probably not too surprising that the Taliban's latest offensive is on the propaganda front. First there were videos, including one obtained by CNN that shows multiple beheadings as well as preparations for attacks and recruitment of suicide bombers…(CNN, 7 Dec 06)

Mullah: Iran's strong "political Islam" system counts
Mullah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said here Thursday that the firm status of Iran's religious political ruling system accounts for the rage and fury of its enemies…"According to the recent report released by the US, in which the name of Iran was repeated 80 times, solving Iraq's issue is inter-connected with the issue of Arabs and Palestine, while Iran and Syria should be taken into view….(Iranian, 7 Dec 06)

Peacekeepers threatened with jihad

Somalia’s Islamists today warned of wider conflict after the UN Security Council approved the deployment of a regional force to protect the country's weak Government. Radical Islamic clerics have vowed to wage a jihad, or "holy war", against any foreign troops in Somalia, including those from Ethiopia already in the country to defend the Government….(Agence France-Presse, 7 Dec 06)

What's Holding Back Arab Women?

Talk to Arab women and you'll quickly learn that the controversy over the Muslim veil that rages endlessly in Europe is the least of their concerns. They face a daunting array of hardships, from spousal domination at home to gender discrimination in the workplace, and even if they happen to agree that the veil symbolizes their plight, they tend to dismiss criticism of it as a Western attack on their culture….(Time Magazine, 7 Dec 06)

Violence 'eroding Afghan hopes'

…The poll, a joint project by ABC News in the US and the BBC World Service, surveyed 1,036 Afghans nationwide via face-to-face interviews. An equal number of men and women were interviewed….(BBC, 7 Dec 06)

Egyptian Blogger Abdelkareem Suleiman Arrested for Criticizing Al-Azhar Sheikhs: 'You Will End up in the Dustbin of History'

A Reporters Without Borders report released in early November 2006 showed Egypt to be among the 13 countries with the gravest violations of freedom of expression on the Internet….(MEMRI, 7 Dec 06)

Are Israel and Hizballah Squaring Off to Fight Again?

…Hizballah is currently seeking to topple the U.S.-backed government of Fouad Siniora in Beirut, which signed off on the U.N. resolution requiring that the movement disarm….(Time Magazine, 7 Dec 06)

Lebanon now a top al-Qaida breeding ground

We drove into Ain al-Helwe refugee camp slowly and carefully. Getting lost here can cost you your life. The Palestinian camp is one of the world's biggest al-Qaida breeding grounds, just 20 miles from the Israeli border. Foreigners are normally not allowed here, but we've received special permission from the Lebanese Army….(NBC, 6 Dec 06)

Video: Terror Camp

FBI Forensic Analysts Aid Local Cops In Terrorism, Crime Cases

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Energy's Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) on Monday announced the opening of a new laboratory and office suite for the forensic examination of radiological material and associated evidence, located at the Savannah River Site near Aiken, South Carolina. The new Radiological Evidence Analysis Lab Suite (REALS) will serve as a hub laboratory for the FBI and intelligence agencies…..(Post Chronicle, 6 Dec 06)

Panel Calls for New Approach to Iraq

A bipartisan commission warned on Wednesday that “the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating,” and handed President Bush both a rebuke of his current strategy and a detailed blueprint for a fundamentally different approach, including the pullback of all American combat brigades over the next 15 months….(New York Times, 6 Dec 06)

FBI denies woes in data-sharing computer system

The FBI says a new computer system -- introduced last year as a replacement for a failed case-file program -- is within cost and on schedule to be fully operational by 2009, despite criticisms in a report this week by the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General….(Washington Times, 6 Dec 06)

Probes dismiss imams' racism claim

Three parallel investigations into the removal of six imams from a US Airways flight last month have so far concluded that the airline acted properly, that the imams' claims they were merely praying and their eviction was racially inspired are without foundation….(Washington Times, 6 Dec 06)

Police Antiterrorism Analyst Sues City, Citing Anti-Muslim E-Mail

…the department is under criticism from a member of the unit, an Egyptian-born analyst who filed a suit yesterday that charges he was subjected to hundreds of blistering anti-Muslim and anti-Arab e-mail messages sent out by a city contractor over the course of three years….(New York Times, 6 Dec 06)

With Street Protests, Hezbollah Gambles in Quest for Dominance

Hezbollah has entered territory uncharted in its 24-year history as armed militia, social welfare group and nascent political party, effectively seeking an unprecedented, decisive say in Lebanese politics to protect what it sees as its interests from foes at home and abroad….(Washington Post, 6 Dec 06)

Treasury Targets Hizballah Fundraising Network in the Triple Frontier of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay

…Press Release, 6 Dec 06)

Treasury Targets Hezbollah Fund Raisers

The Bush administration took action Wednesday aimed at choking off a major fundraising channel for Hezbollah operating in the tri-border area of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. The Treasury Department's action covers nine people and two entities _ a shopping center in Paraguay and an electronics company, Casa Hamze, located in the shopping center….(AP, 6 Dec 06)

Grenade attack in Kashmir wounds 13

Suspected separatist militants threw a grenade at a police vehicle in Kashmir on Wednesday, wounding 13 people, police said, the second such attack in two days in the troubled Himalayan region….(Reuters, 6 Dec 06)

Afghan suicide bomb attack kills eight in south

A suicide bomber attacked the office of a U.S.-owned security company in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday killing eight people, including two Americans, a government and company official said….(Reuters, 6 Dec 06)

The Baker Report: Pulling No Punches

…The change in war strategy the commission proposes would be major. The U.S. command in Baghdad should dramatically shift forces in the country, the report says, to increase the current 3,000-4,000 American trainers embedded with Iraqi forces to 10,000-20,000…(Time Magazine, 6 Dec 06)

Why the Baker Report Leaves Iraqis Cold

…Far from being part of the solution, the Iraqi military and police forces are often part of the problem. The police, in particular, are thoroughly infiltrated by Shi'ite militias and are frequently complicit in the kidnapping and murder of Sunnis and the ethnic cleansing of mixed neighborhoods. If the U.S. mission in Iraq is, indeed, redefined along the lines suggested by the ISG, things are more likely to get worse than better….(Time Magazine, 6 Dec 06)

Iran Invites Scholars to Assess Holocaust as History or Fiction

The Iranian authorities, who have frequently accused the Jews of distorting history to legitimize Israel, announced plans on Tuesday for an international conference on the Holocaust. They said the conference, to be held in Tehran next Monday and Tuesday, would include more than 60 scholars from 30 countries and would examine a range of issues, including whether the gas chambers were actually used….(New York Times, 6 Dec 06)

Top Iranian Military Commanders: In Case of Attack on Iran, We'll Target U.S. Troops in Gulf; U.S. Warships 'Have No Maneuverability and Are Easily Sunk'; Iranian Suicide Squad Commander: We'll Carry Out Suicide Operations in Gulf Countries

….(MEMRI, 6 Dec 06)

Somalia Town Threatens to Behead People Who Don't Pray 5 Times Daily

…Those who do not follow the prayer edict after three days have elapsed, "will definitely be beheaded according to Islamic law," Rage told The Associated Press by phone. "As Muslims we should practice Islam fully, not in part, and that is what our religion enjoins us to do."….(AP, 6 Dec 06)

Do Sharia Courts Have a Role in British Life?
It doesn't take much to whip up Britain's irascible press: "Secret courts imposing draconian Islamic justice operate across Britain," read one paper's front-page splash last week, following a BBC report suggesting that observance of Sharia law is spreading in the U.K…(Time Magazine, 6 Dec 06)

J&K girls being sacrificed at terror's altar
Since the beginning of insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir in the last 17 years, there has been no let-up in terrorists' forcible marriages to young girls. There are also instances of the terrorists using the girls and then leaving them at the mercy of the society to lead a life of humiliation and dishonor….(Hindustan Times, 6 Dec 06)

Hardliners turn on Ahmadinejad for watching women dancers

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, who flaunts his ideological fervour, has been accused of undermining Iran's Islamic revolution after television footage appeared to show him watching a female song and dance show….(Guardian, 6 Dec 06)

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 31

….(MEMRI, 6 Dec 06)

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 30

….(MEMRI, 6 Dec 06)

Analysts: Bin Laden alive but hamstrung

U.S. intelligence agencies think al Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri are alive and still plotting attacks, even though both have eluded a massive manhunt for more than five years since the September 11 terrorist attacks. Bin Laden's few appearances and statements in recent months, and two recent bombing attacks in Pakistan aimed at killing al-Zawahri prompted recent intelligence reports that both may be dead. But so far there has been no success in locating and catching either extremist leader through his movements or communications, or from intelligence agents on the ground….(Washington Times, 6 Dec 06)

Saddam makes surprise showing

Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein has appeared in court, despite saying a day earlier that he would refuse to attend further hearings of his genocide trial.  On Tuesday, he had said he could no longer put up with "continued insults" by the chief judge and prosecutors….(BBC, 6 Dec 06)

Britain Warns of Philippines Terrorism

The British government warned Wednesday that terrorists may be in the final stages of planning attacks in the central Philippines, where Asian leaders are meeting next week….(AP, 6 Dec 06)

Niger Delta - Terrorist Or Terrorized?

Without drawing a red herring of equivocation across the trajectory of discourse, it is clear that blackmail, misinformation, name-calling and propaganda hypes have become lethal weapons in the armory of modern warfare….(All Africa, 6 Dec 06)

"Bin Laden Will Be Back"

Former CIA agent Michael Scheuer on the prospects of finding bin Laden, the outlook for al Qaeda and the risk of new terror attacks in the United States….(Spiegel, 6 Dec 06)

Terror war a bust

Federal authorities' strategy of arresting terror suspects on any charge possible has proved effective in thwarting attacks, but too often prosecutors have inflated the importance of the busts, a new study says…(NY Daily News, 6 Dec 06)

France Says Iran Will Face Sanctions

The French foreign minister said Wednesday that Iran will face U.N. sanctions for refusing to halt its nuclear program but that major world powers remain divided over their extent….(AP, 6 Dec 06)

Gedi: Somalia Troops Prepared for War

…The Islamic movement has overrun much of Somalia, including the capital, in recent months, increasingly sidelining the weak government and vowing to bring Islamic law to the whole country….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Canada: Suspect Tortured Despite Warning

…Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli said police initially told U.S. authorities Syrian-born Maher Arar was a "man of interest" and may have ties to Islamic extremists but they later told Washington they had no evidence to support those allegations….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

A New Civil War in Lebanon?
Sunni-Shi'ite tensions have a long history in Lebanon, but the latest upsurge is fueled by a battle for regional supremacy between powers thousands of miles from Beirut…(Time Magazine, 5 Dec 06)

Suit: Anti-Terror Unit Filled With Hate

A celebrated police anti-terrorism cyber unit became a beehive of anti-Muslim rhetoric after a city consultant unleashed hundreds of hateful e-mails saying Muslims and Arabs were all potential terrorists, a unit member said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Egypt Detains American In Terrorist Cell Case

…The Egyptian Interior Ministry said the cell was "related to some terrorist organizations abroad" but did not name the network or those arrested. The official Egyptian news agency MENA reported that the suspects included nine French citizens and two Belgians, as well as two Syrians, a Tunisian woman and an undisclosed number of Egyptians… A U.S. law enforcement official said the U.S. citizen "was not on our radar at all" before his arrest in Egypt and is not named on the government's voluminous terrorism watch list…..(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

Taliban Repel British Assault in South Afghanistan

British Marines attacked a Taliban-held valley in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday but withdrew after a ferocious counterattack that withstood air strikes and artillery fire…(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

Kuwait court overturns Gitmo conviction

…Nasser al-Mutairi, 28, a Muslim fundamentalist, was captured by American forces in Afghanistan in 2001 during the "war on terror" campaign that followed the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. He returned Kuwait last year after almost three years in the U.S. military prison in Cuba…..(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Caracas pays ETA terrorists EUR325,000 'compensation'

Venezuela is to pay compensation of EUR 325,000 to two convicted  ETA terrorists. Lawyers for Sebastián Etxaniz and Juan Víctor Galarza claimed Venezuela was wrong to rule they should be handed over to the Spanish government….(Expatica, 5 Dec 06)

Pakistani From NY Accused of Aiding Sikh Militants

Federal prosecutors on Monday said a Pakistani living in New York wired money and tried to send foot soldiers to a Sikh militant organization aimed at violently forcing India's government into letting the group form its own state….(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

FBI Computer Funding Is Uncertain

…A 112-page audit by Inspector General Glenn A. Fine said that a current White House budget request includes only $100 million for Sentinel in fiscal 2007, although the FBI says it needs $57 million more to keep it going….(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

Iraqi Shiite Leader Speaks Bluntly in Washington

…Hakim, who heads the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, arrived in Washington as the administration is reviewing its strategy in Iraq… Hakim, who heads the Shiite coalition with the largest number of seats in parliament, told Bush that Iraqi issues should be solved by Iraqis….(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

U.S. Undersecretary of State Urges Russia, China to Agree on Sanctions Against Iran

Russia and China must drop their resistance to a UN Security Council sanctions resolution on Iran, U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicolas Burns is quoted by DPA news agency. ’It is time for Russia, it is time for China to agree with Britain, France, Germany and the U.S. on a sanctions resolution,’…(MosNews, 5 Dec 06)

Iran Warns EU Against Nuclear Sanctions

Iran's president warned Washington's European allies on Tuesday that Iran would reconsider its relations with them if they insist on punishing Tehran for its nuclear program, saying that would amount to an act of "hostility."…(AP, 5 Dec 06)

'US won't order preemptive Iran strike'

… The chances of an American strike are deemed "low," according to assessments by the security establishment. Israel also believes that international diplomatic efforts to stop Iran will fail, security sources said…(Jerusalem Post, 5 Dec 06)

U.S. seeks to make stolen nukes useless

In response to a secret order from President Bush, the nation's nuclear weapons laboratories are developing technology to make the weapons virtually impossible to use if they fall into the wrong hands…(LA Times, 5 Dec 06)

DHS Plan for 'Virtual' Border Fence Still Has Gaps

A Bush administration plan to build a "virtual" fence along the Mexico border will cost $7.6 billion and be completed by 2011, but the government lacks clear benchmarks for success, according to a report to Congress by the Department of Homeland Security….(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

Lawyers Demand Release of Chinese Muslims
Attorneys for a group of Chinese Muslims held for nearly five years in the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, filed suit yesterday, asking that the men be released immediately and alleging that they have been held as part of a political deal between the United States and China….(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

Pentagon resists pleas for help in Afghan opium fight

…Military units in Afghanistan largely overlook drug bazaars, rebuff some requests to take U.S. drug agents on raids and do little to counter the organized crime syndicates shipping the drug to Europe, Asia and, increasingly, the United States, according to officials and documents…..(LA Times, 5 Dec 06)

Losing the Good War

… The latest grim news is that after years of effort — and more than $1 billion spent — Afghanistan’s American-trained police force is unable to perform even routine law enforcement work….(New York Times, 5 Dec 06)

Yemen arrests gunman after shooting at U.S. embassy

Yemeni security forces wounded and arrested a gunman after he opened fire at the U.S. embassy in Sanaa late on Monday, a government official said on Tuesday….(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

Suicide bomber hits foreign troops in Afghanistan

A suicide bomber plowed his car into a convoy of NATO troops in Afghanistan's southern city of Kandahar on Tuesday, wounding nine civilians and two soldiers, witnesses and officials said….(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

Baghdad attacks kill 30; gunmen target Shias

Gunmen and bombers killed 30 people in Baghdad on Tuesday, including 14 Shia religious workers after a powerful Iraqi Shia leader urged President George Bush to strike harder at Sunni rebels to avert civil war….(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

Attack in Baghdad Kills 13 Shiites

…The gunmen, traveling in one car, carried out the attack by intercepting the Shiite Endowment minibus in northern Baghdad on Tuesday morning as it was carrying the employees to work in the capital, said Salah Abdel-Razaq, an Endowment spokesman. Three other people on the vehicle apparently escaped injury…(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Mass arrest of “terrorists” in Iran border province

…“Some 22 main members of terrorist groups and 65 of their active supporters have been arrested since the beginning of the current year (March),” provincial police commander Hassan Karami was quoted as saying. “Also nine of their active agents have been killed in local clashes with police…(Agence France-Presse, 5 Dec 06)

12-year-old jailed on terror charges

The father of a 12 year-old boy has sought the president’s help for the release of his son who was sent to jail on terror charges after police arrested him from Canal Road where the Islami Jamiat Talaba was protesting on November 28…..(Daily Times, 5 Dec 06)

Spain jails Chechen suspect

Spanish authorities have detained a Chechen man accused of carrying out several terror attacks in Russia. Murat Gasayev was arrested in northern Spain last week in an operation that also seized documents and phones, according to Spanish police….(Washington Times, 4 Dec 06)

Spain asks Venezuela to explain apparent plan to grant citizenship to ETA suspects

…Spanish news reports on Tuesday said Venezuela had decided to naturalize Eugenio Barrutiabengoa, Lorenzo Ayestaran, Jesus Ricardo Urteaga and Miguel Angel Aldana, in an attempt to prevent their deportation to Spain to stand trial.The four men have lived in Venezuela since the 1980s as political refugees….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Iran Blocks Access to YouTube.com

Iran has blocked access to the popular video-sharing Web site YouTube.com, and a media rights group warned Tuesday that Internet censorship in the Islamic state is on the rise….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Clerics should combat militant ideology, Saudi says

Clerics in Saudi Arabia, which is fighting a violent campaign by al Qaeda supporters, must do more to stamp out militant thinking among Saudi youth, the interior minister said in comments aired on Tuesday…(Reuters, 5 Dec 06)

Iran Urges Arabs to Eject U.S. Military

Iran's top national security official urged his Arab neighbors Tuesday to eject the U.S. military from American bases in the region and instead join Tehran in a regional security alliance. Ali Larijani told Arab leaders attending a conference here that Washington is indifferent to their interests and will cast them aside as soon as they are no longer useful….(AP, 5 Dec 06)

Palestinians and Al-Qaeda threaten Sinai, Report Says

Four members of a Palestinian terror cell have reportedly crossed the Rafah border from Gaza into Egypt where they are planning attacks against Israeli and foreign targets on the Sinai peninsula, pan-Arab daily al-Sharq al-Awsat reports, quoting Israeli security forces….(AKI, 5 Dec 06)

Beirut Protester Killed in Brawl Is Hailed as Hezbollah 'Martyr'

The posters went up Monday morning, followed by slogans and chants. And within a day of his death in a street brawl along Beirut's increasingly tense fault lines of sect and politics, Ahmed Mahmoud became the first symbol of the mass demonstrations by Hezbollah and its allies meant to bring down the government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora….(Washington Post, 5 Dec 06)

Lebanese Daily: The Opposition's Street Actions are a Syrian-Iranian Coup

In its December 1, 2006 editorial, the Lebanese daily Al-Mustaqbal, which is affiliated with the March 14 Forces, warned that the street actions organized by the Hizbullah-led Lebanese opposition are actually a coup that is being carried out on Syrian and Iranian orders….(MEMRI, 5 Dec 06)