Dispute Centers on Reading of Geneva Convention

President Bush on Friday pushed for passage of his military tribunals bill, asking Congress to clarify the meaning of the Geneva Convention to allow the CIA to continue detaining and interrogating prisoners under a formerly secret program….(LA Times, 16 Sep 06)

Intelligence Official, Aides Slain in Gaza

Masked gunmen shot and killed a senior official in the Palestinian intelligence service and four aides Friday near the home of Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh…..(LA Times, 16 Sep 06)

Tensions Overshadow Gains in Afghanistan
Despite scattered gains by international troops fighting Taliban insurgents in the country's south, Afghan and foreign analysts here have voiced concern that a recent peace initiative is backfiring and that lapsed Afghan militias could be drawn into the conflict unless it is quickly quelled and replaced by aid and protection….(Washington Post, 16 Sep 06)

Scholar Revises Terrorism Research Plan

An Australian academic who was given a $625,000 grant by a federal agency for a study on terrorism and suicide bombers has modified his proposal after the attorney general warned him that his research might run afoul of new antiterrorism laws….(New York Times, 16 Sep 06)

U.S., Afghan Troops Launch Offensive

Thousands of American and Afghan troops unleashed a new offensive against Taliban militants in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday in an effort to expand the government's reach into the volatile Pakistani border region…(AP, 16 Sep 06)

Yemen says oil site attacks linked to al Qaeda

Yemen said on Saturday its security forces broke up an al Qaeda-linked cell that was behind foiled attacks on oil and gas installations on Friday….(Reuters, 16 Sep 06)

Anbar Called Secondary to U.S. Efforts in Baghdad

American troops face "significant challenges" in western Iraq's volatile Anbar region -- the deadliest province for U.S. forces -- but military efforts there are secondary to the priority of quelling sectarian unrest in Baghdad, the second-ranking U.S. commander in Iraq said yesterday….(Washington Post, 16 Sep 06)

Judge Won't Reinstate Padilla Charge

A federal judge on Thursday declined to reinstate a key terrorism charge in the case against alleged al-Qaeda operative Jose Padilla and two other defendants, raising the possibility of delays in their Jan. 22 trial if prosecutors appeal the ruling….(AP, 15 Sep 06)

Israel, Hizbollah weigh post-war prisoner swap

Hizbollah says any deal to free two captured Israeli soldiers must include Israel's release of Samir Qantar, who took part in a 1979 raid that killed an Israeli man, his four-year-old daughter and a policeman in northern Israel…(Reuters, 15 Sep 06)

Cult leader to hang for gas attack

A former cult leader who masterminded a poison gas attack on Tokyo subway trains in 1995 had his appeal against the death penalty rejected by Japan's Supreme Court on Friday….(Reuters, 15 Sep 06)

Taleban 'seize Afghan district'

The Taleban have ousted Afghan security forces from a district headquarters in the western Farah province after days of heavy fighting, police say. The forces were besieged and support was unable to reach them…(BBC, 15 Sep 06)

NATO Fears New Front as Taliban Fighters Strike Western Afghanistan

As NATO troops exert pressure on Taliban forces in southern Afghanistan, militants have regrouped in western provinces and ignited violence that has killed a dozen people in two days…(AP, 15 Sep 06)

Police Find 30 Bodies Scattered Around Baghdad

Police found 30 bodies bearing signs of torture Friday, the latest in a wave of sectarian killings sweeping the Iraqi capital despite a month long security operation….(AP, 15 Sep 06)

al-Qaida Joins Algerians Against France

Al-Qaida has for the first time announced a union with an Algerian insurgent group that has designated France as an enemy, saying they will act together against French and American interests….(AP, 15 Sep 06)

CIA Learned in '02 That Bin Laden Had No Iraq Ties, Report Says

The CIA learned in late September 2002 from a high-level member of Saddam Hussein's inner circle that Iraq had no past or present contact with Osama bin Laden and that the Iraqi leader considered bin Laden an enemy of the Baghdad regime, according to a recent Senate Intelligence Committee report….(Washington Post, 15 Sep 06)

'You Were Not a Dictator,' Judge Tells Hussein During Genocide Trial

… Judge Abdullah al-Amiri made the comment shortly after the court heard emotional testimony from a Kurdish farmer who said Hussein told him to "shut up and get out" when he begged the Iraqi president to spare the lives of his wife and seven young children, who were taken into custody in 1988….(Washington Post, 15 Sep 06)

Trenches plan to secure Baghdad

…The plan was unveiled amid continuing violence in the capital. At least 49 bodies have been recovered from the city's streets in the past 24 hours. A spokesman said the security plan was designed to prevent insurgents from getting into and out of Baghdad….(BBC, 15 Sep 06)

Russia signs treaty to prevent nuclear terrorism

Russia's parliament on Friday ratified a global treaty aimed to prevent nuclear terrorism, a year after President Vladimir Putin became the first leader to sign the pact….(AP, 15 Sep 06)

World Bank Lists Failing Nations That Can Breed Global Terrorism

The number of weak and poorly governed nations that can provide a breeding ground for global terrorism has grown sharply over the past three years, despite increased Western efforts to improve conditions in such states, according to a new World Bank report….(Washington Post, 15 Sep 06)

Poland Promises 1,000 Troops for Afghanistan

Poland announced Thursday that it would send 1,000 more troops to Afghanistan in the first positive response to an urgent NATO appeal. But it said the soldiers would not reach the country until February….(Reuters, 15 Sep 06)

The Right Troops in the Right Places

Approaching the city of Karbala last year for a meeting with a local Iraqi Army commander, my convoy of four Army Humvees came across hundreds of bearded men in green camouflage uniforms lining the road….(New York Times, 15 Sep 06)

Terror suspects appear in court
…Mohamed Hamid, of Clapton, east London, faces 12 charges including six of soliciting murder and one of providing terror training. He will appear at the Old Bailey on September 29. Kibley Da Costa, arrested in the same anti-terror operation, was remanded in custody until September 22, when he will again appear at City of Westminster magistrates court….(Guardian, 15 Sep 06)

U.S. Sends 2 Gitmo Detainees to Kuwait

Two Kuwaitis released from the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay returned on Friday to their homeland, where their lawyer said they would face trials on terrorism-related charges…(AP, 14 Sep 06)

Pretrial hearing planned in terrorism case
Lawyers for two men accused in a terrorism case will be back in court Thursday in Atlanta. 21-year-old Syed Ahmed and 20-year-old Ehsanul Islam Sadequee were indicted July 19th on charges of providing material support to terrorists and related conspiracy counts. Both have pleaded not guilty to all charges….(AP, 14 Sep 06)

The Terror Suspect Washington May Let Get Away

Luis Posada Carriles is a Cuban militant linked to an airline bombing and other political crimes. But after a federal court ruling on his immigration charges, he may go free. The Bush Administration prefers to paint the War on Terror in stark terms of good and evil, but the reality is not all terror suspects are considered equal.…(Time Magazine, 14 Sep 06)

Judge says Saddam 'not dictator'

The chief judge in Saddam Hussein's trial has said the former Iraqi leader was not a dictator, but had only been made to seem like one by his aides. The controversial comments come a day after Judge Abdullah al-Amiri was accused of bias towards the defense….(BBC, 14 Sep 06)

Six due in court over terrorism offences
Six men charged with terrorism and firearms offences are due to appear in a London court on Thursday, including three accused of attending terrorism training camps in southern England….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

IBSA summit calls for global effort to eradicate terrorism

The first India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Summit held here has condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and called for a global effort to eradicate the menace….(Hindu Times, 14 Sep 06)

NATO allies ignore call for troops

NATO allies failed to answer Washington's call to commit more troops to the escalating battle with Taliban and al Qaeda fighters in Afghanistan yesterday, prompting the Bush administration to rethink its diplomatic strategy ahead of two meetings of alliance ministers later this month….(Washington Times, 14 Sep 06)

Port Security Won’t Bankrupt Us

Michael Chertoff, the secretary of Homeland Security, seems determined to outdo his commander in chief in ratcheting up fears of Al Qaeda whenever he wants to score political points….(New York Times, 14 Sep 06)

Terrorism Trials in the Light: A Way Ahead?

… Even those endeavoring to execute the commissions argue that the procedures must be improved in several other ways to bring them into compliance with U.S. and international law….(Jurist, 14 Sep 06)

Law Enforcement, American Style

With the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks coming shortly after British authorities disrupted the plot to bomb airliners over the Atlantic, we are seeing another round of calls to break up the F.B.I. or to create a domestic intelligence agency separate from the F.B.I. with no police powers, similar to Britain’s MI5…(New York Times, 14 Sep 06)

Political division deepens in Lebanese government

In a speech at the first public rally since the end of the Israeli offensive against Lebanon, Hizbullah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah has renewed his attack on anti-Syrian members of the Lebanese government and criticised Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's decision to welcome British Prime Minister Tony Blair to the country, calling Blair "an associate in the murdering" and his visit "a national disaster…(Jane’s, 14 Sep 06)

U.S. counterterrorism work stumbles in Somalia

These days, no one in Mogadishu seems to see the planes and drones suspected of flying U.S. surveillance runs over the Somali city…(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

U.S. moves to reduce diplomatic presence in Syria

The United States moved to reduce its diplomatic presence in Syria on Thursday following an attack on its embassy in Damascus, by offering free flights home to dependents and nonessential diplomats who wish to leave….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Negotiations on Terror Legislation Snag

The White House and three powerful GOP senators reached an impasse Wednesday over a Bush administration plan to allow tough CIA interrogations, underscoring election-season divisions among Republicans on the high profile issue of security…..(AP, 14 Sep 06)

U.N. Inspectors Dispute Iran Report By House Panel

…Officials of the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency said in a letter that the report contained some "erroneous, misleading and unsubstantiated statements." The letter, signed by a senior director at the agency, was addressed to Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), chairman of the House intelligence committee, which issued the report….(Washington Post, 14 Sep 06)

 IAEA Letter

Sahara seen as potential terrorist breeding ground

The vast Sahara has long sheltered rebels and bandits but security experts fear its remote oases and mountain hideouts may also be an ideal recruitment and training ground for al Qaeda-linked militants….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Africa key to Pentagon counterterrorism strategy

Nearly five years after the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Africa has emerged as a leading front in a U.S. military campaign to deny al Qaeda a new safe haven in the continent's vast, hard-to-govern regions….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Embassy escapes, but militancy on rise in Syria

The militants who attacked the U.S. embassy in Syria this week botched the job, but more potent and experienced groups are at large in the country…(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

West beams security focus on Gulf of Guinea oil

Western experts worried about the security of oil supplies from Africa's Gulf of Guinea have considered several doomsday scenarios, including suicide attacks by determined Islamist militants on offshore oil platforms….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Chavez Says Ailing Castro on the Mend

Fidel Castro was "walking, singing" and "almost well enough to play baseball," Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez declared after meeting with the ailing leader Thursday in Cuba during a trip to Cuba for the Nonaligned Movement summit….(AP, 14 Sep 06)

‘Non-aligned movement’ seeking to broaden definition of terrorism; Sheikh Mohammed heads Kuwaiti delegation

Iran, Syria and North Korea are among more than 100 nations trying to broaden the world’s definition of “terrorism’’ to include the Israeli invasion of Lebanon and the US occupation in Iraq….(AP, 14 Sep 06)

Afghanistan Hits at Musharraf Over Taliban Remark

Kabul has angrily rejected comments by Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf that the Taliban had grown more dangerous than al Qaeda with the support of Afghans, accusing some in Pakistan of sponsoring the rebels….(Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Middle East riven over U.S., Annan says

Washington's options in Iraq are constrained by competing pressures from countries in the region for the U.S. to stay or to leave quickly, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said yesterday….(Washington Times, 14 Sep 06)

Castro Photos Raise Expectations at Summit

Cuban state television has shown photos of a pajama-clad Fidel Castro chatting animatedly with an Argentine congressman, raising expectations that the ailing Cuban president will use the Nonaligned Movement summit to make his first public appearance since undergoing surgery in July….(AP, 14 Sep 06)

Latest al-Qaeda tape made France a target: report

Deputy al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri has urged a militant Algerian Islamist group to punish "Crusader nation" France, even though it vehemently opposed the U.S.-led war in Iraq…Reuters, 14 Sep 06)

Hezbollah accused of war crimes

Amnesty International has accused Hezbollah of acts amounting to war crimes in the conflict with Israel.…(BBC, 14 Sep 06)

Israel army contests Hamas ruling

Israeli army lawyers are contesting a court decision to release senior Hamas members, some of whom have been detained since June….(BBC, 14 Sep 06)

British Judiciary Chief Assails Gitmo

The head of Britain's judiciary said Wednesday the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay is an affront to democracy, going far beyond Prime Minister Tony Blair's muted criticism of the detention facility for terror suspects….(AP, 14 Sep 06)

A “Clean Break” From Law: Espionage and Engineering the War In Iraq

A 1996 Institute for Advanced Strategic and Political Studies (IASPS) report, authored by several former and current Bush Administration appointees, has largely become the Bush Administration’s platform for deciding Israeli and Middle Eastern policy a decade later…(FCNP, 14 Sep 06)

The Report

A Clean Break:A New Strategy for Securing the Realm

Nearly 100 Killed In Baghdad Over 24 Brutal Hours
Nearly 100 people were killed or found dead in the Iraqi capital over the past 24 hours, authorities said Wednesday, continuing a wave of sectarian violence that has defied American efforts to thwart the carnage.…(Washington Post, 14 Sep 06)

Indonesian jailed for Bali bomb

An Indonesian man has been found guilty of involvement in the 2005 Bali bombings and sentenced to 15 years….(BBC, 14 Sep 06)

Scholar kidnapped by CIA a terrorist, alleges prosecutro

…Prosecutor Armando Spataro, one of Italy's top terrorism investigators, told a Milan court that Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, was a "major terrorist whose kidnapping does not annul his acts, for which this trial should have judged him"….(Muslim News, 13 Sep 06)

Four Armed Men Attack U.S. Embassy in Damascus
Four armed men attacked the U.S. Embassy on Tuesday, killing one Syrian security guard and wounding several people in what authorities said was an attempt by Islamic guerrillas to storm the diplomatic compound…..(Washington Post, 13 Sep 06)

173 Killed in Afghan Suicide Bombing

Suicide bombings have killed 173 people in Afghanistan this year, NATO announced Wednesday amid a sharp escalation of Taliban violence that saw 16 militants slain in southern clashes and an aid worker gunned down in the west….(AP, 13 Sep 06)

Police Discover 65 Bodies Across Iraq

Police found the bodies of 65 men who had been tortured, shot and dumped, most around Baghdad, while car bombs, mortar attacks and shootings killed at least 30 people around Iraq and injured dozens more….(AP, 13 Sep 06)

Alleged al-Qaida Group Claims Killing

A group claiming to be al-Qaida's branch in Sudan said Tuesday that it killed the chief editor of a Sudanese independent daily who provoked a furor with an article denounced as blasphemous. The claim in the slaying of Mohammed Taha Mohammed Ahmed, whose body was found last week, was issued by a previously unknown group called al-Qaida in Sudan and Africa. ….(AP, 13 Sep 06)

Fourth gunman in Syria embassy attack dies

The only Islamic militant arrested in Tuesday's attack on the U.S. Embassy in Syria has died from his wounds, before police were able to question him….(Canadian TV, 13 Sep 06)

US seeks support against Iran financing "terrorism"

Senior U.S. Treasury officials will try to enlist support among the world's finance ministers and central bankers in Singapore in the coming days for the Bush Administration's efforts to crack down on what it says is Iran's support of terrorism….(MarketWatch, 13 Sep 06)

U.S. NATO envoy calls for more troops in Afghanistan

NATO allies must fulfill their commitment to the future stability of Afghanistan by dispatching more troops to fight insurgents, Washington's ambassador to the alliance said on Wednesday….(Reuters, 13 Sep 06)

Trial for 2 Men in Terror Case Begins

Mohammed Hossain, a pizzeria owner, and Yassin Aref, imam at an Albany mosque where Hossain is a member, are accused of supporting terrorism through a series of financial transactions from 2003-04….(AP, 13 Sep 06)

10 Convicted in Jordan Terrorism Plots

A military court convicted 10 suspected militants Wednesday in two separate terrorism cases that included conspiracies to kill Americans in Jordan….(AP, 13 Sep 06)