By Siddharth Srivastava NEW DELHI – The terror strike in the western city of Pune of February 13 that killed 11, including two foreigners, and injured 60 people has once again brought into focus the role and nexus of indigenous terror groups and sleeper cells in orchestrating militant strikes in India. Although New Delhi has said elaborate planning went into implementing the attack, it is apparent that “soft targets” can almost be picked at will in India, as has happened following India’s recent offer to renew the peace process with Pakistan. United States President Barack Obama called Indian Prime Minister … Continue reading India picks up the pieces

By Shawn W Crispin BANGKOK – Thailand’s United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) protest group has launched new anti-government street rallies in its latest push to topple Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s year-old coalition government. The protests have sparked market fears of a chaotic repeat of last April’s UDD-led riots and could undo a 10-month period of relative political calm. While UDD leaders claim to be struggling for democracy and the rights of the downtrodden, the mobilization comes conspicuously close to a Supreme Court verdict on February 26 that many expect will result in the state seizure of 76.6 billion … Continue reading Thaksin case raises specter of violence

By Eli Clifton and Charles Fromm WASHINGTON – United States President Barack Obama met with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Thursday in the White House, raising objections from China and adding to existing US-China tensions over Taiwan arms sales, Internet censorship and hacking, tariffs on Chinese tires and calls for Beijing to readjust its currency. The low-profile meeting, which noticeably took place in the White House Map Room instead of the Oval Office, was described by the Dalai Lama as having included discussions on democracy, freedom and human rights. “The president stated his strong support for … Continue reading Dalai Lama gets his moment

By Charles McDermid Kurdish analysts and scholars who know Joost Hiltermann of the Washington-based International Crisis Group describe him as a quiet gentleman who can apply pragmatism to sometimes volatile Kurdish affairs. Hiltermann started his career in the Middle East in 1985, as a political analyst for the Palestinian rights organization al-Haq in the West Bank. He moved to Iraq in 1992 and served as executive director of Human Right Watch’s arms division from 1994 to 2002. Hiltermann has been a frequent contributor on Iraqi and Kurdish issues to Foreign Policy and Le Monde Diplomatique and is the author of … Continue reading Searching for solutions

By Charles McDermid KIRKUK, Iraq – The first time Kurdish resistance hero Mam Rostam led a rowdy convoy through the streets of Kirkuk was March 21, 1991, after his guerrilla fighters stormed down from the surrounding dun-colored mountains to rout the occupying troops of Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi army. Twelve years later, he held his hometown for three days as field commander of the Kurdish Peshmerga after the United States-led invasion of Iraq that toppled Saddam and set off bloody sectarian and ethnic battles that continue to consume disputed parts of Iraq, notably Kirkuk. Last Friday, Rostam was at it again; … Continue reading New force emerges in Kirkuk