By Ian Williams WASHINGTON – From Mexico to Iraq, we can see the practical consequences of “wars” against abstractions, whether drugs or terror. In Yemen, there are signs that both President Ali Abdallah Saleh’s government and the Barack Obama administration are drawing back from repeating the mistakes of Afghanistan, and perhaps even of Somalia. Indeed, it is worth comparing Somalia with Yemen. In traditional Western terms, Somalia should have been almost the most successful state in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its population was homogenous in religion, language and culture, with a strong sense of identity. But what outsiders did not realize was … Continue reading US hand stayed – for now

Rtrs There’s a reason why people are often reluctant to stand up to bullies, especially when those bullies have an enormous size and strength advantage and are credibly threatening to hurt you very badly. And so it’s going to be very interesting to see what happens now that Iceland’s figurehead president, Olafur Grimsson, has suddenly decided to cause a major international incident by vetoing a bill which would have put his country’s citizens into billions of dollars in debt to bail out the UK and Dutch governments. In principle, I’m with Mish on this one: if you’re the president of … Continue reading Iceland stands up to bullies

William Maclean, Security Correspondent Rtrs LONDON Muslims arrive at Al Hidayah, a youth camp at Warwick University in Coventry, central England, August 9, 2009. Preacher Muhammed Tahir ul-Qadri, who addressed participants, conveyed a message of moderation, peace, inclusion and understanding. Photograph taken on August 9, 2009. REUTERS/Kieran Doherty LONDON (Reuters) – A report that a Nigerian who tried to down a U.S. airliner joined al Qaeda as a student in Britain has raised concerns about radical Islamists on UK campuses in a test for authorities trying to balance security and free speech. World Radicalization is a growing security worry after … Continue reading Plane plot stirs concern over UK campus militants

By William Pfaff It is not widely understood that the policy objective of al-Qaida is not to attack the Western countries, an objective that would accomplish nothing for the cause. Bringing down a Western airliner or blowing up a building in the United States or Britain is of no interest in itself to the terrorists, since the Islamic radical does no good by simply killing unbelievers. The ultimate purpose of al-Qaida is to bring about an upheaval in the Islamic world in which Islam can be rescued from corrupted governments and degenerate practices. When Gordon Brown or Barack Obama say … Continue reading Al-Qaida Uses U.S., U.S. Plays Along

By Syed Saleem Shahzad ISLAMABAD – At a time when Islamabad is trying to implement a United States-sponsored initiative for a spirit of dialogue between Pakistan and India, an Indian general has stirred up a hornet’s nest, eliciting a belligerent response from across the border. Indian General Deepak Kapoor, according to media reports, last week said in a closed-door seminar that his country could take on Pakistan and China simultaneously and “bring it to a satisfactory conclusion in 96 hours”, and even suggested that a “limited war under a nuclear overhang” was possible in South Asia. Pakistan, tightly allied with … Continue reading General alert in Pakistan