23 November, 2006
Over a hundred people were killed in Baghdad when a series of car bombs went off in the predominantly Shia neighbourhood of Sadr City. Today's attack ranks as one of the bloodiest since the 2003 invasion.
Mourning these days is rarely a quiet act in the middle east. Two hundred thousand poured into Beirut today to pay tribute the slain anti-Syrian politician Pierre Gemayel, demonstrating in the process against Syria and its Lebanese allies Hizbullah, says Israeli daily Haaretz. (Paige Austin reports on the deflated spirit of the demonstration today in M11) Gemayel's killing has puzzled many, not least the Guardian, which attempts to parse through the shadows behind the assassination.
Less murky are the ties that bind the Islamist militant group Abu Sayyaf to the drug trade. Radio Australia reports that the southern Philippine radicals have incorporated trafficking narcotics into their fundraising activities. Meanwhile, The Economist explores the illicit connections between Colombian politicians and brutal right-wing paramilitary groups.
The bulk of Indonesia's 850-strong contingent of peace-keepers is due to arrive in southern Lebanon by the end of the week. According to The Jakarta Post, Lt. Agus Harimurti Yudhoyon, the son of the Indonesian president, travels with them.
Security agents also peacefully cross borders as Tokyo's Narita Airport becomes the first Asian terminal to accept a detachment of US counterterrorism agents, according to the Japan Times.
Soldiers are on a less peaceful mission in Sri Lanka, where according to Al Jazeera, the army is launching an emboldened offensive the against the Tamil Tiger rebels (read more about Sri Lanka's predicament in openDemocracy).
Tempers rise in the Horn of Africa, as Ethiopia and Somali Islamists are poised for war. The BBC reports that imminent conflict may also include Ethiopia's unfriendly neighbours Eritrea, who back Somalia's Islamist faction (read more about the troubles in Somalia in openDemocracy).
In a widely anticipated move, the Board of the International Atomic Energy Agency removed discussion of aiding Iran's development of a nuclear reactor from its agenda. Yet as IRNA, Iran's state-run news agency, points out, the move did not stop the IAEA's technical committee from discussing the reactor project.
by Kanishk Tharoor
