The ability of Iran’s military to learn from experience and become adept in irregular warfare echoes that of insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. It also presents the United States with hard choices.
New rumours of xenophobic reprisals after the World Cup send foreign migrants fleeing in South Africa. A new Amnesty International report slams endemic sexual violence in Kenyan slums. A Sri Lankan government minister begins hunger strike to protest UN inquiry into war crimes. Fresh bombings kill
Obama and Netanyahu meet, emphasizing ‘unbreakable bond’. British troops to pull out of Sangin. US soldier charged with leaking Iraq war video. UK announces torture inquiry. Indian army deployed in Kashmir as violence soars. All this and more in today’s security briefing.
Barack Obama’s appointment of David H Petraeus to lead the war against the Taliban highlights enduring tensions in the United States over the role of the military in its political life, says Godfrey Hodgson.
Fear of contagion leads to calls for increased deployment in Somalia. Turkey threatens to sever diplomatic ties with Israel. Bosnian ex-president in London court on extradition charges. Lebanese Shia leader dies. China deploys security forces ahead of Urumqi riots anniversary. All this and more in
The violent protests of July 2009 in Urumchi revealed deep-rooted problems in Beijing’s policy towards the Uyghur people of Xinjiang region in China’s far west. The path to resolution can only be unblocked by acknowledging the Uyghurs’ right to speak, says Henryk Szadziewski.
From an Iranian perspective it is hard to understand what the word ‘terrorist’ means in the American political lexicon. The meaning keeps changing
Why have American women become so active in the right wing Tea Party movement? Could it be that they are drawn to the new conservative Christian feminism publicized by Sarah Palin? Without its grassroots female supporters, the Tea Party would have far less appeal to voters who are frightened by ec
The Afghan war is at a critical stage. A longer-term view of its three dimensions - regional, ethnic, and religious - offers some vital lessons to policy-makers, says Valey Arya.
The political atmosphere that surrounded the constitutional referendum in Kyrgyzstan shows that the country’s crisis is not over, says Sureyya Yigit in Bishkek
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman is reportedly furious after being excluded from secret talks between Israel and Turkey. A massive suicide attack in Lahore leave dozens dead and scores wounded. The Taliban attack a US development contractor to welcome the new commander of US and ISAF tro
The replacement of one United States general by another to lead the war against the Taliban leaves untouched the essentials of a failing campaign.
