IRAQ

Deaths of Iraqis in July Lower - Sudarsan Raghavan, Washington Post

The death toll for Iraqi civilians and members of Iraq's security forces fell to 851 last month, less than in the previous two months, according to Iraqi government figures. The decreasing violence against Iraqis mirrors the drop in fatalities among US forces. In July, five Americans were reported killed as a result of combat in Iraq, the lowest monthly number of deaths for the US military in the five years of the war. The number of Iraqis killed last month was lower than the 917 killed in June and the 1,135 killed in May across Iraq.

Baghdad Stresses 'Calmness' in Kirkuk - Associated Press

Iraq's central government on Friday stressed its opposition to any unilateral move to change the status of an oil-rich city the Kurds want to annex and warned against efforts to stir ethnic tensions in that area. The warning by government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh came a day after Kurdish members of the Tamim provincial council signed a petition demanding the annexation of the provincial capital of Kirkuk and surrounding areas into the self-ruled Kurdish region in Iraq's north despite opposition by Arab and Turkomen residents.

More than 10,000 Detainees Released - Associated Press

The US military said Saturday it has released more than 10,000 detainees in Iraq so far this year - more than in all of 2007 - as it continues to try phase out its running of Iraqi prisons. The military said about 21,000 people remained in custody, and it is currently releasing about 45 detainees and detaining 30 a day. The United States wants to transfer the detainees to Iraqi control. Reaching that goal has been slowed partly by the lack of adequate Iraqi prison space and trained guards. More than 8,900 people were released from detention last year.

AFGHANISTAN / PAKISTAN TRIBAL AREAS

US Presses Pakistan on Control of ISI - Cooper and Mazzetti, New York Times

The Bush administration is increasing pressure on Pakistan’s fledgling civilian government to bring the country’s spy service under civilian control, according to American and Pakistani officials. During meetings in Washington this week with Pakistan’s prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, senior Bush administration officials pressed their Pakistani counterparts to assert control over Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, the American officials said. The pressure comes as relations between India and Pakistan deteriorate following reports of ISI involvement in the recent bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. The American pressure reflects heightened concerns at the State Department, Pentagon and Central Intelligence Agency that operatives in the ISI, who have long been believed to have close ties to Pakistani militants, have become bolder and more open in their support for militant Islamist organizations.

"Some ISI Spies Sympathetic to Taliban" - Laura King, Los Angeles Times

Stung by US allegations that elements in its premier spy agency colluded with Islamic militants in last month's bombing of the Indian Embassy in Afghanistan, Pakistan acknowledged Friday that there "probably" were Taliban sympathizers within the ranks of its powerful intelligence establishment. The Pakistani government, which immediately and indignantly denied the reports of its spies' involvement in the bombing, reiterated that there was no evidence that members of its Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence had aided Taliban militants in the July 7 attack on the embassy in the Afghan capital, Kabul, which left about 60 people dead. But by Friday evening, senior Pakistani officials were offering a more nuanced response to US intelligence officials' allegations of ISI complicity.

Pakistan Denies Links to Bombing - Sara Carter, Washington Times

The Pakistani government Friday denied allegations that its intelligence agency was involved in the bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. US counterterrorism officials said that "there are indications that elements of the ISI [Pakistan's Interservices Intelligence] provided support to those believed responsible for carrying out the attack" on the embassy. "The Pakistani government and the ISI in particular are not monolithic," said the counterterrorism official, who asked that his name and agency not be disclosed due to the sensitivity of his work. "In some areas there is good terrorism cooperation. That said, there's genuine and longstanding concerns."

Pakistan Admits Spies are Helping the Taliban - Daily Telegraph

The Pakistani government has conceded that members of its Inter-Services Intelligence agency were giving support to the Taliban. A spokesman said that Taliban sympathisers had to be rooted out of the ISI. But allegations by United States intelligence officials that Pakistani agents had helped plan a bombing at the Indian Embassy in Afghanistan last month were rejected. Sherry Rehman, the government spokesman, said there are 'probably' still individual agents whose ideological convictions were formed in the 1980s, when the ISI marshalled armed opposition to Soviet troops in Afghanistan, with US support. The statement was the first acknowledgement by Pakistan's new government that there may be pro-Taliban sympathisers in the intelligence service. But in a reflection of the sensitivity of the issue, Ms Rehman later changed her statement to maintain the problems at ISI were in the past.

Delicate Task of Playing Both Sides - Saeed Shah, Globe and Mail

For a covert spy agency, Pakistan's Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence has been attracting a lot of attention. It's been rebuked by the US government for failing to curb terrorism, accused in The New York Times of involvement in an international bombing, and targeted by the government it's supposed to serve - first for increased oversight, and now for a purge of its more extremist elements. After years of denials, Pakistan admitted yesterday for the first time what others have been saying: There are "probably" still agents of Inter-Services Intelligence who are sympathetic to the Taliban and "act on their own in ways that are not in convergence" with Pakistan's interests or policies, Pakistani government minister Sherry Rehman said. "We need to identify these people and weed them out." Anyone who has tracked the history of the ISI knows this is not a revelation, but a half truth. It's not individuals in the ISI that are rogue and working with the Taliban, but the ISI itself.

India-Pakistan Strife May Hurt US in Afghanistan - Jay Solomom, WSJ

Officials in the Bush administration say renewed tensions between India and Pakistan could be damaging US efforts to conquer the Taliban and achieve stability in Afghanistan. These concerns surfaced Thursday when the US charged that Pakistan's intelligence agency helped militants carry out an attack last month on the Indian embassy in Kabul that killed 58 people. US officials said Thursday they concluded that elements of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, aided the attack, based on telecommunications intercepts linking Pakistani intelligence officials to Afghan insurgents. The US officials said India's security services drew similar conclusions based on their own telecommunications intercepts and intelligence.

Bombings Kill 5 Soldiers and Interpreter - Eric Schmitt, New York Times

Roadside bombs killed five soldiers, at least four of them Americans, and an interpreter in eastern Afghanistan on Friday, allied and Pentagon officials said. Four United States Army soldiers and their Afghan interpreter were killed in Kunar Province by what the Taliban claimed was a remote-controlled bomb, Reuters reported. A fifth allied soldier died in a separate roadside bombing in the eastern province of Khost, NATO said in a statement without identifying the nationality of the service member. Most of the troops in the NATO-led force in eastern Afghanistan are American.The combat deaths offered the latest evidence of a strengthening Taliban insurgency that has menaced NATO forces and reclaimed control over some southern and eastern parts of the country. Taliban and other militant groups have turned increasingly to the insurgents’ weapon of choice in Iraq - the improvised roadside bomb - to attack American and other allied forces in Afghanistan.

Five NATO Soldiers Killed in E. Afghanistan - Nahal Toosi, Associated Press

Roadside bombs killed five NATO soldiers and a civilian in eastern Afghanistan on Friday, while a coalition of aid groups warned that violence is spreading to once-stable regions and forcing the organizations to scale back humanitarian work. The soldiers' deaths marked a bloody start to the month in what has already been a deadly year for Western forces in Afghanistan, where an insurgency is raging nearly seven years after the Taliban was ousted from power. Four of the NATO soldiers and a civilian died in Konar province and the fifth soldier was killed in Khost, the alliance said in a statement. It did not release the nationalities of the soldiers, but most troops in those eastern areas are American.

Aid Agencies Warn Insecurity on the Rise - Tendai Maphosa, Voice of America

International aid agencies are expressing concern about the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan, noting that problems have spread to previously stable areas and attacks on aid agencies and their staff are on the increase. Aid agencies say rising insecurity in Afghanistan is hampering efforts to provide relief. The Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief or ACBAR, represents about 100 non-governmental aid organizations. In a just released statement, the group also says that the number of civilians killed in the Afghan conflict is on the rise - up by approximately 50 percent over the same period last year.

British Muslims 'Fighting with the Taliban' - Daily Telegraph

British Muslims are helping the Taliban in their war against UK soldiers in southern Afghanistan, according to the former commander of Britain's forces in Afghanistan. Brig. Ed Butler, who spent six months commanding British forces in Afghanistan, also revealed fears that militant Islamic groups in south-east Asia are supporting terrorist plots in the UK. The brigadier, a former head of the SAS, spoke exclusively to the Daily Telegraph in the week when the British death toll in Afghanistan reached 114, with 17 fatalities in the last two months. UK forces have uncovered evidence that British Muslims are actively supporting the Taliban and al-Qa'eda in attacks on coalition forces in southern Afghanistan, Brig Butler said. He said: "There are British passport holders who live in the U.K. who are being found in places like Kandahar."

A Strategy for Pakistan - Washington Post editorial

Pakistan's new democratic government is committed to fighting al-Qaeda and other extremist Islamist movements - and that may distinguish it from the country's other power centers. Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who ruled the country from 1999 until this year and remains president, has been an enemy of al-Qaeda but did little to disrupt bases of the Taliban, a onetime client of his army. The country's powerful intelligence service, meanwhile, has long nurtured jihadi groups and now stands accused by the CIA of collaborating in recent terrorist bombings in Afghanistan. The new prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gillani, who was in Washington this week to meet President Bush, says he is doing his best to convince his country that "this is Pakistan's war." But he seems not to have won the argument within his own government. This complex situation calls for a careful and flexible response from the United States - and, to its credit, the outgoing Bush administration is making a relatively good start at fashioning that response.

IRAN

Ahmadinejad: Iran Will Not Back Down on Nuclear Program - Voice of America

Iran's president has vowed to use force against what he calls "enemies" who want to curtail his nation's controversial nuclear program. State television reported President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's comments Friday, just ahead of a deadline for Iran to respond to a Western deal on its nuclear program. The United States, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia have given Iran until Saturday to accept an incentives package in exchange for suspending uranium enrichment activities, or risk additional sanctions. On Thursday, Iran's foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, said no firm deadline had been set. It was not clear whether Western diplomats plan to stick firmly to Saturday's deadline. President Ahmadinejad said Friday that his country's so-called "foes" are using the nuclear issue as an excuse to provoke Iran. Western nations accuse Iran of enriching uranium in order to make nuclear weapons. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. The UN Security Council has imposed three sets of sanctions on Iran for defying international demands to suspend enrichment.

Physicist: Iran on Brink of Nuclear Arms - Olivia Ward, Toronto Star

Iran is divided over producing nuclear weapons. But with political will, it could acquire them in the next two years, warns Akbar Etemad, a founder of Tehran's atomic energy program in the 1970s. And, he says, the ambition to acquire a bomb goes back further than Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to the days of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, a former ally of the United States. "For now, it all depends on the priorities," said Etemad, who was in Toronto yesterday attending a conference on Iranian studies. "My understanding is that the group of mullahs aren't much in agreement (on developing nuclear weapons). It depends on how the forces play out among them."

Iran Builds Bombs at its Peril - Con Coughlin, Daily Telegraph opinion

Has Israel just taken a step closer to bombing Iran? That will certainly be the main subject of discussion in Jerusalem this weekend as Israelis digest the surprise announcement by their prime minister, Ehud Olmert, that he is to stand down in September. And if the Iranians have any sense, they should take note of the important changes taking place in Jerusalem.

THE LONG WAR

Hamdan Seen as 'Not Fit' for Terror - Jerry Markon, Washington Post

Osama bin Laden's former driver was a "primitive" chauffeur and mechanic who "was not fit to plan or execute" terrorist attacks, the self-described mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks told jurors in writing Friday at the driver's military trial. Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the alleged Sept. 11 architect, wrote that Salim Ahmed Hamdan was a low-level support staffer who never joined al-Qaeda and did not share bin Laden's ideology. Hamdan is on trial in the first US military commission since World War II. His lawyers rested their case Friday, and closing arguments are scheduled for Monday. "He did not play any role. He was not a soldier, he was a driver," Mohammed said in answers to written questions from Hamdan's lawyers that were relayed to the six military jurors. "His nature was more primitive (Bedouin) person and far from civilization. He was not fit to plan or execute."

Terror Trial Nears End as Defense Rests - William Glaberson, New York Times

Defense lawyers for Salim Hamdan, Osama bin Laden’s former driver, rested their case on Friday after less than two days, bringing testimony to a close in the first American war crimes trial since World War II. The lawyers ended their case with written submissions from two former senior operatives of Al Qaeda held here, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the self-described architect of the 2001 attacks. The statements were intended to bolster the claim that Mr. Hamdan was only a low-level employee with no involvement in terrorism. In his submission, Mr. Mohammed, who described himself as “the executive director of 9/11,” said Mr. Hamdan, a Yemeni with a fourth-grade education, was too “primitive” to take part in planning terrorism attacks.

Hung Jury May Lead to Retrial in London Bombings - Associated Press

A British jury said today it had failed to reach verdicts in the case of three men accused of helping to plan the London subway and bus bombings in 2005 – the worst attack on Britain's capital since the Second World War. Prosecutors said they would consider whether to seek a retrial and would make a decision within a week. Judge Peter Gross ordered the men held in custody pending a decision on whether to hold a second trial in the case.

COMPLEX OPERATIONS

Pentagon Pushes for ‘Soft Power,’ Interagency Cooperation - AFPS

The Pentagon’s new National Defense Strategy is the latest in a series of Defense Department messages highlighting the need to develop a US foreign policy with greater emphasis on so-called “soft powers” such as diplomacy and international aid. The broad-brush document released yesterday includes a section that strikes at the need for greater cooperation, or “jointness,” between the department and its interagency partners if American operations abroad are to succeed. “Iraq and Afghanistan remind us that military success alone is insufficient to achieve victory,” the strategy reads. “We must not forget our hard-learned lessons or allow the important soft power capabilities developed because of them to atrophy or even disappear.” Beyond security, the “essential ingredients” of long-term success include economic development, institution building and enforcing the rule of law, the document states. To achieve these ends, the strategy recommends closer coordination among other US departments and agencies, state and local governments, partners and allies, and international and multilateral organizations.

US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Scientist’s Suicide Linked to Inquiry - Shane and Lichtblau, New York Times

After four years pursuing one former Army scientist on a costly false trail, FBI agents investigating the deadly anthrax letters of 2001 finally zeroed in last year on a different suspect: another Army scientist from the same biodefense research center at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Md. Over the last 18 months, even as the government battled a lawsuit filed by the first scientist, Steven J. Hatfill, investigators built a case against the second one, Bruce E. Ivins, a highly respected microbiologist who had worked for many years to design a better anthrax vaccine. Last weekend, after learning that federal prosecutors were preparing to indict him on murder charges, Dr. Ivins, a 62-year-old father of two, took an overdose of Tylenol with codeine. He died in a Frederick hospital on Tuesday, leaving behind a grieving family and uncertainty about whether the anthrax mystery had finally been solved.

Anthrax Suspect was 'Homicidal' - Seper and LoBianco, Washington Times

An Army microbiologist who committed suicide this week after being identified as a suspect in the 2001 anthrax attacks had been committed to a mental hospital last month after a psychiatrist described him as homicidal and sociopathic, court records show. Bruce E. Ivins, 62, of Frederick, Md., who had been developing vaccines against anthrax and had worked at the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick for the past 35 years, was committed to Sheppard Pratt Hospital in the Baltimore area on July 10 after making "threats of homicidal intent," according to a peace order signed July 24 in Frederick County District Court.

Justice Department Won't Comment - Richard Schmitt, Los Angeles Times

The Justice Department said Friday it had made "substantial progress" in the investigation of the 2001 anthrax attacks, but officials declined to comment on a report in The Times that the department was about to bring the first criminal charges for the attacks against a Maryland man who died this week. The Times reported Friday that a top government scientist who helped the FBI analyze samples from the 2001 attacks had died in Maryland from an apparent suicide just as the Justice Department was about to file criminal charges against him. Bruce E. Ivins, 62, who had long worked at the government's elite biodefense research laboratories at Ft. Detrick in Maryland, had been informed of his impending prosecution, said people familiar with Ivins, his suspicious death and the FBI investigation. His name had not been disclosed publicly as a suspect in the case.

Anthrax: Still No Answers - New York Post editorial

Nearly seven years after post-9/11 an thrax attacks terrorized the nation, killing five and sickening 17 - including three at The Post - Americans still have no clue what happened. It's not clear the FBI does, either - notwithstanding reports yesterday of plans to indict a scientist in the case who turned up dead this week. It's a thoroughly unacceptable situation. And it needs to be rectified - now. Indeed, the stunning suicide of Bruce Ivins, a top biodefense researcher - who reportedly faced a looming indictment in connection with the attacks - raises more questions than answers.

Chairman Calls Shorter Deployments Step in Right Direction - AFPS

The Army officially returns to 12-month deployments, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said it’s a huge step in the right direction for the armed forces and their families. “I think it was a timely decision, a needed decision,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said in an interview with the Pentagon Channel, “and it’ll have a very positive impact on our mission as well as our overall force and their families.” In announcing the change yesterday, President Bush noted that July was the third straight month of reduced violence in Iraq. As part of the success policy, he said, starting today, soldiers deploying to Iraq will serve 12-month tours rather than 15. “It’s a significant step, because 15-month deployments took an extraordinary toll,” Mullen said. “So to bring that back to 12 months for every active duty Army unit, I think, is a huge step in the right direction.”

Senate Confirms Air Force Generals for Key Positions - AFPS

The Senate confirmed two Air Force generals nominated by President Bush for key positions. Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, commander of US Transportation Command, will be Air Force chief of staff, Gen. Duncan J. McNabb, Air Force vice chief of staff, will succeed Schwartz as TransCom commander. Schwartz will succeed Gen. T. Michael Moseley as the Air Force’s top officer. Moseley stepped down in June in the wake of a report critical of the Air Force’s handling of its nuclear weapons program.

AUSTRALIA DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE

White Paper on Peacekeeping - The Australian

Australia should not take on peacekeeping missions without clear objectives and an exit strategy, a Senate committee has said. It also found the federal government had no idea how many peacekeepers had suffered mental health problems, due to poor data management by the Australian Defence Force and the Department of Veterans' Affairs. The Senate standing committee on foreign affairs and trade, in a 383-page report into Australia's peacekeeping operations, recommends the government order a white paper into Australia's involvement in peacekeeping. It also says the ADF and Australian Federal Police should develop effective inter-operability strategies, after troubles in the field caused by different work cultures. Committee chairman Mark Bishop said the committee received many submissions regarding exit strategies in the context of the Iraq war and the conflict in Afghanistan.

AFRICA

Sudan: Aid Group Pulls Workers From Darfur - Reuters

The aid group Doctors Without Borders said Friday that it had been forced to pull staff members from two areas in the war-torn Darfur region because of attacks against them. The withdrawal from the areas, Tawila and Shangil Tobaya, will leave 65,000 people without medical aid, the United Nations said.

The Credit W Deserves - Linda Chavez, New York Post opinion

Here's a question: Which US president has done the most in history to help Africa? Bill Clinton, you say? Remember his much ballyhooed six-country tour in 1998, a trip in which he came close to apologizing for America's role in slavery? Of course, the most memorable picture to emerge from that visit was a glimpse of the president in his Dakar hotel room banging on a conga drum, a fat cigar in his mouth, apparently celebrating the news that a judge had dismissed Paula Jones' lawsuit accusing him of sexual harassment. No, Clinton may have been "the first black president," but aid to Africa during his tenure didn't come close to the mark hit by the continent's true champion - President Bush.

AMERICAS

FARC Dissidents Assist Colombia - Juan Forero, Washington Post

Raúl Agudelo was a fearsome commander of Colombia's largest rebel group, carrying out killings, kidnappings and extortions for more than 20 years. It was the only life he really knew. But going back to that life is now the last thing he wants to do. Agudelo, who has a military-style haircut and speaks in loud, effusive bursts, is instead part of a growing movement of former rebels speaking out against the group from jail. In doing so, these dissidents are posing yet another challenge to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, which has long relied on its imprisoned members to help plan kidnappings, killings and arms smuggling operations on the outside.

Alleged Drug Lord Captured - Manuel Roig-Franzia, Washington Post

An alleged Colombian drug kingpin who escaped from prison in 2001 and is believed to be the main cocaine supplier to a violent drug gang in the Mexican state of Sinaloa has been captured here, federal police announced Friday. Ever Villafañe Martinez had apparently been living openly in the capital under a false name, and was concealing his identity by, among other things, surgically removing the fingerprints from his fingertips, police said. Mexican authorities suspect Villafañe of funneling millions of dollars worth of cocaine to a gang headed by the Beltran Leyva brothers gang, which has recently waged a bloody turf war with its former allies in the larger Sinaloa Cartel.

Fears of Instability in Venezuela - Simon Romero, New York Times

The central bank sought on Friday to calm fears of faltering banks a day after President Hugo Chávez unexpectedly announced the nationalization of a large Spanish-owned bank, his latest effort to intensify state control over the economy through takeovers of private companies. The nationalization of the bank would extend to the financial sector a series of takeovers, which Mr. Chávez initiated last year, in industries including oil, telecommunications, electricity and steel-making. Mr. Chávez further shook the political establishment and financial markets on Friday when he disclosed that he had used his decree powers to issue 26 laws on Thursday. They included a banking reform, although the government did not provide details on any of the laws the president decreed.

Hugo Chavez Defies Spain - Fiona Govan, Daily Telegraph

Spain's biggest bank Santander was in talks to sell the Banco de Venezuela to a private buyer but in a surprise televised announcement on Thursday Chavez said: "We're going to nationalise Bank of Venezuela." "They (Grupo Santander) wanted to sell the bank to a Venezuelan banker, and as head of state I'm saying 'no'. Sell it to the government, to the state," he added. Chavez had threatened to nationalise Venezuelan subsidiaries of Spanish banks after Spain's King Juan Carlos publicly reprimanded him at summit in Chile last November. The usually polite monarch felt compelled to shout "Why don't you shut up?" at the Venezuelan leader after he repeatedly interrupted the Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez.

Fidel Castro Still a Force - Jeff Franks, Reuters

The era of Fidel Castro appeared to be ending July 30, 2006, when the ailing leader handed over power to his brother Raul Castro. But two years later, he remains a force to be reckoned with in Cuba and to some degree on the international scene. Although he no longer rules the Caribbean island as he did for almost 50 years, the 81-year-old still has his brother's ear and is using a newfound career as a newspaper columnist to make his views known. Diplomatic cocktail gossip in Havana centres on whether he is using his clout to hold back economic reforms favoured by his brother and keep Cuba true to his vision of socialism, but the Castros say there is no disagreement between them. What is certain is that Fidel Castro has staged a remarkable comeback after apparently being near death following emergency intestinal surgery for an undisclosed ailment in July 2006.

ASIA PACIFIC

Beijing Expands Defense Funds - Christopher Bodeen, Associated Press

China's defense spending is on track to reach $360 billion a year by 2020 if annual increases continue at their current pace, an analyst with the Jane's defense consulting firm said Friday. That figure is still dwarfed by US military spending, which amounted to $547 billion last year, but would represent a significant increase over Beijing's current official budget of about $59 billion.

Chinese Harassed, Jailed Before Olympics - Edward Cody, Washington Post

Behind the gray walls and barbed wire of the prison here, eight Chinese farmers with a grievance against the government have been consigned to Olympic limbo. Their indefinite detainment, relatives and neighbors said, is the price they are paying for stirring up trouble as China prepares to host the Beijing Games. Trouble, the Communist Party has made clear, will not be permitted. The Olympic Games have become the occasion for a broad crackdown against dissidents, gadflies and malcontents this summer. Although human rights activists say they have no accurate estimate of how many people have been imprisoned, they believe the figure to be in the thousands.

Despite Flaws, Rights in China Have Expanded - Howard French, New York Times

For the past two decades, China’s people became richer but not much freer, and the Communist Party has staked its future on their willingness to live with that tradeoff. That, at least, is the conventional wisdom. But as the Olympic Games approach, training a spotlight on China’s rights record, that view obscures a more complex reality: political change, however gradual and inconsistent, has made China a significantly more open place for average people than it was a generation ago. Much remains unfree here. The rights of public expression and assembly are sharply limited; minorities, especially in Tibet and Xinjiang Province, are repressed; and the party exercises a nearly complete monopoly on political decision making. But Chinese people also increasingly live where they want to live. They travel abroad in ever larger numbers. Property rights have found broader support in the courts.

EUROPE

Karadzic Accuses His Accusers - Marlise Simons, New York Times

In a rambling letter released by the war crimes tribunal on Friday, Radovan Karadzic raised what he called “serious irregularities” in his treatment and said that an international “media witch hunt” had jeopardized his chances for a fair trial. The four-page signed submission, filled with arguments and accusations, also went into greater detail about the deal that Mr. Karadzic, the former Bosnian Serb leader, contends he made with the United States in 1996 to help him evade justice. Mr. Karadzic had begun to read the letter out loud on Thursday during his first appearance before the international tribunal, but the judge stopped him, saying he would have only two minutes to speak. Mr. Karadzic was invited to submit the letter to the registrar, whose office translated it from Serbian and released it as a trial document.

Turkey: New Climate of Fear - Zeyno Baran, Wall Street Journal opinion

This week's verdict by Turkey's Constitutional Court - which rejected an attempt to ban the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) for undermining the country's secular foundations - has been hailed by the US and the EU as a great step forward for democracy and rule of law. Fair enough. Banning a party that last year renewed its mandate in office with 47% of the vote would have been a huge setback for Turkey. But that doesn't mean we should all sigh with relief and conclude that liberal democracy is flourishing under the Islamic-oriented AKP's rule. Government surveillance of AK Party critics and leaks to media of personal phone conversations have created a climate of fear. There is concern among some liberals that the country is becoming a police state. The foundation of a healthy democracy - the right to dissent and hold an elected government accountable - is gradually being undermined.

MIDDLE EAST

Police Question Olmert in Corruption Inquiry - Isabel Kershner, New York Times

The prime minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert, underwent a fourth round of police questioning on Friday, part of an unfolding corruption inquiry that has eclipsed his political career. Officers of the National Fraud Unit questioned the prime minister at his official residence for almost three hours, an hour longer than scheduled, a police spokesman said, describing the investigation as intensive. Bowing to public and political pressure, Mr. Olmert announced on Wednesday that he would resign after his party chose a new leader in September elections. The police spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, said that the police had originally requested a midweek appointment with Mr. Olmert to last for several hours, but that Mr. Olmert’s lawyers had only agreed to a two-hour session on Friday.

Tensions Rise for Egypt’s Christians - Michael Slackman, New York Times

A monastery was ransacked in January. In May, monks there were kidnapped, whipped and beaten and ordered to spit on the cross. Christian-owned jewelry stores were robbed over the summer. The rash of violence was so bad that one prominent Egyptian writer worried it had become “open season” on the nation’s Christians. Does Egypt face a sectarian problem? Not according to its security officials, who insist that each dispute represents a “singular incident” tied to something other than faith. In the case of the monastery and the monks, officials said the conflict was essentially a land dispute between the church and local residents. But the Egyptian security apparatus is increasingly alone in its insistence.

SOUTH ASIA

IAEA Approves Inspections Plan - Emily Wax, Washington Post

A UN nuclear watchdog group on Friday unanimously approved an inspections plan for India's civilian nuclear energy plants, a key step toward completing a controversial nuclear deal between the United States and India. The International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-nation board granted the approval after meeting in the Austrian capital, Vienna, officials said. The board agreed to regular IAEA surveillance of India's 14 declared civilian nuclear energy plants. India's government recently survived a confidence vote over the nuclear deal, which sparked protest by Parliament members who believed it tied India's foreign policy too closely to US interests.

UN Nuclear Watchdog Supports US-India Pact - Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times

The United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency provided a crucial boost Friday to prospects for a nuclear deal between the United States and India, dramatically improving the Bush administration's odds for a landmark foreign policy success in its final months in office. The International Atomic Energy Agency approved a key inspection agreement that enables it to oversee and safeguard India's civilian nuclear facilities. The agreement amounted to a show of international support for the US-India nuclear cooperation pact, which would give New Delhi worldwide access to nuclear equipment and assistance that had been off-limits for 34 years because India sidestepped international nonproliferation accords in building atomic weapons.

Canberra Approves US-India Nuke Pact - Dennis Shanahan, The Australian

Australia has moved to heal a rift with India over uranium sales by giving the green light to the new nuclear power agreement between the US and India. The Rudd Government backed the deal last night at the International Atomic Energy Agency board, and will do so at the Nuclear Suppliers Group meeting next month. At a meeting in Vienna, the IAEA board adopted a safeguards agreement, or inspections plan, crucial to the deal between India and the US. Without the IAEA safeguards, India cannot import nuclear technology from the 45-nation NSG, so the plan is key to India's efforts to gain access to legal imports of nuclear fuel and technology from the US. The NSG is set to endorse the deal at a meeting next month. Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said last night the Government believed the agreement on the safety and expansion of India's civil nuclear power was a "positive step forward".

EVENTS OF INTEREST

11-15 August - Counterinsurgency Leaders Workshop (Official Event - Workshop). Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The US Army/Marine Corps Counterinsurgency (COIN) Center is hosting a five-day program for prospective counterinsurgency leaders, 11-15 August 2008, at the Combined Arms Center, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The program is focused on equipping leaders with an understanding of the insurgency and counterinsurgency environments, as well as close consideration of the kinds of persons and organizations that usually emerge from insurgencies in contrast to those of conventional conflicts. This event will be held at the Battle Command Training Center (BCTC) Training Facility on Fort Leavenworth. Seating is limited. However, registration is open to any person who serves in any official capacity with regard to dealing with insurgencies, with priority is given to those applying from invited organizations. Other applicants will be reviewed for eligibility on a space-available, case-by-case basis. The duty is uniform/business casual. Application must completed on-line at the link above. The deadline for application is 1 August 2008. For more information, contact the COIN Center at 913-684-5196.

11-12 September - DNI Open Source Conferece 2008 (Public Event - Conference). Washington, DC. Sponsored by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. The Office of the DNI is pleased to announce the "DNI Open Source Conference 2008" to be held on Thursday, 11 September and Friday, 12 September, 2008 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington DC. The conference is free; however, all who wish to attend must register online in advance (deadline 31 July). The two-day conference will explore a wide range of open source issues and open source best practices for the Intelligence Community and its partners. We invite participants from the broader open source community of interest including academia, think tanks, private industry, federal, state, local and tribal entities, international partners, and the media to attend. The conference will include speakers from across the broader open source community participating in panel discussions and focus group sessions. Information about the agenda and break-out sessions is now available. The DNI Open Source Conference 2007 was held 16-17 July 2007 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. More than 900 registered participants and speakers attended. Presentations made at the conference break-out sessions are available on the DNI Open Source Conference 2007 website.

16-18 September 2008 - The U.S. Army and the Interagency Process: A Historical Perspective (Public Event - Conference / Call for Papers). Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Sponsored by the U.S. Army Combat Studies Institute. The symposium will include a variety of guest speakers, panel sessions, and general discussions. This symposium will explore the partnership between the U.S. Army and government agencies in attaining national goals and objectives in peace and war within a historical context. Separate international topics may be presented. The symposium will also examine current issues, dilemmas, problems, trends, and practices associated with U.S. Army operations requiring close interagency cooperation.