23 May SWJ Roundup

Afghanistan

Taliban Fighters Raid Govt. Building in Afghan East, Killing 7 People – VOA

Uniform-Wearing Militants Kill 6 at Afghan Police Station – NYT

Insurgents Attack Afghan Police Outpost, Killing 6 – LAT

Forces Retake Afghan Building – WP

Afghan Troops End Police HQ Siege – BBC

Afghan TV Reports Taliban Leader Omar Killed in Pakistan – WT

Taliban Denies Reports of Mullah Omar’s Death – LAT

Taliban: Mullah Omar Alive and in Afghanistan – AP

Afghan Taliban Reject Reports Leader Mullah Omar Killed – Reuters

Pakistan

Militants Strike Naval Air Base in Pakistan – WP

Militants Attack Pakistani Naval Base in Karachi – NYT

Taliban Fighters Storm Pakistani Naval Base – WSJ

Militants Storm Naval Base in Pakistan – LAT

Troops ‘End Pakistan Base Attack’ – BBC

Militants Attack Pakistani Base – AP

Militants Storm Pakistan Naval Air Base, Two Dead – AFP

Leaked Cable says Pakistanis Sabotaged Own Air Missions – WT

US Trial Risks Raising Tensions With Pakistan – Reuters

Israel / Palestinians

Obama Addresses Questions About Mideast Peace Approach – VOA

Obama Shifts Tone on Israel Borders – WSJ

Obama Presses Israel to Make ‘Hard Choices’ – NYT

Obama Clarifies Israel Stance – WT

Netanyahu Aides Play Down Spat – WP

Israel’s Netanyahu Downplays Rift With Obama – VOA

Obama’s ‘Jewish State’ Reference Jars Palestinians – AP

Syria

Seeking to Disrupt Protesters, Syria Cracks Down on Social Media – NYT

EU Imposes Sanctions on Syrian President Assad – Reuters

Libya

EU Opens Diplomatic Office in Libyan Rebels’ Stronghold – VOA

EU Opens Libya Office in Benghazi – BBC

Sealift Extends Lifeline to a Rebel City in Libya – NYT

France to Deploy Helicopters in Libya – Reuters

Libya Oil Minister No Longer Working for Gaddafi – Reuters

Yemen

Yemeni President Refuses to Sign Gulf Plan in Private – VOA

Saleh Refuses Deal to Bow Out – WP

Gulf States Withdraw Yemen Deal – BBC

Yemen Leader Again Balks at Leaving; Tension Grows – AP

Ambassadors Escape Surrounded Diplomatic Mission in Yemen – VOA

Egypt

In Egypt, a Revolution with an Asterisk – WP opinion

Iraq

Baghdad Rocked by Blasts That Kill 20, Including 2 US Soldiers – NYT

US Military: 2 Troops Killed in Iraq – AP

Bomb Blasts Around Baghdad Kill 15 – VOA

Wave of Bombings Strikes Baghdad – WP

Deadly Attacks Rock Baghdad Area – BBC

Iraqi Security Targeted as Bombs Kill 16 People – AP

Car Bomb Kills 2 Bystanders in Northern Iraq – AP

British Military Ends 8-year Mission in Iraq – AP

The Hot-Money Cowboys of Baghdad – NYT

Iran

EU Significantly Extends Sanctions Against Iran – Reuters

Ahmadinejad Remains Caretaker Oil Minister – Reuters

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Says Europe ‘Stealing Iran’s Rain’ – DT

Middle East / North Africa

In Arab States, Battles in Cyberspace – WP

Many Wounded as Moroccan Police Beat Protestors – Reuters

Al Qaeda

Bin Laden Seemed to Stick to Schemes He Knew Best – AP

U.S. Department of Defense

Gates Warns Against Big Cuts in Military Spending – NYT

Pentagon to Redefine Priorities: What Can’t We Afford to Cut? – CSM

Strong Military is Key to Long-term US Success, Gates Says – AFPS

United States

US Probes Rely on Companies’ Own Findings – WP

Obama Says He’d Repeat bin Laden Raid – AP

US ‘Would Repeat bin Laden Raid’ – BBC

Man Held in Car Bomb Probe Deported to Pakistan – AP

Chilling Echoes From Sept. 11 – NYT editorial

Obama Double Downs at AIPAC – WP opinion

Africa

Sudan’s Disputed Abyei Region Under Northern Control – VOA

Warnings of All-Out War in Fight Over Sudan Town – NYT

Sudan: Abyei Seizure by North ‘Act of War’, Says South – BBC

Seizure of Oil Field Brings Newly Divided Sudan to Brink of Civil War – TI

South Sudan: Seizure of Disputed Abyei ‘Illegal’ – VOA

South Sudan Asks for Help Over Abyei Seizure – AP

UN Urges North Sudan Out of Abyei – BBC

Rwanda Denies Assassination Plot Against 2 Dissidents – VOA

Somali and African Union Forces Advance in Mogadishu – NYT

Americas

Mexico Mass Graves of 219 Signal Major Cartel Rift – AP

Mexican Army General Shot Dead – BBC

Ex-Leader of Honduras Signs Accord Clearing Path for Return – NYT

Ousted Honduras Leader Can Return – BBC

Asia Pacific

East Asian Leaders Agree On Trade, Nuclear Cooperation – VOA

Japan Nuclear: Kan, Lee and Wen Agree Early Warning – BBC

China’s Food Choices Reshaping Markets – WP

UN Asia Pac Chief: Corruption Feeding Poverty, Halting Development – VOA

North Korea’s Kim Said to Be in Eastern China City – AP

China, Philippines Warn vs. Aggression in Spratlys – AP

S. Korean Court Begins Trial for 5 Somali Pirates – AP

Europe

Obama Heading to Europe on Six-Day, Four-Nation Trip – VOA

Barack Obama Begins European Tour – BBC News

Mideast Questions Likely to Surface in Obama’s Trip to Europe – NYT

Obama Begins Tough Trip with Family Time in Ireland – LAT

Europeans Focus on Retaining Leadership of IMF – NYT

Russia: Putin Decides to Retake Presidency – TOL

Spain Socialists Beaten at Polls – BBC

Spain’s Governing Party Suffers Heavy Losses – NYT

Deep in Crisis, Portugal Transforms – WP

Protesters Call for the Resignation of Georgia’s President – NYT

Volcano Closes International Airport in Iceland – WP

Iceland Volcano Closes Airports – NYT

South Asia

India PM Eyes Trade, Catch-Up With China in Africa Visit – Reuters