Daily Update

- Oil prices surge due to Mideast violence, but Kuwait's cancellation of a major petrochemical deal with Dow Chemical Co. sent stocks falling as the cancellation was interpreted as an indication of the severity and staying power of the current recession. As the Israeli airstrike against Hamas targets continues to day three, widespread protest against Israel in Egypt, Iraq, and Iran have been reported

- 7,000 Iranian college students are said to have registered to fight Israel at the behest of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Kamenei's proclamation that those who die in defense of Gaza against Israel will be considered martyrs

- ex-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed of Bangladesh has won the country's first democratic election since a military interim government took power in 2007; her political party, the Awami league, also won a parlimentary majority

- Look who's coming to dinner: a Chinese special envoy, the British High Commissioner, and Iranian President Ahamdinejad have all reached out to Pakistan to defuse escalating tensions between it and neighboring India

- Somalia's President Yusef has resigned as the country's Islamist Militants declare war on one another

Daily Update

- Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip continues for a second day. Over 240 Palestinians have died in the response to Hamas's rocket attacks. While many had expected Israel to use military force during the US presidential transition, Iran, not Hamas, was the expected target. The attacks have been described as the harshest in decades.

- The Bush Administration has been unwavering in its support for Israel and continues to blame Hamas for the violence in the Gaza Strip.

- India is hailing the election returns from Kashmir and Jammu as good signs for democracy and Indian national unity. In the wake of the Mumbai attacks, the elections were held under high security.

Daily Update

- President-elect Obama's foreign policy initiatives include the funded expansion of the U.S. Foreign Service. Is a career in the Foreign Service right for YOU? Take the quiz!

- According to the Iraqi government, Iranian MEK rebels to the current Iranian administration, sheltered by U.S. Forces 40 miles from Baghdad under current security arrangements, will not be welcome in Iraq after the U.S. leaves

- King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand swears in a new ruling party in Thailand as widespread demonstrations came to an end - but the 81 year-old King's absence at his recent anniversary speech disappointed those who expected him to exert a stronger influence in unifying the nation

- Drug violence from Mexico spreads to Honduras - while not a direct neighbor of Mexico, the overlapping of cocaine trade routes led to violence between competing cartels and with local authorities

- On a more positive note, Giant Pandas Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan are on their way from China's Szechuan Province to the Taipei City Municipal Zoo in an act of good will that was rejected in 2006 by former pro-independence President Chen Shui-Bien.

The phrase Tuan Yuan means "unite" - but before we start bashing China for injecting politics into animal names, it means "unite" in a more familial, rather than threatening sense, like "UNITE!"

With China, though, it's always hard to tell...

Daily Update

- The United States officially opposes any power sharing agreement in Zimbabwe that includes Robert Mugabe. This decision forces southern African to the forefront in any immediate diplomatic negotiations.

- The two main candidates for Israeli Prime Minister have promised to topple Hamas if elected. Kadima leader Tzipi Livni is the current foreign minister and has a record of negotiating with Palestinians. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Likud ex-Prime Minister, may actually "walk the walk".

- China and Taiwan conclude a summit at which they discussed how they could work together to deal with the current economic situation. These talks may be more fruitful with the newly elected pro-Mainland President Ma.

- The Status of Force Agreement may have been settled between Iraq and the US, but the parliament rejected a draft that would allow British forces to stay past December 31st.

A particularly egregious murder in Mexico's drug wars stirs anger among many Mexicans. The war on drugs in Mexico is killing more people right now than the NATO mission in Afghanistan, and the drug lords are getting ever bolder in their killings, kidnappings, and other means of intimidating the populace and law-enforcement officials.

The new status-of-forces agreement in Iraq is already being stretched: Gen. Ray Odierno has just said that US troops will remain in Iraqi cities after the summer to provide training assistance to Iraqi security personnel, who the US feels are not adequately prepared to take on full responsibility for Iraqi security. Under terms of the just-negotiated SOFA, all US troops were to have withdrawn to bases in the countryside after June 2009.

Pakistan has placed its air force on high alert following an alleged invasion of its airspace by Indian aircraft. With tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals already high in the wake of the Mumbai attacks, Pakistan blames India for further provocations in spite of India's stated intention to minimize hostility towards Pakistan following the attacks.

Daily Update

Post coverage of India's inquisition into possible indigenous logistical support for Mumbai attackers here.

Pakistan has closed the offices of Jamaat-ud-Daawa, a controversial Islamic charity tied to Lashkar-e-Taiba, the group alleged to have masterminded the Mumbai attacks. Jamaat-ud-Daawa has been the subject of suspicion for some time for providing funds to Islamist terror groups.

India's Home Minister has detailed plans for a dramatic restructuring of India's counterterror organizations in the wake of the attacks.

British troops will soon begin drawing down from Iraq. Currently at a strength of about 4,100, the domestically unpopular British mission is expected to be reduced to a force of only 400 trainers between March and June. US forces will move into currently British-controlled bases in and around Basra, the primary British area of operations.

Shakir al-Abssi, the leader of Syrian Sunni insurgent group Fatah al-Islam, was reported killed or captured by Syrian security agents after an hourlong firefight.

Today's Update

- The drawing of deadlines for American pullout from Iraq, increased unrest in Afghanistan and along the Pakistani-Afghani border, and recent attacks in Mumbai prompt U.S. to consider a regional strategy for South Asian security issues

- Ghana's presidential election goes to runoff, economic growth and equity dominate voter concerns - Ghana has seen 2000% growth in foreign investment and a doubling of exports but the "trickle-down" effect has yet to, well, trickle down

- Cancer is catching up to heart disease as the leading cause of death worldwide despite efforts on part of developing nations to combat it - "scourge" of tobacco worldwide is leading factor

- North Koreans non-commital to "the strategic decision to de-nuclearize," denying nuclear inspectors access to take samples from its nuclear facilities - i.e. 6-party talks become unproductive again due to Pyongyang's antics

- Cholera epidemic continues to wreak havoc in Zimbabwe, spreading across 50 cities as the reported death toll rises to 775

An Indian official blamed Pakistan's Interservice Intelligence (ISI) for the Mumbai attacks. Read here.

The Economist urges India to restrain the urge to lash out at Pakistan, even if it did back the attacks.

Will Muhammad Khatami return to the presidency of Iran when elections are held in 7 months?

Mumbai Terrorism

Yesterday, the Washington Post ran a front-page article describing how technologically savvy the terrorists who attacked Mumbai were, citing such examples as their use of portable GPS units, satellite telephones, and the use of cellphones with multiple SIM cards to make the phones almost impossible to track. This is important for two main reasons. First, this should not be a surprise, but rather a limited view of what terrorism looks like today and will increasingly look like tomorrow. Second, it highlights the US's--and by extension most of the West's--biggest weaknesses in the struggle against terrorism.

As to the first point, if anyone is surprised by the use of technology by such attackers, the only surprise should be that such tactics are only now surfacing. The oft-mentioned "democratization of technology" does indeed cut both ways, and threatens--in conjunction with terrorist command, control, communications, and intelligence (C3I) strategies--to negate a large portion of the US's technological superiority. Many Americans today take GPS for granted: if it is not built into their vehicles to begin with, anyone can go to their local electronics store and pick up an aftermarket unit for several hundred dollars that not only knows all the roads in America, but where the best local pizza parlor is. Non-automotive GPS is just as cheap and easy to use. A quick trip to an outdoor store or Amazon.com will yield a unit with latitude, longitude, altimiter, and other capabilities for the same few hundred dollars, all in a neat little package about the size of a cell phone. Equipped with such units, the Mumbai attackers hijacked a fishing vessel, successfully navigated it to their pre-identified point of insertion, jumped into Zodiacs for the final approach to shore, and landed. As the Post noted, none of these men had real navigational experience other than their GPS. Aside from the hijacking, this is exactly how US commandos operate--using GPS to navigate directly to their targets and then moving ashore in small boats or by swimming in. The attackers hit the beach, jumped out of their lifeboats, intimidated a couple of locals to keep them quiet, and moved off to hold a major metropolis hostage.

This was a low-budget, high-sophistication operation. Training the attackers was probably the most time- and money-intensive part of the entire plan. Even that was likely not an overly daunting task--all that was needed was a handful of men in good shape with decent weapons skills and a willingness to die. Such people are the raw ingredients of al Qaeda terror, and they are not exactly in short supply. As noted, maritime experience was not a prerequisite--an ability to use or learn how to use GPS was. The use of technology is already pervasive within al Qaeda and it is only growing. Theoretically, the longest pole in the tent for manning and executing such operations is the motivation and dedication of the operators, and, unfortunately, finding highly-motivated suicidal warriors has not proven to be a very high hurdle. Willingness to die in jihad is the hardest part of the whole operation to teach--if men can be found that will carry out the operation with no expectation of living through it and who can and will maintain their dedication at the moment of truth, the rest is relatively easy. Al Qaeda does a teriffic job of uniformly training its adherents to a common operational standard all over the world. An al Qaeda-trained mujahid who is the product of an Afghanistani camp will be able to operate almost seamlessly with another who was trained elsewhere since basic organizational training is standardized. Of the thousands and thousands at this minimum operational level, the leadership selects those who are ahead of the curve in physical conditioning and mental aptitude and who have the greatest dedication to the cause and willingness to die (note that intelligence and willingness to die often go hand-in-hand), and recommend them for operations such as Mumbai.

This brings up the second point, namely that al Qaeda's smart application of technology allows it to compete with and in some cases overcome the absolute technological gradient with the US. Al Qaeda does not have its own satellites, but it still uses satellites to launch attacks. The best part is that they let the US taxpayer foot the bill for putting the birds in orbit--the US launches and operates the vast majority of positioning, imaging, and communications satellites that al Qaeda can use for free. Using commercial GPS, Google Maps, and satellite telephones, al Qaeda can operate a more technologically advanced operation--in real time, no less--than US commanders could dream of twenty or thirty years ago. The evil genius of al Qaeda is that it blends high and low technology so well--the Mumbai attackers used GPS units of (for argument's sake) approximately 2007 vintage to position themselves to hold a major city hostage with AK-47's, designed sixty years earlier. The 9/11 attackers, after having gone to flight school to learn how to steer in a roughly straight line at 500 miles per hour, required nothing more sophisticated than box cutters to take control of 4 aircraft. Essentially, the terrorists let the US do all the technological legwork--R&D, testing, refining, and commercially marketing products--and then takes what it needs on the cheap and uses it to devastating effect against the very people who sold it to them. The US has a vast technological advantage over al Qaeda in absolute terms, but what al Qaeda understands so fundamentally is that sometimes "better is the enemy of good enough." In a couple of years, US commanders will be able to conference via hologram (if Wolf Blitzer can do it during the election, the Joint Chiefs can't be far behind). Al Qaeda does not need to holo-conference, and in fact they know it will harm more than hurt them. They know we can read all their email and phone traffic, so they either stay off the phone or pack multiple SIM cards so that one phone uses a half-dozen numbers. Our military has overhead imaging that can read license-plate numbers, but al Qaeda knows it doesn't need that. Google Earth has more than adequate resolution to get a good sense of terrain and plan a better operation than otherwise would have been possible. Combining a rough overhead image with a less-than-perfect positioning system makes up for the lack of each--sure, their GPS can't find locate the specific five-meter zone on the beach that they want to hit, but it can easily find the whole beach, which doubtless has some visible landmark at the landing site that the operators can find and pre-identify on Google Earth.

In sum, the Mumbai attacks give a frightening but not altogether surprising picture of the ever-adapting face of terrorism. Al Qaeda has proven adept at finding the kind of people it needs to execute its plans and then training them up for their individual missions. Using Western technology against the West, al Qaeda keeps costs low and avoids over-reliance on technological wizardry. To co-opt a Pentagon phrase, al Qaeda equips its men while the West mans its equipment. Flexible, adaptive C3I and constant re-evaluation of doctrine and methods based on what works and what does not are keeping the terrorists almost neck-and-neck and in some areas somewhat ahead of Western forces. The democratization of technology is not going to reverse itself anytime soon, so the West must stop being surprised by the enemy's uses of technology and start finding ways to adapt faster to the threat in order to stay ahead of the terrorists. This requires the human element: we are being "outcommunicated by a man in a cave" and outsmarted by low-technology equipment because al Qaeda by nature must find ways to innovate and stretch low technology to get the most out of it while the West succumbs to the temptation to give in to the siren song of high technology. Clearly, that approach is not working adequately. No overhead imaging, no matter how precise, could have prevented the Mumbai attacks. Thorough human intelligence and police work could have given us a better chance of predicting or stopping the attack. High technology may be sexy, but it cannot replace the decidedly un-sexy role of the intelligence officer poring over piles and piles of material and synthesizing it based on human intellect and instinct into an effective estimate of the evolving threat.

Daily Update

- AIDS awareness and activism doesn't end with World AIDS Day - know the national and worldwide costs of AIDS and get involved:

contribute to organizations that fight the spread of AIDS/HIV such as Avert and the Global Fund

buy (product) red merchandise

fight AIDS from your computer as it helps model drug resistance patterns in its idle time


- case study in non-lethal deterrents to Somali pirate attacks: 600-ft. American-operated ocean liner used high-decibel "ghetto blasters" and high-pressure water hoses to deter armed Somali pirates, and speeds away unscathed

- Muslims Against Terrorism initiative in Mumbai sees Muslim groups coming together in solidarity for a silent rally in response to terrorist attacks; Washington Post says gunmen used technology as a tactical tool and probably had better technology than local Indian police and armed forces

Daily Update

- Today is the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day

- Preeminent Iraqi Shiite Cleric raises doubts about new security pact with U.S., which would call for Iraqi oversight of American forces and American withdrawal by 2011

- North Korea cuts South Korean access to a joint industrial complex in response to Seoul's reduction of unconditional aid to the North and denouncement of its human rights abuses

- U.S. warned India of potential terror attacks in Mumbai, including mention of the Taj Mahal Hotel, as early as October

- Severe flooding in Venice worst in decades, partially attributed to global warming

Counterterrorism Information Site

For those interested in counterterrorism, check out this website:

http://insurgentconsciousness.typepad.com/insurgent_consciousness/facebook-terrorist-groups/

Today's Update

- Protests continue in Thailand, this time from the pro-government side

- India's interior minister resigns over the Mumbai attacks

- Georgia severs official relations with Nicaraqua after the former recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia

- Ukraine's opposition investigates claims into illegal arms sales to Georgia.

Daily Update

- Terrorists kill at least 80 and wound hundreds in coordinated small-arms and grenade attacks on Mumbai hospitals, train stations, and luxury hotels; Indian Counterterrorism chief dies in attack while "British nationals and other foreigners" are reportedly held hostage at one of the targeted hotels

- China cancels the 11th EU-China summit in a hardline response to French President Sarkozy's recent remarks supporting the Tibetans' "right to freedom" and his planned meeting with the Dalai Lama in December

- Rebel offensive against alledged perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide in the DR Congo displaces thousands

- Thailand's political crisis goes global as protestors against political corruption and lingering influence of ousted PM Thaksin force the closure of major international airports, stranding thousands of foreign travelers

- Russia signs cooperative treaty on nuclear energy development with Venezuela, prompting renewed concerns over balancing against the United States reminiscent of Soviet Cold War policies

Daily Update

- Reports say Iran has enough low-level uranium to work on a nuclear bomb

- One Thai protester was killed and twenty nine others were injured by a grenade attack in Bangkok

- The UN agrees to send more troops to the Congo.

- South Africa will withhold aid to Zimbabwe until a representative government is in place.

- The African Union asks for UN peacekeepers in Somalia to deter piracy.

Daily Update

- Joshua Kurlantzick of the New Republic thinks the global financial crisis could bring down the Chinese Communist Party

- Somalian pirates have seized control of a Liberian oil supertanker.

- President Kabila of the Congo fired his military chief of staff after ground forces lost ground to rebel groups

- The UN resumes food distribution in Gaza

- America and its Asian allies are concerned after a Chinese general hints at the prospect of an aircraft carrier.

Today's Update

- President Nicolas Sarkozy is calling for a European summit on security to deal with the missile defense shield.

- The Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire is falling apart as members of Hamas fire rockets into southern Israel

- Iraqi insurgents have developed smaller bombs in response to tighter security.

- The Russian Duma overwhelmingly passed a law changing the presidential term from four to six years

Check out this article by John Esposito, which makes a few of the points that I (Ann) made a few weeks ago:

An internationalist president

Barack Obama’s campaign victory was epic-making in America and across the Muslim world. On November 4, as soon as the election was called for Barack Obama, I began to receive congratulatory emails from friends in the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, and Europe. Some had stayed up through the night to hear the final results. Of course, I wasn’t surprised at the global interest and support, which had been evident on recent visits to Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Wherever I spoke, regardless of the topic, someone in the audience would ask me a question about Obama and his prospects. Privately, it was the topic of conversation. So what will all this mean?

In the Muslim world, as in Europe and much of the world, Obama is welcomed as an internationalist president. His Kenyan father, early schooling in Indonesia, race and name symbolize for many a unique internationalist presidential profile, one that contrasts sharply with his predecessor. Indeed, he is seen as the antithesis of George W. Bush-internationally informed, experienced, aware and sensitive, a measured and articulate statesman-not, as Bush is often regarded, as a swaggering Texas cowboy.

Obama’s foreign policy will be expected to be all the things that many in the Muslim world saw as lacking in the Bush administration, which was viewed as neo-colonial, unilateral, arrogant, militant and interventionist. Therefore, an Obama administration will be expected to be multilateral, favor diplomacy first over military threats and intervention, and avoid what many believe was a neo-colonialist American foreign policy whose verbal commitment to democracy promotion and human rights was hypocritical. Obama’s administration cannot, like Bush’s, fail to walk the way it talks.

Despite its democratic rhetoric, the Bush administration continued to look the other way in its relations with authoritarian Muslim allies. It refused to accept the election of HAMAS. America condemned Hizbollah, but sat on the sidelines as Israel carpet-bombed Lebanon, destroying much of its infrastructure in a war whose victims were overwhelmingly Lebanon’s civilian population. Many Muslims today expect Obama to live up to the principles of self-determination, justice and human rights that they associate with America and break with the Bush administration’s (and for that matter, previous administrations’) double standard in not promoting democracy and human rights in the Middle East.

Given the legacy of past American policies that engaged in what Ambassador Richard Haass, a senior State Department official in George W. Bush’s first term, called “Democratic Exceptionalism”-its equation of America’s national interest in security, stability and access to oil with uncritical support for authoritarian regimes and Israel-Obama will face a formidable challenge of sharply rising expectations. It will be further complicated by the fact that some Muslim rulers, in contrast to their populations, preferred McCain, believing that he would continue the Bush policy (and indeed that of Bush’s predecessors) of supporting their regimes in exchange for their cooperation and what were regarded as America’s national interests.

Both America/Europe and Muslim societies need to pursue a joint effort in marginalizing the extremist fringe and building bridges between members of the mainstream. Data from the Gallup World Poll (see John L. Esposito and Dalia Mogahed’s, Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think?), the most comprehensive and systematic poll of the Muslim world-representing the voices of 90% of the world’s Muslims in more that 35 countries stretching from North Africa to Southeast Asia-provides critical insights into the components for a new direction in American foreign policy and relations with the Muslim world. Majorities of Muslims, like Westerners, are deeply concerned about religious extremism and terrorism, not surprising since the majority of attacks and victims have been in the Muslim world. For majorities of Muslims, who admire the West’s freedoms, technologies, and rule of law, the major issues are respect for Islam and Muslims and Western, especially American, foreign policies. Many will be looking for an American administration that emphasizes diplomacy and dialogue. They will expect co-existence and constructive engagement rather than interference, intervention or dominance in America’s relations with the Muslim world; the promotion of democratization as self-determination; economic and educational assistance rather than the transfer of substantial military arms and equipment to authoritative regimes; and a more balanced policy in its approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

While agreement on a withdrawal policy for Iraq will not be easy, devising a new policy to address deteriorating conditions in Afghanistan that does not require major multi-year American military involvement will prove difficult. However, the most intractable issue will continue to be the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The obstacles seem insurmountable: the failed leadership in Israel and Palestine, prospects of a new Netanyahu-led government facing off with HAMAS, and formidable American domestic pressure from the Israel lobby and Zionist Christian Right leaders. There seems little reason to believe that an Obama administration or the new Congress will alter a long-established tradition of American presidents (Democrat or Republican) and Congresses to equate the existence, safety and security of Israel but be gun-shy in providing comparable support for Palestinian Muslims and Christians. A review of Obama’s campaign advisers on foreign policy and community affairs as well as the list of those rumored to be appointed in his new administration do not bring an initial optimism for significant change.

The policies and legacy of the Bush administration have left Barack Obama and his new administration with many formidable political and economic challenges, some seemingly intractable. However, in relations with the Muslim world and in our joint fight against global terrorism, Obama does have a singular opportunity to signal a new era and send a new message of hope and constructive engagement across the Muslim world.

Today's Update

- A 2004 secret order by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld has allowed over a dozen secret raids in several countries.

- Morgan Tsvangirai has rejected the decision of Southern African leaders concerning the Zimbabwean power-sharing agreement

- 28 people were killed today by car bombs in northern Baghdad

- New Zealand is close to having a new Prime Minister.

A New Cold War or the Second Detente?

For everyone who believed the election of Barack Obama would draw universal acclaim, try listening to Dmitri Medvedev. The announcement of the deployment of missiles in Kaliningrad was in striking contrast to the celebrations elsewhere.

The growing antagonism between the United States and Russia has been well documented and the Obama Administration will have to deal with a headstrong Medvedev-Putin government. Some observers have declared the start of a new Cold War. For those who fear a new global Russo-American struggle, know this: Russia is not the Soviet Union.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the United States talked down to Russia, a nation not know well for its sense of deference. The loss of respect and prestige are the sources of the jingoism and obstructionism of the Putin regime. The United States must engage Russia and work towards a more stable Russo-American relationship. Senator McCain's Manichean approach to Russia, revoking its membership in the G8, would only fuel the resentment felt by Russians.

President-Elect Obama has shown a more pragmatic approach to Russia by refusing to state his opinion the Bush Administration's Eastern European missile defense shield. Along the line of his response to the Russo-Georgian War, Mr. Obama has shown an ability to see the other side of the conflict. A dogmatic stance in either direction would have been a mistake. Support would cause more confrontation while opposition would herald an era of capitulation. President-elect Obama made a wise decision in allowing himself negotiation room with Russia.

Obama's Election: Symbolic of America's Reality & Future

By Ann Koppuzha
In his concession speech, John McCain commented that Obama’s election was a historic moment for the African American community. This statement is true but limited; Obama’s election is a victory for both the African-American community and every other American because it is representative of America’s future and the positive attributes of America, that seem to be rarely discussed.

It’s predicted that in the near future, minority communities will be the most dominant component of the U.S. population. Barack Obama’s election is symbolic of the trend toward diversification. Why shouldn’t a multi-ethnic nation be represented by a man of biracial heritage?

Furthermore, Obama’s biography signifies the weakening of the wealthy old-boy network within the United States. Unlike our past president, Obama had no famous father to pull him out of sticky situations nor did he have a cushy trust fund. Rather, Obama is partly a first generation American, and was raised partly by his mother and stepfather abroad, and partly by his grandparents in Hawaii. He earned and paid for his first class education himself and only recently paid off his student loans. Obama’s background is typical of the middle-class and represents the rise of this group, despite the widening income gap between the rich and the middle-class. It demonstrates that while it may be more difficult to become wealthy, fortune is not a pre-requisite to political influence and opportunity. Additionally, in the past America's president has always been a white male and usually a wealthy individual, leaving many nations believing that the American president represented colonist and racist policies. Obama, however, because of his international experience and unique heritage, will hopefully
repersent a more positive image to the world-- one of a less condescending and more aware and cooperative superpower.

This is only the current perception. Reality may be different.

Daily Update

- Independent military observers call into question Georgia's claims on the start of the Russian war. Meanwhile, the Georgian opposition had its first demonstration since the war.

- The Congolese civil war may go international.

- The Chinse envoy met with President Ma of Taiwan in the highest level meeting in over 60 years.

- The Chinese government urges President-elect Obama to be careful with the "Taiwan issue"

Today's Update

- President Medvedev welcomes Present-elect Obama.

- A suicide bomber attacks pro-government tribe members in Pakistan.

- Rebels continue to rampage through eastern Congo

- Secretary Rice says a Middle East peace deal will not happen soon

Today's Update

- Rebels groups in the Congo threaten to topple the government if they don't have direct talks.

- The arrival of China's envoy was greeted by pro-independence protesters.

- General Petraeus gets an earful from Pakistani leaders

- Argentina is on the precipice of another financial crisis

Today's Update

- A new poll shows a dead heat in the Israeli election

Unfortunately there has been a series of explosions and bombings across the globe in the past 24 hours:
- A suicide bomber attacks a ministry building in Kabul
- 10 anti-government protesters were killed by a Grenade attack in Bangkok
- 17 Spanish students were wounded by an alleged ETA car bomb.
- At least 67 people died in attacks in the northeastern Indian state of Assam

The Return of the Update

- Syria becomes more confrontational in the face of US raids

- An earthquake in Pakistan kills 170 people.

- South Africa's ANC is slowly breaking apart.

- The Ukrainian parliament passes legislation that will secure loans from the IMF.

- Ethnic strife in India is intensifying a month before national elections.

- Rebels are closing to taking the Congolese city of Goma, the center for UN forces.

Weekend Update

- Newly elected Kadima leader Tzipi Livni will call for a snap election later today.

- In the midst of the global financial crisis, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the IMF managing director, was cleared of wrongdoing in a sex scandal by an outside panel.

- Yesterday, almost 500,000 members of Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party protested against the upcoming visit of members of China's government.

- Before the financial crisis, there was the food crisis (the topic of an article in our first issue). Now, the new global crisis is exacerbating the old one.

Today's Articles

- The European Parliament awarded Hu Jia the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. This rebuke to the Chinese Communist Party comes as the President of the European Commission calls for greater unity with Asia

- The US seems to be sending drones across the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. At the same time, Pakistan is starting to arm tribal miltias.

- Nine of the Somali pirates were captured. Unfortunately, their captain escaped.

Today's Articles

- The Iraqi cabinet worries the Security Agreement will allow America to stay past 2011.

- In the same week, India increases economic ties with Japan and launches an unmanned mission to the moon. Given China's shaky relationship with Japan and its recent spacewalk, the PRC has to be interested in these events.

- Hugo Chavez riles up his base by claiming the US will invade Venezuela soon.

Morning Articles

- The New York Times has an interesting article on the impact of falling oil prices on Venezuela, Russia, and Iran.

- The prospects for the power sharing agreement in Zimbabwe look shaky.

- Thaksin Shinawatra, the exiled former Prime Minister of Thailand, was found quilty of corruption in absentia

- Trade has started across the military border in Kashmir

- President Sarkozy wants European sovereign wealth funds to help re-capitalize banks

Khatami's return?

Barack Obama has been attacked by both his primary opponents and John McCain over his statement that he would meet with the leaders of rogue states. Senator McCain has evoked the image of a President Obama meeting with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Holocaust denying, antagonistic president of Iran. But what many Americans don't realize is that Ahmadinejad might be replaced by this guy.

Ahmadinejad faces some serious problems in his re-election effort. Iranians are tired of his confrontational approach to foreign policy and the economy is deteriorating quickly. The Economist lists the ills of the Iranian economy:

The government has failed to spread wealth, despite hefty revenues from oil and gas; ordinary Iranians are furious that inflation that is now running at nearly 30%. The country’s powerful merchants went on strike in October to protest against the introduction of a 3% sales tax. With the price of oil tumbling and the prospect of a sharp drop in hard currency earnings, Mr Ahmadinejad’s prospects look bleaker yet.

Khatami's re-election wouldn't cure all of Iran's ills, but it certainly would be a step in the right direction

Welcome

The Global Analyst was founded in the the spring of 2008 by a group of undergraduate students at Georgetown University. The university and its students have a well known interest in international affairs. While many Georgetown students are intelligent and well versed in global affairs, they lacked a medium to express their opinions. The Global Analyst was founded to fill that void.

The Global Analyst will be published twice a semester with full length articles on our soon-to-be constructed web site. These articles will focus on "big picture" topics and give policy prescriptions. The long time in between publishing articles allows for deep thoughts, but in the quickly changing world, a few days, never mind a few months, can render articles obsolete.

This blog will solve that problem. The posts here will supplement the bi-semester issues with day-to-day articles and comments on global happenings. If you enjoy the commentary here, we hope you will read the published articles.