Pakistani forces are advancing in South Waziristan
Sounding a confident tone on the second day of the campaign against the forces of the Taliban and Al Qaeda, a senior military official said “the level of resistance from the militants is not very high.” Even so, said the official, who declined to be identified, the area was heavily mined and Pakistani forces encountered many homemade bombs.
But the Taliban said part of their strategy was to encourage the military to progress deeper into the militant enclave in the center of South Waziristan, and then tie the soldiers down with hit-and-run tactics that would keep the soldiers in a protracted campaign in the inhospitable terrain over the winter.
The government forces would be hit hard once they penetrated farther into the mountains, the favorite fighting areas for the militants, a Taliban organizer who is not involved in the current fighting said by telephone on Sunday from Wana, the capital of South Waziristan.
The WSJ is also reporting on the issue.
Karzai's team is still refusing UN claims of vote fraud. even with final results being published by the Afghanistans Electoral Commission today.
Initial results released last month gave Mr Karzai nearly 55% of votes, and his main rival Abdullah Abdullah 28%, suggesting the president had won outright.
But the ECC said that after fraudulent ballots were discounted, Mr Karzai's total was reduced to below 50%, indicating that a second round was needed. Mr Karzai has previously refused a run-off, insisting he won the election outright. He could also seek a power-sharing deal with Mr Abdullah.
Correspondents say there are concerns that a run-off could lead to further fraud, violence and ethnic strife.
There is also limited time available, as much of the north of the country becomes inaccessible in winter.
The US response presented is stalling and waiting for the results, until deciding whether to deploy more troops.
The CFR is weighing on on its webpage on the risks of delaying a decision on Afghan strategy.
The WP is reporting that even while attacks on training camps increase the number of terrorists training is increasing, especially westerners.
The gunman did not speak but wore military fatigues and waved his rifle as subtitles identified him as an American. The video contained a stream of threats against Germany if it did not withdraw its troops from the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. Although the American's part in the film lasted only a few seconds, it has alarmed German and U.S. intelligence officials, who are still puzzling over his background, his real identity and how he became involved with the terrorist group.
U.S. and European counterterrorism officials say a rising number of Western recruits -- including Americans -- are traveling to Afghanistan and Pakistan to attend paramilitary training camps. The flow of recruits has continued unabated, officials said, in spite of an intensified campaign over the past year by the CIA to eliminate al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders in drone missile attacks.
USA - MIDDLE EAST
King Abdullah II of Jordan warning the U.S. on Middle East policy, and showing dissapointment by slow progress on Israel-Palestine issue.
He said the two sides have a window of opportunity over the next year to make progress on creating a two-state solution, after which point the possibility of a Palestinian state will disappear as more Arab land gets swallowed up by Jewish settlements.
"The window of opportunity will soon close," he was quoted as saying. "By the end of 2010, if Israel doesn't believe in the two-state solution, the possibility of a future Palestinian state will disappear because of geographic reasons: already the land is fragmented into cantons."
He urged Washington and the European Union to put pressure on Israel to sit down with the Palestinians to negotiate peace, even though he remains suspicious of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and somewhat disillusioned with the U.S. effort to date.
"I'll be sincere; I had expected more, sooner," he said of the U.S. efforts and the seven missions already conducted by the U.S. envoy George Mitchell.
"I believed in a decisive turn at the beginning of the summer, ahead of a true peace negotiation at the United Nations," he said. "But the question of Israeli settlements — which are illegal according to the international community — remains central."
The IAEA is commenting on the Iran nuclear talks. While not sending the nuclear chief negotiator and head of Security Council, the talks are claimed to be going well.
USA- DOMESTIC
Obama administration officials are critizing Wall St. companies, fixing to pay big bonuses.
"The bonuses are offensive," Obama senior adviser David Axelrod said Sunday on ABC's "This Week," adding that banks must do more to support lending across the country and should stop their lobbying efforts aimed at blocking the passage of new financial regulations that are being prepared in Congress.
"They ought to think through what they are doing, and they ought to understand that a year ago a lot of these institutions were teetering on the brink, and the United States government and taxpayers came to their defense," Axelrod said. "They have responsibilities, and they ought to meet those responsibilities."
The Obama administration has defied popular opinion in backing huge government bailouts to try to rescue much of the nation's auto industry and stabilize the financial system, steps it saw as critical to fostering an economic recovery. At the same time, it has attempted to tap into popular anger at corporate America with outspoken criticism of bonuses, perks and other practices that have long been staples of big business.
Crude oil has reached highest level after reaching 79$/barrel.
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