Morning Brief: Pakistan's expanding chaos

Mon, 05/11/2009 - 7:55am

TOP STORY: Pakistan claims to be making progress in its offensive against the Taliban in the Swat Valley, but reliable information is hard to come by. Pakistan's interior minister says that 700 rebels were killed by raids in Swat over the last four days, though the military puts the number at only around 140. A suicide bomber killed 10 soldiers at a checkpoint earlier today.

What is certain is that Pakistan is facing a full-blown refugee crisis as a result of the fighting. Some 360,000 people from the disputed areas of Swat, Buner and Dir have registered at refugee camps since May 2, according to the U.N.

While most analysts say an Islamist takeover of the Pakistani state remains unlikely, the New York Times reports that al Qaeda is likely seizing on the chaos to create "mini-Afghanistans" throughout Pakistan, from which it can launch attacks with impunity. 

UNDER THE RADAR: Peru's cocaine trade is booming again after a 1990s drop-off, giving new life to the country's Shining Path rebels.

Middle East

Asia

  • The United Nations is calling a Sri Lankan artillery assault, which killed at least 378 civilians over the weekend, a "bloodbath."
  • Japanese opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa resigned over a corruption scandal.
  • Nepal's Maoists have vowed to disrupt sessions of parliament until the president agrees to their demand that the head of the army be dismissed. 

Europe

  • Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili will meet with opposition leaders today to try to bring an end to months of political deadlock.
  • British PM Gordon Brown has apologized on behalf of all political parties after leaked invoices show MPs filing expense reports for items like doog food and light bulbs.
  • Hundreds of Tamil protesters are blocking traffic in downtown London.

Africa

  • New South African President Jacob Zuma has chosen his cabinet with few major ideological changes.
  • Zimbabwean Prime Minsiter Morgan Tsvangirai played down his dispute with President Robert Mugabe.
  • Veterans of Kenya's Mau Mau rebellion are suing the British governent for alleged human rights abuses.

Americas

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Joshua Keating | Permalink | | Comments? Login or register
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US official mentions Israel's nukes

by jgarzik on Mon, 05/11/2009 - 3:16pm

I thought the following FT story was of interest to FP readers:

Taboo broken in first shot of US offensive

[...] A US official this week broke a long-standing taboo by referring in a speech at the United Nations to Israel's nuclear weapons

Joe Biden, vice-president, delivered a message to the biggest US pro-Israel lobby group [AIPAC] that he warned they were "not going to like"