Dreams Into Lightning 2

Morning Report: 2012-09-30

Bangladesh: Koran libel spurs Muslim violence against Buddhists. Stratfor reports that Muslims burned homes and temples in response to claims that a Buddhist boy had burned a Koran. Via Atlas, CBS has more. 'Bangladesh's popular English-language Daily Star newspaper quoted the boy as saying that the photo was mistakenly tagged on his Facebook profile. The newspaper reported that soon after the violence broke out, the boy's Facebook account was closed and police escorted him and his mother to safety.'

USA / France / International: Stratfor says something seems to be going on. Also from Stratfor, "curious US and French military movements". Several military aircraft were reported heading east over the Atlantic as early as September 13, followed by several developments on September 24. The article stresses that

All these deployments could be previously scheduled movements for training or part of ongoing operations. They also do not necessarily mean any one mission is imminent. The United States and France could simply be positioning military assets in a region that is rife with conflict and that may eventually require rapid military intervention or action. ...

Anyway, go to the link for the article and a map.

Morning Report: 2012-06-24

Mary Cheney, Heather Poe tie the knot. 'Mary Cheney, the openly gay daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, has married her long-time partner Heather Poe, The Daily Caller has learned. Cheney spokeswoman Kara Ahern confirmed to TheDC that the couple married Friday morning in Washington, D.C. ...'

Egypt on alert in advance of election results. 'Egypt's ruling armed forces were on alert on Sunday as fears of violence mounted in the final hours before the state election committee is to name the winner of last weekend's presidential election at 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET). Mohamed Morsy of the long-oppressed Muslim Brotherhood has already claimed to be the successor to the ousted Hosni Mubarak. Millions of his Islamist loyalists may react with fury if the run-off goes to Ahmed Shafik, a former general and Mubarak ally. ...'

Turkish jet issue heading for NATO. 'Ankara: Turkey said on Sunday Syria had shot down its military aircraft in international airspace on Friday without warning and declared it would formally consult its Nato allies on a reaction. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking some 48 hours after the jet was shot down near both countries’ sea borders, told state broadcaster TRT the plane had been clearly marked as Turkish and dismissed Syria’s earlier statement it had not known the plane belonged to Turkey. ...' Belmont Club:

In that context the shootdown of the Turkish jet provides yet another vector for the involvement of outside powers in the Syrian conflict. If Turkey gets more deeply involved the question will be what its goals are and who will ride in on its coat-tails

The New York Times, citing sources in Israel, write that Israeli officials now believe that a Third Intifada is imminent because the Palestinian Authority itself was at a dead-end. “The root cause of this instability is that Palestinians have lost all hope that Israel will grant them a state.” ...

The desperation of the Palestinian Authority is another way of saying that the Israeli-Arab conflict is no longer the dominant narrative of the Middle East. The Arab Spring has now shifted the basic fault line to the Sunni-Shia schism, with the conflict between old line strongmen and newly restive populations as the undercard. ...

Morning Report: 2012-06-10

Long War Journal: Details on FOB Salerno attack.

New details have emerged regarding last week's Taliban attack on Forward Operating Base Salerno in Khost province, Afghanistan. Although the insurgents were repelled by US and Afghan government forces, the bombing was more significant than implied by initial reports, and had the potential to inflict greater casualties.

Initial summaries of the complex attack indicated that members of the Taliban, including several individuals wearing suicide vests, had launched a coordinated assault that breached the perimeter of the American facility. A suicide bomber rammed a car packed with explosives into the base's fence, and attackers entered through the gap. The insurgents were then "neutralized" by US and Afghan forces, according to a Regional Command - East spokesman. Fourteen attackers were killed in the assault. International Security Forces (ISAF) personnel "suffered minor wounds", but none were killed.

Photos of the aftermath show that the attack caused considerable damage, however ...

Via Meadia: Turkey is rebuilding Somalia.

We are increasingly seeing countries like Turkey and China taking the helm in the developing world, especially in Africa. That used to be Washington’s job, and anytime reports surfaced of corrupt officials lining their pockets with American taxpayer money, or extractive industries raping pristine African land, or well-intentioned development plans crashing and burning — the U.S. took a lot of flack.

But the old ways are disappearing. China has long been active in development across Africa, and so has Brazil. Neither has been able to escape the blow back that typically follows such activities: Africans across the continent are rarely wholeheartedly happy and occasionally get violent when large numbers of foreign workers come to town, and they don’t like it when big bribes get paid to corrupt officials. ...

Read the rest to find out why Mead thinks this isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Robert Mugabe, International Tourism Ambassador

Satire is dead. National Post:

The honour of being appointed International Tourism Ambassador - Zambian president Michael Sata is also receiving the title - is being bestowed by the United Nations World Tourism Office (UNWTO). The honours follow the news that Zimbabwe and Zambia are jointly holding the UNWTO General Assembly next year. ...

Goldstone: The Report that Won't Die

UN Watch:

Yesterday marked the third anniversary of the notorious UN Human Rights Council session that created the Goldstone Report, a 500-page document that excoriated Israel—for defending itself from deadly rockets—while exonerating Hamas.

The core charges of the report—that Israel's leadership intentionally plotted to murder Palestinian civilians, and did so from racist motives—were famously retracted by Judge Goldstone in op-eds published last year in the Washington Post and the New York Times. ...

Now the International Criminal Court is considering a Palestinian request to prosecute Israelis. Full story at the UN Watch link.

Japan On Board with Iran Sanctions

Reuters reports that Japan has agreed to cut Iranian oil imports and take other measures advocated by the United States, following a visit to Tokyo by U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Full article at the link.

Switzerland Extends Iran Sanctions

Switzerland has added 116 names to the list of Iranian entities under sanctions.

Now Russia ...

... just looks stupid.

Russia condemns IAEA report. 'Russia criticised on Tuesday the release of information in a U.N. watchdog report pointing to Iranian work on designing an atom bomb, saying it would dim hopes for dialogue with Tehran and could be meant to scuttle chances for a diplomatic solution.'

Russia condemns Arab League's suspension of Syria. 'Russia opposes the Arab League's decision to suspend Syria and believes Western nations are inciting opponents of President Bashar Assad to seek his removal, Russian news agencies quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Monday.'

So, now Russia is the expert on who belongs in the Arab League? And suddenly the IAEA isn't credible anymore, now that Russia doesn't like what it's saying? Great job, guys, on making those meddlesome Americans look good.

Frank Talk from Sarkozy, Obama

Oops. "Sarkozy admits he 'can't stand' Israeli premier [Netanyahu]. Obama: You're fed up with him? I have to deal with him every day!"

Netanyahu to Address UN

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday that he will address the UN General Assembly next Wednesday.