News and Analysis (10/23/09)

As some expected, Iran is asking for changes:

• Iran Fails to Accept U.N.-drafted Nuclear Deal (Reuters)

Government threats and intimidation have not silenced Mehdi Karroubi, emerging as the “most defiant opponent of the country’s leadership”:

• A Lone Cleric Is Loudly Defying Iran’s Leaders (NY Times)

Michael Gerson opines that the goal of the Grand Mufti of Egypt” is not to liberalize Islam but to rescue orthodoxy from extremism”:

• The Grand Mufti’s Mission (Washington Post)

The missed deadline “caught Obama administration diplomats off guard”:

• Iraq Election Stalemate Could Delay US Troop Withdrawal (Christian Science Monitor)

While Pakistani military officials willingly accept US intelligence and surveillance videos for their fight in South Waziristan…

• U.S. Aiding Pakistani Military Offensive (LA Times)

… US officials act under the fear a deep divide between the civilian government and Pakistani Army may lead to another coup:

• Kerry Visit Underscores Power Still Wielded by Pakistani Army (Washington Post)

“The Afghan opium trade now kills many more people in NATO countries in a year than the number of NATO soldiers who have died on the battlefield in Afghanistan since 2001”:

• Report Shows Afghan Drugs Reach Deep in the West (NY Times)

Imran

Minaret of Freedom Institute Program Assistant