In a dramatic turn of events at the Attorney General nomination hearing, Mike Mukasey suggested the NSA warrantless spying and waterboarding torture might be acceptable under the Constitution; meanwhile the US government offers its first detailed legal defense of how it treated Jose Padilla under its custody:
- Senators Clash With Nominee About Torture (New York Times)
- US Defends Its Harsh Treatment of an American Citizen (Christian Science Monitor)
In a perverse undermining of its own mission the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom offers shutting down of a religious school as means of combating religious intolerance. The school in question “angrily denied that they are teaching radical Islam and said that the commission never asked to speak with any school staff members and never asked to see any materials:”
- State Dept. Urged to Shut Saudi School in Fairfax (Washington Post)
Benazir Bhutto’s dramatic return to Pakistan ends on a very deadly note as the Taliban are suspected of a committing a bombing near Bhutto’s motorcade, killing at least 134 and wounding 150:
- Bomb Attack Kills Scores in Pakistan as Bhutto Returns (New York Times)
In response to Turkey’s readiness to conduct cross-border raids against Kurdish militant groups, President Barzani of the Kurdistan Regional Government rejects accusations of providing cover for militants and vows to fight Turkish incursions:
- Kurds ‘Will Fight Turkish Raids’ (BBC News)
Faced with the influx of immigrants shaking up Italy’s cultural homogeneity in its largest cities, a backlash against their presence, particularly against Muslims, grows:
- In Italy, Backlash Against Migrants Grows (Los Angeles Times)
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