Drawdown of troops in Iraq reverts back to pre-“surge†number at which it is expected to remain until at least the end of Bush’s term…
- New Troops in Iraq Will Keep Number at 140,000 (Washington Post)
…meanwhile US support for Sunni militias temporarily reduces overall violence, but also opens the door for armed criminal extortion of local residents:
- Sons of Iraq? Or Baghdad’s Sopranos? (Los Angeles Times)
Ahmedinejad continues his self-inflicted wounds as other senior clerics and politicians slam him for using religion to mask his failing political and economic policies:
- Senior Iran Cleric Says President Spreads Poverty (Reuters/Wiredispatch)
- Clerics Accuse Ahmadinejad of Hiding Political Failures Behind Religion (International Herald Tribune)
Mohammed Bazzi argues Lebanon’s past and present internal conflicts are rooted in its outdated confessional system, while talks to resolve the current crisis remain deadlocked:
- The Heart of Lebanon’s Strife (Christian Science Monitor)
- Doha: No Breakthrough, but No Breakdown Either (Daily Star Lebanon)
Xenophobic Danish party uses Islamophobia to move toward restricting religious liberties of Muslim judges:
- Row Over Denmark Court Veil Ban (BBC News)
Bush seeks to expand government secrecy in policy memo that creates new designations for information classification:
- Keeping Secrets: In Presidential Memo, A New Designation for Classifying Information (Washington Post)
Nigerian president Yar’Adua’s so-called commitment to the rule of law stops when it comes to probing into the alleged criminal activity of his predecessor Olusegun Obasanjo:
- Nigeria: I’ll Never Probe Obasanjo – Yar’Adua (Leadership Nigeria/AllAfrica.com)
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