Greater focus on military operations than reconstruction in Iraq creates a poor job market outside of the government and police force:
- Iraqis More Secure, But Few Are Finding Jobs (Christian Science Monitor)
- Sons of Iraq Made Iraq Safer. What’s Their Mission Now? (Christian Science Monitor)
Turkish military uses Istanbul explosions as an excuse to strike Kurdish Iraq again:
Giving a blunt warning of American intervention, the CIA dispatches an emissary to Pakistan’s new civilian government to illustrate ISI-Taliban militancy connections…
- C.I.A. Outlines Pakistan Links With Militants (New York Times)
…and a recent military breach of the Swat-region peace deal could be it’s response to US pressures to assert its feeble authority:
- Pakistan Army ‘Kills Militants’ (BBC News)
Underscoring the increasing Fatah-Hamas divide within Palestine, Human Rights Watch accuses both groups of arbitrary arrests and torture:
- Rights Group Reports Torture by Palestinian Security Forces (Washington Post)
British House of Lords excuses Saudi’s threat to withdraw national security cooperation in response to the investigation of an arms deal’s legality:
- Lords Says SFO Saudi Move Lawful (BBC News)
A new media law would further clamp down on freedom of expression, but one Egyptian laments that people trying to make ends meet in a soured economy don’t have time for political activity anyway:
- Leftists’ Dreams Die Hard in Egypt (Los Angeles Times)
Observers, scholars, and government representatives will discuss conflicts in Muslim countries at an Indonesian conference:
