Hamas
Official: Hamas will seek more weapons
Yearly Archives: 2012
Hamas
In Gaza, Hamas Faces Test of Strategy
Israel
Israel and Hamas began talks in Cairo over the details of their truce deal. Gazans started to rebuild smuggling tunnels to Egypt. Israeli defense minister Barak resigned.
Afghanistan
Human Rights Watch urges no amnesty for Afghan Taliban
Afghanistan
Foreigners fanning sectarianism in Afghanistan: MPs
Afghanistan
250 ISAF Bases Handed Over to Afghan Forces
Africa
Turkey – Scholars worry over academic immunity
Denmark
Danish government targets Sharia marriages
Egypt
In Egypt, president’s power grab unites those who once battled over Mubarak
Egypt
Egypt at a Crossroads after Morsi Grants Himself Sweeping Powers
Egypt
President Morsi negotiated with the judiciary over his seizure of extended powers; no agreement was reached. Morsi’s justice minister argued for a retreat, and three other senior advisers resigned. The State Council’s Administrative Court said it would consider legal challenges next week.
Syria
Rebels captured a strategic hydroelectric dam on the Euphrates river in northern Syria and a training camp for pro-regime Palestinians. Government aircraft, targeting a rebel headquarters near the Turkish border, hit a refugee area instead. Government aircraft bombed a school, killing 10 children.
ISAF analysis shows Afghan violence remains worse than before surge
During a speech last week, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said that ISAF’s analysis of the Afghan insurgency shows that the level of violence has decreased in 2011 and 2012. That is true when compared to 2010, a peak year for violence. But the level of violence remains worse than prior to the surge.
Afghanistan
David Cameron set to decide on Afghanistan withdrawal timetable
Al Qaeda
US Looks to Set Size of Afghan Presence
Afghanistan
The chequered tale of the Taliban ‘boy commander’
Somalia
The Somali military killed a senior Shabaab commander and captured 16 fighters in Mogadishu, and detained 20 more fighters in Baidoa. “Gunmen” executed the chairman of the Bakara market traders group. The market has been a source of income for Shabaab.
Libya
The “Private Deterrent Force” has kidnapped a dozen men it accuses of being homosexual and has threatened to torture and execute them. The group is thought to be linked to the “extremist Nawasi militia group” that has also desecrated Sufi shrines in Tripoli.
Afghanistan
Mystery shrouds ‘rusted missiles of Afghan era’ recovered from Jalozai Camp
Another IMU ‘weapons facilitator’ captured in northern Afghanistan
Reports of raids against al Qaeda and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan have decreased over the past two months, but “that does not indicate there were no missions executed, just that there was not a release issued,” ISAF told LWJ.
Nigeria
A “large number of gunmen” attacked the Abuja SARS police base, freeing 30 detainees. All but five were recaptured, and police said two of the attackers were arrested.
Mali
Alberto Rodriguez Leal, 61, who was kidnapped in Mali in November 2011, appeared in a video asking France to comply with the demands of his captors, the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO). He is one of seven French hostages of a total of 13 people being held captive by Islamists in […]
Germany
A new government report on Afghanistan says that “hostile forces remain operational,” little progress has been made toward peace and stability, national reconciliation has not succeeded, and insider attacks are an increasing concern. Germany plans to spend $558 million per year until 2016 to improve Afghan living conditions and governance, and an additional $194 million […]
Spain
Authorities raided a company in Durango suspected of sending over a million dollars’ worth of dual-use energy machinery to Iran through Turkey in violation of international sanctions. Arrests were made and documents were seized, but the names and nationalities of those arrested were not disclosed.
Pakistan
Pakistan – Militant attack: Blast destroys shrine of 11th century saint
Pakistan
Pakistan – Muharram security breach: Blast targets mourners in D I Khan; 10 killed
Austria
Austria – Saudi-backed religious centre stirs controversy
Egypt
Egyptian armed forces deny deployment of US troops in Sinai
Al Qaeda
Notes from Afghanistan
Iraq
For the first time in eight years, there were no significant sectarian attacks during the Shia holiday of Ashura. Security forces detained 82 wanted men in Karbala and three al Qaeda fighters in Wasit.