CONFLICT & TERROR 01/12

Mumbai attacks seen as model for future terrorismPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:36amThe deadly attacks in India may have provided a low-frills but bloody blueprint for other violent groups to follow, U.S. anti-terrorism officials told Congress on Thursday. The FBI's chief intelligence officer told a Senate hearing that the November siege showed that well-trained assailants with simple weaponry can cause massive casualties. Full Story

Top Al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan killed: US officialPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:38amThe head of Al-Qaeda in Pakistan and his lieutenant were killed in the past days, a US counterterrorism official told AFP on Thursday, reportedly struck by a missile fired from an unmanned drone. The men are believed to be Kenyan national Usama al-Kini, described as Al-Qaeda's chief of operations in Pakistan, and his lieutenant Sheikh Ahmed Salim Swedan, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity. Full Story

Cops gun down Assam bomber in encounterPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:39amA 20-year-old Ulfa terrorist, who police had earlier claimed to have triggered the January 1 serial blasts in Guwahati, was gunned down by the Army in lower Assam on Thursday. Pranjal Deka alias Biju Sarania or Bhambal was killed in an encounter between troops and Ulfa terrorists at Halikuchi on the border between Baksa and Kamrup districts at 6.45pm, an officer from the Armys Rangiya-based Red Horns Division said. Full Story

New York expands 'SWAT' reserves after MumbaiPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:40amNew York police have begun training officers in heavy weapons to help its elite security force fight off a commando-style attack like the Mumbai siege, commissioner Ray Kelly told Congress on Thursday. Full Story

Slovakia considers other gas sources than RussiaPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:41amSlovakia said on Friday it wanted to secure delivery of between 8 million and 10 million cubic metres of natural gas from sources other than Russia after the flow of Russian gas was halted this week. Full Story

US: NATO might offer gas help to EuropePosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:43amA senior U.S. diplomat says NATO may have to help alleviate the effects of natural gas shortages in member states if the dispute between Ukraine and Russia continues to hinder deliveries. U.S. ambassador to NATO Kurt Volker says the although the dispute between the Russian and Ukrainian gas companies is a commercial one, it also has political and security implications. Full Story

Afghan governor says 6 killed by suicide bomberPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:00amA suicide bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body inside a produce shop in southern Afghanistan on Friday, killing six people, the provincial governor said. Full Story

Colombian drug baron shot dead in Madrid hospitalPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:47amThe Colombian cocaine
cartel boss Lesnidas Vargas was shot dead in his bed in front of horrified fellow patients at Madrid's public Doce de Octubre hospital last night.Full Story

Venezuela: 2008 Inflation Was 30.9%, an 11-Year HighPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:48amVenezuelas inflation rate reached 30.9 percent in 2008, an 11-year high, the central bank said Thursday. The rising price level is among the economic challenges facing President Hugo Chavez as the global financial crisis, and particularly falling oil prices, threaten to curtail growth. The central bank also said prices rose 31.9 percent in the capital, Caracas, the highest level since 1997, outstripping the 2007 figure, 22.5 percent.Full Story

Obama to meet Mexico's Calderon on MondayPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:51amBarack Obama will meet on Monday with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, marking the incoming U.S. president's first meeting with a foreign leader since he was elected in November. The talks in Washington are likely to cover issues such as Mexico's increasingly violent drug war, Mexican migration to the United States and the NAFTA trade agreement.Full Story

Worldwide protests on Gaza continuePosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:52amInternational condemnation of Israel's two week assault on Gaza has continued, with tens of thousands of protesters calling for end to the military offensive. Full Story

DEA identifies ringleaders of Tijuana violencePosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:53amThe U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Thursday published a poster of 10 men it believes are locked in violent battle for drug trafficking routes through Tijuana, Mexico.Full Story

Top cartel suspect Adrian Rivera Garcia arrested in MexicoPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:54amMexican authorities have arrested a top drug cartel suspect and two other men and seized drugs, weapons, explosives, vehicles and cash, the state-run news agency said.Full Story

Inside Al-Sadr's Al-Mumahhidun ProjectPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 9:57amA large number of Shi'i leader Muqtada al-Sadr's supporters are coming from the various Iraqi regions to participate in the Al-Mumahhidun [the pavers, who will pave the way for the reappearance of the 12th Shi'i imam] project, for which Al-Sadr had previously called. Full Story

Jordanian police restrain protestors outside Israeli EmbassyPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:03amJordan police Friday prevented more than 2,000 angry demonstrators protesting the Israeli war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip from reaching Israel's embassy in Amman. Full Story

Arrests of Officers in Turkey Stoke Uneasiness in MilitaryPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:15amTurkeys military chief met unexpectedly with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday to discuss the detention of several high-ranking military officers in an investigation of a possible coup plot, a sign of deepening concern in Turkeys powerful. Full Story

Somali pirates release hijacked supertanker Sirius Star and crewPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:17amSomalia pirates said today that they had released the Sirius Star, the oil-laden supertanker seized in the Indian Ocean in November. The 25 crew, including two Britons, have been help captive on the ship for almost two months. The pirates said that all the crew was unharmed. Full Story

Syria deals with Gaza, eyeing own peacePosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:23amSyria has responded to Israel's Gaza offensive with harsh words for the Israelis and expressions of firm support for Hamas. But it's unlikely to do much more. Full Story

Gaza Attacks Continue Despite U.N. Truce CallPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:26amIsrael and Hamas rebuffed a United Nations call for a cease-fire in the 14-day Gaza war on Friday, with Israel saying continued barrages of rocket fire from its adversaries made the United Nations resolution unworkable. Full Story

Arab shot after attempt to blow up gas stationPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:31amA Palestinian man who tried to set fire to a gas station in the Mishor Adumim industrial zone in the West Bank on Thursday was shot dead by police on the scene, police and rescue officials said. Full Story

IDF unveils Hamas map seized in GazaPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:33amParatroopers in northern Gaza have uncovered a map prepared by Hamas that shows how the terror group prepared for the IDF's incursion by deploying different types of bombs as well as snipers throughout the town of Atatra. Full Story

UN: One-third of Gaza dead, injured are childrenPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:41amPalestinian children are dying at a heavy rate in the Israeli-Hamas fighting  about one of every three persons killed, according to Gaza statistics. Full Story

United Nations halts relief work in GazaPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 10:42amThe United Nations suspended all activities in the Gaza Strip Thursday, accusing Israeli soldiers of firing on a marked UN vehicle during a three-hour humanitarian cease-fire initiated by Israel. Full Story

Sri Lanka captures key rebel base at Elephant PassPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 5:54pmSri Lankan troops on Friday captured Elephant Pass, the Tamil Tigers' last stronghold on the Jaffna peninsula, seizing control of a base and a symbolic highway, and isolating the retreating rebels in a shrinking slice of northeastern jungle. Full Story

China Losing Taste for Debt From U.S.Posted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 5:57pmChina has bought more than $1 trillion of American debt, but as the global downturn has intensified, Beijing is starting to keep more of its money at home, a move that could have painful effects for American borrowers. Full story

$3m ransom drops in for Somali piratesPosted on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 6:02pmThe seizure by Somali pirates of the largest ship ever hijacked was dramatically ended yesterday when a ransom of $3 million (#2 million) was dropped by parachute from a low-flying aircraft on to its deck. Full Story

Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.