CONFLICT & TERROR 03/18

Rebel leader, army officer killed in Kashmir clashPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:31am

A top militant leader and an Indian army officer were killed in a fierce gun battle in Indian Kashmir, police said on Monday. A soldier was also killed and three others wounded in the nine-hour battle that started in the revolt-torn region's Baramulla district, north of Srinigar, late on Sunday, B. Srinivas, a senior police officer, said. Full Story

Pakistan's new parliament holds first sessionPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:40am

Pakistan on Monday inaugurated a new parliament dominated by opponents of President Pervez Musharraf who have vowed to crimp his powers and review his U.S.-backed policies against Islamic militants. Full Story

Inflation tests Vietnam's growthPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:52am

Vietnams transition from a centrally planned to market oriented economy faces a new host of challenges posed by galloping inflation. Depending on how deftly economic and financial policymakers respond, it could make or break the countrys until now successful economic reform program. Full Story

The Bali jihadist now on a peace missionPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:53am

Nasir Abbas walked quickly through the tall, grey gates of Cipinang prison in eastern Jakarta, chased inside by an afternoon rain storm. Bespectacled and neatly dressed, the 38-year-old could have been mistaken for a busy lawyer late for a meeting with a jailed client. Full Story

Bomb, shots kill 2, hurt 6 in ThailandPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:57am

A bomb and a drive-by shooting in Thailand's insurgency-plagued south killed two people and wounded six, mostly children playing near their homes, police said Monday. Full Story

Eight soldiers among 32 killed in Lanka clashesPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 8:59am

At least 23 Tamil Tigers and eight soldiers were killed in fierce clashes between the rebels and security forces in the embattled northern Sri Lanka, officials said. Full Story

China's low-key response to Taiwan polls is a change in strategyPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 9:27am

China's low-key response in the days leading up to the Taiwan election is a deliberate change in strategy, say observers. This change, according to an analyst, is to lay the ground for Beijing to take stronger action in case the new Taipei government undertakes actions that might harm cross-strait ties. Full Story

Kosovo clashes force UN pulloutPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 12:14pm

United Nations police in Kosovo have been forced to withdraw from Serbian areas in the divided city of Mitrovica after clashes with Serb demonstrators. At least 22 UN police and eight Nato troops were reported injured after a raid to retake a court seized by Serbs. Full Story

Sarkozy's UMP suffers poll rebukePosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 12:17pm

Voters in France's local elections have handed key cities to the left in a punishing blow to President Sarkozy. The Socialists seized Toulouse, Caen, Strasbourg, Amiens and Reims, with most results in. They also held on to the power bases of Paris and Lyon. Full Story

UK will fight turbulence - BrownPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 12:18pm

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has promised that the UK and other EU countries will "lead the way" in fighting "global financial turbulence". He told MPs that an EU summit at the weekend had agreed "co-ordinated action at a European and global level". Full Story

Four NATO soldiers, three Afghans killed in new unrestPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 12:39pm

Four NATO soldiers were killed in new attacks in Afghanistan, including a Taliban suicide bomb Monday that also took the lives of three Afghan civilians, security forces said. Full Story

Blair 'wanted secret IRA talks'Posted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 1:08pm

Tony Blair offered to hold secret meetings with masked IRA leaders to try to save the Northern Ireland peace process, a former aide has claimed. The ex-prime minister wanted to have talks with the IRA's so-called army council to persuade them to disarm and sign up to the political deal. Full Story

Thousands at St Patrick's eventsPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 1:10pm

Thousands of people have lined the route of the Belfast St Patrick's Day parade, which has been led from City Hall by Lord Mayor Jim Rodgers. The parade features a Chinese Dragon, drummers, dancers, floats, Samba musicians and hundreds of children from community groups throughout the city. Full Story

Israel upgrades ties with GermanyPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 1:12pm

Israel and Germany have upgraded bilateral ties, as Chancellor Angela Merkel and half her cabinet visit Israel to mark its 60th anniversary. She has chaired a joint cabinet session and will address parliament on Tuesday, in an unprecedented honour.Full Story

French police raid Paris suburbPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 1:17pm

French police have held 15 people in raids near Paris where four policemen were attacked earlier in March. More than 300 police took part in the dawn operation at a housing project in Grigny, south of the capital. Full Story

Two policemen killed in suicide attack in PakistanPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 2:46pm

Two police officers were killed and three wounded in a suicide bombing in a police training centre in Pakistan's northwest on Monday, the latest in a spate of violence blamed on Islamist militants. Full Story

Stop the war protestsPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 4:08pm

A few hundred people marched from Leuven to Brussels on Sunday. They are protesting against the war in Iraq. Protest marches also take place in the UK. Next week it will be five years ago exactly that the war in Iraq started with the United States and Britain landing in the country. The protesters are demanding the immediate withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq. Full Story

French police sweep housing project, arresting 19Posted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 4:10pm

More than 350 police swept through a housing project south of Paris early Monday, arresting 19 people, including 12 minors, in an operation targeting suspects who attacked police earlier in the month, authorities said. Riot police raided the Grande-Borne project in Grigny at about 6 a.m. Monday, a police official said without elaborating. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity. Full Story

Spain's Muslims face dearth of mosquesPosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 4:12pm

As prayer time approached on a chilly Friday afternoon and men drifted toward the mosque on North Street, Hocine Kouitene hauled open its huge, rolling steel doors. As places of worship go, the crudely converted garage leaves much to be desired, said Kouitene, vice president of the Islamic Association for Union and Cooperation in Lleida, a prosperous medieval town in northeastern Spain surrounded by fruit farms that are a magnet for immigrant workers.

Freezing in winter and stifling in summer, the prayer hall is so cramped that the congregation, swollen to 1,000 from 50 over the past five years, sometimes spills into the street. Full Story

Berlin transport restarts Monday after 12-day strikePosted on Monday, March 17, 2008 at 4:13pm

Berlin's public transport services are to return to normal Monday after a 12-day strike, the services union Verdi announced Saturday. The announcement came after two arbitrators began working to end the strike that began Wednesday March 5 when some 12,000 workers walked off the job. Full Story

Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.