0704-2007f - FOREIGN PRESS REVIEW (FPR) - ‘Relevant news, views, comments and analyses from all around the world for informed debate’ Compiled by Şanlı Bahadır Koç U.S. / Britain / Turkey / Magazines / Think-tanks / Blogs / Misc /Books / Quickread / Numbers / Reports - FPR Table - Subscribe to FPR

H1 The Dispensable Nation? The National Interest Online - by Brent Scowcroft

WSJ Strategy Shift, Gates Envisions Iraq Troop Cuts — Pullback Is Deemed Key — To Forging a Consensus — On Long-Haul Plans

DoD Wants Smaller, Long-Term Iraq Presence

UPI Eye on Iraq: Fighting the Shiites

Independent Two men, one trail of terror Iraqi doctors 'prime suspects' for London and Glasgow attacks

Washington Post A Stark Edge in Race for '08 Cash New Numbers Heavily Favor The Democrats

Iraqi Cabinet Approves Draft Oil Legislation Move Is 2nd Attempt to Establish Law; Maliki Acknowledges Shortcomings by Government

Brown Calmly Prevails In First Days as Premier Strait-laced new leader's responses to national crises in Britain have been careful, steady and without a single glittering turn of phrase.

New Yorker Fractured Franchise Are the wrong people voting? by Louis Menand Why should anyone bother to vote? The chance that one vote will change the outcome of an election is virtually nil, and going to the polls involves a significant cost in time and opportunity.

A posthumous Vanity Fair essay by David Halberstam on George W. Bush's flawed view of history.The History Boys by David Halberstam August 2007

CBS News Al Qaeda In Iraq Behind U.K. Bomb Plot?

Forward Rapprochement With Libya Falters As New Sanctions Are Contemplated Ties With Tripoli Fray Over Jewish Outreach, Lockerbie Compensation

Guardian Brown hands key powers to MPs Gordon Brown unveils package of reforms designed to surrender centuries-old government power.

Leader A new sort of government
Constitutional reform: Mr Brown has taken a large step towards offering Britain a new, better and more honourable system of governance.

In full: Brown on constitution

Financial Times Editorial Brown’s plans for constitutional reform merit wide debate Linking a bill of rights with a list of citizens’ responsibilities is superficially neat, but it sends the wrong message

Editorial Merciful Mr Bush Throughout his presidency, George W. Bush has repeatedly undermined America's image as a country where justice is above politics, where truth is an ally of good...

COMMENT: Awake, Sleeping Beauty America To disarm enemies and defeat rivals, the US need only focus its intellectual energy and econ­omic resources, writes Maurice Saatchi.

COMMENT: Central power is a forcefor economic liberalism Independence Day is a good moment to assess who should be taking economic decisions, writes Adam Posen.

WORLD NEWS: Putin gains initiative with radar offer

EurasiaNet Experts: Azerbaijan Military Build-Up for Diplomatic, Domestic Advantage BY ROVSHAN ISMAYILOV As Azerbaijan’s military spending reaches $1 billion, the country’s leadership has revived rhetoric about using force to resolve the 19-year Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Armenia. But for all the war worries sparked by bellicose statements, experts in Baku stress that they have more to do with diplomatic maneuvering and domestic politics than an actual desire to trade talks for tanks.

OpenDemocracy What is terrorism? Charles Townshend The absence of a shared international definition of terrorism handicaps efforts to address its reality

CFR Sestanovich: US-Russia Relations Once More Revolving around Nuclear Issues

AN NRO SYMPOSIUM: Nikolas Gvosdev & David Satter on the Bush-Putin summit. “Fishing in Kennebunkport”

Two Wars - And No Leadership - Ralph Peters, New York Post

Weekly Standard Do Nothing
It's the best chance for peace in the Middle East. by Fred Barnes

Vice President Cheney: The Darksider - Hendrik Hertzberg, The New Yorker

Daily Telegraph MI5 had files on bomb terror suspects

Several doctors arrested over the London and Glasgow car bomb plot have been revealed to be on the files of MI5.

LA Times Hamas' hidden economy By Matthew Levitt MILITARY insurrections cost money. To take over the Gaza Strip last month, Hamas had to pay salaries, procure weapons, manufacture rockets, buy help from local crime families, bribe opponents, print leaflets and banners, produce media propaganda and even order up Hamas hats and bandanas.

Ha’aretz – Multi-faceted pessimism Israelis oppose a deal with Syria and doubt Hamas will stay out of Abbas' West Bank.

Return of the Jordanian option, part 2: Poker with the King If Olmert's convergence plan would have been implemented, and the West Bank deteriorated into chaos, Abdullah would have had to choose the lesser of two evils and intervene.

Asia Times US blame game pressures Iran The US military's allegations that Iran's special unit, the Quds Force, is complicit, with Lebanon's Hezbollah, in training and arming militant Shi'ites in Iraq, are bound to anger Tehran's leaders. They are likely to reassess their desire for a second round of talks with the US on Iraq's security. This might be exactly what some in the Bush administration want. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi

BBC Broad appeal
Why militant Islam transcends national and class boundaries

'Phantom Thunder'
Is the Iraq surge working or does the US need a Plan B?

IHT Effort to build a large mosque rattles some in Cologne In a city with the greatest Gothic cathedral in Germany, and no fewer than a dozen Romanesque churches, adding a pair of fluted minarets would scarcely alter Cologne's skyline. Yet plans for a new mosque are rattling this ancient city to its foundations.

A new antiterror strategy By RONALD K. NOBLE If we have to rely on luck and the incompetence of terrorists, then the future looks bleak.

Another humiliation for Bush's best friend By GEOFFREY WHEATCROFT Tony Blair staked his career on supporting Bush and got nothing at all in return.

A chance to calm the waters By NIKOLAS K. GVOSDEV AND DIMITRI K. SIMES The Kennebunkport meeting offers a chance for Bush and Putin to lock up important components in the U.S.-Russia security relationship.

The Times The fertile recruiting grounds for Islamic extremists The strategy of seeking out recruits among those who might be seen as "westernised" is the brainchild of Osama bin Laden's deputy Michael Binyon

Poles mention war and bring honesty With the desire to keep conflicts in the past, the EU too often treats them as taboo Bronwen Maddox

The message is ‘Blair is gone and I’m in charge’ The Blair era is over and now we have a Government that is serious about the constitution

Peter Riddell

Europe's Epitaph - Arnaud de Borchgrave, Washington Times

New Paper: The Instability of the Bretton Woods 2 Regime

Der Spiegel Dancing with the Devil: Charting the Rise of the Muslim Brotherhood

H2 From the Archive Çirkin Amerikalı’ ile ‘Güven Bunalımı’: ‘Süleymaniye Krizi ve Türk-Amerikan İlişkileri Temmuz 2003

Turkey's Evolving Anti-Terrorism Measures on the Iraqi Border Global Terrorism Analysis

AKP's hidden agenda for Turkey
Gulf News - By Amir Taheri

US Hit With Turkish Demands on Kurds

September 22, 2003 | UNITED STATES-TURKEY FINANCIAL AGREEMENT JOINT STATEMENT

Human Rights Watch Caught in the Whirlwind Torture and Denial of Due Process by the Kurdistan Security Forces Download PDF (59 pages, 411 kb )

"İşbirliği yapıyoruz" ABD Genelkurmay Başkanlığı'nın Harekat Başkan Yardımcısı Tuğgeneral Perry Wiggins, terör örgütü PKK'ya karşı mücadelede istihbarat konusunda Türk ordusuyla ve hükümetiyle işbirliği yaptıklarını söyledi. Wiggins, "Kuzey Irak'taki durumun bozulması şu sırada yararlı olmaz" dedi.

ABD'den 'PKK'ya destek' iddialarına yalanlama

Büyükanıt complains of foreign support for terror, warns of boomerang effect

Wilson: "Örgüte silah vermiyoruz"

Meeting strengthens Iraq motion prospects

Guardian Kurdish forces accused of human rights abuses Human Rights Watch says torture used on up to 1,200 detainees held without charge or access to lawyers.

Turkey: The Transatlantic Energy Hub | Young Professionals in Foreign Policy

Federe Kürdistan tankları sınırda mevzilendi

KRG publishes final draft oil law, model contract, exploration blocks
Kurdistan Regional Government

No deal on oil law, top Iraq Kurd says

The Preamble A document submitted to the Iraq Commission (United Kingdom) - by Ashti Hawrami, KRG

K.Irak'ın 'Ebu Gureyb'i

Independent Turkey on trial as suspects claim state collusion in writer's killing

Congressmen point to Turkey's important role in war against terror

US military warns Turkey about Iraq raid

Analysis: Turkey accuses US of aiding PKK

Irak'ta petrol yasa tasarısı meclise geldi

Mehmet Öğütçü Turkey: a major regional power to engage or confront Iran

Politics heat up in Turkey CNNMoney.com

Salon How the Turks made Europe safe for capitalism see also the paper by Murat Iyigun and Dani Rodrik blog,

Google News KurdishMedia Kurdish Kurdish Aspect BBC Monitoring

FT Iraq cabinet endorses draft oil law Nouri al-Maliki, prime minister, said his cabinet had unanimously approved a law governing the country’s oil industry and planned to send it to parliament on Wednesday.

Rights group criticise Kurdish detainee torture The security services of Iraqi Kurdistan detain hundreds of suspects without trial often for years at a time, most of whom claim to have been subjected to torture and ill-treatment, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a report published Tuesday.

Regional Kurdish govt says it's not seen Iraq oil law (Reuters)

Kürt liderlerin Çin'le flörtü BARIŞ ADIBELLİ

VOA - TGRT Haber Ortak Yayını

Amerika'nın Sesi - TGRT Haber ortak yayınına Irak Türkmen Cephesi Başkanı ve Kerkük Milletvekili Sadettin Ergeç katıldı

Iraqi Turkmen: Envoys Discuss the Status of Kirkuk

In The Shadows Of Iraq : Qubad Talabani (Part 4)

Iraqi Kurdish Press Highlights 3 Jul 07

Top Turkish General Criticizes Lack of International Cooperation Against Kurdish Rebels

Bağış: ABD terör konusunda adım atmalı

Büyükanıt: PKK konusunda karşılaştığımız tavrı anlamakta zorlanıyoruz

Peshmerga build up on Turkish borders

Sadi SOMUNCUOĞLU
Karanlık tezgahları... Çarpık kafaları... Sakat seçimleri...

Kritik petrol yasası Irak Meclisi'nde

CHP'den AKP'ye tezkere desteği

Baykal: Kuzey Irak tezkeresine destek veririz ama kullanmayı göze al

Baykal: “Yetki istiyorlarsa veririz”

Barzani'nin Fransa'daki görüşmesi iptal

Kerkuki threatens Turkey at Brussels Parliament

Irak'ta petrol yasa tasarısı mecliste

Baydemir savcıya talimatla ifade verdi

Rizgari Seçimlerde statükocu güçleri, darbecileri ve savaş çığırtkanlarını teşhir et, oy verme!

Şırnak Bölgesindeki Son Gelişmelerden Kaygılıyız!

Rights Group: Kurds Torture Detainees

Iraqi Kurdish Media Note on Corruption 26 May to 1 July 07

Iraq TV Reports Decision to Amend Draft Oil Law, Other Developments 3 Jul 07

Iraqi Kurdish Minister Says Human Rights Watch Report "Unfair"

Possible Links to Kurdish Group Which Boasted of 'Many Martyrs'

Rauf Tamer Ya girersek?

Arslan BULUT
Terörle mücadele ABD ile mücadeledir!

HAKAN ALBAYRAK Hamas, Türk ordusudur!

Doğu Ergil Iran and the US, the odd couple

[Egemen Bağış] Şehit haberi geldiği gün Başbakan'ın odasına giremeyiz

Çuval'ın tanığından Ebu Gıreyb iddiaları

Ankara, 'Gazze'ye Türk askeri' tartışmalarını erken buluyor

"Ortadoğu'da demokrasiye Batı engel"
İnsan Hakları İzleme Örgütü’ne göre, ABD ve Batı’nın terörle mücadelesi, Ortadoğu'da demokrasinin önündeki en büyük engel.

Ortak Çalışma Grubu cuma toplanacak
Türkiye'nin girişimiyle Pakistan ve Afganistan arasındaki sorunları çözmek amacıyla oluşturulan ve Türkiye ile bu ülkeleri kapsayan Ortak Çalışma Grubu'nun ilk toplantısı, 6 Temmuz Cuma günü Ankara'da yapılacak.

'Arafat'ın öldürüldüğünün belgesi'

Google News Greece Cyprus Turkish Cypriot Press ABHaber

On the new EU Treaty Cengiz AKTAR

Avrupa'nın sınırları
Sarkozy'nin AB vizyonunu Deniz Akagül'le tartıştık

[Yorum - Amanda Akçakoca] Türkiye, AB içinde imaj hamlesi yapmalı

More than half of Danes against Turkey's EU membership — EUbusiness - EU business, legal and financial news and information - EUbusiness.com

Cengiz Aktar Silahlanma yarışında yeni rekorlar

Turkey: Cultural Crossroads

[Yorum - Prof.Dr. Beril Dedeoğlu] Türkler için küresel tehdit ne?

'Hrant Dink, Ermeni olduğu için vurulmadı'

The American Question by CHRISTOPHER VASILLOPULOS*

Rumlar Türkleri 'yer yok' diye almadı Son

Turkish entry shared goal for EU, Portugal says

Merkel backs EU talks, but still favors privileged partnership

UN welcomes identification of missing persons in Cyprus

ABD ataşesi boyun damarını kesmiş

Ermenistan'da Türk şoför öldürüldü

Beril Dedeoğlu The energy problematic

TİKA keeps on healing in the Balkans

Radikal Bu da 'vatansever' çete Darbe planlamak, tehdit, işyeri kurşunlamak, sahtecilik gibi suçlarla tutuklanan 12 'vatansever' bir şehit eşini bile dolandırmış. Çete üyeleri bazı asker, hâkim, savcı ve polislerle de sıkı fıkıymış

Eser Karakaş Erhan Tuncel’i iyi korumak gerekiyor

İlk kez bir kuvvet komutanı hapiste

İlhami Erdil cezaevine konuldu

Gang found to be linked to retired army officers

BEHİÇ KILIÇ Perinçek: Talabani damada ihale verdi

VKGB üyesi 12 kişi tutuklandı

Şehit ailesini dolandırmışlar

İstanbul’da su tasarrufu kararları

Hadi Uluengin Açık

Emniyet: Yasin Hayal, kurduğu grubun lideri

Gülay Göktürk “Vefasız devlet”

Metin MÜNİR AKP'den giderayak bir özelleştirme

Ece TEMELKURAN Bu ülkeyi sevmeyenler...

Yayıncılıkta tarihi imza

Seçim propagandası YouTube'a taşındı

Take note of the notary
Turkish notaries public are anything but ordinary. Their powers and stature are such that they are an essential linchpin in the country's legal machine, called upon to attest to a staggering variety of subjects - from political promises to weight-loss guarantees. - Fazile Zahir

4 Temmuz 2007 Basın Özeti

H3 Erdoğan, TSK'yı anladı M.Ali Kışlalı

TSK'DA GÖREV DEĞİŞİMİ

ASLI AYDINTAŞBAŞ Şırnak'tan Washington manzarası

MUHARREM SARIKAYA Sınır ötesi mi NATO mu?

NATO: PKK'ya karşı 5'inci madde işletilebilir

Hükümet - Asker krizinden MHP'ye!

MHP ve CHP yüzde kaç alır?

Bilal Çetin Seçim ve sınırötesi harekat...

‘Sandıktan tek parti çıkar’

Barzani: Operasyona karşılık veririz

Irak için tezkere beklentisi arttı

Erdoğan-Sezer görüşmesi 'tezkere' ihtimalini güçlendirdi

Kulislerdeki son iddia !

AKP, tezkereyi tartışıyor

Sezer-Erdoğan ‘tezkere için bir araya geldi’ iddiası

Şamil Tayyar Bahçeli’nin söylemi Apo’nun özlemi

"AK PARTİ YÜKSELİŞTE"

ERDAL ŞAFAK IMF'siz istikrar

Ahmet Taşgetiren Devlet neyin neresinde?

Ali Bulaç Ak Parti eleştirisi (6 ve son)

Laik aydının okuyamadığı AKP Avni Özgürel

Fikret BİLA Büyükanıt'ın dilinde tüy bitti ama...

Görüşmenin öne alınması kulisleri karıştırdı

Koruma, vururlar Terörizmle mücadelede kararlı bir uluslararası işbirliğinin önünde ciddi birtakım engeller bulunmaktadır. Terörü desteklemek ya da başka ülkelere yönelmiş terörist faaliyetler karşısında sessiz kalmak, ulusal politikaların bir parçası olarak görülmemelidir. Unutulmaması gereken bir diğer husus terörizmin bumerang etkisidir.

Can Ataklı 5 bin rakamını kim verdi?

Katiller arkadaş grubu liderleri Yasin Hayal

Polis, '1 numaralı vatansever'in peşinde

Ruşen Çakır Karadeniz’de hangi parti önde

Hasan CEMAL Derin PKK!

Güneri CIVAOĞLU Kafa karışıklığına çözüm

Tezkere tartışılıyor

İşte Uzan'ın hesapları

Türk askerinin kafasına işte bu çuvalı geçirdiler! İngiliz Michael Todd, kitabında yer vermediği sarsıcı gerçekleri VATAN’a anlattı:

Cengiz Çandar Hrant Dink davası: Hükümet ya da “İktidar” olmak davası...

Radikal Bu da 'vatansever' çete Darbe planlamak, tehdit, işyeri kurşunlamak, sahtecilik gibi suçlarla tutuklanan 12 'vatansever' bir şehit eşini bile dolandırmış. Çete üyeleri bazı asker, hâkim, savcı ve polislerle de sıkı fıkıymış

Nasuhi Güngör Hükümet-TSK gerilimi

Mustafa Ünal Çete fışkırıyor

Gül Tek derdimiz terör, kimsenin toprağında gözümüz yok

ABD Türkiye'yi karşısına alamaz NEJAT ESLEN

Mehmet Tezkan

En çok sorulan soru: Hangi parti yüzde kaç oy alır?

[Yorum - Herkül Millas] Ayrımcılığın sağlığımıza zararları

İBRAHİM KARAGÜL İsrail komutasındaki peşmergeler sınırda!

Taha AKYOL Seçim vaatleri

Erbakan: 28 Şubat'ta, 50 milletvekiline Yassıada'da hazırlanan odaları gösterildi

Suat Kınıklıoğlu Nationalist action at work

İç Basında Türk Dış Politikası

Dış Basında Türkiye-AB İlişkileri - Dış Basında Güncel Türkiye Bülteni

Dış Basında Irak BBC Turkish 0700

VOA TSİ 06:30 Dış Basında Türkiye Turkish Press Review Google News Turkey Turquie Türkei TurcoPundit

Taha Kıvanç Hükümetler ve kocalar yanıldıklarını hiçbir zaman kabul etmezler

Fehmi Koru Seçim gezisi raporu

Dink cinayeti: Emniyet "grup lideri Hayal" dedi

Emin Pazarcı Genelkurmay’dan açık rest

Mustafa Karaalioğlu MHP siyasetini bekleyen yüzleşme

Abdülhamit Bilici Belçika'da kaç vekil genelkurmay başkanının adını bilir?

NAZLI ILICAK Terör üzerinden polemik

Tamer Korkmaz Şapkadan Düşen Tavşanlar

ALİ BAYRAMOĞLU Hayatımız tehlikede…

KÜRŞAT BUMİN Tartışmaya açık Yargıtay kararları

M Ali Birand Her şeyi ne kolay unutuyoruz …

Cüneyt Ülsever DTP ile yaşama alışalım!

Ali Atıf Bir AKP yüzde 40 oy alabilir... İşte hesap

İsmail Küçükkaya
Başbakanın “bakan adaylar stratejisi”

'İcazet' suçlaması

Ali Bulaç Bağımsızlar

Melih AŞIK Dubai'de ne oldu?

Liderlerin ip ayıbı İsmet Berkan

Seçim havasına niçin giremedik?
Haluk Şahin

Mehmet Barlas Siyasetin mönüsünde sadece temcit pilavı mı olmalı?

Tufan Türenç Minare ve kılıf

Bekir Coşkun Askerler ve borsa...

Emin Çölaşan Bu bilmece çözülmeli

Engin Ardıç Anayasa gökten zembille inmez

Şakir Süter CHP-AKP benzerliği

Şehit cenazelerinde 'paralı' provokasyon

Ağar 'türban' değil 'başörtüsü' diyor

Özdemir İnce Baykal’a karşı Blair

ERGUN BABAHAN Hrant Dink suikasti mutlaka aydınlatılmalı

Nuray Başaran 22 Temmuz'un gölgesinde bir oyun

EMRE AKÖZ Bunlar organize işler

Umur Talu

Baykal Kıyamet kopardık ABD'den parayı alamadılar

Ağar: O çuval sizin başınıza geçirildi

İlnur Çevik Turkey is going strong despite political turmoil

Kararsızlara son 13 gün stratejisi

Bir sivil toplum projesi olarak Baskın Oran

[Election strategies under spotlight-3] Main opposition’s test in Turkey by Dr. TALİP KÜÇÜKCAN*

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Ege Cansen Bundan iyisi can sağlığı

Hurşit GÜNEŞ Döviz kuru nereye kadar düşecek?

Güngör URAS Haziran enflasyonu çok önemliydi

Optimism drives stocks, YTL to record highs

Borsa rekor kırdı, dolar 1,29’a indi

Ercan Kumcu İhracatla yüksek büyüme devam ediyor

Erdal Sağlam

Deniz Gökçe Dolarizasyon çözülüyor mu?

İşte doları düşüren 7 neden:

Turhan Çömez Enerjide sömürge düzeni ve kırmızı alarm

Serdar Turgut Devrimci bir gelişme

[TURKEY'S AGRICULTURE ANALYZED-2]

CHP'nin önceliği istihdam
Özyürek: Dalgalı kur sürer.

İ.Hüseyin Yıldız
GSMH büyümesi sürüyor

Özyürek: World will see a uranium crisis

Hükümet - Asker krizinden MHP'ye!

Partilerin unuttuğu lokomotif sektörler sandığı bekliyor

Turkish giants strengthen ties with foreigners New balances in the economy and increasing foreign investment result in a changing of strategy for Turkish holding companies. Energy and real estate are now favorite sectors, while those who have not quit the banking sector sought foreign partners

Volkan Akı Küçük olanlar, bizim olarak kalmayacak

İstikrar sürerse reel faiz hızla geriler

Bankalara yoğun ilgi Metin Ercan

Sami Uslu Dış ticaret açığına mahkûm muyuz?

THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN At a Theater Near You ... In the past few years, hundreds of Muslims have committed suicide amid innocent civilians.

MAUREEN DOWD Fireworks for Former First Lady and Future First Lad Hillary Clinton senses an opportune moment to iron out a few wrinkles with her husband.

H5 Washington Post A Stark Edge in Race for '08 Cash New Numbers Heavily Favor The Democrats

Iraqi Cabinet Approves Draft Oil Legislation Move Is 2nd Attempt to Establish Law; Maliki Acknowledges Shortcomings by Government

Brown Calmly Prevails In First Days as Premier Strait-laced new leader's responses to national crises in Britain have been careful, steady and without a single glittering turn of phrase.

Hedge Funds Mystify Markets Powerful funds hide behind a cloak of mystery as they pull the levers that make Wall Street go.

Death Sought For Ex-GI In Slayings, Rape in Iraq

Capital Case Would Be First in Current Wars

Editorial Mr. Chávez's Friends The Venezuelan president bonds with regimes that the rest of the world -- and his own compatriots -- shun.

What Was He Thinking? By Robert D. Novak,

In the Libby case, President Bush made a Solomonic decision -- if King Solomon had actually split the baby and given halves to rival mothers.

Bush Says He's Not Ruling Out Pardon for Libby

President Defends Commutation of Prison Sentence

BBC Reporter Released to Hamas Journalist Was Held 114 Days in Gaza in 'Occasionally Quite Terrifying' Conditions

Foreign Doctors Queried in Bomb Plot Thousands Evacuated From Heathrow Airport After Luggage Scare

The Ideal Nation By Michael Gerson One of the beauties of America is that it can celebrate its ideals even as admits that they are not always fulfilled.

Unfree Speech By Robert J. Samuelson

Independence Day is an apt moment to reflect on how one of America's greatest achievements, the First Amendement, is being undermined by campaign-finance 'reform.'

How True Patriots Fight By John Fabian Witt,

The Declaration of Independence was revolutionary not only about freedom but also about war.

Violence Erupts at Pakistani Mosque

Radicals Confront Security Forces in Deadly Street Clash

H6 Guardian Brown hands key powers to MPs Gordon Brown unveils package of reforms designed to surrender centuries-old government power.

Leader A new sort of government
Constitutional reform: Mr Brown has taken a large step towards offering Britain a new, better and more honourable system of governance.

At long last, here is a chance to start rewiring Britain's creaky democracy Jonathan Freedland: Gordon Brown's plan to reshape the balance of power reveals a grand ambition: to tie islands of individuals into a nation.

Nuclear 'will not ease energy crisis' Belief that worldwide expansion will provide cheap, clean electricity is a myth, report claims.

Running out of time in Iraq Simon Tisdall: For most Americans, the chaos in Iraq is such that the war is already lost.

We are offering the terrorist a megaphone for his cause Simon Jenkins: Hysteria politics feasts on the threat of violence, and accords the status of political crusader to the common criminal.

Not in our name

Asim Siddiqui: Blaming UK foreign policy is not the answer. Where are the Muslim marches in revulsion against acts of terror in Islam's name?

Just another obstruction of justice

Marcy Wheeler: There are lots of unanswered questions surrounding the Valerie Plame saga, but Scooter Libby's commutation ensures they won't be answered.

A stretch too far

Robert Fox Jul 03 07, 05:30pm: The UK cannot hope to continue the present level of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for much longer - the forces need fixing and adapting.

Unilateral destruction Mary Kaldor When politicians talk about energy "security", they worry about securing the supply of energy to the west. But when politicians talk about climate change, they are more likely to adopt a global perspective, worrying about the planet as a whole and not just the west. Yet both challenges are interrelated and both require a global cooperative approach.

Venezuela sells petrol to Iran to unite front against US Venezuela is to sell petrol to Iran to alleviate its ally's crippling fuel shortage and to bolster their common front against US.

A new relationship between citizen and state

Michael White: Raising the bar of expectation

BBC reporter Alan Johnston released Journalist held hostage in Gaza Strip since March has been released, BBC confirms.

Pakistan army to storm mosque

Street battles at central Islamabad mosque leave at least 12 people dead and 150 wounded.

Emperor Sarko leaves little for PM
French prime minister François Fillon says he is not president's puppet.

Bush not ruling out Libby pardon

President faces criticism for commuting jail sentence imposed on disgraced White House staffer.

Mastermind based abroad suspected of guiding UK bomb plot

Two men held at Glasgow believed to be behind failed London car bombs.

Born in UK, shaped in Iraq: the would-be bomber

Wake up. Feminism is more than just capitalism with tits Zoe Williams: Enough of the numbers game. The issue is not how many women are in power, but how many fight for collective rights.

H7 BBC Broad appeal
Why militant Islam transcends national and class boundaries

'Phantom Thunder'
Is the Iraq surge working or does the US need a Plan B?

The Real Sins of the CIA - Angelo Codevilla, New York Post

UPI Analysis: Biofuels -- vice or virtue?

Terrorism and an open society Tony Blankley Independence before openness

Asi Times Pakistan in crisis over mosque attack
After months of tense standoffs, Pakistan security forces on Tuesday attacked Islamabad's Lal Masjid (Red Mosque), a hotbed of support for the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The move is part of President General Pervez Musharraf's renewed efforts to stamp out spreading extremism. It is more likely to stoke the fires of radicalism and force the government into a critical showdown. - Syed Saleem Shahzad

Lebanon bends under extremist challenge The rise of Fatah al-Islam and its conflict in the Nahr el-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon indicate a pattern of growing Sunni Islamic militancy in the country. This suits the Lebanese government and Saudi Arabia, but also plays into the hands of Hezbollah. The biggest loser of this complex web of local, regional and international rivalries is, however, Lebanon. - Mahan Abedin

Time Islamists: To Deal, or Not To Deal?

H8 IraqSlogger Google News Iraq Iran Syria Mideastwire.com - NPR Iraq stratfor

DoD Wants Smaller, Long-Term Iraq Presence

BBC Iraqi cabinet backs draft oil law Iraq's government submits a key bill on how to share the country's oil wealth to parliament, the PM says.

Rights Group: Iraqi Kurds Torture Detainees

Wrong time for Iran sanctions: China

BBC Kindred spirits
Ahmadinejad and Chavez become best buddies on Iran tour

DEBKAfile Exclusive: US counter-terror authorities fear major campaign in Europe, possibly even 9/11-scale mega-attack in America, is presaged by failed London and Glasgow bombings

Iran: Reports Of Death Sentence Spark Concern Over Ayatollah's Fate

Daily Star Can Aoun lead the way, or will yet another bright idea just fizzle out?

Let's accept the truth of our own defeats By Khairi Abaza

Europe must extract itself from its Middle East mess By Rami G. Khouri

Passive isolationism endangers Russia, but also the West By Grigory Yavlinsky

Al Awsat A Bleak Palestinian Scenario : Hussein Shobokshi

Syrian Media: Israeli Attack on Syria Is Expected This Summer

H9 Ha’aretz – Multi-faceted pessimism Israelis oppose a deal with Syria and doubt Hamas will stay out of Abbas' West Bank.

Return of the Jordanian option, part 2: Poker with the King If Olmert's convergence plan would have been implemented, and the West Bank deteriorated into chaos, Abdullah would have had to choose the lesser of two evils and intervene.

Kidnapped BBC reporter Alan Johnston released Johnston: 'I think I am okay'; Meshal: Hamas efforts freed Johnston; journalist held in Gaza since March

IDF chief to Knesset: Abbas, Meshal will form union in time

Bradley Burston: Dual loyalty, baseball, and the Israeli psyche

Israeli Defense Official Highlights Israel’s Inadequacies in Face of Iranian Threat

BBC BBC's Gaza reporter released BBC correspondent Alan Johnston is freed by his kidnappers and handed over to Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip after almost four months in captivity.

Johnston release reactions

Profile: Alan Johnston

Alan Johnston interview

Catch-22 in Lebanon

UN force’s limited mandate means troops can only wait for next explosion, Eldad Beck writes

Daily Alert.org – Middle East Progress - EJC Israeli Press Review – Google News Israel - Palestine

Winograd team: Bolster National Security Council

Unreformed Fatah a Sinking Ship - Barry Rubin (Jerusalem Post)

H10 Christian Science Monitor

ASIA The Economist China's foreign policy

Asia's slow financial comeback
By MATT ROBINSON / The Boston Globe
Until investment rates improve, Asian growth as a whole will remain below potential.

India has its own 'soft power' - Buddhism In its competition with China for influence in East and Southeast Asia, India has suddenly rediscovered Buddhism. Having first flourished in India, the religion migrated east. Yet many of the holy sites are still in India and are getting a facelift. And, unlike China, the Indians never suppressed Buddhism, while providing refuge to many Tibetan Buddhists. - Sudha Ramachandran (

US naval call gives India sinking feeling A five-day visit by the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz is making waves with Indian left-wing and centrist parties and unions, which are questioning its mission and their government's commitment to an independent foreign policy.

Analysis: Cities to boom in Africa, Asia

Pensions scandal spells trouble for PM Details of 50 million Japanese pension files have gone missing due to sloppy book-keeping and bureaucratic incompetence

Pyonyang Pussyfooting
The Bush administration is already over as far as North Korea policy is concerned.
By JOHN R. BOLTON

H11 IHT Effort to build a large mosque rattles some in Cologne In a city with the greatest Gothic cathedral in Germany, and no fewer than a dozen Romanesque churches, adding a pair of fluted minarets would scarcely alter Cologne's skyline. Yet plans for a new mosque are rattling this ancient city to its foundations.

A new antiterror strategy By RONALD K. NOBLE If we have to rely on luck and the incompetence of terrorists, then the future looks bleak.

Another humiliation for Bush's best friend By GEOFFREY WHEATCROFT Tony Blair staked his career on supporting Bush and got nothing at all in return.

A chance to calm the waters By NIKOLAS K. GVOSDEV AND DIMITRI K. SIMES The Kennebunkport meeting offers a chance for Bush and Putin to lock up important components in the U.S.-Russia security relationship.

Pressure mounts on Merkel to drop plans to close nuclear plants The effort comes one day before an energy summit meeting with the German governing coalition

The British way
There are worthwhile lessons to be learned from the British effort to deal with terrorism.

EUROPE European press review

European Union: from backdoor to front

Michael Bruter

The European Union's political future depends on myth-clearing and democracy-making

Wanted: A European Security Council
ISN

BBC Unpolished?
How Poland is not winning friends and influencing Europe

A review of "The Origins of Europe With the Greek Discovery of the World" by Klaus Held.

Europe's epitaph (Arnaud de Borchgrave)

H12 RFE/RL Armenia: Restrictive Foreign-Media Legislation Falls In Parliament

U.S./Russia: Former U.S. Ambassador Assesses Summit

US, Russia Pursue Nuclear Weapons Cuts

EDM ARMS CONTROL AS A “SAFE ISSUE” AT KENNEBUNKPORT
- CHINA ASSERTS COUNTER TERRORIST CREDENTIALS IN CENTRAL ASIA

Google News Azerbaijan

H13 The Times The fertile recruiting grounds for Islamic extremists The strategy of seeking out recruits among those who might be seen as "westernised" is the brainchild of Osama bin Laden's deputy Michael Binyon

Poles mention war and bring honesty With the desire to keep conflicts in the past, the EU too often treats them as taboo Bronwen Maddox

The message is ‘Blair is gone and I’m in charge’ The Blair era is over and now we have a Government that is serious about the constitution

Peter Riddell

Leader The Commons Touch

Brown needs to ensure constitutional change is not too faddish

Leader The Maine Event

Now Putin must show Bush and the world some respect

Iraq approves revised bill to share oil MPs will debate the legislation to settle how oil revenue will be shared among the divided sectarian and ethnic groups

Alan Johnston freed after Hamas besieges kidnappers' compound Amidst chaotic scenes outside the house of the deposed Palestinian Prime Minister gunmen accompanied Johnston down the street

Wall Street Journal

H14 Financial Times Editorial Brown’s plans for constitutional reform merit wide debate Linking a bill of rights with a list of citizens’ responsibilities is superficially neat, but it sends the wrong message

Editorial Merciful Mr Bush Throughout his presidency, George W. Bush has repeatedly undermined America's image as a country where justice is above politics, where truth is an ally of good...

COMMENT: Awake, Sleeping Beauty America To disarm enemies and defeat rivals, the US need only focus its intellectual energy and econ­omic resources, writes Maurice Saatchi.

COMMENT: Central power is a forcefor economic liberalism Independence Day is a good moment to assess who should be taking economic decisions, writes Adam Posen.

WORLD NEWS: Putin gains initiative with radar offer

France to reform higher education University reform will be a top priority for the French government, as it promises to spend €5bn by 2012 to modernise higher education

COMMENT: Why east Europeans continue to mention the war For many the second world war did not end until the overthrow of communism in 1989, writes Stefan Wagstyl

Kremlin tunes out ‘extremism’ as Putin counters critics Liberals in Russia fear media reforms designed to combat radicalism are being used to stifle opposition ahead of the parliamentary and presidential elections

Concerns loom large beneath Gaza calm Beneath the surface in Gaza, concerns loom large as people consider their future in the territory that has been pushed further into economic and political isolation since the Islamist movement’s takeover.

Zapatero’s pre-election family giveaway José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the Spanish prime minister, fired the opening shot of his re-election campaign with a promise to give families €2,500 ($3,400, £1,700) for every child born in Spain.

Germans recruit think-tanks Swiss and Austrian think-tanks have been invited to team up with five German economics institutes to produce the closely watched six-monthly package of projections and...

Merkel defies business over climate goals Angela Merkel said her government would draft an energy strategy by the end of August, brushing aside criticism from business about the potential damage Germany’s ambitious climate goals could inflict on its economy.

THE AMERICAS: Libby move adds to charges levelled at Bush

ECB takes aim at Sarkozy over euro The European Central Bank has launched a stiff defence of eurozone exchange rate policy in what appeared a deliberate rebuff to the new French president.

Merkel seeks tougher security laws Germany is likely to sharpen its anti-terror legislation following the three failed bomb attacks in Britain despite grumblings from within the ruling coalition that...

ANALYSIS: Is it over for Abe? The Japanese prime minister’s gaffe-prone government faces an electoral drubbing.

LEX COLUMN: Japan's reliance on US

Critical reform paper closed by Iran Iran’s judiciary closed down one of the main reformist newspapers, Ham-Mihan, which printed biting comments about the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad.

Moscow closes ‘pirate’ music website Allofmp3.com, the music download site that the US had warned could prevent Russia from joining the WTO, ceased operations following pressure from the authorities

COMMENT: Unions must stop fighting reform and modernise The public and many public sector workers expect services that meet their rising expectations, writes Jonathan Baume.

Editorial China must come clean about its poisonous environment Residents of polluted cities do not need the World Bank to tell them the air is filthy – they breathe the stuff every day

COMMENT: Democracy in Taiwan runs rings round the Olympics

Behind the UK-Saudi Arms Deal - Stephen Fidler

Hamas' hidden economy

By Matthew Levitt MILITARY insurrections cost money. To take over the Gaza Strip last month, Hamas had to pay salaries, procure weapons, manufacture rockets, buy help from local crime families, bribe opponents, print leaflets and banners, produce media propaganda and even order up Hamas hats and bandanas.

The wealth between our ears

Jonah Goldberg A study finds that what we know is more valuable than what we make.

Editorial

If the Lebanese Army Can Stand Up to Jihadists, Anybody Can - Tim Cavanaugh

H16 American Politics

Bush presidency enters terminal phase President George W Bush's defeat over immigration reform is already being overshadowed by his decision to keep White House aide I Lewis "Scooter" Libby out of jail and a declaration of independence by two key Republican senators over Iraq. Bush's approval ratings can only go one way. - Jim Lobe

America’s open-cast election Godfrey Hodgson An unpopular president and an unwinnable won't guarantee a Democrat victory in 2008

Even Bill Clinton can't halt Obama The early deployment of Bill Clinton, one of the most potent weapons in US politics, underlines that Team Hillary is not where it expected to be, says Toby Harnden.

realclearpolitics – ABC’s The Note – US News Political Bulletin

Early Bird GovExec Swamp Gas The Swamp

BBC Black and white
The suspicion and bigotry that preceded Obama in Washington

The Bill factor
Will using her husband on the campaign trail help Hillary Clinton?

H17 Daily Telegraph MI5 had files on bomb terror suspects

Several doctors arrested over the London and Glasgow car bomb plot have been revealed to be on the files of MI5.

Revealed: Suspect doctor's family album

Cleric: 'Al-Qa'eda leader told me of plot'

How will al-Qa'eda strike next? Our enemies will observe and then exploit any procedural, legal, or cultural weaknesses we present. They are imaginative and shameless "loopholers", warns Crispin Black.

Fight terrorist barbarians

Muslim Council condemn bombings.

If 'Islamist' is out, what do we call them? Notebook by Andrew Marr

Gordon Brown rules out EU referendum

Prime Minister's decision is part of a wide-ranging package of reforms to give "more power to Parliament and the British people".

Musharraf crisis as nine die in mosque

Pakistan's president, Gen Pervez Musharraf, faced a challenge to his authority after nine people were killed in clashes between security forces and radical Islamist students

H18 Independent Two men, one trail of terror Iraqi doctors 'prime suspects' for London and Glasgow attacks

Kim Sengupta: The mystery of how the best-laid plans could end in panic and failure

Joan Smith: The evidence indicates that political Islam hates our way of life, not our foreign policy

Constitutional reforms aim to restore public trust in politics Sweeping reforms to the way Britain is governed have been outlined by Gordon Brown in an attempt to clean up politics and restore trust after the Blair era

The battle over government that has raged since Magna Carta

Leading article: Fine rhetoric, noble goals. Now the hard work begins

The Big Question: As Bush spares Libby, what is the history of presidential pardons?

H19Military Intelligence Terrorism

Exclusive: UK officials say London-Qaeda link tenuous

Iraq war forcing U.S. Army to adapt (By Sharon Behn THE WASHINGTON TIMES)

The Real Sins of the CIA - Angelo Codevilla, New York Post

EU to outlaw internet bomb making sites Placing instructions on bomb making on the web will be a criminal offence with ISPs facing charges for not blocking pages

Demands on Secret Service hit new high in 2008 campaign

BMD Watch: Northrop Grumman laser success

NEFA Conference Slides: "The Internet as a Forum for Conflict Between the Brotherhood and Competing Salafi-Jihadists"

H20 Slate

The Newspaper of the Future:

If we're lucky, it will look something like the newspaper of the past.

Jack Shafer

From The Nation, the superrich are buying up all the beautiful places in America, Barbara Ehrenreich writes, squeezing out the middle class and the poor. What's left for you and me?

Undercover, under fire: Ken Silverstein on why the Washington press corps is too busy cozying up to the people it covers to get at the truth.

A review of Off the Record: The Press, the Government, and the War Over Anonymous Sources by Norman Pearlstine.

Heritage The Appointment of Mark Malloch Brown Will Strain US-British Relations

H21 From Psychology Today, 10 Non-PC Truths About Human Nature: Why most suicide bombers are Muslim, beautiful people have more daughters, humans are naturally polygamous, sexual harassment isn't sexist, and blonds are more attractive

A more organic take on human nature is emerging. It sees behavior as a product of distinct personality traits that we all have to a greater or lesser degree. In this new view, we're all just a little bit crazy.

In praise of ... letters
Quick-fire, disposable communication is fine, but discursiveness and contemplation remain largely the province of the letter.

Blackstone buys Hilton for $26bn
US private equity group Blackstone is buying the Hilton Hotels chain for $26bn (£13bn) in an all-cash deal

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