Warnings About Foley's Behavior Failed to Move Congress to Action

October 3, 2006 --

Analysis: Congressman's Lewd Messages Could Shake-Up Midterm Elections
With just five weeks to go before a critical midterm election that will determine which party controls Congress and the fate of the last two years of the Bush presidency, the resignation of Republican Florida Congressman Mark Foley has the potential to shake up a volatile electorate and tilt the advantage to the Democrats. (ABC News)

Nine US Soldiers Killed in Baghdad
The US military today announced that nine of its soldiers had died in Baghdad in the last three days, with the news coming as authorities said at least 13 people had been killed in new outbreaks of violence. (The Guardian)

Uniformed Gunmen Snatch 14 at Baghdad Stores
Uniformed gunmen driving official-looking trucks snatched 14 people from computer stores in central Baghdad on Monday, in the latest kidnap to fuel fears of sectarian militias infiltrating Iraq's security forces. (Reuters)

Al Qaeda Arrests Prompt Baghdad Curfew
The U.S. military said a captured al Qaeda suspect and members of his cell were "in the final stages" of planning an attack on the Green Zone. An unprecedented curfew prompted by the arrest left millions of Baghdadis stranded at home on Saturday without supplies during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. (Asharq al Awsat)

Watch the Video
(The Sunday Times)

Letter Gives Glimpse of Al-Qaeda's Leadership
Six months before the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in June, a senior al-Qaeda figure warned him in a letter that he risked removal as al-Qaeda's leader in Iraq if he continued to alienate Sunni tribal and religious leaders and rival insurgent groups. (Washington Post)

In Video, Qaeda Deputy Condemns Bush and Pope
Ayman al-Zawahri, Al Qaeda's deputy leader, branded President Bush a "lying failure" and Pope Benedict XVI a "charlatan" in a video released Friday. (NY Times)

Algerian Group's Contact Person For Al Qaeda Killed
A prominent leader of the Algerian Salafist Group for Call has been killed in a shootout with another armed group north of Mali, sources confirmed to al Hayat newspaper. Mokhtar Belmokhtar, 34, is believed to have been the group's main contact with al Qaeda. He also the group's main source for weapons, which is why his death is considered a blow to the group. Belmokhtar is also known as the Prince of the Desert and Khaled Abu El Abbas and is wanted internationally. The Algerian group had recently announced that it joined al Qaeda and pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden. (Al Hayat)

Analysis: Al Qaeda Increasingly Reliant on Media
On the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, Abu Omar received the call to jihad. Literally. (NY Times)

U.S. has Plans to Kill Iranian Leadership
A report issued last month by the Century Foundation warns that some in the Bush administration are making the case for air strikes aimed not only at setting back Iran's nuclear programme, but also at toppling the country's government. (Daily Times)