Israel Puts Embassies on Security Alert Following Reports It Kidnapped Iranian

March 7, 2007 -- IRANIAN GENERAL'S DISAPPEARANCE

Israel Puts Embassies on Security Alert Following Reports It Kidnapped Iranian

Israel has issued a worldwide security alert to its embassies in the wake of reports it may have kidnapped a top Iranian general in Turkey, a senior Israeli official tells ABC News. (ABC News)

Kidnapped or Defected? Top Iranian General Disappears

The mysterious disappearance of an Iranian general in Turkey in early February has led to speculation he either was kidnapped or defected. (ABC News)

Report: Iranian General in Northern European Country, Will Come to U.S.

The missing Iranian general is being questioned in a northern European country, according to a front page report in the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al Awsat. The report quotes an Iranian military source who says Gen. Ali-Reza Asgari was being questioned by Western intelligence agents about information he knows and will then be transfered to the U.S. (Asharq al Awsat)

U.S.

Libby Found Guilty On Four Counts

Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff is now a convicted felon. (ABC News)

Is Cheney Next? Probably Not, Experts Say
Newly-minted felon and former vice presidential aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby has an inside line on a White House pardon, which makes it unlikely he'll cooperate if prosecutors squeeze him for more details about who was involved in leaking CIA officer Valerie Plame's identity, experts say. (ABC News)

U.S. medic gets 8 months jail for Iraq desertion

A U.S. army medic who fled his base and refused to return to Iraq with his unit was sentenced on Tuesday to eight months in prison for desertion. (Reuters)

Whistle-blower Had to Fight NSA, LA Times to Tell Story

Whistle-blower AT&T technician Mark Klein says his effort to reveal alleged government surveillance of domestic Internet traffic was blocked not only by U.S. intelligence officials but also by the top editors of the Los Angeles Times. (ABC News)

$1m-A-Week Crack King Admits 30 Murders

An American drug baron who police say was almost solely responsible for the 1980s crack epidemic has confessed to 30 murders and described an appallingly brutal reign of terror that lasted for two decades. (The London Times)

RUSSIA
U.S. Doctor and Daughter Sickened by Poison in Russia

An American doctor and her daughter were being treated in a Moscow hospital on Tuesday after showing signs of thallium poisoning. Thallium is a highly toxic element with a history of use in pesticides and in murder. (NY Times)

THE HUNT FOR AL QAEDA

CIA Rushing Resources to Bin Laden Hunt

Armed with fresh intelligence, the CIA is moving additional man power and equipment into Pakistan in the effort to find Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al Zawahri, U.S. officials tell ABC News. (ABC News)

INDONESIA

Flames Engulf Indonesian Jet, Killing 21

A packed jetliner crash-landed and erupted in flames Wednesday, killing at least 21 people trapped inside the burning wreckage. More than 115 others escaped through emergency exits as black smoke billowed behind them, authorities and witnesses said. (AP)

IRAQ

118 Shiite Pilgrims Killed In Iraq Attacks

At least 118 Shiite pilgrims were slaughtered in attacks across Iraq on Tuesday, sparking fears of reprisals that could frustrate efforts by Iraqi and US forces to quell sectarian violence. (AFP)

9 U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq Bombing

Nine U.S. soldiers died in two separate incidents north of Baghdad, the military said Tuesday. (AP)

24 al Qaeda Suspects Arrested in Iraq

US-led coalition forces on Wednesday detained 24 suspects in separate raids targeting the al Qaeda network in Iraq, the US military reported. (Times of India)

Insurgents in Iraq Claim They Can Beat U.S. Anti-IED Technology

A new insurgent video mocks U.S. attempts to fight the attacks and claims insurgents managed to beat advanced technology used by the U.S. to detect the deadly explosives. (ABC News)

U.S. Army Medic Denies Desertion in Iraq Case

A U.S. Army medic on trial for refusing to return to Iraq with his unit pleaded guilty on Tuesday to going absent without leave and missing his deployment but denied charges of full desertion. (Reuters)

AFGHANISTAN

Taliban Claims Kidnapping of Journalist

The Taliban claimed Wednesday that it had kidnapped an Italian journalist, three days after an Italian newspaper lost touch with a veteran correspondent in southern Afghanistan. (AP)

Burqa-clad Taliban Leader Caught as NATO Attacks

Afghan soldiers have captured a Taliban leader who tried to flee a security operation in the south dressed in a burqa, NATO said on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Dead in Afghanistan: Will Any High Value Targets Be Among Them?

Efforts are now underway to identify the dead following a U.S. and NATO strike in a remote area of eastern Afghanistan over the weekend, according to Afghan officials. (ABC News)

NATO Launches Offensive Against Taliban

NATO-led troops launched their largest offensive yet against Taliban militants, focusing on the same southern region where U.S.-led forces carried out an even bigger operation less than a year ago. (AP)

Taliban Kidnap Briton, Two Afghans

The Taliban said on Tuesday they had captured a Briton and two Afghans in the southern province of Helmand, a major drug producer, but gave no further details. (Reuters)

PAKISTAN

Shadow Boxing on Pakistan's Border

The United States has clearly informed Pakistan of plans to send special task forces with air cover to operate inside Pakistan's tribal areas on the border with Afghanistan to smoke out al-Qaeda, which is gearing up to carry out major attacks against the US and its European allies. (Asia Times)

U.S.-IRAN

U.S. Cigarette Profits Fill Iran Coffers

If sanctions don't work, maybe we can just smoke the Iranians to death. That seems to be a key strategy in the U.S. embargo on Iran these days.(US News & World Report)

U.K.

Blair's Office Denies Leaking E-Mail

Prime Minister Tony Blair's office denied Monday that it had leaked information relating to an investigation into alleged corruption in the political honors system. (AP)

TAIWAN

Taiwan 'Tests New Cruise Missile'

Pro-independence Annette Lu plans to run for the Taiwan presidency Taiwan has test-fired a cruise missile capable of hitting Shanghai or Hong Kong, a Taiwanese newspaper reports. (BBC)

JAPAN/N.KOREA

Japan, N.Korea to Discuss Sensitive Abduction Issue

North Korea accepted a proposal by Japan to discuss the sensitive issue of Pyongyang's abductions of Japanese citizens as they try to smooth the way toward diplomatic ties, a Japanese official said on Tuesday. (Reuters)

U.N. Development Agency Suspends Its Work in North Korea

The United Nations Development Program announced Monday that it was suspending work in North Korea because the country had failed to meet conditions set up in response to American complaints that United Nations money was being diverted to the government of Kim Jong-il. (NY Times)

CHINA

State Dept. Human Rights Report Faults China's Curbs on Internet

China is at the top of a list of countries blocking Internet access, and Russia and Venezuela have shown serious regression in several areas, mainly in centralizing power in the executive branch, according to State Department officials who released the department's annual human rights report yesterday. (Washington Post)

EGYPT

Imprisoned Egyptian Blogger Appeals Sentence

An appeal was filed today on behalf of Abdel Karim Suliman, the first Egyptian blogger to be convicted of defaming Islam and the Egyptian president. (ABC News)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

A Libby Verdict

The trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr. provided some of the clearest evidence yet that this administration did not get duped by faulty intelligence on Iraq. (NY Times)

For an Opaque White House, A Reflection of New Scrutiny

By Peter Baker

The conviction of former White House aide may be a gut-churning sign of things to come for a White House used to keeping things opaque. (Washington Post)

Geopolitical Diary: Iranian Secrets on the Loose?

Ali Reza Askari, a former aide to the Iranian defense minister and a retired general with long service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has been missing since Feb. 7. Arab newspapers quickly fingered Mossad and the CIA for his assassination or kidnapping. But on Tuesday, Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported that Askari had defected, turning himself over to U.S. agents in Turkey. (Stratfor)

Alarm Over Iran Helps Bush

By Max Boot

The U.S. has plenty of reasons to strike, but the administration pushes diplomacy. (LA Times)

How to Stop Genocide in Iraq

By Samantha Power

Those who support remaining in Iraq increasingly can be heard invoking the spectre of genocide as grounds for staying. Sen John McCain (R-Ariz) warned that, if US troops leave, "You'll see a bloodletting in Baghdad that makes Srebrenica look like a Sunday school picnic." (Dawn)

Fighting for Iraq's Culture

By Matthew Bogdanos

With the situation in Iraq growing seemingly graver by the day, Americans are increasingly reluctant to risk American blood to save Iraqi lives. So it's a pretty tough sell to ask people to care about a bunch of old rocks with funny writing. (NY Times)

The International Court of Justice Has Lost Its Credibility!

By Mahmoud Mobarak

Perhaps one of the causes for pessimism about the 'Permanent Court of International Justice', which was established by the League of Nations after the end of World War I, lies in its name. (Al Hayat)

The Insider Daily Investigative Report (DIR) is a summary of major news articles and broadcasts relating to investigative news, including international terrorism and developments in Iraq. The DIR is edited daily from foreign and U.S. sources by Chris Isham, Hoda Osman and Elizabeth Sprague of the ABC News Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.