Government Flood Insurance Questioned

INVESTIGATIONS

U.S.

Government Flood Insurance Program Called into Question

Victims of Hurricane Isabel Say FEMA Flood Insurance Didn't Come Through. (ABC News)

Pentagon Nixes 9/11 Hearing Testimony

The Department of Defense forbade a military intelligence officer to testify Wednesday about the work of a secret military unit that identified four 9/11 hijackers more than a year before the Sept. 11 terrorists attacks, according to the man's attorney. (AP)

Indonesia

Indonesia Says Bird Flu Outbreak May Become Epidemic

A bird flu outbreak that has killed at least four people in Indonesia could quickly become an epidemic as agriculture officials announced plans for mass culls of chickens in infected areas. (Reuters)

Interactive Map: Explore How Avian Flu Is Spreading Across Asia. (PBS)

Italy

Church Denies Hiding War Crimes Suspect

The Roman Catholic Church denied Tuesday that it was sheltering a top Croatian war crimes suspect, after an allegation by a United Nations prosecutor that the suspect was hiding in a monastery and that the Vatican had refused pleas to help find him. (NY Times)

Guantanamo

Fewer on Guantanamo Hunger Strike

The number of detainees on hunger strike at the US military prison in Guantanamo Bay is said to have fallen by almost two-thirds since last week. (BBC)

Detainee Hunger Strike Prompts Request for Health Records Access

Attorneys for several Guantanamo detainees ask a federal court judge for immediate access to their clients' medical records, fearing an eight-week-long hunger strike is growing more serious. (Washington Post)

Iran

Iran Warns Against Referral of Nuclear Issue to the U.N.

Iran said it would restrict United Nations inspectors from critical information if the U.S. referred it to the Security Council. (NY Times)

Russia opposes EU move against Iran

Russia has opposed an EU draft that seeks to have Iran referred to the UN Security Council and warned against escalating the standoff with Tehran. (Al Jazeera)

Europe

Brussels Calls for Media Code to Avoid Aiding Terrorists

Europe's media should draw up code of conduct to ensure they do not aid terrorists, European commission says. (The Guardian)

EU States Still Negotiating Data Storage Plan

European Union member states are still working on a plan to store Internet and telephone data to combat terror despite a rival proposal due from the European Commission on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Uzbekistan

Uzbeks Accuse Foreign Media of Coup Attempt As Andijan 'Show Trial' Opens Observers brand Tashkent proceedings against 15 Islamic militants a sham. (The Guardian)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS

Canada

Egyptian Convict in Canada: I Disagreed with Bin Laden over Wages

Egyptian activist Mohammad Zaki Mahjoub arrested in Canada in 2000 and detained ever since, said that the Canadian Court of Appeals will, in a matter of days, decide on his request that his deportation to Egypt be stopped: he fears for his life if deported as he is ranked number 20 among those accused of religious violence in Egypt. (Asharq al Awsat)

IRAQ NEWS

Attacks in Iraq Kill 9 Americans, Including State Dept. Aide

British military officials in Basra also faced harsh criticism from the Iraqi government over their siege of a police station there. (NY Times)

Iraq Police Militants 'Must Go'

"Rogue elements" in Iraq's police must be rooted out, the head of the military in British-controlled Basra says. (BBC)

Saudi Fighters in Iraq Bring Money and Draw Recruits to Insurgency

Saudi fighters make up only about 1 percent of Iraq's insurgency, but each contributes thousands of dollars to the cause - and they make sure their roles as "martyrs" are known when they carry out suicide attacks, helping draw more recruits, a new report said. (AP)

Lynndie England's Court-Martial to Begin

Lynndie England's court-martial on seven counts of conspiracy and prisoner abuse is to begin Wednesday with jury selection and opening statements. The 22-year-old reservist from rural West Virginia, who is shown in a number of graphic photos taken by Abu Ghraib guards in 2003, faces up to 11 years in a military prison if convicted. (The Guardian)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

Three Choices Facing America and Britain

For many months after the invasion of Iraq, diplomats and military commanders in Baghdad said they were close to the tipping point: the day the momentum of change would win and the insurgency would start to fade. But now, with the violence sliding ever closer to civil war, the options facing the US and Britain are few: they could stay the course, pull out, or find a middle ground by reducing troop numbers but maintaining a presence. (The Guardian)

Iraq's Sunnis and Zirqawism

The responses of the Sunni circles in Iraq on Zirqawi's announcement of an "all-out war" on Shiites confirm that his group will not turn into the military wing of the opposition against the occupation and the means to outline the structure of the Iraqi State. (Al Hayat)

Iraq Exit Strategy Still Elusive

The confrontation between British troops and Iraqi police and militia in Basra shows not only that the cozy image of the British presence in Iraq has faded but that the mission of the troops is becoming unclear. (BBC)

Afghan Milestone

With Sunday's successful elections for both a national assembly and provincial councils, Afghanistan has passed another important milestone on its long road to peace and normality. Despite ominous threats of violence from the ousted Taleban, six million of 12 million registered voters went to the polls. (Arab News)

U.N. Report Warns of a 'Third Generation' of Terrorists

Al Qaeda has spawned a so-called "third generation" of followers skilled in urban warfare and suicide bombings and U.N. sanctions need to be updated to keep up with the changing tactics, a report warned Tuesday. (AP)

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 Ellen Gustafson of the ABC News Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.