Report: Terrorists Killed in U.S. Strike on Pakistan
INVESTIGATIONS
Pakistan
Pakistan: Terrorists Killed in U.S. Strike
Pakistani Authorities say four or five foreign terrorists were killed in purported U.S. airstrike. (AP)
Sudan
The Rape of Darfur
Now that most of the black African villages in Darfur have been destroyed, sexual violence against women and children is being used to break the will of the population that remains. (The Guardian)
U.S.
2002 Memo Doubted Uranium Sale Claim
A high-level intelligence assessment by the Bush administration concluded in early 2002 that the sale of uranium from Niger to Iraq was "unlikely" because of a host of economic, diplomatic and logistical obstacles, according to a secret memo that was recently declassified by the State Department. (NY Times)
U.K.
Paper: Police Probing Alleged Kidnap Plot
Newspaper: Police Investigating Alleged Plan to Briefly Abduct Blair's Young Son. (AP)
Doctors Aid 3,000 Deaths
UK doctors responsible for deaths through euthanasia of nearly 3,000. (The Guardian)
Britain Denies Memo Cited Bush Threat
The British government denied Tuesday that a leaked memorandum at the heart of a contentious trial contained a threat by President Bush to bomb Al Jazeera, the Arabic television station. (NY Times)
E.U.
E.U.'s Patchwork of Policies Leaves It Vulnerable to 9/11-Style Attack
Patchwork of contradictory rules could hinder multinational response to terrorist threat. (Washington Post)
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Police Arrest 5 Suspected Terrorists in Capital
Saudi police arrested five suspected terrorists on Monday in raids in several neighborhoods in the capital and seized large quantities of explosives and money, security officials said. (AP)
Sweden
Al Qaeda Threatened Sweden over Afghanistan Troops
Sweden's security service warned in December that al Qaeda had threatened the country over its peacekeeping troops in Afghanistan but said on Wednesday the alert was over. (Reuters)
Afghanistan
Al Arabiya Airs New Video of Bagram Escapee
The Saudi Mohammed al Qahtani, one of four Arab militants who escaped Bagram prison last July vowed in a new video tape aired on al Arabiya on January 16th to kill soldiers of the U.S.-backed Afghani army. (Asharq al Awsat)
LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS
U.S.
Domestic Spying Lawsuits Face Uphill Battle
Plaintiffs Need Courts' Help Even to Show That They Were Spied On. (ABC News)
Translator's Conviction Raises Legal Concerns
Trial Transcripts Show Lack of Evidence. (Washington Post)
IRAQ NEWS
Journalist's Family Asks Captors for Mercy
An abducted American reporter will be killed if the U.S. doesn't free female prisoners in Iraq. (AP)
Surface-to-Air Missile Downed U.S. Chopper in Iraq
Attack Has Ominous Implications, Marking First Time Insurgents Shoot Down U.S. Aircraft With Missile. (ABC News)
Forensics ID Bomb Makers in Iraq
For months now, the main danger to U.S. forces in Iraq has not come from insurgent combat troops but from what Americans call IEDs — the homemade bombs made from artillery shells and other explosives that can be buried beside roads and hidden in booby traps and set off in a variety of ways. (CBS News)
Nine Killed, Engineer Seized In Baghdad Ambush
Gunmen killed at least nine Iraqis and kidnapped a Malawian engineer on Wednesday in an elaborate ambush on a private security convoy in a busy Baghdad street, officials and witnesses said. (Reuters)
Ramadi Tribes Plan to Isolate Al Zarqawi's Group
Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al Jaafari agreed to replace the U.S. forces in Ramadi with local Iraqi forces as part of a deal that was reached during a meeting last Sunday between the leaders of the tribes, al Jaafari and U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad. Sources said the tribes promised to tighten the noose on foreign fighters in the area and isolate those associated with the group of Abu Musaab al Zarqawi. (Al Hayat)
Official US Agency Paints Dire Picture Of 'Out-Of-Control' Iraq
Analysis issued by USAid in reconstruction effort. Account belies picture painted by White House. (The Guardian)
Report on Moroccans Joining the Insurgency in Iraq
A report in al Hayat newspaper today examines the recruitment of Moroccans, especially those holding European nationalities, to fight in Iraq. The report cites the testimonies of would-be volunteer fighters who were arrested during the past year in Morocco. Although there are no accurate statistics about the number of Moroccans who went to fight in Iraq, the newspaper notes that numerous men from Moroccan origins carried out suicide attacks there. Al Hayat says investigations revealed connections between the Islamic Combatant Group, which is active in European cities, and Iraqi networks. Volunteers were being sent for training at the camps of the Salafist Group for Call and Combat in Algeria especially after pressure on Syria due to the Hariri assassination made training there more difficult. Moroccan suspects also said that the wives of a number of Moroccans expressed their desire to carry attacks against European 'security centers' or to join the fighters in Iraq. They were advised by "people close to Abu Musaab al Zarqawi" to choose an emir to lead them, but they failed to agree on who to choose. (Al Hayat)
ANALYSIS & OPINION
Ground View: Journalists Struggle To Get The Lowdown in Danger Zone
Air Strike Appears to Blow Away Post-Quake, Pro-U.S. Sentiment. (ABC News)
US Air Raid Outrages Pakistan Press
Last Friday's US air strike on the remote village in northwest Pakistan near the Afghan border has unleashed a furore in the Pakistani press. (BBC)
What the Chattering Class Should Be Chatting About From Risen's Spy Book
Every so often, the decibel levels on Washington's politico-media cocktail circuit tick into the red over a book that, it turns out, few people have actually read. (Congressional Quarterly)
Thoughts on Dissociation
The lack of a culture of democracy in the Arab world is sometimes blamed on the absence of a culture of individualism. (Asharq al Awsat)
Syrians Ponder Country's Future
Every morning, Nahid Badawiya, an engineer, and her husband Salama, a writer, enjoy a quiet start to the day. (BBC)
Violence Increasing in Afghanistan
Suicide bombers bring a new wave of terror and concerns about the return of the Taliban. (CS Monitor)
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.