Bush Visits Pakistan, Al Qaeda's Home Territory

March 3, 2006 -- As President Bush arrives in Pakistan on the heels of a suicide bomb which killed a U.S. diplomat, he visits a key ally in the Global War on Terror. Despite this alliance, America's chief enemy Osama bin Laden may be in Pakistan, protected by what ABC News consultant Alexis Debat believes are increased links between Al Qaeda and Pakistani militants.

Will the President Be Safe in Pakistan?

Bush Heads to a Country Where al Qaeda Is a Major Force, and the Bombs Are Already Exploding. (ABC News)

Why Al Qaeda Is At Home In Pakistan

Terror Organization Believed to Be Drawing Less From Arabs, More From South Asia(ABC News)

Opinion: Bush, Bin Laden Visit Pakistan in Tellingly Different Ways

This weekend, President Bush and Osama bin Laden will, in all likelihood, be in the same country for the first time. That nation is Pakistan. (USA Today)

SHARK SPIES?

US 'Plans Stealth Shark Spies'

Pentagon scientists are planning to turn sharks into "stealth spies" capable of tracking vessels undetected, a British magazine has reported. (BBC)

YEMEN PRISON ESCAPE

17 Al Qaeda Figures Amongst Prison Escapees

Seventeen out of the 23 men who escaped a prison in Sanaa 10 days ago are considered leaders of al Qaeda who were going to implement the organization's plans in the region, al Hayat quotes "trustworthy sources" as saying. The al Qaeda figures spent more than a year in one prison which allowed them to think and discuss their plans before digging the tunnel and escaping the prison, the sources add. They are considered dangerous and may be planning attacks inside and outside Yemen, according to the sources. Al Hayat had reported that two security officers working for Yemeni intelligence were believed involved in helping the prisoners escape. (Al Hayat)

GUANTANAMO

A Guantanamo detainee interviewed by the BBC has called the force-feeding of hunger strikers a form of torture. Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports administration lawyers' arguments that Guantanamo prisoners have no recourse to anti-torture provisions in new legislation introduced by Sen. John McCain. Another prisoner at the Cuba base has refused to appear at a military tribunal, after he was denied the right to defend himself.

Guantanamo Man Tells Of 'Torture'

A Kuwaiti held at Guantanamo since 2002 criticizes the US regime at the military camp, in a rare BBC interview. (BBC)

Audio: Detainee Interview
(BBC News)

U.S. Cites Exception in Torture Ban

Administration lawyers argue that the new law prohibiting cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees does not apply to people held at Guantanamo Bay. (Washington Post)

Bin Laden Aide Snubs Tribunal

An alleged aide to Osama bin Laden refused to appear before a US military tribunal yesterday after his request to defend himself was denied. (Gulf Daily News)

NSA SPYING

Saudi Group Alleges Wiretapping by U.S.

Defunct Charity's Suit Details Eavesdropping. (Washington Post)

Paper Said to Show NSA Spying Given to Post Reporter in 2004

A classified document that an Islamic charity says is evidence of illegal government eavesdropping on its phone calls and e-mails was provided in 2004 to a Washington Post reporter, who returned it when the FBI demanded it back a few months later. (Washington Post)

IRAN NUCLEAR TALKS

Iran, EU Nuclear Talks End Without Result

Talks Between EU Negotiators, Iran Over Controversial Nuclear Program End Without Result. (AP)

PENTAGON CONTRACTS

Pentagon Agency's Contracts Reviewed

Federal investigators are looking into contracts awarded by the Pentagon's newest and fastest-growing intelligence agency, the Counterintelligence Field Activity, which has spent more than $1 billion, mostly for outsourced services, since its establishment in late 2002, according to administration and congressional sources. (Washington Post)

1981 POPE SHOOTING

Soviets 'Ordered Pope Shooting'

An Italian parliamentary commission has concluded that the former Soviet Union was behind the 1981 assassination attempt on the late Pope John Paul II. (BBC)

NORTH AFRICA

Many former Muslim insurgents jailed in Algeria during the 1990s were apparently pardoned today, after the recent government ban on media discussion of the Algerian civil war during that period. Angering France with the closure of French-language schools, Algeria seemed to join their Libyan neighbors in an anti-colonial backlash. Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi claimed yesterday that Libyans hatred for Italians was behind the destruction last month of Italy's consulate in Benghazi.

Algeria Closes 42 French Schools

A decision by Algeria to close 42 French-language schools because they failed to obey a law requiring them to teach mainly in Arabic has met an angry response in France. (London Times)

Algerian Amnesty Takes Effect

Algeria will pardon or reduce sentences for more than 2000 convicted or suspected Muslim fighters, the Justice Ministry has said, moving ahead with a government effort to turn the page on a brutal insurgency. (AP)

Tunisia: We Hold No Political Prisoners

Tunisia has expressed regret that the US State Department seemed to be giving credence to claims by human-rights groups that the North African country holds political prisoners. (AP)

Qadhafi: Hatred for Italy Caused Riot

Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi has said rioters who sacked the Italian consulate in Benghazi two weeks ago had wanted to kill the consul because Libyans hate Italians. (Al Jazeera)

BRITAIN'S BANK HEIST INVESTIGATION

U.K. Police Find Millions in Warehouse

Police Investigating Britain's Largest Robbery Discover Millions in London Warehouse. (AP)

IRAQ VIOLENCE CONTINUES

At Least 25 Said Killed In Attack On Iraq Town

Gunmen raided a small town near Baghdad and shot dead at least 25 people in what police said on Friday was a sectarian attack by Sunnis on Shi'ites, latest in a string of killings since a Shi'ite shrine was bombed last week. (Reuters)

Ten Shiites Slaughtered at Iraq Factory

At Least 19 People Dead in Night of Carnage in Iraq; 10 Shiites Killed in Their Sleep at Factory. (AP)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

In Iran: British Philosopher Versus Germen Philosopher

In the late 1970s as clouds of revolution gathered in Iranian skies, the state-owned television decided to provide a space in which rival ideas, simmering beneath the surface, could be expressed, albeit in a limited context. (Asharq al Awsat)

2 German Roles: Opposing War and Aiding U.S.

Did the German government lie? Was it talking out of both sides of its mouth? Did it betray a moral trust by giving the United States cooperation in the Iraq war, as a steady drumbeat of news disclosures - some accepted by the government, some vehemently denied - have been saying? (NY Times)

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.