Lebanon Minister Assassinated
November 21, 2006 -- ASSASSINATION OF MINISTER IN LEBANON
Lebanese Cabinet Minister is Killed
Prominent anti-Syrian Christian politician Pierre Gemayel was assassinated in a suburb of Beirut on Tuesday, his Phalange Party Voice of Lebanon radio station reported. (AP)
Chronology of Political Killings since February 2005
Minister Pierre Gemayel was assassinated by gunmen in Beirut on Tuesday.His fatal shooting will certainly heighten the political tension in Lebanon, where the leading Muslim Shiite party Hezbollah has threatened to topple the government if he does not get a bigger say in Cabinet decision making. (Daily Star)
POISONED RUSSIAN EX-AGENT
Russian Spy Service Denies Poisoning Ex-agent
Russia's spy service said on Tuesday it had had no hand in the poisoning of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko -- and wished him a speedy recovery. (Reuters)
Poisoned Spy 'Had Death Threats'
A friend of a former Russian spy seriously ill in a London hospital said both had received e-mail threats days before his poisoning. (BBC)
IRAQ NEWS
3 Iraqis Killed in Coalition Raid
Coalition forces raided Baghdad's Sadr City Shiite stronghold on Tuesday, killing three people, including a young boy, police said. Holding the body of the child in his arms, a Shiite legislator condemned Iraq's government for allowing such attacks. (AP)
Syria, Iraq Restore Ties To Combat Militants
Iraq and Syria agreed to restore full diplomatic relations on Tuesday after a break of a quarter of a century, a move Iraq hopes may help stem what it says is Syrian support for militants. (Reuters)
Suicide Bombers on the Loose
Terrorist organizations have dispatched suicide bombers around the country to attack government officials and other VIPs, according to intelligence reports sent to the Interior Ministry. (Daily Times)
PAKISTAN
Pakistan Police Arrest Dozens of Taliban Suspects
Pakistani police arrested more than two dozen suspected Taliban fighters on Tuesday in a raid on an Islamic school in the southwestern city of Quetta, police said. (Reuters)
Abducted BBC Journalist Released
Kidnapped BBC Urdu service reporter Dilawar Khan Wazir has been released, a day after he went missing in Pakistan. (BBC)
AIDS
HIV Infection on Rise In All Regions: U.N. Report
HIV infection is rising in every region of the world and most worryingly in countries like Uganda and Thailand, which had been heralded as success stories in the fight against AIDS, the United Nations said on Tuesday. (Reuters)
ON THE WEB
ABC News Extremist Website Monitoring
This is a daily update of some of what can be found on militant Islamist websites that are often used by al Qaeda and its sympathizers, insurgent groups in Iraq and other groups for propaganda, recruiting and communication purposes. (ABC News)
ANALYSIS & OPINION
A Discredit to the United Nations
The old, unreformed United Nations Human Rights Commission was selective and one-sided, but occasionally managed to do some good work. That may be more than can be said for its successor body, the Human Rights Council, born earlier this year of a weak-kneed compromise from which the United States stood honorably apart. If this is the best the U.N. can do at reforming itself, it isn't worth the effort. (NY Times)
Why Only Darfur?
By Anne Applebaum
There was a photograph: a weeping Sudanese woman, standing before a freshly dug grave. There were statistics: 400,000 people dead, 2.5 million driven from their homes, "untold thousands" raped. There was an appeal: "Innocent civilians are being slaughtered in Darfur. You can end it," and a Web address, http://www.dayfordarfur.org. (Washington Post)
Robert Gates' Options at the Pentagon
By Nicole Stracke
In August 2004, Robert Gates was asked to make his predictions on Iraq's future. His answer was: "We have the old line in the intelligence business that everything we want to know is divided into two categories: secrets and mysteries, [and] Iraq is very much the latter." (Daily Star)
Book Review: Inside The Jihad: An Al Qaeda Agent's Amazing Account
Four years ago a video of a puppy killed in a chemical gas test at one of al Qaeda's secret training camps in Afghanistan shocked the world. Now a man who says he was an Islamic holy warrior -- a Jihadi -- at the camp is ready to reveal its dark secrets. (CNN)
Report: 'War on Terror Could Last 30 Years or More'
The fight against terrorism could last 30 years or more, according to a report by a British think-tank specializing in international security. (Times of India)
There's More than One Way to Restart the Peace Process
Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi's trip to Egypt bodes well for his country's commitment to the Middle East peace initiative unveiled last week in partnership with France and Spain. It has been a long time since Europe attempted to bring its diplomatic influence in line with its economic weight, and the failure of purely American mediation only sharpens the need for alternative strategies. In addition, recent shifts in the American political landscape - including the November congressional elections and the resignation of the US defense secretary - have provided an opening for the EU to assert its role in resolving the decades-old Palestinian-Israeli conflict. (Daily Star)
Iraq and Syria, 'Friends' Again
By Richard Beeston
On the surface, this weekend's summit meeting between the leaders of Iraq, Syria and Iran does not represent a new departure. (The London 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 Elizabeth Sprague of the ABC News Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.