In The News

Nevine Khalil December 12, 2003
President Hosni Mubarak traveled from Cairo to Geneva for the first World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) with one message: African, Middle Eastern, and Latin American states must work together to develop their capacities as "IT-savvy" states. President Mubarak envisions a well-integrated system of cooperation, where nations can help each other's development through...
Jackie Spinner December 10, 2003
Citing security concerns, US officials have announced that only those countries that supported the invasion of Iraq will be allowed to bid on $18.6 billion in reconstruction contracts. The decision enraged Russia, Germany, France, and Canada, who under the decision will be excluded from much of the biggest nation rebuilding effort since the Second World War. Igor Ivanov, the Russian foreign...
Seymour M. Hersh December 8, 2003
American military officials have recently been struggling to find an effective strategy to counter the Iraqi resistance movement. One solution that has been proposed, and is being strongly supported by US Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, is to increase the number of Special Forces units who can operate covertly and in small numbers. The deployment of Special Forces does not need to be approved by...
David E. Sanger December 1, 2003
Initially reported in the Central Intelligence Agency's October report on Saddam Hussein's weapons programs, it now seems that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il "took Saddam to the cleaners" by cheating him of $10 million. In exchange for the money, which may have been a down payment, North Korea reportedly promised to turn over the technology of their Rodong missile program....
Neil MacFarquhar November 24, 2003
For the past 11 years, a Saudi television show has aired during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan that subtly and sometimes not-so-subtly pokes fun at the Saudi regime and the religious bureaucracy. Muslim leaders call the show religious blasphemy, while the show's avid viewers consider it a light-hearted portrayal of the truth of everyday life. A particularly controversial episode...
David E. Sanger November 20, 2003
The Bush Administration was rebuffed this week when the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, issued a resolution that condemned Iran’s covert development of a nuclear program but stopped short of recommending Security Council action against the country. US officials had pushed for a formal censure, but European countries on the agency’s board argued that UN...
George W. Bush November 19, 2003
In London, President Bush spoke to members of Prime Minister Tony Blair's government about the progress of the coalition-led war in Iraq. He called upon the British to remain strong in their resolve, while acknowledging that many of Prime Minister Blair's constituents were against the war. Though the President never mentioned weapons of mass destruction in Iraq – his main selling...