Tuesday, August 3, 2010

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, August 3, 2010

 

From the Council on Foreign Relations

August 3, 2010

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

- Pakistan's Flood Misery Mounts
- Israel and Lebanon Clash
- Gulf Oil Spill Biggest Ever
- Wildfires Spread in Russia

Top of the Agenda: Flood Misery Mounts in Pakistan

The worst flooding in Pakistan in nearly a century continues to wreak havoc on the country's vulnerable northwest, with hundreds dead and thousands still trapped. The UN estimates as many as three million people have been affected by the monsoon rains, and upwards of 27,000 people are cut off from aid (BBC). Rescue workers are struggling to reach thousands of villages trapped throughout the remote Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, and UN officials say despite pre-positioned humanitarian aid, the scope of the destruction is overwhelming (VOA).

Residents in the hardest hit areas are complaining of government indifference and incompetence (National). This is leading to mounting concern that charities linked to Islamic extremist groups will step in and provide assistance (McClatchy), further alienating the region's rural residents from the country's weak civilian government.

Analysis

Columnist Sana Saleem writes that the response to the recent flooding has been inadequate and illustrates an endemic lack of government capacity (Dawn).

Background

Human displacement due to conflict and natural disaster has been a persistent problem in Pakistan's northwest, as this timeline outlines.

MIDDLE EAST: Iraq War Winds Down, Afghanistan Heats Up

In a speech to disabled veterans in Atlanta on Monday, President Obama's reiterated his bid to wind down the seven-year war in Iraq by ending combat operations this month. As the Financial Times reports, Obama is seeking to boost his standing as a war president despite a series of setbacks, including a huge leak of military documents related to the Afghan war.

In an attempt to lessen the blow when the U.S. combat mission in Iraq ends September 1, the White House has deployed a legion of advisers (WSJ) to Baghdad to assist Iraqi politicians in breaking a deadlock that has halted formation of a new government.

Israel: Israeli and Lebanese forces have clashed in southern Lebanon, exchanging rocket fire (Haaretz) in a region known for frequent cross-border assaults. The fighting comes a day after rocket attacks on the southern city of Eilat and neighboring Aqaba in Jordan.

Iran: In a bid to overcome Western efforts to isolate Iran, Tehran has embarked on an ambitious project to revive ancient Silk Road trading networks (RFE/RL) with a series of new roads, railways, and tunnels.

SOUTH ASIA: Violence in Pakistan's South

Nearly four dozen people have been killed and over a hundred wounded in mob violence in the Pakistani port city of Karachi. Violence erupted late Monday after an unidentified gunman shot and killed Raza Haider, a senior member of Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which controls the city government (WSJ). Mobs of protestors took to the streets, torching vehicles, shops, and gas pumps (TheNews).

Afghanistan: The U.S. military is deploying lessons learned in Iraq to the fight in southern Afghanistan, the Washington Post reports, turning the city of Kandahar into a maze of blast walls and checkpoints.

PACIFIC RIM: Deadly Blasts in Chinese Mines

Nearly twenty people have been killed in a series of deadly mine blasts in China. One blast, at an unidentified coalmine in the country's southern province of Guizhou, killed ten, according to state media (AP). An explosion Monday at the Sanyuandong coal mine in Henan province left nine workers dead. China's mining industry is considered the deadliest in the world, responsible for the deaths of more than 2,600 workers last year (al-Jazeera).

North Korea: Pyongyang warned it would launch a "physical counterattack" against South Korea during a naval drill planned for later this week. In a statement, the North alleged that the South's activities were not "a pure exercise" but an "open military attack" that would be countered (Xinhua).

China: The Obama administration has asked Beijing to stop pursuing business opportunities in Iran following tough new sanctions that has prompted the departure of European firms (FT).

AFRICA: Former SA Police Chief Is Sentenced

A South African court sentenced a former national police commissioner to fifteen years in prison. Jackie Selebi, 60, a former president of Interpol, was found guilty of accepting bribes from a drug dealer (BBC).

South Africa: A new breed of entrepreneur is transforming South Africa from a nation overly dependant on natural resources into an innovator in clean energy, aviation, and engineering, the New York Times reports.

AMERICAS: Gulf Leak Biggest Spill Ever

Federal scientists report that BP's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is the largest release of oil into marine waters (NYT), with nearly five million barrels of crude lost since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20. Crews hoped to begin pumping mud and possibly cement into the well on Tuesday in an effort to seal the gusher for good (AP). Also, a new report finds that the BP did not make the spill worse (CSMonitor) with its early reliance on dispersants.

United States: Two men have been found guilty of plotting to blow up fuel tanks at New York's JFK airport in 2007. Prosecutors said the pair, including a former member of Guyana's parliament, sought the help of militant Islamists, for a plan intended to kill thousands (BBC).

EUROPE: Wildfires Spread in Russia

Hot temperatures and dry conditions are fueling the worst wildfires Russia has seen in generations. At least forty people have been killed, hundreds injured, and thousands left homeless (RT). Areas east and south of Moscow are among the hardest hit, and President Dmitry Medvedev has declared a state of emergency in seven regions (BBC).

Britain: The row over British Prime Minister David Cameron's claim that Pakistan exports terrorism has been ratcheted up (Guardian) with reports that Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari plans to "put him straight" when the two leaders meet in the UK on Friday.
 

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