Democratic.net: [RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, July 17, 2009

Friday, July 17, 2009

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, July 17, 2009

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July 17, 2009

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

-Jakarta terrorist attacks.
-Two Somali groups responsible for kidnapped French advisers.
-India-Pakistan peace talks on hold.
-Rafsanjani’s sermon in Tehran.

Top of the Agenda: Bombings in Jakarta

Explosions at two hotels in Jakarta, Indonesia killed at least nine people (Jakarta Post) on Friday morning. The bombings appear to have been carried out by Jemaah Islamiyah (Bloomberg), a Southeast Asian militant group.

The attacks come nine days after the reelection of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (NYT), who visited the scene of the attack and said it was “too early to say” if Jemaah Islamiyah was responsible.

Jemaah Islamiyah claimed responsibility for the 2003 bombing of Jakarta’s Marriott Hotel, which killed 11 people.

Analysis
The Wall Street Journal looks at the effect of the bombings on world markets.

AP Pakistan Bureau Chief Chris Brummitt says the bombings indicate the “resilience” of the militants to Indonesia’s crackdown in recent years.

Reuters has a Q&A on the likely impact of the Jakarta bombings.

Background
CFR profiles Jemaah Islamiyah in this Backgrounder.

Al-Jazeera has a timeline of Indonesia’s battle with Jemaah Islamiyah.

MIDEAST: Rafsanjani Speech

Reformist cleric Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a supporter of former opposition presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi, gave the sermon (LAT) at Friday prayers in Tehran, and called for unity and dialogue in Iran. Rafsanjani also criticized the country’s Guardian Council for its review of the election results and called for the release of protesters (CNN) arrested during the post-election unrest. As he closed the sermon, fighting broke out between Mousavi supporters and police, who fired tear gas at the crowd.

Nuclear agency: Gholam Reza Aghazadeh, the head of Iran’s nuclear program and the country’s vice president, has stepped down (PRESS TV). Aghazadeh was executive deputy to Mousavi (Gulf Daily News), but it was not clear whether Aghazadeh’s resignation had to do with the election.

Iran promptly named Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran's former representative to the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency, as the new head of the country’s Atomic Energy Organization (Reuters).

PACIFIC RIM: North Korea Sanctions

The UN Security Council imposed new sanctions (Bloomberg) on North Korea on Thursday as a result of the country’s continued nuclear program. The Security Council froze the assets of five North Korean officials and banned them from leaving the country.

SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA: India-Pakistan Peace Talks Stalled

India put peace talks with Pakistan on hold (Hindustan Times) on Thursday, saying it will not participate in dialogue until those the people responsible for the November terror attacks in Mumbai are brought to justice. Still, in a joint statement (Dawn), Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said they would work together to fight terrorism (Hindu).

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton kicks off her trip in Mumbai today as she tries to improve U.S.-Indian relations. The visit should focus on strengthening bilateral trade, energy, and nonproliferation ties, says CFR’s Evan Feigenbaum in an Expert Brief.

Pakistan: In two separate incidents, Taliban militants bombed oil tankers (AP) that were carrying fuel to NATO forces in Afghanistan on Friday.

AFRICA: Zuma Under Pressure

South African President Jacob Zuma is facing pressure (Business Day) from prominent South Africans, civil society, and human rights groups to break from the African Union’s recent decision to ignore the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. They urged Zuma to “co-operate fully with the ICC” in al-Bashir’s arrest.

Somalia: Two different Islamic militant groups are each holding one of the two French security advisers (Independent) kidnapped in Somalia earlier this week. The Hizbul Islam group was initially holding them both, but reportedly turned one over to the al-Shabaab group after an argument. Both groups are believed to have links to al-Qaeda.

CFR profiles al-Shabaab in this Backgrounder.

AMERICAS: Gates to Fight on Defense Spending

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates promised to fight Congress (AFP) to ensure his suggested budget cuts to the F-22 fighter jet program are kept in place. Gates argued that the money would be better spent on more effective defense programs.

Honduras: The two sides in the Honduran political crisis agreed to some compromises in talk (NYT), according to President Óscar Arias of Costa Rica, the chief negotiator. Arias said ousted President Manuel Zelaya and interim leader Roberto Micheletti agreed to amnesty for both sides and to create a unity government.

In an interview with CFR, Brookings Latin America expert Kevin Casas-Zamora says the Obama administration, by supporting Costa Rican mediation in Honduras, is “trying to give the message that the inclusion of regional actors is very important and the United States won't go back to the days when it single-handedly intervened with a heavy hand.”

EUROPE: Iceland hopes to join EU

Iceland’s parliament voted to try to join the European Union (Deutsche Welle) on Thursday. The government plans to launch its membership bid by the end of July.

Russia: A Russian official indicated that Russia hopes to join the World Trade Organization by 2010 with U.S. backing.

TRANSNATIONAL: WHO Won’t Track Swine Flu

The World Health Organization announced yesterday it would stop tracking swine flu cases and deaths around the world (NYT).

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