Democratic.net: [RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, August 25, 2009

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, August 25, 2009

August 25, 2009

View this newsletter as a web page on CFR's website.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

-CIA prisoner abuse allegations.
-Attacks kill twenty in Iraq.
-North Korea invites U.S. envoy.
-Preliminary election results in Afghanistan.

Top of the Agenda: Detainee Abuse Investigation

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder named veteran federal prosecutor John Durham to investigate prisoner mistreatment (NYT) by CIA interrogators, after the Justice Department released a CIA inspector general's report on the abuse in prisons overseas.

The inspector general's report details the use of "unauthorized, improvised, inhumane and undocumented" interrogation tactics, including the use of guns, power drills, rifle butts, and threats to kill prisoners and their children. The full inspector general's report is available here (PDF).

The Obama administration also announced it will set up a new specialized FBI interrogation unit (Reuters) for terrorism suspects. The unit will work out of FBI headquarters in Washington and answer to the National Security Council. The team will be limited to interrogation limits outlined in the U.S. Army Field Manual.

The administration also said the practice of rendition of suspects to prisons overseas would continue, but that it will closely monitor the situation to ensure detainees are not tortured (NYT).

Analysis:
In a recent Working Paper, CFR's Daniel Prieto examines the deep partisan and ideological disagreements surrounding U.S. counterterrorism policy and civil liberties. He argues that "it is critical that the United States achieve a new bipartisan national consensus on how to confront and defeat the threat posed by al-Qaeda and associated groups, yet stay true to U.S. values."

The Los Angeles Times says U.S. President Barack Obama will face major challenges as a result of the investigation's launch, noting that Obama had already stated his desire to avoid just such a probe.

TIME asks whether the harsh interrogation tactics worked, or if they were even necessary, and says a definitive analysis of the inspector general's report is difficult, considering how much of it was redacted.

The Washington Post looks at the Bush and Obama administrations' distinct reactions to the inspector general's report.

Newsweek says prosecutions as a result of the investigation are by no means inevitable, and quotes Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union, calling the scope of the investigation "simply anemic."

Doug Bandow, senior fellow at the Cato Institute, says the investigation should extend to top Bush administration officials (Huffington Post), not just CIA interrogators.

Politico looks at divisions over Holder's decision in Washington and in the CIA.

Background:
Holder's full statement on detainee interrogations and the special prosecutor can be read here.

AMERICAS: Bernanke Reappointed

President Obama will reappoint Fed Chair Ben Bernanke (WSJ), in a move to maintain stability despite Congressional criticism of Bernanke's handling of the financial crisis.

MIDEAST: Bus Bombs in Iraq

Bombs on two buses near the mainly Shiite town of Kut in southern Iraq killed at least twenty people (NPR) and wounded ten others.

Gaza: A Palestinian was killed in exchanges of gunfire (BBC) over the Israel-Gaza border, and an Israeli soldier was injured when at least two mortar shells were fired onto an Israeli beach. The incidents happened as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited London for talks with U.S. envoy George Mitchell on restarting Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations (Reuters).

An interactive CFR Crisis Guide looks at the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

PACIFIC RIM: North Korea Invitation

North Korea invited Stephen Bosworth, the U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, to visit in September for talks on its nuclear arms program (Yonhap). If Bosworth accepts the invitation, it would be the first bilateral meeting between the Obama administration and the North Korean government.

South Korea: South Korea launched its first rocket into space today (Korea Times), but failed to put a scientific satellite into orbit. The launch comes a week after South Korea aborted the mission due to a pressure gauge malfunction (Bloomberg). North Korea said earlier this month it would "closely watch" to see whether the UN Security Council reacts to the launch, although South Korea is not under Security Council sanctions.

China: A Chinese government official denied widespread media reports that more than two hundred people will likely go on trial (Global Times) in the city of Urumqi this week over allegations of involvement in recent ethnic violence in Xinjiang province. At least 197 people were killed in the July violence, in which members of the Uighur ethnic group clashed with Han Chinese.

SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA: Preliminary Afghan Election Results

Preliminary results of last week's presidential elections in Afghanistan are expected today, amid numerous claims of electoral fraud (BBC). The two leading candidates, incumbent President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, have both claimed to be ahead in the polls. The final election results will not be available for several weeks.

Pakistan: Police said they arrested seven suspected militants (Daily Times) linked to the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi militant group in raids in Karachi and six men affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban (Daily Times) in the eastern city of Sargodha. Police seized bomb-making materials and heroin in the raids, and said they believe they foiled major terrorist attacks.

AFRICA: Climate Meeting

Officials from ten African countries are meeting in Ethiopia (VOA) to negotiate a joint African Union position on climate change ahead of December's UN conference in Copenhagen. They are expected to propose a plan that would oblige developed nations to cut emissions by at least 40 percent by 2020 and provide $67 billion a year to help emerging market economies deal with climate change.

Kenya: Kenya began its first national census (Daily Nation) since 1999 to gather data on education, health, housing, agriculture, food production, and other social and economic indicators. The BBC reports on controversy surrounding a census question that asks which ethnic group people belong to, noting that some Kenyans object to the question in light of last year's ethnic violence that killed more than 1,000 people.

EUROPE: Justice Secretary Defends Lockerbie Ruling

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill defended his decision (WSJ) to free Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, the Libyan national convicted in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 that killed 270 people. In a statement before the Scottish parliament, MacAskill expressed "great regret" over the hero's welcome al-Megrahi received upon his return to Libya, noting that Libyan officials had promised to keep the affair discreet.

Russia: Moscow prosecutors say Ukrainian troops joined Georgian forces (RIA Novosti) in the August 2008 military conflict between Georgia and Russia. A Ukrainian defense ministry spokesman denied the claim, but did not rule out the possibility that Ukrainian civilians may have joined the Georgian effort.

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