Journal: Taliban Letter to Congress, Lobbying Starts Now

Taliban Seek to Sway U.S. Congress With ‘Open Letter’ Wall Street Journal, November 8, 2010 Matthew Rosenberg KABUL—Add another group to the list of people with a message for the newly elected U.S. Congress: the Taliban. In a rambling “open letter” to Congress, the Taliban’s spokesman said he wanted to present American lawmakers with “a …

Journal: Can US kill American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki? Judge to hear case

Christian Science Monitor, 7 November 2010 A federal judge is set to hear arguments on Monday in a lawsuit challenging an alleged secret Obama administration plan to use lethal force against an American-born Islamic cleric hiding in Yemen. In July, US authorities listed al-Awlaki as a “specially designated global terrorist.” According to press reports, he …

NIGHTWATCH Extracts: Afghanistan, Russians, & Time

Afghanistan: An Afghan national army soldier fired on foreign troops at a military compound in Sangin district, Helmand province, Afghanistan, after which he sought refuge with the Taliban, who took him to a safe location, a Taliban spokesman said 5 November, Afghan Islamic Press reported. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force’s (ISAF) press office said …

Journal: Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Successes

(1) If true, probably a good idea. (2) Appears that indiscretions abound. Miami Herald November 6, 2010 Spy Agencies Use Ex-Captives To Infiltrate Al Qaeda By Paisley Dodds, Associated Press LONDON — Months after he was released from Guantánamo Bay, Abdul Rahman was back in the company of terrorist leaders along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. But …