Iraqi government struggles over oil infrastructure
"Output in the north came to a virtual standstill in July, when insurgents blew up a pipeline linking the Bayji refinery and the Al-Dura refinery in Baghdad. Together, the two refineries were responsible for 80 percent of the country's refining. Whereas Iraq once produced about 20 million liters of gasoline per day in 2003, it now produces around 3 million liters per day.
Oil Minister al-Shahristani told reporters on 29 August that Iraq has begun to increase imports from its neighboring to supplement domestic production. The ministry's latest figures indicate that imports have been raised from 8 million liters to 11 million liters per day."
http://www.isn.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?ID=16608
UK assesses aftermath of 'airliner plot.'
"However Ayers was opposed to plans by UK Home Secretary John Reid to reintroduce a proposal allowing police to detain terror suspects without charge for up to 90 days. The draft legislation was defeated by Parliament earlier this year, but the government says the alleged airliner plot has reaffirmed the need for tougher anti-terror measures.
Instead of imprisoning people 90 days because police needed more time for forensic analysis, the authorities should be directing police resources towards speeding up that analysis, Ayers said.
He criticized the government for introducing new legislation when it wasn’t implementing existing laws effectively. “There has been a lot of legislation but not a lot of action,” he told ISN Security Watch. “The government has talked a lot but the government hasn’t done a lot.”"
http://www.isn.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?id=16594
Israel, Hamas must shake up status quo
"When looking at the situation in the Palestinian Territories, the status quo becomes unbearable. The sustained economic blockade has crippled the Palestinian economy. The reports about the grave humanitarian situation are not new to anyone; yet, Israel's effort to inhibit Hamas from consolidating its political power is having even more severe repercussions.
The creation of a humanitarian crisis is just the tip of the iceberg. Israeli army operations have resulted in the killing and imprisonment of political operatives and the destruction of Palestinian Authority (PA) ministries and buildings, severely incapacitating the political institutions of the PA - a political framework set up through the Oslo Accords, notably, in agreement with Israel. Today, the PA framework, which encompasses both Hamas and Fatah, is nearing total collapse."
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The realities in the Palestinian territories strongly suggest that a reoccupation would be object to a reinforced and violent intifada. Furthermore, the will expressed by the Israeli population through the mechanisms of its democracy calls for the pursuit of a two-state solution, not the continuation of suppression and military occupation. In short, this strategy appears to be quite out of the question.
However, the proponents of this strategy do have one valid point: there is not authority in the Palestinian territories. This is clear just looking at the anarchic situation in Gaza, where clashes frequently take place between multiple small, armed factions.
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The current impasse has robbed the Israelis of any perspective for long-term peace, and even for short-term security. But Israel still has another strategic option that would provide a long-term perspective and remain committed to a two-state solution, which enjoys the backing of the majority of Israelis.
The primary obstacle to reviving a political process with the Palestinians is the same stumbling block that has brought that process to a standstill: the Hamas government's total disavowal of Israel's right to exist.
http://www.isn.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?ID=16599