Afghans Fed Up With Government, US

The bearded, turbaned men gather beneath a large, leafy tree in rural eastern Nangarhar province. When Malik Mohammed speaks on their behalf, his voice is soft but his words are harsh.

Mohammed makes it clear that the tribal chiefs have lost all faith in both their own government and the foreign soldiers in their country. Such disillusionment is widespread in Afghanistan, feeding an insurgency that has killed 195 foreign soldiers so far this year, 105 of them Americans.

"This is our land. We are afraid to send our sons out the door for fear the American troops will pick them up," says Mohammed, who was chosen by the others to represent them. "Daily we have headaches from the troops. We are fed up. Our government is weak and corrupt and the American Soldiers have learned nothing."

A strong sense of frustration echoed through dozens of interviews by The Associated Press with Afghan villagers, police, government officials, tribal elders and Taliban who left and rejoined the religious movement. The interviews ranged from the capital, Kabul, to the rural regions near the border with Pakistan.

The overwhelming result: Ordinary Afghans are deeply bitter about American and NATO forces because of errant bombs, heavy-handed searches and seizures and a sense that the foreigners do not understand their culture. They are equally fed up with what they see as seven years of corruption and incompetence in a U.S.-backed government that has largely failed to deliver on development.

Even with more foreign troops, Afghanistan is now less secure.

"It certainly is a mess. Security is the worst that it has been for years. Corruption is out of control. It impacts every single Afghan," says Doug Wankel, a burly 62-year-old American who coordinated Washington's anti-drug policy in Afghanistan from 2004 until 2007 and is now back as a security consultant. "What people have to understand is that what ordinary Afghans think really does matter." Military.com

US, Israel call for new Iran sanctions

The US and Israel urge the UN Security Council to quickly prepare new Iran sanctions, despite nuclear negotiations being in process.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, a contender to succeed outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, told CNN on Sunday that any hesitation to adopt new anti-Iran UNSC sanctions would signal the West's 'weakness'.

As a sign of commitment to diplomacy, Washington took part in a July 19 meeting between Iran and the five permanent members of the UNSC plus Germany to discuss a Western package of incentives.

The US presence at the talks, advertised by various US officials as a 'U-turn' policy toward Tehran, sparked an outcry in Israel. Washington's commitment to negotiations, however, was a 'one-time' offer and was limited to 'listening' rather than 'contributing'.

After the Geneva meeting, the Bush administration set a two-week deadline for to response to the 'freeze or freeze' proposal under which Iran would have to freeze the expansion of its enrichment program for six weeks and the US would, in return, freeze lobbying for more anti-Iran sanctions.

US, French warships arrive in Somali

More than four American and French warships have reached the Somali capital, Mogadishu, dropping soldiers in the southern coastal city.

The reason for the presence of the vessels off the Somali coast remains to be seen, a Press TV correspondent reported.

Upon arrival, the soldiers left for the Adden Adde international airport where they later met with African Union Mission (AMISOM) soldiers and Somali government troops.

Meanwhile, more than 19 helicopters, reportedly guarding the troops on their way to the airport, set the locals ill at ease.

There are, however, fears of a violent outbreak as fighters from the armed opposition group Al-Shabaab and Union of Islamic Courts (ICU) fighters were at the same time moving towards the airport.

In the absence of a central administration in Somalia, the Ethiopian-backed interim government has been maintaining an uneasy control over the war-scarred country.

The Union of Islamic Courts has vowed to keep up their fight against foreign forces in Somalia including those from the AMISOM, Uganda and the Ethiopia and have said they were determined to force Ethiopian forces out of the country. PressTV

US, Israel see eye to eye on Iran threat

lsrael and the US see nearly eye-to-eye on the threat of a nuclear Iran, differing only on when Teheran will be able to build an atomic bomb, a key American senator told The Jerusalem Post on Monday.

"There is now and always has been a slight difference of opinion about the precise timing of the threat of [a nuclear] Iran, but in response to the fundamental nature of Iran's desire to acquire nuclear weapons, and its ongoing development of fuels for that purpose, there is no difference of opinion in that regard," said Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Arizona).

Recent intelligence assessments provided to the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee suggested that Iran could have a nuclear weapon by the end of 2009. US intelligence estimates, however, say it will take the Islamic Republic at least one year longer.

Kyl is the Senate minority whip and a close ally of Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination.

Kyl, who led a group of four US legislators in the Bicameral Delegation on US-Israeli security issues in a visit to the country this week, said they had access to the "full picture" of the recent US National Intelligence Estimate on Iran, and fully understood the threat posed by Teheran acquiring nuclear weapons. More

US, Israel refuse to cooperate with inquest into Syria strike

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UN nuclear watchdog has no evidence Syria had nuclear facility

The International Atomic Energy Agency - the United Nations nuclear watchdog - has not been able to conduct an investigation into the events surrounding the Sept. 6 Israeli bombing of a Syrian military installation because neither the Bush administration nor Israel are cooperating.

A diplomatic source close to the Vienna based IAEA told Raw Story that both the United States and Israel have been approached by the organization requesting supporting evidence of a nuclear reactor which media sources have cited, based on anonymous sources in both governments, as the reason for the Israeli strike.

The source also explained that the satellite footage, which the IAEA obtained through commercial channels for lack of any “credible evidence,” does not show a nuclear reactor in the early construction phase. Raw Story