IRAQ
Clashes suggest Sunni anger boiling over
In what appeared to be a new phase in an intensifying conflict that has raised fears of greater bloodshed and a wider sectarian war, Iraqi soldiers opened fire from helicopters on Sunni gunmen hiding in a northern village Wednesday, officials said. The air attacks were among clashes throughout the country between forces of the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government and Sunni gunmen that left at least 27 people dead and dozens wounded. The Sunni tribesmen were continuing a fight that began Tuesday after the Iraqi army stormed a Sunni protest encampment in the village of Hawija, leaving dozens dead and injured.
EGYPT
Hagel: Claims of chemical weapons use ‘suspicions’
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday described Israeli claims of Syrian chemical weapons use as unproven “suspicions” and declined to set a timeline for a U.S. assessment of the accusations. Hagel has instructed defense intelligence agencies to investigate allies’ reports that the Syrian regime used a sarin-based nerve agent in attacks against rebels March 19, U.S. officials said. Britain and France last week made similar assessments, but Hagel said the United States wouldn’t rush to make its own determination. “Suspicions are one thing; evidence is another,” Hagel said in Cairo, his latest stop in a weeklong Mideast swing.
SOUTH KOREA
Nuclear agreement with U.S. extended
The U.S. and South Korea are extending for two years their current civilian nuclear agreement and postponing a contentious decision on whether Seoul will be allowed to reprocess spent fuel as it seeks to expand its atomic energy industry. Wednesday’s announcement is a setback to South Korea’s new leader, Park Geun-hye, who had made revision of the 39-year-old treaty one of her top election pledges, but it alleviates a potential disagreement between the allies when Park visits Washington in two weeks to meet with President Barack Obama.
BELGIUM
Kerry meets top Afghan, Pakistani officials
Secretary of State John Kerry hosted a meeting Wednesday with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Pakistan’s army chief, to try to ease regional tensions as NATO approaches the end of its combat mission in Afghanistan. But after a 3 1/2-hour session, Kerry made only a brief statement, with no detail and only the promise to keep working. “Results will tell the story,” Kerry said, flanked by Karzai and Kayani. “We will underpromise but deliver.” The session was held at Truman Hall, the secluded 27-acre estate outside Brussels that serves as the official residence of the U.S. ambassador to NATO
ISRAEL
Email checks of foreigners at border upheld
Israel’s attorney general Wednesday upheld a practice to allow security personnel to read people’s email accounts when they arrive at the airport, arguing it prevents militants from entering the country. The ruling followed an outcry last year when some people trying to enter Israel were ordered to open their emails after hours of interrogation at Israel’s Ben-Gurion airport. Critics say it primarily targets Muslims and Arabs and appears to be aimed at keeping out visitors who have histories of pro-Palestinian activism, citing a history of such people being turned away from Israel’s border crossings.
About the Author
