July 05, 2007

Earlybird Roundup: Red Mosque, Al-Qaida's No. 2, Johnston Release

Pakistan. The standoff at Pakistan's Red Mosque continues, with radical students barricaded inside a building and a captured cleric calling for them to stand down.

Iraq. In an Independence Day speech, President Bush defended his Iraq war policy and said victory will require "more patience, more courage and more sacrifice."

Terrorism. Al-Qaida's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahri, appeared in a new video released today, calling on the group's Iraq contingent to step up efforts to defeat "corrupt" Arab governments and "prepare for the next jihad."

Mideast. Officials said Western and Israeli governments won't change their policy toward Hamas despite Wednesday's release of BBC reporter Alan Johnston, and that the new ruling power in the Gaza Strip would still be considered a terrorist group.

Congress. Plans for a missile defense system in Eastern Europe could face a major roadblock from congressional Democrats.

Nation. Former President Bill Clinton criticized Bush's decision to commute the prison sentence of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Meanwhile, former Vice President Al Gore's son was arrested in California on drug-possession charges.

See Earlybird (subscription) for more of this morning's headlines.

Posted at 8:04 AM
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