Iran
Shimon Peres, Israel’s president and elder statesman, spoke out Thursday against the prospect of a lone Israeli military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, a message that contradicts the hawkish, go-it-alone line emanating from the offices of Israel’s prime minister and defense minister. – New York Times
The U.S. has told the U.N. chief that he would send a “very strange signal” to the world if he were to attend a conference of non-aligned states in Iran this month, the State Department said Thursday. – Washington Times
Several “personalities” of the Iranian establishment and a number of lawmakers have sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that apparently suggests moves that could dilute the powers of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. That is according to a report by the website Fardanews, which is said to be close to Tehran Mayor Mohammad Qalibaf. – RFE/RL’s Persian Letters
The United Nations’ atomic watchdog may decide that less uranium is missing at an Iranian research site than it had previously thought, diplomats say, and that may go some way to easing concerns that it may have been diverted for military use. – Reuters
Tanzania intends to cancel its contract with a Dubai-based shipping agent, saying the company reflagged Iranian ships with the Tanzanian flag without its knowledge, a minister for the semi-autonomous Zanzibar government said on Friday. – Reuters
Analysis: An upsurge in Israeli rhetoric warning of an imminent attack on Iran is aimed more at Washington than Tehran, and does not mean that the warplanes are firing up their engines. – Reuters
David Feith writes: An attack could lead to a major loss of life, to regional war, to Iranians rallying around their regime, to global economic pain. And it could fail. But the question that counts is whether these risks outweigh the risks of a nuclear-capable Iran. That’s a hard question for any democratic government and its citizens to grapple with. The 44th administration’s rhetorical snow job only makes it harder. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Ilan Berman writes: [I]f Asia continues to throw the mullahs a lifeline, the regime won’t learn. It follows, then, that for Western sanctions to truly stand a chance of altering Iran’s behavior, Asia’s economies must be forced to back away from their business with the Islamic Republic. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Syria
Sectarian tensions escalated across Lebanon on Thursday as Sunnis in border towns threatened Shiites after several Shiite families who had already abducted more than 30 Syrians added several more to their hostage total. – New York Times
The United Nations Security Council decided on Thursday to terminate the United Nations observer mission in Syria, where the increasingly violent rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad’s government has left diplomatic peacemaking efforts paralyzed. But the Security Council agreed to keep a much smaller United Nations office in the country, holding out hope that a political solution was still possible. – New York Times
At least 25 people waiting for bread outside a bakery were killed Thursday morning as forces loyal to the Syrian government continue to pound the embattled city of Aleppo, activists said. – LA Times’ World Now
An Iranian general declared that Syria “is the red line of the resistance movement against the Zionist regime,” according to Iranian reports. – Washington Free Beacon
Rebel fighters squaring off against Syrian government troops in brutal fighting near the city of Aleppo could turn to al Qaeda for support if Western powers do not take military action against President Bashar Assad. – DEFCON Hill
Syria’s government and rebels have “chosen the path of war”, a U.N. peacekeeping chief said as the world body ended its doomed monitoring mission to Damascus and deadlock persists among world powers over how to contain the spreading conflict. – Reuters
The United States and its allies are discussing a worst-case scenario that could require tens of thousands of ground troops to go into Syria to secure chemical and biological weapons sites following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s government, according to U.S. and diplomatic officials. – Reuters
Veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi has agreed to replace Kofi Annan as the international mediator on Syria, though he intends to take a fresh approach as the 17-month-old conflict slips deeper into civil war, U.N. sources said on Thursday – Reuters
Veteran fighters of last year’s civil war in Libya have come to the front-line in Syria, helping to train and organize rebels under conditions far more dire than those in the battle against Muammar Gaddafi, a Libyan-Irish fighter has told Reuters. – Reuters
Even as Western powers question just who will replace Assad, bemoaning divisions in the exiled Syrian opposition, rebels in towns such Darat Azzah are starting to supply answers in real, if sometimes improvised ways. – Reuters
Syrians in the town of Azaz had started to think of a future free of President Bashar al-Assad…That all changed in a few minutes on Wednesday when Assad’s air force unleashed a bombardment that killed at least 35 people – a brutal reminder for the people of this town near the Turkish border of the force the president could still wield. – Reuters
Eli Lake reports: Even as the war in Syria rages and Bashar al-Assad clings to power, the race to find the regime’s vast—and mostly hidden—fortune is already underway. Experts say al-Assad and his associates have amassed as much as $25 billion through investments in banks, state industries and other concessions, and has stashed the money in offshore tax havens and in investments across the Middle East. – The Daily Beast
Steven J. Hadley writes: One hopes that U.S. military intervention will not be necessary. But that will be the case only if the United States provides appropriate numbers of antitank and antiaircraft weapons — despite the real risk that some weapons may fall into the wrong hands — so that U.S.-vetted opposition units can counter Assad’s stepped-up use of aircraft and helicopters against his own people. That way, when Assad falls, it will be the Syrian people who have toppled him. This is what Syrians clearly want. But they also want, need and deserve a little help from their friends. – Washington Post
North Africa
As a student at the National War College in Washington, the chief of staff of Egypt’s armed forces argued in a paper that the American military presence in the Middle East and its “one-sided” support of Israel were fueling hatred toward the United States and miring it in an unwinnable global war with Islamist militants. – New York Times
A row over a proposed constitutional description of women as complementary to men in family life has sharpened divisions in Tunisia between Islamists and a secular opposition that fought for years to make the North African nation a relative bastion of gender equality. – Washington Post
A former aide to Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki said on Thursday he had been ordered to stand trial in a military court after criticizing the army, in a case that may raise concerns about freedoms in the birthplace of Arab Spring revolts. – Reuters
An Islamist militant group operating in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula that borders Israel has warned the Egyptian army that a military crackdown in the area would force it to fight back. – Reuters
Gulf States
The United States is increasing its dependence on oil from Saudi Arabia, raising its imports from the kingdom by more than 20 percent this year, even as fears of military conflict in the tinderbox Persian Gulf region grow. – New York Times
Josh Rogin reports: The State Department Thursday called on the Bahraini government to vacate charges against Nabeel Rajab, president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, who was sentenced to three years in prison for protesting against the Bahraini regime. – The Cable
Yemen
Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s drive to restore order to Yemen after last year’s uprising against his predecessor risks being bogged down in a prolonged war with al Qaeda unless he moves swiftly on reconciliation talks and asserts control over the armed forces. – Reuters
Iraq
A wave of attacks across Iraq killed more than 100 people on Thursday, including dozens of women and children at an amusement park, security and medical officials said. – New York Times
Israel
[A]s speculation about a potential unilateral Israeli strike reignited this week, fueled by public comments and leaks by proponents and opponents both in Israel and the U.S., some here are wondering whether the unusually public campaign is starting to take a toll on the credibility of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government – Los Angeles Times
Israel on Aug. 16 finished nationwide testing of an SMS warning system against missile attack, sending texts to mobile phones in Jerusalem and other parts of the country, a military spokeswoman said. – AFP
Afghanistan
Seven U.S. troops, including three elite special-operations personnel, were killed along with three Afghan commandos and a translator Thursday morning when their helicopter crashed in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province. – Wall Street Journal
A member of the Afghan security forces killed two U.S. troops Friday morning — the most recent in a string of insider attacks that threaten to undermine U.S.-Afghan military relations. – Washington Post
Western nations preparing to withdraw from combat in Afghanistan increasingly are alarmed by Afghan security forces turning their weapons on allied troops, attacks that the Taliban claim as proof of their sway over local troops. – Washington Times
Reclusive Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar has urged insurgent fighters, who he said had successfully infiltrated the security forces, to avoid civilian deaths after a swathe of suicide bombings this week killed 63 people. – Reuters
The United States and its allies have tried to reassure Afghans that they are not abandoning the country when international combat troops leave by the end of 2014….But the promises have done little to buoy the hopes of Afghans who are in despair about the future of their nation. – Associated Press
South Asia
What’s left [in India] is an increasingly splintered [anti-corruption] movement with two figures offering competing visions and different pet issues, analysts said. Whereas Hazare was until recently focused on the ombudsman law, Ramdev is keen on fighting “black money,” untaxed or illegitimate funds hidden in overseas accounts. The danger, some analysts say, is that a large stratum of Indians — not necessarily the poorest, but those scraping by who feel left behind by India’s economic rise — will vent its rage in less constructive ways. – Los Angeles Times
Pakistani Taliban militants pulled 22 Shiites off buses and gunned them down in a remote northern mountain pass on Thursday, in the latest iteration of a pattern of attacks targeting religious minorities. – New York Times
Portions of Pakistan’s nuclear stockpile were never in danger of falling into Taliban hands after Thursday’s daring assault on a Pakistani air base rumored to house a number of the country’s ballistic weapons, according to a top Defense Department spokesman. – DEFCON Hill
Ahmed Rashid writes: Gen Kayani has certainly set the ball rolling and it is hoped that his comments will be followed by a genuine military counter-terrorism strategy as well as encourage the government and civilian politicians to come out more openly against the extremist threat. – Financial Times
Kyrgyzstan
A top Kyrgyz official has said an agreement has been reached to extend a lease on a Russian military base in Kyrgyzstan by 15 years. – Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
China
Nowadays, the presence of the Chinese leadership is viewed primarily in fleeting shadows through tinted glass, as their black Audis glide past stifling security roadblocks…It is just another sign of the isolated and secretive nature of the Chinese leadership, ever opaque in its policymaking, even as it has sought to convey a more open and welcoming appearance. – Los Angeles Times
A Chinese court will on Monday announce its verdict and sentence in the trial of Gu Kailai, wife of the ousted Communist Party leader Bo Xilai, for the murder of a British businessman, local officials said on Friday. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
A controversial feature of China’s legal system that allows authorities to ship people off to labor camps without formal arrest or trial is coming under increasing fire inside the country. – WSJ’s China Real Time Report
Ho Pin writes: Ms. Gu’s verdict will be decided by party leaders in Beijing, rather than judges in court. Rushing to justify the ousting of Mr. Bo, who was a strong contender for a spot on the powerful Politburo Standing Committee, helps leaders in Beijing clear a major hurdle before the leadership transition at the 18th Party Congress later this year. Therefore, the Chinese government will most likely give Ms. Gu a harsh sentence. But the fundamental legal questions have not even been asked, let alone answered. – New York Times
Amy Yee writes: With China not changing its policies denying true religious freedom and civil liberties to Tibetans, the self-immolations are likely to continue….Without a doubt, Tibetans grieve over the self-immolations. No one I talked to wanted them to continue. But some reconcile the acts with their Buddhist beliefs because they are meant to serve a worthy cause, not to harm others. – Wall Street Journal
East Asia
Japan raised the stakes in its territorial dispute with South Korea on Friday, saying it would seek to take its claim of sovereignty over disputed islets to the International Court of Justice. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
We don’t need patriotism lessons, Hong Kongers say—and yesterday’s successful landing on the contested Senkaku Islands proves it. – WSJ’s China Real Time Report
Though Japan was prepared this time around…the coast guard isn’t allowed to make arrests. They have to wait for the police to arrive, a considerable time sink given the distance to the remote islands. But a new bill that passed in Japan’s lower house last week could beef up the coast guard’s powers so they can make arrests even when they don’t get the luxury of a heads up. – WSJ’s Japan Real Time
Japan on Friday sent home the first group of Chinese activists detained after landing on an island claimed by both Tokyo and Beijing, but anger in China and South Korea shows the latest flare-up in territorial rows is far from over. – Reuters
Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said on Friday he would postpone a planned visit to South Korea this month due to President Lee Myung-bak’s visit to a disputed island and remarks concerning Japan’s Emperor Akihito. – Reuters
The U.S. Marine Corps’ top uniformed officer said Thursday that he planned to curb MV-22 Osprey transport flights over heavily populated parts of Japan in deference to local concerns over the hybrid aircraft’s safety. – Reuters
Koreas
Sejong City resembles a construction site, not a boomtown — orange-painted cranes make up the skyline and dump trucks rumble over makeshift bridges — but next month, South Korean officials will begin moving here in droves. They’ll come as part of a long-contested plan that essentially divides the South Korean government in half, with the relocation of 36 ministries and agencies to a built-from-scratch bureaucrat’s paradise that was once a patchwork of peach farms. – Washington Post
The uncle of Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, met on Friday in Beijing with President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China, indicating his growing influence as a key adviser to the young Mr. Kim. – New York Times
A high-ranking Chinese official warned North Korea in a recent visit against carrying out any new extended-distance missile launches or atomic detonations until Beijing has concluded the delicate process of changing its leadership in coming months, the Washington Times reported on Wednesday – Global Security Newswire
Josh Rogin reports: North Korean officials threatened to reconsider existing agreements with the United States in a recent meeting in Singapore, two sources familiar with the discussions told The Cable. – The Cable
Charles Armstrong writes: Kim Jong-un is said to be ruling according to the “last will and testament of Kim Jong-il.” How he interprets this legacy is the central question for the future of North Korea. But for now, there are few signs of change, even if the signs themselves are changing. – New York Times
Burma
American businesses are kicking lots of tires in Myanmar these days, but many are still holding off on putting big money into the country until more overhauls are completed. – WSJ’s Southeast Asia Real Time
Russia
Since it began on May 7, Putin’s third term in the Kremlin has appeared mostly defensive and downbeat. The swagger and brag of his first two terms is absent…Instead, the focus has been on opponents, either real or imagined — mostly trying to keep them at bay, but occasionally making awkward attempts to engage them. – Christian Science Monitor
Russian authorities announced on Thursday that bodyguards have been assigned to protect the judge presiding over the trial of three members of the all-female protest band Pussy Riot, after unspecified threats. – NYT’s The Lede
Somewhat quieter on the matter [of the feminist group] have been the leaders of the Russian opposition, who are treading a fine line in using the case to highlight the travesty of the Russian judicial system without alienating supporters who, for either religious or personal reasons, disagree with the women’s views and form of protest. – Financial Times
Three members of a feminist punk band denounced a lack of freedom in Russia as a judge prepared to deliver a verdict on Friday over their anti-Kremlin protest in a church, a case that supporters say has put President Vladimir Putin’s tolerance of dissent on trial.- Reuters
Europe
Bulgarian police sought help Thursday in tracking down a second man they said was involved in a bombing that killed five Israeli tourists in July, as authorities in the Eastern European country struggle to identify the perpetrators of the attack, which Israel has blamed on Hezbollah and Iran. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Poland should build its own missile-defense system, the country’s president said, adding to earlier signals that the country no longer plans to rely solely on security guarantees offered by the U.S. – WSJ’s Emerging Europe
With Ukraine’s parliamentary elections just over two months away, opposition campaigners in eastern Ukraine say their voices are being muffled — in one case by taking down political billboards featuring gigantic cats. – Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Defence lawyers for Ukrainian ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko urged an appeals court on Thursday to quash her conviction for abuse of office, but prosecutors insisted she had damaged the state by brokering a disadvantageous gas deal with Russia. – Reuters
A Ukraine court sentenced an ally of jailed ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Friday to two years in prison, the latest conviction in what the opposition says is a campaign of political repression. – Reuters
United States of America
Colin Kahl writes: Although Romney clearly wants to insert Israel into this year’s campaign, his overall critique of Obama’s Israel policy is basically groundless. But it is worse than that — it is also potentially dangerous. The attempt by Romney and his allies to turn the U.S.-Israel partnership — a relationship that is rooted in both strategic interests and shared values — into an election-year wedge issue is both cynical and reckless. – Foreign Policy
Paul Bonicelli writes: [Ryan] and Romney are perfectly compatible when it comes to what they believe about the United States and what they believe about the international arena. The only question that remains is are they intelligent enough to establish goals based on their principled beliefs and are they smart enough to choose the right people to help them devise and implement policy. I see no reason to believe that they are not, certainly no more reason than was the case with the former junior Senator from Illinois. The difference is the principles and goals, and for that, of course, I’m grateful. – Shadow Government
If, a year or so from now, Americans learn what 44 was telling the Kremlin and don’t like it, will they ask why no one — not the “watchdogs” in the major media, their representatives in Congress, or even the president’s opponent — made a serious effort to warn them? – National Review Online
Niger
[I]n the aftermath of the Arab Spring revolts, the fight against militant Islam in this moderate swath of Africa has gained fresh urgency…Such concerns are increasingly visible in Diffa and other towns nestled along Niger’s long border with Mali and northern Nigeria, where Boko Haram, another Islamist militia with suspected links to al-Qaeda, has intensified attacks this year. – Washington Post
East Africa
Beijing’s efforts to win Kenyan affections involve much more than bricks and concrete. The country’s most popular English-language newspapers are flecked with articles by the Chinese state news agency, Xinhua. Television viewers can get their international news from either CCTV, the Chinese broadcasting behemoth, or CNC World, Xinhua’s English-language start-up. – New York Times
Six people were killed and 12 injured in fresh unrest in Sudan’s troubled western Darfur region, state news agency SUNA said on Thursday – Reuters
Southern Africa
The death toll in a deadly clash between police and platinum mine workers of Lonmin PLC climbed Friday, as South African health and union officials said at least 25 people died. – Wall Street Journal
Zimbabweans from all walks of life are drowning in debt after the implosion of a three-year credit bubble. High-rollers are losing mansions and limousines; ordinary people chickens and pots and pans. The only ones doing well are the auctioneers holding the sales and the newspapers advertising them. – Reuters
