World News Center
CIA Tactics Endorsed In Secret Memos
October 15, 2008The Bush administration issued a pair of secret memos to the CIA in 2003 and 2004 that explicitly endorsed the agency's use of interrogation techniques such as waterboarding against al-Qaeda suspects -- documents prompted by worries among intelligence officials about a possible backlash if details of the program became public.
Key Allegations Against Terror Suspect Withdrawn
October 15, 2008The U.S. Justice Department has withdrawn a series of allegations made in federal court that tie Binyam Mohammed, a British resident held at Guantanamo Bay, to a plot to explode a radioactive "dirty bomb" in the United States, blow up apartment buildings here and release cyanide gas in nightclubs.
U.S. Drops North Korea From Terrorism List
October 15, 2008The Bush administration removed North Korea from its terrorism blacklist yesterday, a move that was aimed at salvaging a sputtering nuclear disarmament deal but that sparked internal controversy, infuriated Japan and drew some Republican opposition.
U.S. Allegedly Listened In on Calls of Americans Abroad
October 15, 2008 The chairman of the Senate intelligence committee is looking into allegations that a U.S. spy agency improperly eavesdropped on the phone calls of hundreds of Americans overseas, including aid workers and U.S. military personnel talking to their spouses at home.
Guidelines Expand FBI's Surveillance Powers
October 15, 2008Justice Department officials released new guidelines yesterday that empower FBI agents to use intrusive techniques to gather intelligence within the United States, alarming civil liberties groups and Democratic lawmakers who worry that they invite privacy violations and other abuses.
Commander in Afghanistan Wants More Troops
October 15, 2008The new top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said yesterday that more American troops are urgently required to combat a worsening insurgency, but he stated emphatically that no Iraq-style "surge" of forces will end the conflict there.
U.S. Envoy to Travel to N. Korea for Nuclear Talks
October 15, 2008A top U.S. envoy is planning to travel to North Korea shortly in a last-ditch effort to salvage a faltering accord to end Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programs, sources said Saturday.
Turkish Warplanes Target Kurdish Rebel Sites in N. Iraq
October 15, 2008 CAIRO, Sept. 26 -- Turkish warplanes crossed the border into northern Iraqi airspace to bomb 16 Kurdish rebel sites, a spokesman for Turkey's military said Friday. There were no reports of any deaths in the air attacks, which occurred late Thursday night.
Guantanamo Prosecutor Quits, Says Evidence Was Withheld
October 15, 2008GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, Sept. 25 -- A military prosecutor involved in war crimes cases here has quit his position, citing ethical concerns about his office's failure to turn over exculpatory material to attorneys for an Afghan detainee scheduled to go to trial in December.
Hurricanes Shift Debate On Embargo Against Cuba
October 15, 2008LOS PALACIOS, Cuba -- A pair of devastating storms have prompted new calls for the United States to end its long isolation of Cuba, including from hard-line exile groups that are pushing for the Bush administration to loosen restrictions they had long favored.
