An Cosantóir

10 | World Strategic Picture Europe Campaigners handed a petition to 10 Downing Street calling for all Afghan interpreters who worked for the British army to be allowed to settle in Britain. At present only those interpreters who were on staff in December, when Britain announced a drawdown of forces, are being allowed to resettle. It is feared that the Taliban will target those who are left behind. Tensions grew between two old European powers England and Spain, over the Rock of Gibraltar. Both countries prime ministers spoke on the phone after the Spanish were upset by the construction of an artificial reef by Gibraltar. Apparently in retaliation, Spanish border guards increased their checks, causing long queues. The Spanish foreign minister also talked about introducing a €50 charge for each crossing. The British government since threatened to take Spain to court. British Royal Navy vessels recently dispatched to the Middle East are to visit Gibraltar; the Ministry of Defence said the stop had been "long planned". middle east Egypt is tethering on the brink of a civil war after a military led coup. On July 27th Egyptian security forces killed hundreds of supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood, who were marching in Cairo to protest against the ousting of the Muhammad Morsi government. The military government issued orders to the security forces to clear the protesters. Two sit-ins were fired upon in Cairo, where supporters of Muhammad Morsi, had been protesting. A state of emergency has been declared. For the first time in three years peace talks between Israel and Palestine resumed in Jerusalem. As a preliminary gesture, 26 long time Palestinian prisoners were freed. The government of Yemen said that it had foiled a major terrorist plot. Tanks and troops were deployed on the streets of the capital, Sana'a, to protect foreign embassies and offices. The civil war in Syria continues. Syrian rebels have claimed they fired upon the convoy of President Bashar Assad. In what would be the most direct attack against him in more than two years of conflict. Assad's regime has denied the claims. Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, was inaugurated on August 4th 2013. Since his election in June the cleric has called for substantive negotiations with the 'West' over its nuclear programme. At least 100 Iraqis were killed in a string of bombings during and after the Eid al-Fitr celebrations that marked the end of Ramadan. It is one of the The Americas Colombia's government and the country's FARC rebels said they had made good progress at their latest round of peace talks in Havana. Even after the killing of a senior FARC leader by the army in western Colombia had rattled nerves, but both sides remain optimistic that a deal will be struck. A terrorist threat forced the United States to close 19 diplomatic missions in the Middle East and north Africa. The decision was made after communications were intercepted between al-Qaeda leaders. Africa In Nigeria gunmen presumed to belong to the extreme Islamist group Boko Haram, stormed a mosque in Konduga, a town in the north-eastern Nigerian state of Borno, killing 44 people. The action was intended to deter Muslims from joining pro-government vigilante groups opposed to the extremists. worst waves of sectarian violence since 2008 as many civilians were killed. Former Prime Minister Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta was elected president of Mali in a run-off against Soumaïla Cissé, a former finance minister. An Cosantóir September 2013 www.dfmagazine.ie Reports suggest that Osama bin Laden's successor Ayman al- Zawahiri, and Nasser alWuhayshi, leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, were involved. A military judge found Bradley Manning, an American soldier, guilty of violating the Espionage Act for releasing hundreds of thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks in 2010. However he was found not guilty of 'aiding the enemy'. A US military judge asia An Indian navy submarine that was berthed in a Mumbai dockyard suffered an explosion killing 18 sailors. The Russian-built vessel had only been recently refurbished. Tension grew again along the Kashmir border, both India and Pakistan blamed each other. India accused Pakistan of shooting at its positions and Pakistan said a civilian had been killed when India fired at it. India recently said that five of its soldiers had been killed in an ambush along the border. has sentenced Army Private Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison for his role in the largest leak in American military history. Worsening relations between America and Russia grew over Russia's 'disappointing decision' to grant temporary asylum to Edward Snowden, wanted for leaking details of American surveillance. President Barack Obama said he would attend the upcoming G20 Summit in St Petersburg, but cancelled a meeting with Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, scheduled to take place during his visit. Japan unveiled its biggest warship since WW2 on August 6th. Officially titled the Izumo, it is a destroyer, it is believed that the vessel could be turned into an aircraft carrier and used to launch fixed-wing aircraft if required. In a speech to mark the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr, the leader of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Omar, has said that his group will not seek to monopolise power when NATO troops leave Afghanistan next year. He said the Taliban would try to reach an understanding with the Afghans for 'an inclusive government based on Islamic principles'. However he still opposes elections.

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