Climate deal brokered by some of the countries at Copenhagen
After so much media attention, finally “some sort of deal” was struck in Copenhagen. But you can imagine the constraints in reaching a conclusion:
1. The science for Climate change is such that there will always be doubters, and unfortunately, the best proof will be only available when the effects of climate change will truly kick in (you already have Artic ice melting, shelfs of the Antartic splitting, glaciers retreating, coastal erosion, and so on). However, it is only when more catastrophic effects start kicking in will there be a realization that maybe things are now too late
2. The economics are staggering. To pull back on emissions means that changes have to happen economy wide, and with the recession going on, economies are loath to make such committments (although many of the economies were unwilling to commit even when they were not in recession)
Categories: Climate, Deal, Development, Global Warming, India, US Tags: Affect, Agreement, Carbon, China, Climate, Conference, Copenhagen, Cost, Deal, Development, Economy, Global Warming, India, Negotiation, US
Baitullah Mehsud dead in a drone attack – and his successors are now fighting
For Pakistan, Baitullah Mehsud has been one of the people who have caused it the most grief. Baitullah was the leader of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the leader of what has been called the Pakistani Taliban. He first became internationally famous when he was blamed for being behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, and in an ironic revenge, he was killed by a missile fired by a US operated drone when Benazir’s husband, Asif Ali Zardari is the President of Pakistan.
Baitullah was hiding in Waziristan, a rugged and difficult terrain that the Pakistani Army has always been reluctant to attack. This was even when Baitullah was blamed for a majority of the suicide attacks (including huge bomb attacks that made international news) that happened inside Pakistan, and yet he seemed to be always ahead of the Pakistani military. It was only in the recent past that the US operated drones (with their fearful missile launching capability) started striking fear in the hearts of these terrorists. The drones with their video coverage meant that these terrorist leaders always had to be on the move; and it was only recently that the drones also started tracking the Tehrik-i-Taliban; earlier the drones would be attacking the Al-Qaeda leadership hiding out in these remote areas as opposed to taking on the Pakistani Taleban. This had created a divergence between the US and Pakistan since Al-Qaeda was threatening Pakistani interest, while Baitullah was attacking Pakistani interests.
Categories: Military, Pakistan, Terrorism, US, Violence Tags: Assassination, Baitullah Mehsud, Drone, Missile, Pakistan, Predator, Reaper, Taliban, Terrorist, US, Waziristan
Pakistan finally takes on the Taliban
For months now, people in Pakistan and the world have wondered about the inaction of Pakistan in dealing with the Taliban. The Pakistani Taliban (hard to differentiate between the Afghan and the Pakistani Taleban since they both respect Mullah Omar as the supreme leader), already present in the hard regions of Pakistan that touch Afghanistan, suddenly in the last few months attacked a beautiful tourist valley called Swat (not very far from the capital) and started a campaign of attacks, hardline Islam, and general targeting of Government institutions such as schools, police stations, etc. The Government, far from fighting this force effectively, backed down and after a sort of retreat, signed a peace treaty in which they agreed to the terms of the Taleban, with the only condition being that the Taleban will not bear arms in Swat after the deal. However, this was a compromise comparable to the buckling down to Hitler in Munich, and had effectively the same effect.
The Taleban saw this buckling down of state authority as a show of its weakness in front of the Taleban (and maybe a sign that the state was having problems in getting the army to fight against an Islamic inspired force), and started expanding the campaign, thereby using the Swat valley as a base from which to overrun nearby districts. In their next target, they reached close to Islamabad, and the Government let loose a volley of talk at them, accusing the Taleban of violating the terms of the accord and hoping that the Taleban could be persuaded to back down. There was still no direct action that the militia understand.
