T he Lord of War is to be extradited to the United States by Thailand. The Russian arms dealer Victor Bout, upon whom the character of actor Nicholas Cage was based in the film, The Lord of War, has been indicted in the United States for conspiring to sell arms to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC) after he was arrested at the end of a sting operation in Thailand.
Agence France-Presse reported the arrest of two Congolese for the killing of three UN Indian Army peacekeepers at Kirimba, earlier this week. The motive was said to be MONUSCO’s role in blocking the integration of the particular rebel group into the FARDC, or government defense forces.
India bolstering diplomatic presence in Sri Lanka, reports Sutirtho Patranobis of the Hindustan Times, describing the setting up new consulates in the country.
The Indian Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defense slammed the Defense Ministries ‘casual attitude’ towards surveillance of the build-up of infrastructure by the Chinese in the regions bordering India.
A beauty pageant in Canada, Miss Pakistan World, has upset Pakistanis back home, who consider the timing inappropriate considering the floods in Pakistan.
Speaking of which, the Christian Science Monitor‘s editorial board asks, Where are Islamabad’s Muslim friends and China when it needs them?
And Mosharraf Zaidi at Foreign Policy analyzes Why the world doesn’t care about Pakistanis.
Rajeev Deshpande of The Times of India reports on the manipulation of the Nuclear Liability Bill, with some in the government appearing to be trying to minimize liability.
The Union Cabinet has now fixed and cleared the bill for tabling in Parliament.
Sikhs in Jammu and Kashmir have been receiving letters asking them to ‘convert or leave’ the valley. Again, in The Times of India.
A Saudi judge has asked hospitals if they can damage a man’s spinal cord enough so as to leave him paralyzed. So far, one hospital has refused on ethical grounds. The Associated Press reports.
The Christian Science Monitor reports the departure of the last US combat brigade from Iraq. But Navy Times reports another combat brigade to be still in Iraq, under the label of an Advise and Assist Brigade. Robert Fisk’s take on this departure, at The Independent. And this analysis by NBC is skeptical of a troop withdrawal from Iraq by 2012.
Time reports China putting the squeeze on Tibetan business and the Christian Science Monitor answers why South Korea’s blocked the north’s lone Twitter account.
The New York Times reports the first interview of Afghanistan’s new intelligence chief. Says he aims to build trust.
