ONS: 17 September 2012

By TRG Alerts Admin

KEY STORYLINES

AFRICA: ECOWAS defense and foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting in the Ivorian capital Abidjan on the political and security crises in Mali and Guinea Bissau.
AMERICAS: In Colombia, drug enforcement agents seized more than 12 tons of cocaine and marijuana during a three-day operation in several regions.
ASIA: US Defense Secretary Panetta said US and Japanese officials agreed to put a second missile defense system in Japan.
EUROPE: Judges and hospital doctors in Greece have begun what they intend to be lengthy protests against planned austerity measures.
MIDDLE EAST: A suicide bomber on killed seven people and wounded an MP in an attack at an entrance to Baghdad’s Green Zone.
TECHNOLOGY: Mexican hackers took over more than a dozen websites belonging to political parties and local governments and posted a message criticizing the government on the nation’s Independence Day.

TOP STORY

In Kabul near the NATO and US military bases, more than a 1,000 Afghans protested violently by setting fire to cars and storage containers.
In Karachi, one demonstrator was killed and more than a dozen injured in clashes with police as protesters broke through a barricade near the US consulate in Karachi.
Indonesians clashed with police outside the US embassy in Jakarta, hurling rocks and Molotov cocktails and burning tires outside the mission.
The US said it would close its embassy in Bangkok in response to a planned protest by “several hundred people” over the anti-Islam film.
Coverage: AFP, AFP-2, AP, AP-2, Reuters

AFRICA

Region: ECOWAS defense and foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting in the Ivorian capital Abidjan on the political and security crises in Mali and Guinea Bissau. (AFP)
Libya: The US and Libya offered different accounts on whether the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi was spontaneous or planned. (AFP)
South Sudan: The South Sudanese military sank a boat carrying 170 of its own soldiers on the Nile River, killing at least 10, after mistaking them for enemy forces. (AP)
Tunisia: The US Ambassador Jacob Walles said security measures for the US embassy in Tunis were “not adequate” during the anti-US protests. (Xinhua)

AMERICAS

Region: Key West is hosting naval exercises for more than a dozen ships from seven countries. (AP)
Colombia: Soldiers captured 10 suspected FARC and ELN guerrillas in the southwest of the country. (EFE)
Colombia: Drug enforcement agents seized more than 12 tons of cocaine and marijuana during a three-day operation in several regions. (EFE)
Mexico: Seventeen bodies were found dumped along a road in western Mexico in what appeared to be a drug gang killing. (Reuters)

ASIA

Region: US Defense Secretary Panetta called for diplomatic efforts to resolve a worsening territorial issue between Japan and China. (AFP)
Afghanistan: US Defense Secretary Panetta said he is very concerned about insider attacks but he sees them as the “last gasp” of a Taliban insurgency. (AP)
China: US President Obama will launch a trade complaint against China over unfair government backing of its auto industry. (Reuters)
Japan: US Defense Secretary Panetta said US and Japanese officials agreed to put a second missile defense system in Japan. (AP)
Pakistan: The military said it successfully test-fired a cruise missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. (AP)

EUROPE

Georgia: Five of the EU’s newest members urged Georgia to show democratic progress in upcoming elections. (AFP)
Greece: Judges and hospital doctors in Greece began what they intend to be lengthy protests against planned austerity measures. (AP)
Greece: Finance minister Stournaras said he was “more optimistic” about Greece’s prospects following the meeting in Cyprus. (Guardian)
Russia: The Central Bank said it will sell part of its majority stake in the state-controlled Sberbank. (AP)

MIDDLE EAST

Iran: The country’s nuclear chief is to address a 155-nation meeting of the IAEA that will focus on the country’s atomic program. (AP)
Iraq: A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded an MP in an attack at an entrance to Baghdad’s Green Zone. (AFP)
Iraq: A car bomb killed one mourner and wounded 15 other people near a funeral procession south of Baghdad. (AP)
Lebanon: Security officials say four missiles fired by two Syrian warplanes landed on Lebanese territory. (AP)
Syria: Human Rights Watch says members of the armed opposition have subjected detainees to torture and committed extrajudicial or summary executions in several areas. (AP)
Yemen: Hundreds of students demonstrated calling for the expulsion of the US ambassador and condemning the deployment of US Marines to protect his embassy. (AFP)

TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS

Cybersecurity: Mexican hackers took over more than a dozen websites belonging to political parties and local governments and posted a message criticizing the government on the nation’s Independence Day. (AP)

WORLD

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK (18SEP)

Global: 67th Session of the UN General Assembly opens in New York.
Afghanistan: Anniversary of parliamentary elections taking place – 2010.
Chile: Celebration of Fiestas Patrias (the first day of Chilean War of Independence) – 1810.
Chile: Anniversary of the civil war ending – 1891.
Pakistan: President Zardari, Army chief Kayani, and FM Khar begin a three-day visit to Washington.

END