What's going on in the World Today 100828

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USAAgenda: With George Friedman STRATFOR




EUROPE


Pakistan: The TTP's Threats to Flood Relief Organizations STRATFOR


Turkey: An Emerging AKP-Gulenist Split? STRATFOR




RUSSIA


Tajikistan: The Aftermath of a Prison Break STRATFOR



IRAN


Iran: 3 Tons Of LEU Stockpiled - Former IAEA Official August 26, 2010


Iran has stockpiled three tons of low-enriched uranium (LEU), enough for one or two nuclear weapons, former top U.N. nuclear official for Iran Olli Heinonen told Le Monde newspaper, Reuters reported Aug. 26. The U.S. calculation that Iran would need a year to convert its low-enriched uranium to higher-grade material is “not a bad estimate,” he stated. Heinonen was deputy director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and head of its nuclear safeguards department until early August when he stepped down for personal reasons.




Iran: 25 Kilograms Of 20 Percent Enriched Uranium Produced  August 27, 2010


Iran has made 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of 20 percent enriched uranium for its Tehran medical reactor, Iranian representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency Ali Akbar Salehi said Aug. 27, DPA reported. Iran is attempting to finish its fuel producing site by September 2011 so that it may convert the uranium into fuel rods, Salehi said. Iran could produce 5 kilograms of uranium enriched to 20 percent each month, he added.

China: To Invest $1 Billion In Iranian Petrochemical Projects August 28, 2010


The National Iranian Petrochemical Company and a Chinese consortium are completing talks on an agreement under which China would funnel some $1 billion into petrochemical projects in Iran, Mehr News Agency reported Aug. 28. The construction of the petrochemical facilities requires a total of $43 billion in investment funds; contracts have already been signed to implement 28 of those projects.

China: To Sign Contract To Complete Iran Railway August 28, 2010


China will sign a deal for the completion of Iran’s western railway from Arak to Khosravi, Mehr News Agency reported Aug. 28, citing Iran’s minister of transportation, Hamid Behbahani. He said the deal is worth roughly $1.5-2 million and will be completed in two-and-a-half years.

IRAQ


Iraq: Islamic State Claims Responsibility For Police Station Attacks August 28, 2010


The armed group Islamic State of Iraq on Aug. 28 claimed responsibility for attacks on eight police stations in Baghdad and other provinces, Aswat al-Iraq reported. In an online statement, the group said it was responsible for attacks on two police stations in Baghdad, and one police station in each of the provinces of Salah al-Din, Basra, Wassit, Karbala, Kirkuk and Anbar. The group also claimed responsibility for targeting civil servants, provincial officials, Iraqi army forces, and U.S. patrols.


ISRAEL


Israel: Compromise On Building Freeze In Works  August 26, 2010


Sources close to ministers in the inner Israeli Cabinet said that a compromise was in the works on the future of the building freeze in Judea and Samaria, Army Radio reported Aug. 26. Sources said that building would commence in the settlement blocs when the freeze expired, but would continue in “isolated settlements.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had reached an understanding with U.S. President Barack Obama on the matter during their recent meeting, according to Army Radio.


Lebanon: France To Sell HOT Missiles August 27, 2010


Israel and the United States are attempting to prevent a French-Lebanese arms deal involving 100 HOT anti-tank missiles, Arabic daily Asharq al-Awsat reported on Aug. 27. French Defense Minister Herve Moran sent a letter to his Lebanese counterpart, Elias Murr, offering to sell the missiles to Lebanon to be armed on the Gazelle helicopters. The missile delivery is delayed due to “confusion” in the Lebanese defense establishment, a French source stated. 

Egypt: Gaza-Bound Missiles, Ammunition Seized




August 28, 2010


Egyptian police on Aug. 28 raided several arms depots in Sinai, believed to hold weapons meant for smuggling into Gaza, Haaretz reported. They uncovered secret caches of 190 fully assembled anti-aircraft missiles and rockets as well as explosives and ammunition. Several additional secret depots were raided in the city of Rafah, some 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) from the border with Gaza, where ten anti-tank mines were seized. Fifty kilograms (110 pounds) of hashish were also taken, and several suspected drug dealers detained.



AFGHANISTAN


NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT



SOUTH OF THE BORDER


Mexico: 2 Grenade Attacks In Monterrey  August 26, 2010


Five policemen from a special patrol group tasked with countering roadblocks by organized crime members were injured Aug. 26 in a grenade attack by unidentified assailants in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon state, El Universal reported. A police station in Monterrey was also damaged in a separate grenade attack.


Mexico: 20 Injured In Grenade Attack On Bar August 26, 2010


Unidentified attackers injured approximately 20 people in a grenade attack on a bar in the Mexican city of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco state, Informador reported Aug. 26. Four men were seen leaving the building prior to the explosion, El Universal reported.


Mexico: Roadblocks Set Up In Nuevo Leon August 26, 2010


Suspected members of a drug trafficking cartel set up several roadblocks in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon state, after armed men entered a juvenile holding facility in Escobedo, Milenio reported Aug. 26. Roadblocks were reported on the highway to Miguel Aleman, in San Nicolas and on the Lopez Mateo Avenue. At least one roadblock has been cleared by police.


Venezuela: 2,200 Aluminum Workers Strike August 26, 2010


Approximately 2,200 employees of Venezuelan state-run aluminum firm Venalum went on strike in Bolivar state, Globovision reported Aug. 26. Union representatives said the protests were due to the lack of employee control in the firm and unfulfilled contract benefits and warned that the strike will spread to government-run businesses Carbonorca, Bauxilum and Alcasa on Aug. 30.


Venezuela: 7,000 Aluminum Workers Striking August 26, 2010


Approximately 4,800 full-time workers from Venezuelan state-run aluminum firm Venalum in Bolivar state are protesting in addition to 2,200 contract workers, El Universal reported Aug. 26. A union representative said that the Venalum facilities are operating at 30 percent capacity due to the strike. The workers demanded the fulfillment of their collective contract, which has reportedly not been renewed in four years.

Mexico: Calderon To Target Drug Cash August 26, 2010


Mexican President Felipe Calderon signed the “National Strategy to Prevent Money Laundering and Combat Terrorism Financing” proposal on Aug. 26, and he plans to send it to Congress, Informador reported. The proposal would ban cash purchases of real estate and make it easier for officials to seize property from drug cartels and their front companies, Reuters reported. Calderon also promised that Mexico’s Finance Ministry would work harder to use current laws to fight money laundering.
Mexico: Investigators Into 72 Migrants' Deaths Missing  August 27, 2010


Two Mexican officials tasked with investigating the deaths of 72 migrants at a ranch in Tamaulipas state have been reported missing, the Tamaulipas state Attorney General’s Office said Aug. 27, Reforma reported. A search is under way for Roberto Suarez, an agent with the Tamaulipas state Investigative Agency, and Carlos Francisco Verdugo Lopez, a delegate of the Police and Transit Authority of the San Fernando municipality.

Dispatch: Massacre in Mexico and Human Trafficking STRATFOR




MISC


Mexico: Revelations From 72 Migrants' Deaths | STRATFOR