IPS correspondents bring you independent perspectives on what is happening in Iran, Iraq and across the Middle East.

IRAQ: Fear of US-Sunni Ties Undercut Security Talks
Analysis by Gareth Porter
WASHINGTON – The threat by the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki earlier this month to reject the U.S.-Iraq status of forces and strategic framework agreements was prompted in part by U.S. demands for access to bases that were unacceptable to a highly nationalistic Iraqi population.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42949

*****
Israel Training to Attack Iran
Analysis by Peter Hirschberg
JERUSALEM – Israeli defence experts were not surprised by a New York Times report over the weekend that the Israeli air force had recently conducted what appeared to be a rehearsal for an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42953

*****
MIDEAST: Aid Pledged to Strengthen West Bank Police
Julio Godoy
BERLIN – International donors have promised to channel more aid to the Palestinian Authority, particularly to strengthen the police and the judiciary.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42954

*****
LEBANON: After Accord, the Inevitable Bickering Begins
Mona Alami
BEIRUT – A month has gone by since the May 21 Doha agreement between warring Lebanese factions, which ended a week-long civil conflict that erupted on May 7 and led to the death of 67 people. The peace deal also stipulated the election of consensus president Michel Suleiman. But ever since, Lebanese politicians have been bickering relentlessly over ministries in the future government.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42938

*****
IRAQ: Whoever Wins, They Lose
Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail
BAQUBA – Iraqis seem divided on who they would like to see as the next U.S. president, but few believe that either will end the occupation. “The U.S. administration has committed a big mistake in Iraq,” Adil Ibrahim, a local physician, told IPS. “We hope that whoever wins the election, the new administration can mend the huge mistakes of this one.”
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42937

*****
Q&A: State Main Opponent of Death Penalty Abolition in Morocco
Interview with campaigner Abdelilah Benebdesslam
RABAT – Ambiguous statements and contradictory policies make it impossible to predict when Morocco will abolish the death penalty. But the “great confusion” on the issue is not deterring human rights activists pressing forward with their public campaigning — especially among the youth.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42934

*****
MIDEAST: Answering Attacks With Smiles and Smileys
Nora Barrows-Friedman
USH GHRAB, West Bank – East of Beit Sahour in Ush Ghrab, the tree line stops and the bronze, rocky desert begins. In a flat clearing on this hilltop, a small, abandoned military post is being slowly transformed from an assorted collection of cement-grey barracks into a virtual oasis for the region’s children, families and tourists.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42921

*****
Q&A: “Neglecting Democracy Is More Dangerous Than Nuclear Weapons”
Interview with Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi
UNITED NATIONS – While the United States and Britain are talking about tougher sanctions on Iran, including sanctions on its gas and oil industry — Tehran’s major source of revenue — Shirin Ebadi, the 2003 Noble Peace Prize laureate and international human rights defender, argues that this tactic has not weakened the government, but the Iranian people.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42907

*****
Iraq Still a Major Source of Refugees in 2007
Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON – Despite a marked reduction in violence due in part to more aggressive U.S. counter-insurgency efforts in 2007, Iraq was the biggest source of the world’s newest refugees for the third year in a row, according to the latest annual report of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42887

*****
AFGHANISTAN: Karzai?s Threat Of War Triggers Outrage in Pakistan
Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR – Afghan President Hamid Karzai?s threat to send troops across the border to crush pro-Taliban forces, which sparked angry protests in Pakistan?s border areas this week, has led to calls for restraint from moderate politicians in the North West Frontier Province.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42886

*****
U.S. Concessions Rescue Floundering Iraq Security Deal
Mohammed A. Salih
WASHINGTON – Despite apparent serious disagreements reflected in a series of incongruent statements by senior officials of the U.S. and Iraqi governments, they appear to have made a breakthrough in negotiations for a new security pact.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42884

For more IPS reporting on the Middle East – www.ipsnews.net/middle.asp

Iraq: Beyond the Green Zone – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/iraq/index.asp

Iran: The Parthian Shot – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/iran/index.asp

Holy Land/Unholy War – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/israel_palestina/index.asp

Afghan Divide – www.ipsnews.net/afghanistan/index.asp

View From the U.S.: Bush at War – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/warII/index.asp

Inter Press Service News Agency (IPS), the world’s leading provider of information on global issues, is backed by a network of journalists in more than 100 countries. Its clients include more than 3,000 media organisations and tens of thousands of civil society groups, academics, and other users.

IPS focuses its news coverage on the events and global processes affecting the economic, social and political development of peoples and nations.

Visit Inter Press Service at www.ipsnews.net