The unrelenting violence and chaos of Iraq have taken their toll on the people there, according to a new study of Iraqi public opinion. The study, based on two surveys of over 2,300 Iraqis in 2004 and 2006, found increased feelings of powerlessness, insecurity, xenophobia, and pessimism, along with a striking level of distrust of U.S. intentions. At the same time, the surveys found a surprising rise in support for secular politics and nationalism, even as sectarian militias may be pulling the country toward all-out civil war. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the project was done by Profs. Mansoor Moaddel of Eastern Michigan University and Ronald Inglehart and Mark Tessler of the University of Michigan.
White House strategists are disappointed that the arrest of alleged terrorist plotters in the United Kingdom hasn't increased President Bush's job-approval ratings very much.
The newly enacted Pension Protection Act of 2006 amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to establish new minimum funding standards for single and multiemployer defined-benefit pension plans.
AP - Israeli commandos raided a Hezbollah stronghold deep in Lebanon on Saturday, engaging in a fierce gunbattle, and the Lebanese government threatened to halt further troop deployments to protest what U.N. officials called a violation of the 6-day-old cease-fire.
AP - An arrest that initially brought relief to the family of JonBenet Ramsey has since unleashed an onslaught of unwelcome attention that has incensed the slain girl's father, a longtime family lawyer said Saturday.
AP - Coalition troops clashed with insurgents in two battles Saturday in fighting that left four U.S. and two Afghan soldiers dead and six other Americans wounded, officials said.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is "deeply concerned" about Israel's commando raid in eastern Lebanon Saturday, which he said violated the cease-fire resolution concerning Israel and Hezbollah, his spokesman said. However, the Israel Defense Forces defended Saturday's operation, saying it was aimed at preventing the transfer of weapons from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah.