1. As Iran announces that it will begin higher-level uranium enrichment, SecDef Gates nullifies "all options on the table" stance by declaring sanctions, which have never worked, are the "only path left" to stop Iran.

2. Afghan President Karzai states he wants US transition to Afghan forces to begin by end of year. Afghan forces incapable, demonstrated by arrest of senior police official for role in roadside bombs.

3. SecState Clinton claims Obama administration Iran, Korea stances yielding "benefits." Curiously, Yonhap News reports Germany told South Korea to perpare for earlier than expected reunification with North.

4. In mere formality, Somali terrorist group al-Shabaab (The Youth) officially aligned with al-Qaeda. Group's leadership had deep AQ ties even before formation.

5. As France finalizes deal to sell Russia helicopter carrier warships, President Dmitri Medvedev declares NATO "Russia's greatest threat" and welcomes leaders of the Palestinian terrorist group HAMAS to the Kremlin.

AL QAEDA
Al-Qaeda is a wounded but dangerous enemy - Washington Post
Al-Qaeda threat to US greater than Iran: Clinton - AFP
Yemen's al-Qaeda calls for jihad in region - Washington Post
AQ in Yemen may send American jihadis, recruited by Anwar al-Awlaki, to attack US - NY Daily News
Last Week: Yemen Commitment to Al Qaeda Fight Not Clear - CIA - New York Times
British intel: Breast implants may hide bombs - Detroit Free Press

AFGHANISTAN
More Demands: Karzai wants Afghanistan security handover to begin this year - CNN
Afghans Not Close To Being Ready: Senior Afghan policeman held over planting bombs - BBC
Pakistani Military Sets Afghan Terms, Calls for Top Taliban Negotiations - Asia Times
NATO: Others should do more in Afghanistan - UPI
Taliban make children plant Afghanistan bombs - SOS Children

CHINA
The News: China Heralds Bust of Major Hacker Ring - Wall Street Journal
The Context: Rising skill of Chinese cyberattacks alarms West - Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette
The History: China's cyber army is preparing to march on America, says Pentagon (2007) - Times (UK)
The Background: China's Cyber Forces: People's Liberation Army (2008) - DefenseTech
Trading (Economic) Barbs With China - Wall Street Journal
US more at ease with India's rise than China's ascent - Times of India

IRAN
Iran to enrich uranium to higher levels, build 10 nuclear plants, beef up military - Los Angeles Times
Gates Scoffs at Iran Nuclear Claim - New York Times
SecDef Takes "All Options" Off Table? Gates: Sanctions On Iran The Only Path Left - Reuters
Germany says Iran 'not prepared to cooperate' - Khaleej Times (UAE)
Iran builds own aerial drones with strike capabilities - RIA Novosti (Russia)
Report: Iran cites CIA in Radio Farda arrests - CNNi
Iranian Nobel Prize winner backs fresh street protests in Iran - Telegraph (UK)

IRAQ
Iraqi official's top aide linked to Shi'ite terrorists - Washington Times
Female Parliament candidate gunned down in Mosul - AFP
Iraq inquiry: Jack Straw denies ignoring legal advice on war - Telegraph (UK)

ISRAEL
Terrorists Playing To Western Sensibilitites: Hamas "regrets" civilian deaths, Israel unmoved - Reuters
Devastating war between Israel & Hizballah is on the horizon - Analyst Network
Iran's Quest for African Allies Troublesome for Israel - Economist

NORTH KOREA
Clinton: Obama's Iran, Korea stance shows benefits - UPI
Benefits, Last Week: North Korean Arms Were Headed to Iran, Thailand Report Says - Business Week
The Race: Germany advises S. Korea to prepare for early inter-Korean reunification - Yonhap News Agency
North Korea Says It Will Release 'Repentant' US Missionary - VOA

PAKISTAN
Pakistan Army Recaptures NW Taliban Stronghold - VOA
Context repeated from Above: Pakistani Military Sets Afghan Terms - Asia Times
Karachi violence blow to Pakistan economy - AFP
India offers to revive talks with Pakistan - Los Angeles Times

PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
Iran Supreme Leader Meets Palestinian PIJ Terror Leaders: Praises, Predicts Fall of Israel - Tehran Times (Regime-run)

RUSSIA
Russian President Medvedev declares NATO to be Russia's 'Greatest Threat' - The News (Poland)
France Agrees to Helo Carrier Warship Sale to Russia - Reuters
OpEd: No reset, no restart -- no deal with Moscow - Washington Times
Hamas' Top Leader Visits Moscow - New York Times

SOMALIA
Mere Formality: Somali militant group Al-Shabaab aligns with Al-Qaeda - CS Monitor
At least 9 die in Somalia clashes, group says - CNN
Delays plague Somali offensive against Islamists - Washington Post

UKRAINE
Ukraine election: Pro-Moscow Viktor Yanukovych claims victory - Telegraph (UK)

1. A horrid 2007 National Intelligence Estimate on Iran is now set to be revised. The 2007 NIE claimed that Iran had halted all nuclear weapons work in 2003 and had not restarted it. Recent revelations have debunked this myth to point authors must revise.

2. A Greek tanker has been released by Somali pirates after a record ransom as paid by ship's owners. Reward begets more piracy. Meanwhile, Somali government troops and African Union troops were surprisingly reported involved in a deadly clash, blue on blue, in Mogadishu.

3. Iraq's "Chemical Ali," a colonel in Saddam's army, will be hanged for the murderous 1988 nerve gas attacks on Kurdish villages in Iraq's north.

4. One of the only truly offensive approaches to terrorism - the CIA's aerial drone attacks on al-Qaeda in Pakistan - are coming under fire from within the United States via the ACLU. The group has filed FOIA requests challenging the legal status of such operations.

BACKTRACKING A VERY BAD IRAN INTEL ESTIMATE
Coming Around On Iran: Bad 2007 NIE Now To Be 'Revised' - Newsweek
Explaining Why 2007 NIE Was So Bad: NIE: Cutting of your nose to... - NRO (2007)
Lingering Bad NIE Effects: A Manufactured Debate - Is Iran Designing Warheads? - ThreatsWatch (2009)

CIA DRONES: TERROR OFFENSIVE HOW UNDER ATTACK
ACLU Challenges Legal Basis for CIA Drone Strikes - Washington Independent
Vets Respond: Universal Jurisdiction & Targeted Killing - Warrior Legacy Foundation (PDF)

HAMBALI TERROR TRIAL IN DC?
Obama administration may try Hambali in criminal court - Hot Air
Meet the Real Jack Bauers - National Review Online

AFGHANISTAN
Taliban bombers strike Kabul; at least 5 dead, 40 injured - - USA Today
Hitting Karzai Outreach: What's behind latest Taliban attack on Kabul? - CS Monitor

HAITI
More US troops, aid flow to Haiti, but hunger, frustration persists - AP
MilBlogger Aids Rescue Mission: Rubicon Rescue: Mission Haiti - Blackfive
All Team Rubicon Updates Here: Team Rubicon Haiti Archives - Blackfive

IRAN
China balks at Iran sanctions - CS Monitor
Schippert Interview: The China-Russia-Iran Axis - FrontPage Magazine (2008)
Iran hails UN indecision over further sanctions - Forbes
Iran Vows Revenge On Israel For Professor's Death - CBS
But... Hizballah behind slaying of Iranian prof? - UPI

IRAQ
Iraq's "Chemical Ali" to Hang for 1988 Gas Attack - TIME

ISRAEL
FM: No more Israeli gestures towards Abbas' Palestinian Authority - Jerusalem Post
Israel and Turkey Hope to Salvage Their Damaged Alliance - WSJ

SOMALIA
Bitter Confrontation Between AU And TFG Troops Erupts in Mogadishu - allAfrica
Record Ransom Frees Hijacked Tanker off Somali Coast - VOA
Somalia protests after Kenya arrests MPs in riot swoop - BBC

SYRIA
Syria Trained Hizballah on Advanced SA-2 Anti-Aircraft Missiles - Ha'aretz

UNITED KINGDOM
LSE's Islamist teacher 'groomed suicide bomber for Tel Aviv attack' - London Evening Standard
Friday: London School of Econ. & London Univ. Student Unions Twinned with Gaza's Islamic University - ITIC
Friday: London School of Econ. professor tied to radical Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir - UPI
U.K.'s Universities Offer Conducive Environment to Islamic Extremists - WSJ

YEMEN
Yemen claims arrest of Al-Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula No. 2 - UPI

1. The Obama administration is looking to bring yet another top-level terrorist from Guantanamo Bay to American civilian courts. This time it's Hambali, the captured leader of Jemmah Islamiyah, responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings that killed over 200.

2. Just after the students unions at the London School of Economics and at London University "twinned" with the Islamic University in Gaza as a show of political support, it is revealed that a key professor at one of the universities has ties to the radical Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir.

3. Somali pirate attacks also continue unabated. Ransom of millions has been paid to free a Greek tanker. The amount is reportedly the most ever given, continuing an upward trend for the pirates' reward.

4. Mexican authorities have captured a top cartel boss implicated in the killing of at least 300.

ISMALIST GROUP HIZB UT-TAHRIR
London School of Economics and London Univ. Students Unions Twinned with Gaza's Islamic University - ITIC
London School of Economics professor tied to radical Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir - UPI
Background: Hizb ut-Tahrir America Enters Public Stage - Counterterrorism Blog
Background: Hizb ut-Tahrir to Hold Conference at Chicago Hilton - Jawa Report (2009)
Background: Hizb ut-Tahrir: Sharia Takes Precedent Above US Constitution - Investigative Project

AFGHANISTAN
Roadside bomb kills 5 family members, including 4 children - Canadian Press
Japan Ends Refueling Ships in Support of War in Afghanistan - Bloomberg

HAITI
Obama sends troops, immediate $100M to Haiti's rescue - Washington Times
Damaged airport, dock hamper Haiti aid efforts - CNN
Burst of Mobile Giving Adds Millions in Relief Funds - New York Times
Yesterday's Roundup: 'Haiti is the broken bloody body of Christ' - The Anchoress
Today's Rolling Updates: From Ed, In Haiti - The Anchoress

IRAN
Iran police chief says SMS, e-mail for protests punishable - M & C
Iran to try 16 soon over December unrest - Washington Post
China to send lower-level envoy to talks on Iran - Washington Post
China continuing to play diplomatic games on Iran - American Thinker

IRAQ
Iraq sentences 11 to death in attacks on government buildings - Dallas Morning News
Iraq Erasing Hebrew Markings on Ezekiel's Tomb - Jerusalem Post

ISRAEL
Jordan makes arrests for failed bomb attack on Israel diplomats - CS Monitor
Israel reassures Lebanon ahead of IDF maneuvers - Jerusalem Post
Related: Hizballah Leader Nasrallah: 'Israel lost its power of intimidation' - Ha'aretz (Israel)

MEXICO
Mexico nabs drug boss suspected in 300 killings - Dallas Morning News
A Revolutionary Idea in Mexico: Don't Have One This Century - Wall Street Journal

NORTH KOREA
N. Korea: S. Korean plan may mean holy war - UPI

PAKISTAN
Pakistan probes reports of Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud's death in US Strike - AFP
Pakistan Officials: U.S. Killed Another Militant on FBI Most-Wanted List, Abdul Rahim - FOX News

PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
U.S. tells Abbas it's pushing hard for Mideast talks - Reuters
The Egypt-Hamas collision course - Jerusalem Post
Hamas urges Egypt to halt Gaza border wall - Reuters

SOMALIA
Pirate Attacks Off Somalia Nearly Double - VOA
Italy to fund Somali government ministries - Washington Post
In Neighboring Kenya: Kenyan protests over radical cleric turn violent - Toronto Star

UNITED STATES
U.S. said to eye D.C. for Gitmo trial - Hambali, Mastermind of Bali Bombing - Washington Times
Pentagon report faults Hasan's bosses - Washington Times
Detroit plotter Abdulmutallab pleads not guilty in civilian court - M & C
Intel indicates Detroit was a random target choice - UPI
Civil Trial Games: Accused 'Lady al-Qaeda' terrorist Aafia Siddiqui demands no Jews in jury pool - NY Daily News

YEMEN
Yemen jets 'strike al-Qaeda cell killing six' - BBC
Yemen Country Profile - BBC