IntelliBriefs

National Interest, Quarterly Magazine, Spring 2005, Page 22- 40 Word Count : 7603 The event of September 11 has changed the atmosphere dominating international scene. The US exploited these events to fill the vacuum created following the collapse of the Soviet Union. It tried to replace the danger of Communism with struggle against terrorism to promote US hegemonic aspirations. Advancing the so-called "axis of evil" by President Bush pursued this goal. Along these lines, the US charged the I.R.I with accusations of supporting terrorism. This article tries to study the main roots of terrorist actions, Islamic view on violence, theoretical foundation of al-Qaeda group and finally the stance of the I.R.I toward international terrorism Today's world is a dangerous place, both for governments and for people. Terrorism with its various forms has become a great concern for every state all over the world. On the other hand, modern technology has radically

'We Are Like The Jews' Politics apart, Brahmin-bashing is rampant in literary and cultural worlds too ASHOKAMITRAN The acclaimed Tamil writer opens his heart to S. Anand on the experience of being a Brahmin in Tamil Nadu. For the Tamil Brahmins, it has been one century of being on the defensive. The community feels castrated. The Brahmins have never anyway been the placard-holding type; they have rarely expressed their feelings openly. The Tamil Brahmins have been used to taking insults. Hence perhaps the lack of visible protests or reactions. Theirs is a guilt-ridden existence, their spirit has been killed by a negative self-perception… They have been driven to a quiescent state. Their situation is very similar to that of the Jews in the 1930s. With the anti-Brahmin movement dictating the terms, the urban Brahmins began to eschew ethnic markers that revealed their identity. They gave up the kudumi (tuft), began to sport moustaches like non-Brahmins, changed the ma

Rogue elements within the Indian Government fed false information to deceive the U.S. State Department. Their agenda to sabotage growing Indo-U.S. relations in the war against terrorism. N.S. Rajaram Diplomatic gaffe There is an influential group of rogue elements that has wormed its way into the Indian Government that is bent on sabotaging growing Indo-American relations in defense and anti-terrorism. That is the picture emerging from individuals close to the Indian government as well as U.S. diplomatic sources. The newly appointed Secretary of State Dr. Condolezza Rice is known to be friendly towards India. Yet, on the heels of her maiden visit to the region as Secretary of State, she found herself embroiled in a major controversy over a relatively minor issue like visa to a local politician. She had more important things to do. But as a result of this inadvertent diplomatic gaffe, the State Department is now engaged in a damage control exercise, no matter what

DER SPIEGEL 13/2005 - March 26, 2005 URL: http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,348471,00.html Crisis in the Catholic Church The Pope's Contradictions By Hans Küng Outwardly Pope John Paul II, who has been actively involved in battling war and suppression, is a beacon of hope for those who long for freedom. Internally, however, his anti-reformist tenure has plunged the Roman Catholic church into an epochal credibility crisis. REUTERS Don't be fooled by the crowds: Millions have left the Catholic Church under Pope John Paul II's leadership. The Catholic church is in dire straits. The pope is deathly ill and deserves every bit of sympathy he can get. But the church must live on, and in light of the selection of a new pope, it will need a diagnosis, an unadorned insider analysis. The therapy will be discussed later. Many marvel at the staying power of this highly fragile, partially paralyzed head of the Roman Catholic church, a man who, despite all medica

Author: Vijaykumar Bandal Publication: Vivek Weekly (Marathi) - Free translation Date: April 3, 2005 (From advance copy) "I have read the manual of Al Qaeda and that night I could not sleep up 3 a.m. It is terrible is spreading hate among castes and religions". It is great misfortune of our country that a Mumbai Judge had to state this firmly in the Court. By this hard slap, now at lease our rulers must get up fully awake. Police again arrested Senior Superintendent of CID Prafulla Bhosale and his 4 colleagues on the charge of murdering Sayyad Khwaja Yunus, an accused in the Ghatkopar Bomb explosions. There is a suspicion that this is being done on the changing depositions of another accused in the explosion Dr Abdul Mateen. In this questionable action, the brave Police have accused the investigating officers of acting as per the Al Qaeda manual. While arguing before the Mahanagar Magistrate A. V. Kulkarni, Adv. Satish Maneshinde claimed that the CI

Rajaram http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/shrd/2004/43112.htm This a trivial and embarrassingly bad report, not something that the Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice would presnt before the U.S. Senate or the Congress. The following points are worth noting: 1. It gives a certificate of good conduct to the UPA government, but expresses impatience for not doing enough, especially with regard to the Gujarat Cm Modi. 2. It complains about rewriting history books! To quote: "Following its electoral victory in May, the Government began to address a number of human rights concerns that have arisen in recent years. For example, it moved quickly to rewrite school textbooks (which the previous Government had rewritten to promote the BJP's Hindu nationalist propaganda) in order to stress the contributions of the Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist and Christian minority communities. However, the rewrite of the textbooks has not been completed, and the state of Gujarat has not

Press Trust of India WASHINGTON, March 29. — Despite being a “vibrant democracy”, India’s human rights enforcement record has been “poor” and needs improvement, the USA has said in a report. In its second such report in a month, the US State Department yesterday criticised New Delhi’s human rights record but said the new UPA government at the Centre has started addressing rights concerns that have “arisen over the years”. While lauding the Centre for “rewriting school textbooks” and “addressing the aftermath of the Gujarat riots”, the 293-page report, titled “Supporting Human Rights and Democracy,” reiterated concern over the situation in Gujarat. “Following its electoral victory in May, the government began to address a number of human rights concerns that have arisen in recent years. For example, it moved quickly to rewrite school textbooks... in order to stress the contributions of the Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist and Christian minority communities,” it said. However, it said, the