life on mars [not just a bowie classic]

New Yorker: intellectual founder of Al-Qaeda, "Dr. Fadl," defects from an Egyptian prison, via fax (also profiled in the New Republic)
New Republic: defection may be more widespread

LAT: Colombian officials "lose" paramilitary leaders' computers on their way to extradition, and potentially, evidence of their ties to politicians [in sharp contrast to how the recovered computer of FARC leader Raul Reyes was handled]
"Before they were extradited, many paramilitary leaders, including Mancuso, were cataloging their alleged misdeeds, including mass killings, extortion and drug trafficking, to comply with the demobilization conditions. For that reason, critics say, the laptops were treasure troves of information and the government should have kept a closer eye on them."

LAT: Nepal is no longer a monarchy, after 239 years

Texas Monthly: turns out extracting oil can be tricky
"In the early morning of February 18, 2006, Russell Spell was sleeping on a barge off the Nigerian coast when he awoke to the sound of gunfire. A longtime employee of Willbros Group, an international oil and gas contractor, Spell supervised workers laying an offshore pipeline for Shell. His shift was noon to midnight, so he was still in his bunk when he heard the sound of bullets exploding into metal, a commotion so loud it seemed as if a helicopter was landing inside his cabin. The day had dawned placid and sweet, the barge an offshore oasis from the fetid air and roiling gas flares visible on the coast at Shell’s Forcados export terminal. Spell had no idea he was about to become a pawn in the increasingly violent war for control of the world’s diminishing petroleum resources."

Slate: the story of a US WWII soldier accused of killing an officer in the "forgotten theater," and going on the lam with Naga tribesmen in Burma
Econ: obituary for Irena Sendler, who defied authority to help Jews in Warsaw escape the ghetto
"To save one Jew, she reckoned, required 12 outsiders working in total secrecy: drivers for the vehicles; priests to issue false baptism certificates; bureaucrats to provide ration cards; and most of all, families or religious orders to care for them. The penalty for helping Jews was instant execution."

Slate: who disciplines UN troops? (accused of sexually assaulting children and women on peacekeeping operations)

CSM: specialist Paul Staniland offers advice on which terrorists to talk to and when
Slate: reporters have it easier: an interview with the exiled leader of Hamas
"Mishaal is waiting for the U.S. election to change the political landscape, and this seems to be the Syrian posture as well. They are eager to engage in indirect talks with the Israelis for the next few months, but they insist that serious U.S. involvement will be necessary to guarantee a final deal.
Mishaal insists that the Bush administration will never allow reconciliation between the feuding Palestinians factions as long as this president is in office. "The American administration is supporting a corrupt party to topple Palestinian democracy with arsenals and weapons. And that was shown in Vanity Fair magazine."
This was a surprising reference for a militant Islamist leader. Vanity Fair published an article in the April 2008 issue alleging that the Bush administration conspired with a Palestinian warlord and his militia men to engineer a Palestinian civil war to reverse Hamas' election victory. For Khalid Mishaal, this was proof that the American media had finally taken the Palestinian side in this long conflict. More important for him, it also signified that the long rule of the Bush administration was finally coming to a close."

Slate: brokering a deal in Lebanon

NYT: checking in on Tashkent 3 years after the Uzbek uprising
money quote: “You can’t compare Uzbekistan and North Korea,” said a European who has lived in Tashkent for years, and who was not identified for safety reasons. “Not every right is violated all the time. It’s not that systematic.”

LAT: a UCLA doctor gave a liver transplant to the head of one of Japan's biggest gangs

WP: fallout continues over poorly constructed buildings in China

Slate: the neocon approach to nuclear North Korea that failed - and that McCain advoccates

Slate: rumors of rigging the vote spurs inordinate institutional attention
"Paranoia about such tactics by Democrats—especially minority Democrats—morphed from a Bush administration extracurricular activity to its college major during the last eight years."

a few days late
BBC: clashes between police and Gujjars in Rajasthan, India

BBC: Bemba, former Congo VP, arrested in Belgium on charges of war crimes

BBC: arrests of Camorra mafia members in Naples

BBC: Burundi reaches ceasefire agreement with rebels

Slate: looking for life on mars - maybe whatever lives there has no need for specialists in violence?