Global News | FOREIGN POLICY

Abbas announces retirement

Top story: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he will not seek reelection, adding a new element of uncertainty to the Middle East peace process. “I have told my brethren in the P.L.O. that I have no desire to run in the forthcoming election,” he said in a televised address.

U.S. administration officials say that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tried to convince Abbas -- considered a moderate pro-Western leader -- not to make the announcement. Abbas was reportedly angered and frustrated over the Obama administration's failure to push Israel to halt settlement construction on the West Bank. Palestinians were disappointed last week by Clinton's enthusiastic praise of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's offer to slow down, but not halt settlement construction.

Both the Arab League and the Israeli are reportedly urging Abbas to reconsider.

Tragedy in Texas: Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist due to be deployed to Iraq, killed 13 people and wounded 30 in a shooting spree at the Ft. Hood military base in Texas.

Handicapping the Next Palestinian Leader

All I Want for Xmas Is an Afghan Strategy

Kashmir, the Forgotten Front

Does J Street Lead to Jerusalem or Washington?

Americas

The U.S. brokered pact to end Honduras's political crisis has failed, says ousted President Manuel Zelaya, as interim president Robert Micheletti announced he would form a cabinet without Zelaya's suporters.
Peru's Shining Path rebels attacked a military base, killing one soldiers.

Asia

Pakistani troops have entered what they call the "headquarters" of the Taliban.
China denounced U.S. protectionism a week before President Obama's visit.
Burmese troops launched an attack on rebels in the country's northwest.

Africa

Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has ended his boycott of cabinet meeting with President Robert Mugabe.
The world's diamond watchdog is giving Zimbabwe more time to comply with an order to clean up abuses in one of its fields.
The war crimes trial of former Congolese Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba will begin in April.

Middle East

Saudi officials have denied widespread media reports that they attacked rebel bases inside Yemen.
Israel has rejected a U.N. General Assembly resolution urging it to investigate the findings of the Goldstone report.
Exxon-Mobile has signed a deal to develop a major oil field in Iraq.

Europe

Serbia charged six former fighters for war crims committed during the Bosnian war.
Russia has arrested two neo-nazi suspects for the January killing of a human rights activist and a reporter.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown strongly condemned the corruption of Hamid Karzai's government.

Thaer Ganaim/PPO via Getty Images