Headlines for Thursday, November 12, 2009

Top US diplomat opposes troop increase
President Obama's Ambassador to Afghanistan advises against increasing troops in the country until President Hamid Karzai can tackle corruption and stem the rise of the Taliban. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry has written the President twice in recent days. Eikenberry is a former US military commander in Afghanistan. His dissent comes as President Obama is wrestling with the decision to satisfy General Stanley's McChrystal's request to send up to 40,000 more troops, which could cost an additional 50 billion dollars. The New York Times and other media outlets are reporting that President Obama is dissatisfied with all proposals for a troop increase presented and he has asked for alternative plans, including an exit strategy.

FHA reserve fund at an all time low
The Federal Housing Administration announced Thursday that its reserves are at an all time low – largely a result of the collapse of the housing market and the subsequent increase in defaults. The government-backed FHA is the largest insurer of mortgages and is instrumental in keeping the housing market afloat during the housing crisis. Tanya Snyder reports.

By Congressional mandate, the FHA is supposed to keep in reserve funds equaling two percent of its outstanding loans. Right now, it’s down to just half a percent. This is the first time the reserves have fallen below the mandated two percent mark since the fund was created in 1992.

The FHA was one of the only lenders left when credit froze following the economic downturn. As the economic collapse caused more and more homeowners to default on their FHA loans, reserves went dry.

The FHA's budget problems reveals how broken the US housing market remains as foreclosures continue to rise and people are unable to pay loans.

The agency has made some reforms recently, but years of competing with private lenders – and imitating some of their risky behavior – took a toll on the agency’s reserves

The agency can tap into its own resources stored at the U-S Treasury, due to a unique arrangement. Even if the FHA drains its fund completely, the Treasury will use taxpayer dollars temporarily to keep the housing agency afloat.

Tanya Snyder, FSRN.

Obama to hold jobs summit
Before he left for Asia, President Obama announced a renewed focus on unemployment. He has scheduled a roundtable focusing on job creation for early December.

This announcement comes as the weekly unemployment report says 502,000 unemployment claims were filed. That's lower than expected and the lowest number since the first week of January.

“Even though we've slowed the loss of jobs, and today's report on the continued decline in unemployment claims is a hopeful sign, the economic growth we've seen has not yet led to the job growth we desperately need.”

Obama will gather labor leaders, small business leaders, corporate executives, and others to discuss lagging job creation in a recovering economy. A second stimulus is not currently on the table.

Medvedev Encourages New Russian Economy
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for a major shift in the Russian economy. In a televised speech that lasted nearly 2 hours, he rebuked the state-run corporations and said they should move toward privatization. In what appears to be a slight to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Medvedev said Russia's economy must break its dependence on imported raw materials and start encouraging independent thinking and innovation to better compete in a global economy.

Sri Lanka military commander resigns, expected to challenge president
Sri Lankan officials say the country’s top general resigned his post, fueling speculation he will challenge the President in next year’s election.  FSRN’s Ponniah Manikavasagam reports from Sri Lanka.

In an apparent battle for power in Sri Lanka, general Sarath Fonseka’s resignation comes six months after his army crushed the Tamil Tiger rebels.

Although the general and the president Mahinda Rajapakse worked side by side to defeat the Tamil Tigers, speculation of a rift has been brewing in recent months.

Despite allegations of serious human rights abuses, general Fonseka was appointed to the ceremonial post of the Chief of Defense.

He told reporters today that his resignation is effective December 1st.

“I have been working beyond my retirement age. Now I have decided to retire. What I will do after that yet, I have to decide. I never made any comments up until now, I will not make comments until I remove the uniform.”

In an effort to stave off military challenges, the government has recently warned that serving officers will be prosecuted if they enter politics in uniform.

German man sentenced to life for hate crime
An outcome has been reached in a high profile hate crime in Germany that has penetrated deep into the Muslim world. Russian-born German, Alex Wiens was given a life sentence yesterday for the brutal murder of an Egyptian woman in July in a Dresden courtroom. The verdict was welcomed across the Muslim world, and Egypt's ambassador to Germany said he was satisfied because Wiens received the harshest penalty possible. Cinnamon Nippard reports from Berlin

In 2008, Marwa al-Sherbini, asked 28 year old Russian-born German, Alex Wiens, to let her child use a swing he was sitting on in a playground. Mr Wiens responded by calling her a “terrorist”, an “Islamist” and a slut. Al-Sherbini called the police and Wiens was issued a fine. Wiens refused to pay the fine and when the case went to court, he became enraged and lunged across the courtroom stabbing the pregnant, al-Sherbini, and also her husband who tried to defend her.

Presiding judge, Birgit Wiegand, stipulated that Wiens not be eligible for parole for 20 or 25 years. She also strongly reprimanded him for his actions and behavior in the courtroom. Wiens wore a black balaclava, black sunglasses and a hood over his head.

Nadeem Elyas from the Central Council of Muslims in Germany said the verdict recognized the existence of Islamophobia in the country and hopes that far-right political groups will take notice of the ruling.

Fort Hood shooter charged with pre-meditated murder
Major Nidal M. Hasan has been charged with pre-meditated murder for killing 13 people at Fort Hood military base in Texas. A military spokesperson said he could be charged with additional crimes. He will be tried in a military court.