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World
Iraq Steps Up Its Propaganda
Libyan Activist Killed A prominent Libyan activist who had become an international face of her strife-torn country’s efforts to build a democracy Bugaighis was assassinated by gunmen who stormed her home in the restive eastern city of Benghazi shortly after casting her ballot in the country’s parliamentary elections, police said Thursday. The slaying of Salwa Bugaighis stunned residents of her home city, politicians, activists and diplomats, among whom she was well known. (AP) VATICAN CITY
Vatican: Catholics Don’t Follow Teachings on Sex The Vatican conceded Thursday that most Catholics reject its teachings on sex and contraception as intrusive and irrelevant and officials pledged not to “close our eyes to anything” when it opens a two-year debate on some of the thorniest issues facing the church. (AP) SYDNEY
Search Area for Missing Malaysia Flight Changes Investigators believe the missing Malaysia Airlines plane flew on autopilot for hours before crashing into a remote part of the Indian Ocean, Australian officials said Thursday as they announced another shift in the search area for the jet to a vast expanse of the Southern Indian Ocean. (AP) BERLIN
Germany Ends Contract With Verizon Over NSA The German government is ending a contract with Verizon over fears the company could be letting U.S. intelligence agencies eavesdrop on sensitive communications, officials said Thursday. The company has for years provided Internet services to a number of government departments. (AP)
5,000
Positive military reports contrast with situation on ground
Al-Maliki in Trouble
Baghdad Each afternoon, the meticulously groomed Lt. Gen. Qassim Atta stands in front of a cluster of microphones in a palatial meeting room in Baghdad’s Green Zone to update the nation on the latest military developments. The details differ, but two weeks into a conflict that is tearing Iraq apart, his message is now a familiar one. There is praise for the “heroic” armed forces against militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. However, it is a spin on the day’s developments that often conflicts with reports from the field. While soldiers guarding Iraq’s largest oil refinery in Baiji said hundreds had fled Tuesday as militants took control of much of the
SCOTT NELSON (FOR THE WASHINGTON POST)
CAIRO
Lt. Gen. Qassim Atta has sung the praises of Iraqi soldiers during the past weeks.
facility, Atta praised their “magnificent defense.” His unshakably positive stance as the security forces struggle to hold ground has drawn inevitable comparisons with Saddam Hussein’s information minister, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, nicknamed “Baghdad Bob,” who famously denied that U.S. troops were in the
Iraqi capital even as their tanks rolled into the city. The daily briefings are just one cog of the government propaganda machine, which has ratcheted into overdrive since ISIS overran large parts of northern and western Iraq. Despite its shortcomings, just the fact that there is a daily briefing is a welcome development in
Police Have Gun Trouble in China Beijing A string of shooting incidents involving Chinese police — leaving at least four people dead — has the public wondering if its rank-andfile police force is really ready to carry guns, as mandated by new regulations. Last month, two policemen brought a loaded gun to a kindergarten show-and-tell. The handgun mistakenly went off, injuring four parents and one child. The next day, an officer responded to a village quarrel and fatally shot a man in murky circumstances. The incidents — which have generated widespread media cov-
AP PHOTO
In Brief
China has begun to abandon its policy of keeping local police unarmed.
erage — came after authorities decided in April to issue guns to patrolling officers to better protect the public and improve police response to crime and attacks. The Public Security Ministry has
the daunting task of training hundreds of thousands of local police on how to handle a deadly weapon in the line of duty. The Chinese police force is 1.7-million strong, and it isn’t clear how many will be armed. Experts worry, however, that the training will focus too much on technical aspects such as firing accuracy and not enough on psychological and legal aspects such as when to draw the gun and how to quickly size up chaotic situations. “I even wonder if some police officers have ever seen a gun,” said Hong Daode, a professor of criminal law at China University of Political Science and Law. “We are basically starting from zero.” DIDI TANG (AP)
The number of people in Ukraine who fled to Russia on Thursday, a commander at the rebel-controlled border post near Luhansk said, joining a stream he said has continued unabated through a cease-fire set to end Friday. Tens of thousands of Ukrainians have sought safety in Russia since fighting began two months ago. (AP)
Prominent Shiite leaders pushed Thursday for the removal of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki as parliament prepared to start work next week on putting together a new government, under intense U.S. pressure to rapidly form a united front against an unrelenting Sunni insurgent onslaught. Next week’s convening of the new parliament keeps the Iraqi constitution on track and fulfills a promise that the embattled al-Maliki made this week to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. (AP/ T WP)
Iraq’s stifled media scene. “Before, all the news was attached to sources that couldn’t be named,” said Ziad Ajili, director of the Baghdad-based Journalistic Freedoms Observatory. “At least we now have one name; the name is General Qassim Atta.” LOVEDAY MORRIS (THE WASHINGTON POST)
Israel Identifies Suspects in Abduction Case Jerusalem Israel on Thursday identified two well-known Hamas operatives in the West Bank as the central suspects in the recent disappearance of three Israeli teenagers, in the first sign of progress in a frantic two-week search for the missing youths. Officials said the two men have been missing since the teenagers disappeared, and that a large manhunt is underway for them. In a statement, Israel’s Shin Bet security service identified the men as Marwan Qawasmeh and Amer Abu Aisheh. It said both men are activists from the Hamas militant group in the West Bank city of Hebron, the area where the youths disappeared on June 12. (AP)