President Obama has asked his Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair to step down. As director of National intelligence, Blair was responsible for collation of intelligence among the 16 intelligence agencies that the US has. The recent shooting at Fort Hood and the intelligence failure surrounding the failed Times Square bombing in New York are said to be behind Blair's resignation.
The Pakistan government has imposed restrictions on the disgraced nuclear scientist A Q Khan though he has been released from the house arrest, a top United States intelligence official has said.
He said that while Pakistan public opinion favouring Al Qaeda and the Taliban have declined precipitously in the past year, "on the other hand, despite robust Pakistani military operations against extremists that directly challenge the Pakistani government authority, Afghan Taliban, Al Qaeda, and Pakistani militant groups continue to use Pakistan as a safe haven for organising, training and planning attacks against the United States and our allies in Afghanistan."
United States' Director of National Intelligence, Dennis Blair has -- in a candid assessment -- revealed what went wrong before and after the attempted bombing of a Northwest Airlines flight. He said that he had wrongly caved to external "pressure" to trim the no-fly list and even admitted the intelligence community would probably drop the ball in the future.
The actor had to be put on a special diet of burgers and fries to get into the skin of the former US president for the HBO series, The Special Relationships.
The plunging global economy is an even bigger threat to the United States' national security than the al Qaeda terrorist network or proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, according to America's new intelligence czar.Traditionally, US intelligence chiefs always preface their opening remarks with either terrorist or nuclear proliferation threats, but DenisBlair's first sentences in his testimony before the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence was about the economy.
United States President Barack Obama's decision to deploy more troops in Afghanistan indicates the deterioration of the war on terror as well as the escalating crisis in Pakistan, according to many military analysts and intelligence officials.They also fear that America's long-time ally might be on the verge of imploding due to its internal crises.Obama approved the order to deploy 17,000 troops in Afghanistan which beefs up the US troop strength by 50 per cent.
US President-elect Barack Obama has named Leon Panetta, a former White House Chief of Staff, to head the Central Intelligence Agency and retired admiral Dennis Blair as the director of the National Intelligence.John Brenna, a former leader of the National Counter-terrorism Center, will be his Homeland Security Adviser and Deputy National Security Adviser for Counter-terrorism Serving, Obama announced.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence in United States has said that 'in keeping with its status as an emerging world power, the government of India exerts strong leadership in global and regional, for and in important bilateral relationships.'
Retired Admiral Dennis Blair, the Obama Administration's Director of National Intelligence, in his first appearance before the US Congress, told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that "on the global state, Indian leaders will continue to follow an independent course characterized by economic and political pragmatism."
This period saw big stars of the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev fade into the sunset while it was witness to the birth of slew of young Indian cricketers that made their mark home and abroad.
Prior to his meeting with Chidambaram, Blair held a meeting with Intelligence Bureau Director Rajiv Mathur about the scenario of threat posed by terrorists and ways to counter these.
The US intelligence community has begun to look for linguists and analysts from the Pakistani-American community to meet its national security challenges, especially after Pakistani Americans were in Pakistan trying to join Al Qaeda.Pakistan is often viewed as the epicentre of international terrorism.
As Sachin turns 50, Rediff brings you 50 fascinating facts about the God of Cricket.
United States forces and agencies may kill American citizens abroad if they are found to be involved in terrorist activities overseas, a top US official has said.
Pakistan is continuing support to the Taliban and the Haqqani network as part of its backup plan to secure their western border in case the United States leaves Afghanistan, a top US intelligence official has said.
We'll publish the most interesting ones right here on Rediff.com.
Rajneesh Gupta highlights all the important numbers for the England team from cricket World Cups.
What does Tendulkar miss the most about not being an active player? "I miss the laughter, the seriousness, the celebrations."
'I believe Bumrah, Ishant, Shami, Umesh, all four can play in the playing XI.'
How will cricket change with the new rule on big bats?
'India have a good bunch of fast bowlers.' 'Umesh is doing really well and so are Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant.'
'When I was in Shrirampur I thought I would make it to the Indian team. There were a series of events that happened, and even if one link was missing, I don't think I would be here.'
Sri Lanka's victory in the first Test at Galle will rank among the greatest comebacks of all time.
'Of the 32 captains who have led India in Test cricket, only four have been pure bowlers -- Ghulam Ahmed, Venkatraghavan, Bishan Bedi and myself.' 'The captain must lead with only one idea in mind -- to win the game. The draw mentality is partly because captains lacked confidence and partly because they want to protect their record. If you don't think winning is the point of the game, there is little point in even entering the field.' 'As the Monekygate controversy raged, I received a message from Bishen Bedi, no stranger to controversies himself. "As a captain," he wrote, "take a decision you will be proud of when you look back on history".' Anil Kumble, cricketing legend, on the Art of Captaincy.
Haresh Pandya picks his all-time best Indian Test team which is packed with some exciting stroke-players, a couple of heavy-scorers known to play monumental innings, some superb spinners, a world-class all-rounder and a top-notch wicketkeeper. Check out his list and then create your own Dream India XI, and share it with family and friends!