Free Republic

In the immediate aftermath of the attack in Oslo, speculation about the party that might be responsible has centered on Ansar al-Islam, a Kurdish militant group that has been tied by U.S. officials to al-Qaeda and that carried out attacks on American troops and civilians in Iraq at the height of the war there. Norway’s contingent in Afghanistan, or even its “cartoon crisis” of 2006, could make the country a target for any number of terrorist groups, as the Atlantic has noted. Already, there’s been at least one claim of responsibility for Friday’s bombing from an al-Qaeda-linked jihadist. The U.S....

A rush-hour explosion at a subway station in the center of the Belarusian capital has reportedly killed at least seven people and injured dozens more. The blast occurred at the Kastrychnitskaya (October Square) station in downtown Minsk, not far from President Alyaksandr Lukashenka's offices. There was no immediate indication of whether the explosion was an accident or an attack. A man who gave only his first name, Henadz, told RFE/RL's Belarus Service that he was unsure whether the explosion had struck a train or the platform. Lukashenka has ordered an emergency meeting with officials later tonight. 'Pillars Of Fire' An...

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) - Plans to close Guantanamo are not sitting well with the Sept. 11 victims' relatives who sat stunned while two alleged terrorists declared they were proud of their role in the plot.