By Ranjit Devraj

NEW DELHI - Just as the Gulf War in 1991 was all about oil, the new conflict in South and Central Asia is no less about access to the region's abundant petroleum resources, according to Indian analysts.

The tragic events of September 11, 2001 mark a watershed in the history of not only the United States but also the history of the world. The horrifying news that passenger aircrafts had been used as live bombs to destroy the most visible symbols of American power stunned the people across nations. The images of rubble and smoke that mark the mass grave of over six thousand innocent people will remain seared forever in the minds of an entire generation. The stories of courage and self-sacrifice of over three hundred fire and police personnel who lost their own lives in order to save others, will be remembered with gratitude by the future generations.

By John Pilger

If the attacks on America have their source in the Islamic world, who can really be surprised?

Two days earlier, eight people were killed in southern Iraq when British and American planes bombed civilian areas. To my knowledge, not a word appeared in the mainstream media in Britain. An estimated 200,000 Iraqis, according to the Health Education Trust in London, died during and in the immediate aftermath of the slaughter known as the Gulf War.

This was never news that touched public consciousness in the west.

At least a million civilians, half of them children, have since died in Iraq as a result of a medieval embargo imposed by the United States and Britain.

How the US and Britain reward countries offering Support in war against Taliban

Jamie Wilson, Suzanne Goldenberg, Ewen MacAskill and Jonathan Steele, The Guardian

The US is expected to release shipments of advanced rocket artillery to Egypt and supply helicopter gunship spares to China - where both President George Bush and secretary of state Colin Powell are currently in negotiations - in the latest of a long list of arms, intelligence and cash deals struck to obtain the support of surrounding countries for its war against terrorism and the Taliban.

In Baghdad we had the bunker where our missile fried more than 300 people to death. In Kosovo we had a refugee column torn to pieces by our bombs. Now in Afghanistan, a village called Karam is our latest massacre.

Of course it's time for that tame old word "regret". We regretted the Baghdad bunker. We were really very sorry for the refugee slaughter in Kosovo. Now we are regretting the bomb that went astray in Kabul on Friday night; the missile that killed the four UN mine clearers last Monday; and whatever hit Karam.

by Harun Yahya

Introduction

During the last two decades in particular, the concept of "Islamic terror" has been often discussed. In the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks on targets in New York and Washington which caused the death of tens of thousands of innocent civilians, this concept has once again returned to the top of the international agenda.

As Muslims, we completely condemn these attacks and offer our condolences to the American people.

In this article, we will explain that Islam is by no means the source of this violence and that violence has no place in Islam.

Analysis By Caroline Drees

CAIRO -- For many in the West, Islam conjures up images of gun-toting militants, sinister mullahs and booby-trapped bombs. Wherever they look, it seems Muslim radicals are rigging explosives, blowing up ancient statues, hijacking planes or kidnapping tourists. In some of the Western press, Islam seems to go hand-in-hand with terrorism.

AFTER 1,400 years, Islam remains a mystery to most non-Muslims, laced with connotations of evil. Last weeks airliner suicide attacks in the United States have again put Islam in the spotlight after Washington said a prime suspect is Islamic militant Osama bin Laden, the guest of Afghanistans purist Islamic Taliban.

ISLAMABAD, Nov 6 (AFP) - A US military helicopter crashed in Pakistan after taking fire from Afghanistan's Taliban militia, officials said Tuesday, and a local news agency reported four personnel dead.

News of the incident Sunday came as US warplanes continued to hammer at Taliban positions in northern and northeast Afghanistan, where the opposition claimed a new victory in its drive to reach the strategic city of Mazar-i-Sharif.

Pakistani officials said a US helicopter had crashed to the north of Dalbandin air base in southwestern Baluchistan province near the Afghan border. But they had no details of casualties.

By Robert Fisk

The most powerful military force on earth has now begun its bombardment of the world's poorest, most ravaged Muslim nation. And no matter how many loaves of bread are dropped with our bombs, will there be a Muslim who will approve?

Is it possible, is it conceivable – even with our most sophisticated missiles – that we are not killing the innocent as well as the guilty in Afghanistan? We may say we are punishing Osama bin Laden. We may believe it. But will the Muslim world believe it?

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers are prepared to allow Osama bin Laden, sought by the US on terrorism charges, to stand trial - but only by the 'ulama, reports Press Association.

The trial could take place in a third country, says Pakistan's interior minister.

It was the Taliban's latest attempt to try to appease the United Nations, which has imposed sanctions on Afghanistan's ruling militia. The UN wants bin Laden to stand trial in the US or a third country. Bin Laden is accused by the US of masterminding the bombing of its embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.