FP morning brief 7/7

Afghan troops killed in NATO airstrike

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Top news: Rockets fired from a NATO helicopter mistakenly killed five Afghan soldiers in Eastern Afghanistan. The friendly-fire incident is another setback in the international coalition's effort to build cooperation with Afghan forces and comes just days after Gen. David Petraeus took command of the international mission.

The Afghan defense ministry condemned the killing. NATO spokesman Josef Blotz confirmed the incident and said an investigation would be launched into what he said was "perhaps a coordination issue." He also extended Petraeus' condolences to the families of the victims.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, Britain announced that it would pull its troops out of the Sangin Valley, a particularly dangerous region of Helmand Province.

Environment: An independent British inquiry mostly vindicated the scientists involved in the "Climategate" scandal.

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Middle East As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington, Israel announced the indictments of several soldiers for their actions during the 2008-9 offensive in Gaza. Hamas arrested two people in Gaza on suspicion of collaborating with Israel. Two al Qaeda militants were sentenced to death in Yemen. Asia Pro-government protesters in Sri Lanka laid siege to a U.N. compound to protest allegations of human rights abuse. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard proposed a plan to use East Timor as a regional center for processing refugees. A Japanese court convicted a New Zealand anti-whaling activist. Americas Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was sentenced to an additional seven years in prison for money laundering in France. An alleged Colombian drug lord was captured in Venezuela. A Northern Mexican town was evacuated as a nearby dam threatened to overflow. Europe French President Nicolas Sarkozy denied allegations that he received illegal campaign contributions and prosecutors opened an investigation. The British government announced that it will investigate whether its intelligence operatives were aware of the torture of detainees. The Vatican says it will soon issue a new document outlining procedures for handling sex abuse cases. Africa The SeaCom cable bringing high-speed internet to East Africa was disrupted by an undersea fault. The Rwandan government summoned South Africa's ambassador to voice concern over the investigation of the killing of a Rwandan general in Johannesburg last month. At a demonstration in Somalia, the al Shabaab rebels vowed to intensify their attacks against African Union troops.   -By Joshua Keating

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