Newscast for Monday, August 31, 2009

US Commander seeks new strategy for Afghanistan
The US Commander in Afghanistan has laid down a new security strategy for the country.  The new policy signals an increasing focus on fighting Taliban insurgents. But critics say this group only represents a small threat to the United States. FSRN’s Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.

Amidst fraud complaints Afghanistan elections lose legitimacy
As the US military evaluates its strategy against the Taliban, Afghanistan awaits the results of the August 20th presidential elections.

The latest count from Afghanistan election commission has President Hamid Karzai ahead with 46 percent of the vote and former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah running second with 31 percent.  The electoral commission says that one-third of the votes has been counted.

The final vote count is not expected to be announced for another two weeks, after complaints of vote rigging and intimidation have been investigated. Afghanistan's Electoral Complaints Commission is currently dealing with more than 2,000 complaints; it says that some 600 of these complaints are serious enough to change the outcome of the election.

Political analysts say these allegations of vote rigging could create serious problems for President Karzai and for US forces in Afghanistan.  FSRN spoke to author and media critic Norman Solomon. Solomon is the founder of the Institute for Public Accuracy and he´s currently in Kabul where he´s been reporting on Afghanistan´s post-election crisis.

Chicago manufacturing workers strike to protest health cuts
In Chicago, workers at a tool manufacturing company have been on strike for almost a week now because their company cut their health insurance. Rebecca Myles has the story.

Break-dancing group brings hope to Gaza youth
In the Gaza Strip a Hamas spiritual leader has lambasted UN efforts to teach Palestinian children about the Holocaust. Younis-al-Astal said it was a “war crime” to teach the Holocaust, after he heard a UN agency planned to introduce the issue in Gaza schools.

The Gaza Strip currently suffers from an Israeli blockade that has led to high levels of poverty and unemployment among youth.  Despite this, there are pockets of creativity and signs of resilience.  A team of break dancers is responding to Gaza´s hardships and inspiring local youth. FSRN´s Rami Almeghari has the story.

Streetbeat: Latin Americans discuss US-Colombia military agreement
US plans to use military bases in Colombia for anti-drug trafficking operations have generated much controversy.  Last week, FSRN reported on the UNASUR meeting where South American presidents held a heated debate on the issue.  Although most South American governments feel uneasy about US plans to use seven military bases in Colombia, the Presidents who met in Argentina failed to reach a common declaration against the US-Colombia deal.

FSRN'S Marcos Federman took to the streets of Argentina´s capital, Buenos Aires, to hear what Latin Americans had to say about the controversial proposal.