From Indonesia to Iran

Three Christian girls were beheaded and a fourth was seriously wounded in Indonesia. The girls were on their way to class when the attack occurred. Indonesia is the most populous Muslim nation, and has a history of conflict between Musilms and Christians. Brutul, just brutal.

In New Delhi, coordinated explosions ripped through markets killilng 49. The attacks were probably terrorist related, and probably came from Pakistan--a country India has a strained relationship with.

Finally, probably most have heard about Iran's new hard-line, ultra-conservative president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's comment that Israel should be wiped off the map. This kind of rhetoric is not new from the Muslim theocracy. Ayatollah Khomeni repeated the mantra almost on a weekly basis at his Friday sermons when he was in power during the 80s. What is most encouraging from this whole episode is the swift and decisive condemnation from the world community, including some Islamic nations. Ahmadinejad, however refuses to retract his statement, saying the criticism "did not have any validity" and his remarks were "just." Yesterday, tens of thousands of protestors marched in the street shouting "death to Israel" and death to the Zionists. Meanwhile, Iran continues to enhance its nuclear capabilities. Tick-tock, tick-tock....