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State employee resigns over Afghan war

WASHINGTON, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- A U.S. State Department official and ex-Marine captain has resigned to protest the Afghan war, saying he has lost "confidence in the strategic purpose."

Matthew Hoh, 36, resigned in September, saying in his letter he "lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes of the United States' presence in Afghanistan," The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

"I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end," said Hoh, a former Marine Corps captain with combat experience in Iraq.

U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry flew Hoh to Kabul, the Afghan capital, and offered him a job on his senior embassy staff, which Hoh declined. Hoh also had a face-to-face meeting with Richard Holbrooke, special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"We took his letter very seriously, because he was a good officer," Holbrooke told the Post. "We all thought that given how serious his letter was, how much commitment there was, and (because of ) his prior track record, we should pay close attention to him."

Holbrooke said he asked Hoh to join his team in Washington, explaining that "if (Hoh) really wanted to affect policy and help reduce the cost of the war on lives and treasure" he could work "inside the building" to help effect change.

Hoh said he accepted the job, but then changed his mind.

"I recognize the career implications, but it wasn't the right thing to do," he told the Post Friday, two days after his resignation became final.

"I'm not some peacenik, pot-smoking hippie who wants everyone to be in love," Hoh said. "There are plenty of dudes who need to be killed."

Abbas says elections will proceed

RAMALLAH, West Bank, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he is pressing ahead with plans for Jan. 24 elections despite opposition from the militant group Hamas.

Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has said it won't participate and may even block the elections from proceeding there, raising the possibility the polls would only be held in areas where the Palestinian Authority holds power, such as the West Bank, and in certain areas of Jerusalem under Israeli rule, The Jerusalem Post reported Tuesday.

But Abbas nevertheless has instructed Hana Naser, chairman of the Palestinian Central Elections Committee, to make preparations for the election, the newspaper said.

The Post said Abbas' insistence on holding elections that could be meaningless could result in a blow to the credibility of his Fatah faction because it is coming at a time when polls have indicated a rise in support for Hamas among Palestinians.

Abbas' call for elections followed the breakdown of Egyptian-brokered reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah that would have paved the way for polls sometime next year, the newspaper said.

Sunni extremists claim Iraqi blasts

BAGHDAD, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- A Sunni extremist group that includes al-Qaida in Iraq claimed responsibility for the twin Baghdad bombings that killed nearly 160 people, an online post said.

A statement posted by the group Islamic State of Iraq called the targeted government sites "dens of infidelities," The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The posting was on a Web site used by extremists to make similar claims and could not be authenticated independently. Besides Sunday's two bombings, the group claimed responsibility for a devastating car blast that killed more than 100 people in August.

Meanwhile, security forces Monday said explosives in a minibus detonated in the holy city of Karbala, south of Baghdad, killing at least 12 people and wounding several others.

Sunday's bombings at the Justice Ministry, the Baghdad Provincial Council and the Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works are expected to hobble government agencies for months, the Post said. The attacks apparently were designed to depict the Shiite-led government as weak and aimless ahead of elections scheduled for January, experts on the region and its politics said.

Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the attacks "are targeting the symbols of Iraqi sovereignty, and they aim to paralyze the government."

Zebari said Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Cabinet met in emergency session Sunday and agreed to drastically beef up security around key government buildings that could be potential targets.

Several Iraqis who were wounded or lost relatives in Sunday's attacks told the Post they weren't confident in the government's ability to survive.

"There is no security, no hope," said Shauki Abdul Jabar, an injured Justice Ministry worker. "All the police forces and the armed forces are for nothing."

Offensive strains relations in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Pakistan's counterinsurgency action in South Waziristan may be welcome in the United States but it is putting pressure on internal relations, officials say.

The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama would like the Pakistani military to root out the Taliban and al-Qaida militants from these tribal areas, but many Pakistanis blame the United States as the military offensive has left other parts of Pakistan more vulnerable to militant attacks, The New York Times reported.

There have been a series of deadly terrorist attacks in several cities in recent weeks.

The report quoted Pakistan and Western officials saying that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who is scheduled to visit nuclear-armed Pakistan this week, may confront Pakistani resentment over constant demands to do more against the militants.

There also is concern over the $7.5 billion U.S. civilian aid package which the powerful Pakistani military sees as an attempt to interfere in Pakistan's internal affairs.

On the South Waziristan offensive, Richard Holbrooke, special U.S. envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, was quoted as saying it needs to been seen whether the Pakistani army is only "dispersing" the terror groups or "destroying" them.

One Western military attaché told the Times that based on the number of troops fighting in the tribal region it was not clear if the army wants to "finish the task."

The civilian government of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is increasingly seen as slavishly pro-American, the officials told the Times.

George W. Bush's gig: Motivational speaker

FORT WORTH, Texas, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Former President George W. Bush waded into the world of motivational speaking by addressing a packed house in Fort Worth, Texas.

Bush spoke to an audience Monday about his standing by decisions he made as president and encouraged the audience to be true to their principles and live life to the fullest, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Tuesday.

"Every single day, I was honored to be your president by bringing honor and dignity to the office," Bush told more than 11,000 people as the keynote guest of the Get Motivated business seminar.

"It's so simple in life to chase popularity, but popularity is fleeting," said Bush, who wallowed in low approval ratings during his second term. "It's not real."

Get Motivated is the latest version of Peter and Tamara Lowe's seminars featuring celebrities delivering motivational, optimistic nuggets.

Bush joins a long line of presidents, including his father, George H.W. Bush, as well as Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford, who were speakers at Lowe seminars.

Other speakers at Monday's event included former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Secretary of State Colin Powell and motivational speaker Zig Ziglar.