Morning Coffee -13 November 2009

Welcome to Morning Coffee, brought to you by Lindsay Beyerstein with additional links from the UN Dispatch team. Every morning we survey foreign affairs and foreign policy news so you don't have to. We begin with the "Starting Five" items of the day -- these may not always appear on A-1, but they *are* the kinds of stories that will be buzzing in foreign capitals, the UN and wherever foreign policy minds roam.
Starting Five
KHALID SHEIK MOHAMMED TO BE TRIED BY U.S. COURT - President Obama pledged that alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed will receive due process when he goes on trial in New York. "I am absolutely convinced that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed will be subject to the most exacting demands of justice. The American people insist on it. My administration insists on it," Obama said. Khalid Sheik Mohammed is currently held at Guantanamo. CIA documents revealed that he was waterboarded dozens of times. It's unclear how much of the evidence against Mohammed will be admissible in court, given how it was collected. Link
UN INVESTIGATOR CALLS OUT U.S. NEGLECT OF HOMELESS - A UN investigator has accused the U.S. of neglecting the homeless while pouring billions of dollars into plans to save banks. RaquelRolnik, the UN special rapporteur for the right to adequate housing, visited seven U.S. cities on a fact-finding mission. Rolnik wasn't allowed into the United States during the Bush administration. "The housing crisis is invisible for many in the US," Rolnik said. "I learned through this visit that real affordable housing and poverty is something that hasn't been dealt with as an issue." Link
MASSACRE AT PHILIPPINE LOGGING COMPANY - Communist guerrillas killed at least 11 people in a raid on a logging company in the Philippines. At least 12 guerrillas were also killed in the shootout. The Maoist New People's Army has been waging guerrilla war against the central government for over 40 years. Peace talks between the government and the political wing of the NPA recently broke down, and violence is once again on the upswing. Link
WANNA BUY A GENTLY USED MOSQUE? - U.S. authorities seized four mosques and a New York City skyscraper suspected of being controlled by the Iranian government. The seizures come just as Iran and the U.S. are locked in delicate negotiations over Iran's nuclear program. Iran recently charged three U.S. journalists with espionage, in what was widely seen as an attempt to gain leverage in the talks. Link
PAKISTANI MILITANTS HIT SPY AGENCY - Militants in Pakistan rammed a truck into the Peshawar branch of Pakistan's main intelligence agency. At least nine people were killed in the blast, and fifty more were wounded, according to authorities. Schools were closed for the day. The attack coincides with the visit of President Obama's national security adviser, Gen. James L. Jones. Link
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