Morning Coffee - 5 January 2010

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
TRIPLE AGENT KILLED SPOOKS IN AFGHANISTAN - The suicide bomber who murdered eight Americans at a CIA base in eastern Afghanistan was revealed to be a triple agent working for Jordanian intelligence. CIA agents brought the bomber, a Jordanian doctor, into their base because they believed him to be a former al Qaeda figure whom they'd turned as a source. The bombing made clear where his true loyalties lay. Link
BURMA ANNOUNCES FIRST ELECTIONS IN 20 YEARS - Burma's military leader confirmed that the country would hold elections--the first since 1990. General Than Shwe's advised the Burman people to make "correct choices" in the upcoming vote. Many interpret his admonition as a warning not to vote for opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Last time Burmans voted, Suu Kyi's party won by a landslide and the junta ignored the vote. Link
CIA SHARES CLIMATE DATA - Some of the world's top climate scientists are huddling with experts from the Central Intelligence Agency. The intelligence agency is giving scientists a rare glimpse at secret satellite images and other high readings that might offer clues about how global warming is affecting the planet. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement. The scientists get rare data, the CIA learns more about a phenomenon that military and intel experts expect to play a key role in global security in the years to come. Link
ALLEGED MASSACRE MASTERMIND PLEADS NOT GUILTY - The alleged mastermind of a massacre that killed 57 people in the southern Philippines last November has pleaded not guilty to 41 counts of murder. Andal Ampatuan, Jr. is accused of leading 100 armed men in an attack on a rival political family, journalists, and innocent bystanders. Observers say the upcoming trial will be a major test of the impartiality of the country's judiciary. Link
HAVING THEIR CAKE - Thousands of Mexico City residents feasted on a massive confection known as Rosca de Reyes yesterday, but not before the 10.5-ton cake set a world record. The ring-shaped dessert had a circumference of 2,360 ft. It was a combined effort by more than 3000 bakers representing 300 bakeries around the capital. This Rosca de Reyes (aka King's Cake) is a jumbo version a confection traditionally prepared for the feast of Epiphany. Link
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