HEADLINES INCLUDE: The peace gathering in Kabul continues today despite earlier attacks on the conference and this morning Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen reports that the riser pipe has successfully been cut marking a major step toward stopping the oil leak in the Gulf.

Afghan peace gathering continues despite Taliban attack

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Undeterred by an attack on their gathering a day earlier, hundreds of Afghan tribal and religious leaders were meeting again on Thursday with Western diplomats and the country’s lawmakers as they debate how best to negotiate with the Taliban.

Pentagon considers sending carrier to Korea

WASHINGTON — The U.S. is considering dispatching the aircraft carrier George Washington to the waters where North Korea allegedly sank a South Korean warship, defense officials said Wednesday.

Gates disappointed by Chinese rebuff

SINGAPORE — U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says China’s military isn’t as interested in developing a better relationship with the U.S. as its political leaders are.

BP Succeeds in cutting riser pipe in bid to stop oil leak succeeds

(CNN) — After every effort to contain the undersea oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico failed or fell short, BP devised a new strategy Thursday to cap the ruptured well, though the new plug will not be as tight as previously hoped.

Efforts Grow to Stop GI Funeral Protests

WASHINGTON — Forty-eight states and the District of Columbia have submitted a brief to the Supreme Court in support of a father who sued anti-gay protesters over their demonstration at the 2006 funeral of his son, a Marine killed in Iraq.

Mean Looking Quad-Rotor Micro Air Vehicle Performs “Precise Aggressive Maneuvers”
From some fertile minds at the University of Pennsylvania’s General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Lab comes the meanest looking quad-rotor micro air vehicle I’ve ever seen.

Dot Mil Docs 114: Virtual Worlds Technology for Psychological Health

Kevin M. Holloway, PhD, a clinical psychologist at the National Center for Telehealth and Technology (T2), discusses virtual worlds technology as a potential new way for post-combat service members to access psychological health care.

FOX Video: Faces of War

Marines patrol the Helmand province trying to weaken Taliban at critical points

Militants attack Afghan peace conference

KABUL, Afghanistan — Taliban suicide attackers launched an assault on a national peace conference as it opened Wednesday in the Afghan capital, sparking gunbattles outside the venue. Two attackers were killed and one captured but no delegates were hurt, an official said.

Iran — Enhancing Cyber Defense Capabilities

Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi recently said technological advances have increased the need for defensive preparations against “cyber war.” He went on: “At present, information and communication technologies are of great importance for different countries and we must prepare and equip ourselves against any form of cyber warfare.”

Drone Strike in Pakistan Kills Top Al Qaeda Operational Commander

WASHINGTON — Al-Qaida announced Monday that its No. 3 official, Mustafa al-Yazid, had been killed along with members of his family — perhaps one of the most severe blows to the terror movement since the U.S. campaign against al-Qaida began. A U.S. official said al-Yazid was believed to have died in a U.S. missile strike.