Iranian confrontation

Five armed Iranian fast boats surrounded three United States Navy warships in the Strait of Hormuz, near the Persian Gulf. The confrontation, pronounced “reckless and dangerous” by a Pentagon spokesman, ended uneventfully after 20 minutes. This provocative action was labeled “quite normal” by Iranian foreign military spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini.

Obama, Huckabee triumph in Iowa

Barack Obama won the Democratic primary in Iowa with 38 percent of the vote, beating John Edwards (30 percent) and Hillary Clinton (29 percent) by a wide margin. Mike Huckabee beat closest rival Mitt Romney (25 percent) with 34 percent of the vote.

At debate, two rivals go after defiant Clinton

Top Republican and Democratic hopefuls held debates within their parties Saturday. The debates were sponsored by ABC News and Facebook.com.

Bush’s take on looming recession

President Bush acknowledged Monday that a significant chance of a recession in the U.S. exists. He stated that economic signs were “increasingly mixed” and that “we cannot take [economic] growth for granted.” Last Friday, a report from the Labor Department showed unemployment at 5.0 percent, with a paltry 40,000 job increase in December, compared to 173,000 last November.

Justices hear arguments in lethal injection case

The Supreme Court began hearing arguments Monday concerning the constitutionality of lethal injection. The case originated in Kentucky, where the three-drug protocol used in executions has come under fire for failing to always be painless and, in some cases, failing to kill the target on first administration. Other means of execution, including the electric chair, the firing squad and the hangman’s noose, have been abandoned in part because of fears that they were not pain-free.

Suicide bomber kills key Sunni leaders

Militants assassinated two key leaders of American-backed neighborhood militias in northern Baghdad over the past two days. Militia commanders who have begun partnerships with American forces are increasingly becoming the targets of attacks. These “Awakening Councils” are groups of Iraqis who have renounced ties to insurgents and are now on the payroll of the American military.

Widespread violence continues in Kenya

President of Kenya Mwai Kibaki agreed to meet with top opposition leader Raila Odinga in an effort to quell the recent election-related violence in Kenya. More than 400 people have died in civil unrest after a disputed election that elected the incumbent president with an official 51.3 percent of the vote.

Marine Corps examining Afghan civilian deaths

The Marine Corps launched a rare tribunal Monday to publicly investigate disputed allegations that a special forces unit killed as many as 19 Afghan civilians after the military convoy was rammed by a car bomb. Witnesses said that Marines fired indiscriminately at pedestrians and peoples in cars, buses, and taxis. Military prosecutors declined to comment.

Foiling U.S. plan, prison expands in Afghanistan

The Bagram detention center in Afghanistan will remain at its current level of use despite U.S. plans to scale it down. The detention center was meant to be a temporary screening site after the U.S. invasion in 2001 but it now holds 630 prisoners. The prisoners were supposed to be transferred to a refurbished high-security detention center run by the Afghan military, but that new prison is only able to handle half of the prisoners for which it was intended.

Georgia’s president narrowly wins vote

Mikheil Saakashvili, president of Georgia, won re-election with 52.8 percent of the vote over the weekend. Opposition leaders are questioning the results of the election. Saakashvili’s re-election is good news for the White House, since Georgia is an important ally of the United States in the war in Iraq. Georgia currently contributes 2,000 troops, making it the third largest troop contributor.

Chief of U.N. nuclear agency to meet with Iran’s leaders

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), will be making a visit to Iran this week. ElBaradei will be meeting with Ayatollah Khomeini and President Ahmadinejad “with a view of resolving all remaining outstanding issues and enabling the agency to provide assurance about Iran’s past and present activities,” said Melissa Fleming, his spokeswoman.

Musharraf: “Bhutto to blame for her death”

The president of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, blames former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto for her own assassination. “For standing up outside the car, I think it was she to blame alone — nobody else. Responsibility is hers,” the former general told CBS’ “60 Minutes” on Sunday.

Taylor war crimes trial resumes

Former Liberian President Charles Taylor’s war crimes trial resumed Monday at the Hague. Taylor had boycotted the opening session for six months and called the trial a “charade.” He is accused of fueling a bloody civil war in Sierra Leone that led to widespread murder, rape and mutilation. Taylor has pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.

Kennedy takes 29 seconds to open, close Senate

Due to a standoff between the Senate and President Bush over recess appointments, Sen. Edward Kennedy took 29 seconds to open and close the Senate on Monday. Kennedy was the sole senator in the chamber when he opened the session after 9 a.m. E.S.T. Democrats are keeping the Senate in session to block Bush from making any recess appointments. This political maneuvering is made possible by the fact that only one Senator is needed to keep the Senate open. The next short session is scheduled for Wednesday.

Sources: The New York Times, The Associated Press, CNN.