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Al-Qaida breakaway formally declares establishment of Islamic state straddling Syria and Iraq
• BAGHDAD (AP) -- The al-Qaida breakaway group that has seized much of Syria and Iraq has formally declared the establishment of a new Islamic state, demanding allegiance from Muslims worldwide in a move that could further strain relations with other militant groups.
• With brutal efficiency, the Sunni extremist group has carved out a large chunk of territory that has effectively erased the border between Iraq and Syria and laid the foundations of its proto-state. But Sunday's declaration, made on the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, could trigger a wave of infighting among the Sunni militant factions that formed a loose alliance in the blitz across Iraq.
• The spokesman for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant declared the group's chief, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as the leader of the new caliphate, or Islamic state, and called on Muslims everywhere, not just those in areas under the organization's control, to swear loyalty to him.
• "The legality of all emirates, groups, states and organizations becomes null by the expansion of the caliph's authority and the arrival of its troops to their areas," said the spokesman, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, in an audio statement posted online. "Listen to your caliph and obey him. Support your state, which grows every day."
• Al-Adnani loosely defined the Islamic state's territory as running from northern Syria to the Iraqi province of Diyala northeast of Baghdad -- a vast stretch of land straddling the border that is already largely under the Islamic State's control. He also said that with the establishment of the caliphate, the group was changing its name to just the Islamic State, dropping the mention of Iraq and the Levant.
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North Korea says it is preparing to try 2 detained Americans for committing hostile acts
• TOKYO (AP) -- North Korea said Monday it is preparing to try two Americans who entered the country as tourists for carrying out what it says were hostile acts against the country. Though a small number of U.S. citizens visit North Korea each year as tourists, the State Department strongly advises against it.
• Investigations into Americans Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Edward Fowle (Continued on page 23)
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