"Underwear Bomber" Pleads Guilty

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the alleged ‘Underwear Bomber,’ pleaded guilty to attempting to blow up a Detroit-bound international flight on Christmas Day 2009.  

The Nigerian man told a Detroit courtroom that the bomb was a “blessed weapon to save the lives of innocent Muslims.” 

The guilty plea comes on the second day of his trial. Abdulmatallab was standing trial on eight different charges, including conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism, attemped use of weapons of mass destruction and attempted murder. 

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Deal Reached To Free Israeli Prisoner For Hundreds Of Palestinians

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called an urgent cabinet meeting Tuesday evening to approve an agreement reached with Hamas to release kidnapped soldier Sgt. Gilad Schalit.

“If all goes well, Gilad will return to Israel in the coming days, to his family and people,” Netanyahu told reporters, according to the Washington Post.

The deal between Israel and Hamas, which is being mediated by Egypt, may involve the release of 450 specific Palestinian prisoners and up to 550 more.  

On Hamas’ official website, they called on supporters to gather and celebrate the “victory and the expected release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.”

Schalit, 25, was captured by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid on June 25, 2006. 

Report: Thousands Of Weapons Missing In Libya

ABC News reports this morning that as many as 20,000 surface-to-air missiles have gone missing in Libya, where a political revolution and a NATO-led military campaign against former ruler Moammar Gaffafi has engulfed the tiny North African nation in chaos for months.

According to the new report, “an estimated 20,000 portable, heat-seeking missiles have gone missing from unguarded Army weapons warehouses.”

The story notes the very real possibility that many of the weapons could end up in the hands of terrorist groups like al-Qaeda, which maintains a presence in Libya.

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Obama Congratulates New Japanese Prime Minister

President Barack Obama congratulated Yoshihiko Noda, Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister, Tuesday.

“The relationship between the United States and Japan is based on common interests and common values, and I look forward to working with Prime Minister Noda to tackle the broad range of economic and security issues that require our attention,” Obama said in a statement.

Noda, a member of the Democratic Party of Japan, assumes his leadership role shortly after Naoto Kan resigned in the face of mounting popularity. 

Ahmadinejad Calls Holocaust A "Big Lie"

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that the Holocaust was a “big lie” used to justify the establishment of Israel. 

In a speech following an anti-Israel rally in Tehran, Ahmadinejad said “the Zionist regime’s establishment was based on numerous deceptions and lies and one of the biggest lies was the Holocaust.”

The Iranian president spoke to a reported millions of people who gathered to voice their support for Palestinians and liberation from “Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.”

Just two days ago, Ahmadinejad called for the eradication of Israel, saying Iran would “never ever withdraw from this standpoint and policy.”

Ahmadinejad’s words caused Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) to urge the administration to impose sanctions on the Iranian leader, similar to those already imposed on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Libyan strongman Moammar Gaddafi. 

“The administration has directly sanctioned Assad and Gaddafi, but the top thugs in Tehran remain untouched,” Ros-Lehtinen said in a statement. “It is long past time for Washington and other responsible nations to directly sanction Ahmadinejad and the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ for the growing threat they pose to the United States, to all free nations, and to the Iranian people. And as Ahmadinejad seeks another propaganda blitz at the UN next month, the U.S. must unequivocally deny him access to U.S. soil.”