As NATO announced the official end of its mission in Libya and the transitional government named a new prime minister, speculation surrounding the applicability of this model elsewhere in the region continued, even as NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen announced Monday that "NATO has no intention whatsoever to intervene in Syria." Government scandals and shakeups rocked Iraq and Iran, while Palestine's membership to UNESCO sparked a firestorm in Washington. And U.S. counterterrorism officials have set their sights on the top bomb maker of al Qaeda's Yemeni branch as violence continues to spread throughout the country.  What should the U.S. responses to these disparate challenges have in common? They should be viewed through the prism of U.S. national interests, not ideological and political distractions.

Libya

Libya's transitional government picked Abdurrahim el Keib, an engineering professor and longtime exile, as its acting prime minister. el Keib is an electrical engineer who has held teaching posts at the University of Alabama and Abu Dhabi's Petroleum Institute. Meanwhile, concern is growing about the country's ability to consolidate more than 300 militias into a national army, and NATO announced the end of its mission there.

News
Libya Taps Engineer Who Lived in U.S. for Decades as Interim Leader
CNN, 11/1/11

Libya Struggles to Create Army Out of Militias
Washington Post, 10/31/11

NATO Ends Victorious Libya Campaign
TIME, 10/31/11

Commentary and Analysis
NATO's Success in Libya
Ivo Daalder and Adm. James Stavridis, International Herald Tribune, 10/30/11

What the Libya Intervention Achieved
Marc Lynch, Foreign Policy, 10/27/11

Syria

Syria's foreign minister has reportedly agreed to portions of an Arab League plan aimed at ending eight months of violent crackdown. This comes amid accusations by the Lebanese police that Syrian dissidents who fled to Lebanon are being kidnapped and taken back to Syria. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, meanwhile, announced on Monday that "NATO has no intention whatsoever to intervene in Syria."

News
Diplomats: Syria Agrees to Parts of Plan to End Crackdown
Voice of America, 11/1/11

After Libya, Syria Warns World Powers to Stay Away
New York Times, 10/31/11

Syria Accused of Kidnapping 4 in Lebanon
New York Times, 10/31/11

AP Exclusive: New Signs of Syria-Pakistan Nuke Tie
AP, 11/1/11

Commentary and Analysis
Syria: Delaying the Inevitable
The Guardian, 10/31/11

Iraq

The government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki has responded to an alleged coup plot by arresting and firing many former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party. The roundup - which came after a tip from Libya's transitional government - has aroused suspicion that Maliki is trying to shore up his position as the country's leader by eliminating rivals. In other news, Iraq's oil markets have finally begun to ramp up after languishing at relatively low levels during most of the post-invasion period.

News
Iraq Arrests More in Wake of Tip About Coup
New York Times, 10/31/11

Roundup of Saddam Loyalists Stokes Sectarian Fears
NPR, 10/31/11

Iraq Oil Starting to Come on Strong
CNN, 10/31/11

Commentary and Analysis
War By Other Means
Fred Kaplan, Slate, 10/24/11

A Complicated Close for U.S. in Iraq
John Burns, New York Times, 10/31/11

Iran

The government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in the midst of an expanding fraud and corruption scandal.  Although his finance minister survived an impeachment vote, Ahmadinejad may become the first Iranian president to be brought before parliament for questioning. This comes amid a fierce domestic battle with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, who recently suggested that the office of the presidency should no longer be popularly elected.  Externally, Iranian and U.S. officials are quietly discussing the Syrian crisis and participating together in a conference on a political peace plan for Afghanistan.

News
Iran Economy Minister Survives Impeachment Vote Over Banking Scandal
AP, 11/01/11

Iran's Power Struggle Goes Beyond Personalities to Future of Presidency Itself
New York Times, 10/26/11

U.S. and Iran Discuss Syrian Crisis in Back-Channel Diplomacy: Report
Al Arabiya, 10/31/11

Commentary and Analysis
Why Contain Iran When Its Own Aims Will Do Just That?
Vali Nasr, Bloomberg, 11/1/11

To Deal with Iran's Nuclear Future, Go Back to 2008
Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post, 10/26/11

Yemen

U.S. counterterrorism officials have set their sights on the top bomb maker of al Qaeda's Yemeni branch, whom the officials have tied to three would-be attacks on Americans. A large explosion rocked an air base outside the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, prompting authorities to shut the city's nearby airport. That attack follows an incident earlier this week when four people, including three children, were killed when troops loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh shelled a petrol station in a region north of the capital.

News
U.S. Targets Bomb Maker in Yemen for Terror Ties
Wall Street Journal, 11/1/11

Explosions Rock Yemeni Airbase
Al Jazeera, 10/31/11

Five Killed by Yemen Pro-Government Forces
Reuters, 10/30/11

Commentary and Analysis
Yemen After Saleh's Return and Awlaki's Exit
Christopher Boucek, Carnegie Endowment, 10/27/11

As Yemen Crisis Grows, South Separatists See Opportunity
Erika Solomon, Reuters, 10/26/11

Palestine

The vote by UNESCO to accept Palestine as a full member raised already-heightened tensions within the UN about the Palestinian membership bid, which  is expected to come before the General Assembly later this month. The decision will cause UNESCO to lose 22% of its annual funding, due to U.S. legislation that prohibits the U.S. from funding UN agencies where Palestine has a vote. Back in Gaza, the Israeli military has halted a planned expansion into the Gaza Strip to allow time for the Egyptian government to persuade Hamas to stop firing rockets into southern Israel. 

News
UNESCO Accepts Palestinians as Full Members
New York Times, 10/31/11

US Cuts UNESCO Funding Over Palestinian Seat
BBC, 10/31/11

Egypt: Israel Delaying Expanding Gaza Offensive
AP, 11/01/11

Commentary and Analysis
UNESCO Votes To Admit Palestine. What's Next?
Timothy Wirth, UN Dispatch, 10/31/11

Around the Region

Commentary and Analysis
Islamists' Victory in Tunisia a Win for Democracy
Noah Feldman, Bloomberg, 10/30/11

The Arab Intellectuals Who Didn't Roar
Robert Worth, New York Times, 10/29/11