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(Reuters) - In September, two months after China's state-owned CNOOC Ltd made an unexpected $15.1 billion bid for Canadian energy company Nexen Inc, Canada's spy agency told ministers that takeovers by Chinese companies may threaten national security.

The rare warning from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which was disclosed to Reuters by intelligence sources, did not stop the takeover. That was approved by Canadian authorities earlier this month.

But the intervention and an influential U.S. lawmaker's warning in October that Canadian companies should be careful about doing business with Chinese telecom equipment companies Huawei Technologies Co and ZTE Corp made the approval process for the deal more difficult than initially expected.

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My Comment: A disclaimer .... I am a Canadian citizen and I have assisted Chinese companies in acquiring companies in Eastern Europe (i.e. one of my day jobs) in the past.

Nexen is not a big player in the Canadian oil scene .... and this was an excellent deal to shareholders who saw a significant return on their investment. Having said that .... it was a Chinese state company that took over this oil company, and China (to put it bluntly) is not a 'friend' to Canada. They have conducted numerous cyber attacks against Canadian government sites .... one can only speculate on how extensive their espionage efforts are ... and their lousy human rights record has raised many a concern in Canada. Not surprisingly .... this deal has resulted in changes to Canada`s rules and regulations on foreign takeovers of Canadian business interests. In short .... to address these security concerns there is now going to be no future Nexen deals for China in Canada.

As to what is my own personal opinion on these developments .... I have been telling my Chinese associates for years that this was going to ultimately happen .... but they never listened. Fortunately .... I know that they are listening now because what happened in Canada will probably snowball into other countries (Australia, South American countries, some African nations) to do the same. But will they ultimately change their behavior .... probably not.

Nebraska Republican’s Pentagon nomination appears to be failing because of his blunt advocacy of unpopular positions.

Besieged by criticism from right and left, and considerable skepticism from his former Senate colleagues, Chuck Hagel appears to be following the path of Susan Rice as a trial-balloon nominee who finds himself quickly losing altitude in Washington. And as happened with Rice, the White House is now signaling that it may soon puncture Hagel's hopes.

Just as occurred with Rice, the U.N. ambassador whose prospective nomination as secretary of State—leaked to the media—flamed out in the face of widespread criticism of her, President Obama appears to be rethinking his choice for Defense secretary.

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My Comment: As I had mentioned in a post two days ago .... his past anti-gay remarks were the coup-de-grace to his nomination.

HONG KONG — The nomination of Senator John Kerry as the new U.S. secretary of state has been warmly received by China, but the state-run news media on the mainland has sharply attacked the passage of a new military spending bill that is awaiting President Obama’s signature.

Two amendments to the $633 billion bill have drawn particular scorn from Beijing, which has unleashed a series of scathing articles and editorials in the state-run news media.

One provision in the bill says “the United States takes no position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku islands,” but endorses Japan’s administration of the fiercely disputed islands.

A commentary by Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, called the amendment “a gross violation of China’s sovereign rights.”

The uninhabited islets, located in the East China Sea, are known in China as the Diaoyu islands. They are claimed by China, Japan and Taiwan, all of whom have conducted provocative naval patrols around the islands.

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My Comment: For an explanation on why American planners view these islands as critical for defense .... read here.

A soldier sets out to graduate at the top of his class. He succeeds, and he becomes a drone pilot working with a special unit of the United States Air Force in New Mexico. He kills dozens of people. But then, one day, he realizes that he can't do it anymore.

For more than five years, Brandon Bryant worked in an oblong, windowless container about the size of a trailer, where the air-conditioning was kept at 17 degrees Celsius (63 degrees Fahrenheit) and, for security reasons, the door couldn't be opened. Bryant and his coworkers sat in front of 14 computer monitors and four keyboards. When Bryant pressed a button in New Mexico, someone died on the other side of the world.

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WNU Editor: The other two parts of this series are the following ...

Part 2: An Unpopular Job 
Part 3: No Room for the Evils of the World

Thousands demonstrate in cities of Ramadi and Falluja against what they call sectarian policies of PM Nouri al-Maliki.

Tens of thousands of people have staged protests in western Iraq, blocking a highway leading to Syria and Jordan, against what they have termed the "sectarian" policies of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The protesters, including local officials, religious and tribal leaders, turned out on Sunday to demonstrate against the arrest of nine guards of Finance Minister Rafa al-Essawi.

Their arrest on terrorism charges has sparked a call from Essawi for Maliki to quit or be removed.

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Sunni demonstrators challenge Iraq’s Shiite-led government, denounce bodyguards’ arrest -- Washington Post/AP
Protest against Iraq PM blocks highway to Syria -- AFP
Arrest of a Sunni Minister’s Bodyguards Prompts Protests in Iraq -- New York Times
Report: Bodyguards for Iraqi finance minister arrested -- CNN
Protestors in Iraq block highway, call for PM to step down -- Al Bawaba
Iraq in 2012 scrambles for hope amid political spats, violence -- Al Arabiya

The lawyer for the family of a man whose British citizenship was revoked over allegations of extremism has questioned how he came to appear before a US court.

Mahdi Hashi, 23, of Camden, was stripped of his citizenship in the summer when he went missing in Africa.

He appeared in a New York court on Friday charged with "providing material support" to terrorist group Al Shabaab.

Solicitor Saghir Hussain said the case has "hallmarks of rendition".

The Home Office has refused to comment on the issue saying it was a matter of national security.

Mr Hashi was born in Somalia and moved to London with his family at the age of five. Three years ago he returned to Somalia and got married.

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Missing Briton 'kidnapped' by FBI and facing life in prison: Family stunned as man stripped of his UK passport appears in New York court -- Daily Mail
Three Men Appear in Court in Mysterious Terror Case -- New York Times
Three charged for support of al Shabaab terrorist organization -- Examiner
Missing British-Somali man reappears in New York court -- Bureau of Investigative Journalism

My Comment: I guess we will have to wait for the trial to get more information.

Christianity faces being wiped out of the “biblical heartlands” in the Middle East because of mounting persecution of worshippers, according to a new report.


The study warns that Christians suffer greater hostility across the world than any other religious group.

And it claims politicians have been “blind” to the extent of violence faced by Christians in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

The most common threat to Christians abroad is militant Islam, it says, claiming that oppression in Muslim countries is often ignored because of a fear that criticism will be seen as “racism”.

It warns that converts from Islam face being killed in Saudi Arabia, Mauritania and Iran and risk severe legal penalties in other countries across the Middle East.

The report, by the think tank Civitas, says: “It is generally accepted that many faith-based groups face discrimination or persecution to some degree.

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My Comment: I have remarked on more than one occasion that this is one of the most under-reported stories of the past few years.