Last month Fareed asked our panelists: Should the U.S. and other countries send representatives to the G-8 counter-summit? Now Gary Kasparov gives PostGlobal a wrap up of the Other Conference. Read him here:

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Three PostGlobal readers along with panelists Daoud Kuttab and Mahmoud Sabit discuss whether American diplomacy is dead. Join the debate here.

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America and Britain have split on human embryonic research. Stateside, George Bush used his first presidential veto to strike down legislation that would have expanded federally funded embryonic stem cell research. Meanwhile, English women may be offered cut-rate in-vitro fertilization treatment at a National Health Service-funded clinic if they turn over some of their eggs to science.

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Jerusalem, Israel - What if you lived in a tough neighborhood, where reason doesn't work, where your enemies fight dirty, won't let you live in peace, and laugh at the idea of concession? Imagine, if you possibly can, that some renegade group in Tijuana denied the legitimacy of California and fired missiles or sent suicide bombers into Los Angeles. Imagine that diplomatic pressures and the United Nations failed. What would you do?

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Lahore, Pakistan - The terror plot uncovered by the British police today shows the hallmarks of al Qaeda operations and suggests that the alienation of Muslim immigrants from Western societies continues to aid terrorist recruitment. The plot's timing was likely meant to protest U.S. and British support for Israel's bombing of Lebanon.

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In two op-eds this week, Richard Holbrooke and Newt Gingrich disagreed sharply over the appropriate balance of diplomacy and force in confronting today's global threats. With Iran and North Korea chasing nuclear weapons and transnational terror groups gaining support, is World War III near if the wrong choices are made? Join the debate.

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by Nayan Chanda

New Haven, USA - As long as oil and gas continue to fuel the global economy, no importer can enjoy prosperity with the Middle East in turmoil. This is particularly true for heavily oil-dependent China and India. The two countries may not display outward concern about the clash between Israel and Hezbollah, but they are acutely aware of the risks of a prolonged conflict.

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Panelists Saul Singer in Jerusalem and Michael Young in Beirut were online yesterday debating how to make lasting peace between Israel and Lebanon. Discussion focused on engaging Iran to stop transnational terrorism. See excerpts and join the debate.

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by Garrett Epps

The Chinese government, which already severely curtails free expression, is about to pass a law forbidding media in China from reporting "sudden events" such as industrial accidents, natural disasters or public health emergencies in any way that displeases local or national authorities. Americans may be tempted to dismiss the issue as simply a minor tweaking of a foreign authoritarian system, but this would be a grave mistake. All of us -- investors, workers and consumers -- have a stake in the Chinese media's fight for independence.

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Jerusalem, Israel - There is one and only one way to stop the next round of war on the Lebanese-Israeli border: To make the Army of Lebanon responsible for the security of all Lebanon and to instruct UNIFIL to give it a helping hand. [Plocker will be online throughout the day to respond to reader comments.]

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Amman, Jordan - With war zones flanking either side of its borders, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is again bearing a significant brunt of the region's turmoil.

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Over the past two weeks, PostGlobal readers imagined an array of post-war Lebanons. While reviewing hundreds of comments on whether Hezbollah would emerge stronger, we were struck that almost all readers said yes. Each, however, foresaw vastly different consequences of the organization's increased power.

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The International Crisis Group (ICG) released a new report today on Zimbabwe. To avoid a future outbreak of violence in the beleaguered nation, ICG called upon Zimbabwean citizens to stage coordinated, non-violent protests across the country, spread out far enough from one another that the security forces of longtime President Robert Mugabe don't crush them at once. This sounds risky. Could it work?

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I would like to add on to the PostGlobal debate on UN peacekeepers in Southern Lebanon. I'm afraid its prospects looks grim. The fundamental problem is that while the UN has recognized the importance eliminating the Hezbollah's armed military presence in southern Lebanon, it has no real way of enforcing that objective.

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Reducing hostility must be the policy of the U.S. The world community increasingly reviles America and this is counter-productive, in countless ways, to fighting and winning the so-called "war on terror." Alliances are frayed. Human intelligence assets, a key to victory, wither. The rare desire to help America among those with proximity to potential jihadists is replaced with a "look the other way" shrug, or tacit support.

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The Algerian government's six month offer of amnesty to domestic Islamist rebels, most of whom belong to the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), expired yesterday. But while the government scored a political victory, it did not eradicate terrorism. GSPC operatives are strong and increasingly support the global jihad.

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