Officials: Drone Downed in Iran on CIA Mission

Source: CBS News

(CBS/AP)

WASHINGTON - A drone that crashed inside Iran over the weekend was one of a fleet of stealth aircraft that have spied on Iran for years from a U.S. air base in Afghanistan, U.S. officials told the Associated Press.

They say the CIA stealth-version of the RQ-170 unmanned craft was also used to survey Osama bin Laden's compound before the May raid in Pakistan.

According to these officials, the U.S. has built up the air base in Shindad, Afghanistan, with an eye to keeping a long-term presence there to launch surveillance missions and even special operations missions into Iran if deemed necessary. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss classified information.

The officials say that while no specific mission into Iran has been authorized, the military has contingency plans for such clandestine missions.

more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57338265/officials-drone-downed-in-iran-on-cia-mission/

Pakistan President Zardari in Dubai for Treatment as Coup Rumours Intensify

Source: Guardian

Pakistan's embattled president, Asif Ali Zardari, has been hospitalised in Dubai with a heart condition, triggering speculation that it could be used as an excuse for him to step down amid growing pressure from the military.

A government adviser said Zardari had suffered a "minor heart attack", but this was at odds with the official spokesman for the president, who said the president had gone for routine tests for a pre-existing heart condition.

Rumours of a coup or a resignation forced by the military consumed the media and the internet, fuelled by a report in Foreign Policy magazine that said Zardari was "incoherent" on Monday night during a telephone conversation with Barack Obama.

Zardari's son and political heir-apparent, Bilawal, met prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in Islamabad, adding to media hysteria about imminent change. Bilawal is chairman of the ruling Pakistan Peoples party.

more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/07/pakistan-president-zadari-dubai-coup?newsfeed=true

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