According to the Washington Post, President Barack Obama is dispatching an additional 13,000 US troops to Afghanistan beyond the 21,000 announced back in March. The latest surge has not been announced by Obama, and the additional troops primarily consist of support forces including engineers, medical personnel, military police, and intelligence experts.

With the unannounced 13,000, that will bring the increase that Obama has approved to send to Afghanistan to 34,000. It comes at the same time Obama is considering a request from General Stanley McChrystal, a top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, for more combat, training and support troops. There are several options to weigh, including one for 40,000 additional forces.

An unnamed defense official told the paper, "Obama authorized the whole thing. The only thing you saw announced in a press release was the 21,000."

The paper did note, however, that the maximum number of US service members expected in the war-torn country by year's end - 68,000 - would remain the same.

President Barack Obama was awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. Nobel observers were shocked by the unexpected choice, especially with it being so early in his presidency, which began just tow weeks before the February 1 nomination deadline.

According to White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, Obama woke up to the news a little before 6:00am ET. The administration was taken by surprise with the announcement, and thus far has made no immediate comment on it.

When informed of the decision this morning, one aide queried: "It's not April 1, is it?"

Obama was not informed that he won the award prior to the announcement out of Oslo this morning. The Norwegian Nobel Committee decided not to inform him because they did not want to wake him up. Committee chairman Thorbjoer Jagland said: "Waking up a president in the middle of the night, this isn't really something you do."

The committee applauded the change in the global mood shaped by Obama's calls for peace and cooperation. However, they also recognized several Obama initiatives that have yet to bear any fruit, including easing American conflicts with Muslim nations, reducing the world stock of nuclear arms, and strengthening the U.S. role in fighting climate change.

Jagland added:

Cindy Sheehan, an American anti-war activist whose son was killed during his service in the Iraq War, will be coming to Cleveland to speak next month. Sheehan will speak about "The Future of Anti-War and Peace Movements" on Thursday, July 9, 2009 from 7:00 to 9:00pm at St. Colman's Parish Hall*.

The event is free and open to the public. Special musical guest Charlie Mosbrook will also be in attendance, and donations are always welcome.

Sheehan's son was killed in Iraq on April 4, 2004. She attracted both national and international media attention in August 2005 for her extended anti-war protest at a makeshift camp outside then-President George W. Bush's Texas ranch. This protest drew both passionate support, as well as angry criticism.

You definitely won't want to miss Sheehan's visit to Cleveland next month. For more information, please call Cleveland Peace Action at 216-736-4716.

On Friday, Iranian state media declared current President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner of their presidential election. However, his challenger, Mihossein Mousavi is now claiming irregularities and is claiming victory as well.

According to the head of the state election commission, Ahmadinejad was leading Mousavi by 69 percent to 28 percent with just 19 percent of ballots counted.

Attempting to pre-empt any official announcements, Mousavi had earlier called a news conference during which he claimed that there had been irregularities, including a shortage of ballot papers. He declared:

"I am the definite winner of this presidential election."

Mousavi said that many people were not able to cast their ballots, even after voting had been extended by four hours.

At the news conference, Mousavi also said:

"(We) are waiting for the counting of votes to officially end and explanations of these irregularities be given. We expect to celebrate with people soon."

"We hope that authorities in charge do their work in this regard with the wisdom of the supreme leader this issue would end in a good way."

Under Iranian rules, if neither candidate can secure 50 percent of the votes, a run-off will be held on June 19 between the two front-runners.

President Barack Obama began a goodwill tour of the Muslim world, visiting King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. At the same time, a new audiotape surfaced from Osama bin Laden with new threats to the U.S.

In the recording, Bin Laden said that Obama inflamed Muslim hatred towards the U.S. by ordering Pakistan to crack down on militants in Swat Valley and block Islamic law in the area. He also claimed that U.S. pressure led to a campaign of "killing, fighting, bombing and destruction" which prompted the exodus of a million Muslims in Swat Valley.

Osama's message was first broadcast on Wednesday on the Al-Jazeera Television network at almost the exact moment Obama touched down in Saudi Arabia.

Just one day earlier, Al Qaeda's #2 man dismissed Obama's trip aimed at repairing U.S. relations with the Muslim world, insisting that the overture is trumped by wars against Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In an audio message posted online, Ayman al-Zawahiri said:

"His bloody messages were received and are still being received by Muslims, and they will not be concealed by public relations campaigns or by farcical visits or elegant words."

It is 2009 and the French and English are still on each others nerves. The latest squabble is do to the fact that Queen Elizabeth was not invited to the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy. The New York Times writes:

Queen Elizabeth is not amused.

Indeed, she is decidedly displeased, angry even, that she was not invited to join President Obama and France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy, next week at commemorations of the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, according to reports published in Britain’s mass-circulation tabloid newspapers on Wednesday. Pointedly, Buckingham Palace did not deny the reports.

The queen, who is 83, is the only living head of state who served in uniform during World War II. As Elizabeth Windsor, service number 230873, she volunteered as a subaltern in the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service, training as a driver and a mechanic. Eventually, she drove military trucks in support roles in England.

The celebration will be held on June 6th and French President Sarkozy stated:

On Tuesday former vice president Dick Cheney said that he would back former Florida governor Jeb Bush if he decided to run for president in 2012. In an interview with Fox News' Neil Cavuto, Cheney said:

“I like Jeb. I think he's a good man. I'd like to see him continue to stay involved politically. I'd probably support him for president.”

Cheney insisted, however, that he's "not in the business of endorsing anybody at this point", but did note that he's "a big fan of Jeb's."

As for Jeb's older brother, former president George W. Bush, Cheney said that they had not spoken in awhile:

“He and I have had a number of conversations on the telephone since Jan. 20. [But], It has been a couple of weeks.”

Cheney has recently become one of President Barack Obama's harshest critics, stating that his administration has made the country less safe in dismantling Bush-era national security policies. On Tuesday he also hit back at the Obama administration for considering prosecuting Bush administration attorneys that provided the legal backing for CIA interrogations at the Guantanamo Bay military prison and other detention centers around the world:

On Monday House Democratic leaders dropped President Obama's request for $81 million to fund the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, giving into Republican criticism that the administration lacks a plan to relocate terror suspects being detained there. Obama had requested the money as part of a spending bill for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Democratic appropriators, however, left it out of the bill being circulated Monday amongst House Appropriations Committee staff.

The GOP has been strongly critizing Obama for rushing to keep a campaign promise to close the prison camp in Cuba without having a plan for what to dow ith the 240 terrorism suspects that are currently being held on the island.

Lawmakers from both parties are oppoosed to bringing the prisoners to their states, and a number of foreign countries are also opposed to taking the prisoners. The White House has yet to announce where it intends to move detainees once the prison camp is closed, which has been the major issue of contention for many.

According to the New York Post, a senior administration official has revealed that President Barack Obama had directed his administration to permit unlimited travel and money transfers by Cuban Americans to family in Cuba. The official announcement is scheduled to come later Monday at the White House, and the official spoke on condition of anonymity as not to update the President's own announcement.

The source says that the changes are intended to help create new space for the Cuban people in their quest to gain political freedom and a democratic government, and owuld make them less dependent on the Castro family regime.

Obama will also permit gift parcells to be sent to Cuba, and will allow the issuing of licenses to increases communications among and to the Cuban people.

Unfortunately, travel restrictions remain in place for the rest of the non-Cuban-American population of the United States.

Upon returning home from his 8-day tour of Europe and the Middle East, President Barack Obama has been greeted with some pretty harsh criticism over photographs and video footage which show him bowing to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia during the G20 Summit. While the mainstream media has largely ignored this major political gaffe, it has not gone unnoticed.

The Washington Times called the bow a "shocking display of fealty to a foreign potentate", which runs contrary to a long-held American tradition of not deferring to royalty.

The Times continued:

"By bending over to show greater respect to Islam, the US president belittled the power and independence of the United States. Such an act is a traditional obeisance befitting a king's subjects, not his peer. There is no precedent for U.S. presidents bowing to Saudi or any other royals."

One can't help but wonder why Obama did not bow to Queen Elizabeth when meeting with her in England, but saw it befitting to show reverence to the royal head of a Muslim nation that is the home of 15 of the 19 September 11th terrorists.

The Weekly Standard reiterated the tradition, stating:

"American presidents do not bow before foreign dignitaries, whether they are princes, kings, or emperors."