By Jill Dougherty
Intent on punishing Iran for a brazen alleged plot to kill the Saudi ambassador on U.S. soil, the Obama administration is in diplomatic overdrive, urging countries around the world to cut whatever ties they still have with Tehran and "isolate" it from the international community.
"We will work with our international partners to increase Iran's isolation and the pressure on its government. And we call upon other nations to join us in condemning this threat to international peace and security," a steely Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday.
Soon after American authorities detailed the allegations and tied the plot to elements of Iran's military, the Treasury Department invoked new economic sanctions against top members of the Quds Force, the part of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that allegedly directed the assassination plot. Treasury says a top member of the Quds approved up to $5 million to pay for the plot.
The department followed that move Wednesday with an announcement that it was designating an Iranian airline company that it says transports weapons and funds for the Quds Force.
FULL POST
By CNN's Adam Levine
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will make the case Wednesday that U.S. foreign policy needs to shift from confronting danger to finding opportunities.
In a speech to be given in Washington, Clinton will argue that while over the last decade America has focused "by necessity on the places where we faced the greatest danger," it cannot define foreign policy.
"In the decade ahead, we need to focus just as intensely on the places where we have the greatest opportunities. This too must be a hallmark of our leadership," Clinton will say, according to excerpts of her speech released by the State Department.
The speech to the Center for American Progress focuses on America's global leadership. Clinton will emphasize greater reliance on coalitions.
"The test of our leadership going forward will be our ability to mobilize disparate people and nations to work together," Clinton will say. "Building a coalition and sharing the mission are hallmarks of smart and effective leadership." FULL POST
CNN's Nick Valencia and Tracy Sabo contributed to this report
To a friend of more than 20 years, Manssor Arbabsiar was a man who liked to be called "Jack" and didn't seem to have strong views on politics or religion.
To U.S. authorities, the 56-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen is a suspect in an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States.
"It was shocking because it didn't seem like he would be the type of person to do something like that," said Mitchel Hamauei, who said he met Arbabsiar through mutual Iranian friends.
"He was a happy go lucky guy, always joked around," Hamauei said. "He had a really happy demeanor."
Hamauei, who runs a gyro and kebab restaurant in Corpus Christi, Texas, said the two were close enough that he attended the graduation of Arbabsiar's son.
"I know his wife and his son. They're very down to earth people," Hamauei said. FULL POST
The trial of Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab started on Tuesday in Detroit. Even on day one, much was learned about the havoc in the plane as the suspect, now widely referred as the 'underwear bomber,' tried to light the explosives hidden in his pants. ( CNN's Deobrah Feyerick wraps the first day of the case.)
Day one of the testimony was not without its slightly humorous elements. The first witness described how AbdulMutallab's pants "resembled something I hadn't seen before."
"They were bulky, they reminded me of my son's Pull-Ups when he was little. I assume they looked like adult Pampers. I don't know what they were, but they were bulky and burning," said Michael Zantow, who was sitting a row behind AbdulMuttallab on the plane.
As for the question of what do you say when a fellow passenger's pants are ignited, the answer is a simple "hey dude, your pants are on fire." That's what passengers yelled out, according to Zantow.
CNN Senior Producer Laura Dolan is at the court and provided this breakdown of the jury hearing the case: FULL POST