To the Point

Chechnya

For more than 200 years, Chechnya has struggled to be free of Russia, battling first the czars, then being deported as an entire population under Stalin, before returning under Kruschev. For most of the past ten years, Chechnya has been at war with Moscow again in a battle for independence. On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin-s attempts to declare the war over were blown sky-high when a bomb killed the president he had hand-picked to rule in Chechnya. Who will fill the void? How will Russia retaliate? Will separatists step up their campaign for freedom? Will Russian and Chechen civilians ever tire of the war? Guest host Sara Terry leads an informative discussion among journalists in Moscow, a Russian independent defense analyst, and advisors the president of the Eurasia Foundation and to former Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Making News: Fighting the Muqtada Sadr Militia US soldiers battled with fighters loyal to radical Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in Karbala today, killing as many as 25 men. In his first meeting with reporters since his militia launched attacks against coalition forces in April, al-Sadr compared the insurgency to the war in Vietnam. Reporter Patrick McDonnell is following developments in Najaf for the Los Angeles Times. Reporter's Notebook: What's Next for General Taguba? Major General Antonio Taguba has had more than his 15 minutes of fame over the past two weeks, culminating in his televised testimony yesterday before the Senate Armed Services Committee about his investigation into abuses of Iraqi detainees by US soldiers at Abu Graib prison. David von Drehle, staff writer on the national desk at the Washington Post, looks at what-s next for the by-the-book soldier.