Today's Headlines and Commentary

Yesterday, President Barack Obama sent a draft Authorization for the Use of Military Force for ISIS to Congress. The New York Times describes the proposal as an attempt to let Congress limit the activities of the commander-in-chief while at the same time building himself (or his successor) an escape hatch if the limits become too restrictive. DefenseOne explains that the document would place very few constraints on the President’s power in the conflict, which has already raised some hackles in Congress. Politico concurs, explaining that both sides have denounced the proposal for various reasons. Reuters shares that contenders for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination have been especially strong in their criticism while shying away from providing an alternative to the President’s proposal.  Additional commentary and coverage, both favorable and unfavorable, can be found in the Times (both here and here), in the Wall Street Journal, in the Daily Beast, and of course, here at Lawfare.   On the ground in the conflict with ISIS, Agence France-Presse reports that, according to Iraq’s defense minister, Jordan has offered Iraq all military means at its disposal to combat ISIS. Ongoing instability in Yemen has forced the CIA to decrease its counterterrorism presence there, the Washington Post shares. The reduction poses significant challenges to the administration’s campaign against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in the country. Already, Reuters reports that Al Qaeda fighters have seized a Yemeni army base in the southern part of the country, just a little after the United Nations issued a warning that the country was edging precipitously close to civil war. The Post also reveals that one of the orchestrators of the current chaos in Yemen appears to be Ali Abdullah Saleh, who served as the country’s president for over 30 years before being ousted by an uprising in 2012. Some Yemenis claim that Saleh helped lead the insurgency that forced his replacement from office in January. After a marathon session of negotiations between the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany, the countries reached a ceasefire deal that will go into effect Sunday between Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists, according to the Guardian. The main points of the agreement included the removal of heavy weapons from battlefields, the withdrawal of all foreign forces, and political decentralization for the rebel-held regions. The deal came as the International Monetary Fund announced a $17.5 billion four-year bailout plan to stabilize the Ukrainian economy. However, all the leaders expressed caution and maintained that the parties were still a long way from peace. Reuters reports that, following the announcement, Ukraine accused Russia of sending more heavy weapons into the rebel-held region, further jeopardizing any chances for peace. If true, this would reinforce what Andrew Higgins of the Times says: Russian President Vladimir Putin has the upper hand in negotiations because he is willing to deploy a military option, something European leaders are loath to do. And, even if the Obama administration opts to supply arms, it may take months for the weapons to actually reach Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal notes. Elsewhere in Europe, leaders of the European Union will meet today in Belgium to discuss taking a variety of anti-terror measures, the Associated Press reports. The expected agenda items include sharing airline passenger information, increasing border security, and fighting jihadist propaganda on the internet. The meeting comes as Europe continues to feel rattled by the threat of further terrorist attacks. Just yesterday in Belgium, a court ruled that "Sharia4Belgium," which has funneled several of its members into Syria to join jihadist groups, is itself terrorist organization---and sentenced its leader to 12 years in prison. The Wall Street Journal has more. The AP reports that, according to the Israeli military, a boat from the Sinai Peninsula headed for Gaza loaded with material for weapons was intercepted by the Israeli navy in January. Three suspects were charged with smuggling last week. The former head of the UN inquiry into the war in Gaza in 2014 received death threats before being resigning his position, the Times reveals. William Schabas was accused of pro-Palestinian bias immediately following his acceptance of the position and received threatening letters and emails from countries including the United States and Canada. A bipartisan group of senators has filed an amicus brief supporting an ACLU and New York Times lawsuit seeking the release of memos detailing U.S. drone operations, Politico notes. The group, including presidential hopeful Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), derides the memos by the Department of Justice as an unconstitutional body of secret law. Revelations that a translator for a defendant in the 9/11 case worked in a CIA secret prison has stalled the case, the Miami Herald reports. The defense team has asked the judge to halt the proceedings while investigating the situation and perhaps conducting background checks on other members of the defense team. Parting Shot: "The last line of Obama’s military force request briefly mentions possibility of 25-year quagmire," with an option for a future president to extend the authorization by one or more generations, reports the Onion.

ICYMI: Yesterday, on Lawfare

Ben shared a Washington Post op-ed by Jack and former Rep. Jane Harman on closing Guantanamo and noted that doing so could help break the current stalemate over how to handle detention. Yishai Schwartz and Jennifer Williams inaugurated the “Middle East Ticker” feature, which will round up relevant news stories from the Middle East and North Africa. Cody posted the AUMF sent to Congress by the Obama administration yesterday and Ben gave us his notes on reading it. Wells updated us on pretrial proceedings in the 9/11 case. Prior to the AUMF’s release, Ben wondered if President Obama would renege on his commitment to repeal the 2001 AUMF. Email the Roundup Team noteworthy law and security-related articles to include, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook for additional commentary on these issues. Sign up to receive Lawfare in your inbox. Visit our Events Calendar to learn about upcoming national security events, and check out relevant job openings on our Job Board.