The Pentagon is setting up a commodity-market style trading system in which investors would be able to bet on political and economic events in the Middle East, including the likelihood of assassination and terrorist attacks.

The Policy Analysis Market is intended to help the Pentagon predict events in the region based on investors' information or analysis.

The programme works much like the financial markets. Traders buy and sell "futures" based on the possibility of a specific event in the Middle East. Bidders would profit if the events for which they hold futures occur.

A graphic on the market's web page showed hypothetical futures contracts in which investors could trade on the likelihood that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat would be assassinated or Jordanian King Abdullah II would be overthrown.

Although the website described the Policy Analysis Market as "a market in the future of the Middle East," the graphic also included the possibility of a North Korean missile attack.

This graphic was apparently removed from the website hours after the news conference by Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota criticizing the market.

The project has angered many and some Democratic senators described it as offensive, calling for it to be stopped before investors begin registering this week. (With AP inputs)



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