PRINCETON -- U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus warned Saturday that U.S. forces in Afghanistan will face increased casualties as the current military initiative there continues. But he predicted that the buildup of troop levels, combined with diplomatic and non-military assistance, can overcome the Taliban.

Gen. Petraeus, addressing an Alumni Day audience at the university, said the challenges faced by the U.S. are well served by the caliber of leaders turned out by Princeton.  Petraeus, who oversees the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as commander of the U.S. Central Command, was presented with the James Madison Medal, the University's top honor for graduate alumni. The general earned his master's in public affairs and a Ph.D. from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1985 and 1987.

"This wonderful university does a superb job of equipping its graduates with the skills, knowledge and attributes needed in those who may someday in the future exercise strategic leadership," he said to an audience of Princeton alumni and their families, students, faculty and administrators. "We face numerous challenges at home and abroad as we embark on a new decade and -- whether here in the United States, or in Afghanistan or Iraq -- we need strategic leaders who can work with partners to help chart the proper course."

National Endowment for the Humanities Chair Former U.S. Rep. Jim Leach, who now chairs the National Endowment for the Humanities, was also honored, receiving the Woodrow Wilson Award, the highest honor for undergraduate alumni.

Rep. Leach, who earned his A.B. in politics with honors from Princeton in 1964, stressed the value of civility in public discourse.

Misbah, Princeton’s first magazine dedicated to exploring Muslim issues, was officially launched at a release party last night in Frist Campus Center 309.

The new student publication aims to be a “conversation in print,” editor-in-chief Babur Khwaja ’09 said. The magazine includes art, photography and translated poetry as well as commentary on current social and cultural issues, in an attempt to present a “holistic picture of [Muslim] civilizations,” Khwaja explained.

The idea for the magazine came in January to Khwaja, a former member of The Daily Princetonian Editorial Board. He said he frequently discussed Muslim political issues with friends and felt he could put together a magazine to present broader intellectual discussion.

“A lot of things out there are political,” Khwaja said. “We’re trying to look at the civilization here in a broader context.”

Fethi Mubin Ramazanoglu GS, a contributor to the magazine, agreed that people “can watch the news, but [with] Princeton people writing ... [It’s a] closer perspective.”

The goal of the magazine, executive editor Joy Karugu ’09 said, is to present the history of Islam and the manner in which Islamic culture has “crisscrossed” with other cultures. The “only standard” for the magazine, Karugu added, is “reasoned argumentation.” Karugu is also a member of the ‘Prince’ Editorial Board.

Karugu said the magazine has no agenda and aims to be as diverse as possible. To foster this diversity, the editors said they hope to publish contributions from Muslim and non-Muslim communities on campus as well as occasional contributions from others not affiliated with the University. Ramazanoglu pointed out that he will probably disagree with some things that are published, and people will probably disagree with some of his pieces.

Senior editor Wasim Shiliwala ’09 said the magazine hopes to encourage submissions from the Near Eastern studies department and the religion department. “[Misbah] is not limited to a Muslim audience,” he said.

Karugu explained that though many of the editors and writers are involved with the Muslim Students Association — Shiliwala, for example, is the organization’s president — the magazine is an independent student group.

Shiliwala said he thought the magazine’s “very intellectual approach” will make it “an important contribution to ongoing discourse on campus.”

Many of the contributors to the magazine’s first issue are graduate students. Khwaja attributed this to their “experience,” citing an article written by a graduate student on scientific developments in the Islamic community and the trend of declining scientific innovation in the Muslim world.

Nabil Abdurehman ’11 said he hopes that his writing for the magazine will “promote awareness of Muslim life on campus.”

The Muslim community on campus has grown and become more active in recent years, and the magazine is a reflection of that increased activity, Ramazanoglu said.

Several students not associated with the magazine praised the initiative behind the new publication.

“It’s always good to see [students] doing things of this kind,” said Ilhan Sezer GS, who attended the launch party.

One of the main goals, Karugu said, is to establish Misbah as a fixture on campus in the years to come. The editors also said they hope to involve a broader academic community in the dialogue, Khwaja said, adding that students at Dartmouth have expressed interest in starting a similar publication on their campus. Similar magazines already exist at UCLA, Harvard and MIT.

The magazine received initial funding from the Office of the Dean of Religious Life, the Lewis Center for the Arts, the Center for Human Values Undergraduate Forum, the Council of the Humanities, and the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies.

“The fact that the magazine has received such support has been amazing,” Karugu said. “People are so supportive on this campus of new initiatives.”