News Archive - 15 March 2011

March 15, 2011 10:44:00 PM By Lin Noueihed and Frederik Richter MANAMA, March 15 (Reuters) - Bahrain's king declared martial law on Tuesday as his government struggled to quell an uprising by the island's Shi'ite Muslim majority that has drawn in troops from fellow Sunni-ruled neighbour Saudi Arabia. An...

>Protesters threw petrol bombs at police who advanced in thick lines from the Bahrain Financial Harbour, the main financial district of the capital Manama, firing dozens of rounds of teargas.Helicopters buzzed overhead as youths ran toward police in waves and scattered when new rounds of teargas hit.The security...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States told Saudi Arabia that military force is not the answer to unrest in Bahrain, a day after the conservative kingdom sent 1,000 of its soldiers to the its fellow Sunni-ruled neighbor. Washington dispatched a top diplomat to the Gulf Arab state to try to...

>MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain declared martial law on Tuesday as it struggles to quell an uprising by the island's Shi'ite Muslim majority that has drawn in troops from fellow Sunni-ruled neighbour Saudi Arabia. The three-month state of emergency will hand wholesale power to Bahrain's security forces, which are dominated by...

>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli naval commandos on Tuesday seized a cargo ship in the Mediterranean carrying what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said were Iranian-supplied weapons intended for Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip. A military spokeswoman said Israeli forces met no resistance when they intercepted the German-owned "Victoria" some 200...

>TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran called the deployment of foreign troops in Bahrain unacceptable on Tuesday and warned Saudi Arabia and its ally Washington of "dangerous consequences" for intervening in the island nation's political crisis. In an escalating war of words, Bahrain condemned the comments and withdrew its ambassador to Iran...

>BRASILIA (Reuters) - Since taking office on New Year's Day, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has told a procession of surprised American visitors over coffee that she wants to end a decade of mistrust and build a new strategic alliance with the United States. The shift, which initially shocked U.S.

An Iranian lawmaker says a visit by Jordanian King Malik Abdullah II to Iran to attend Nowruz celebrations has been cancelled over “intense popular opposition”.

Military troops and security forces opened a large-scale assault Wednesday against hundreds of anti-government protesters occupying a landmark square in Bahrain's capital, a day after emergency rule was imposed and...

Washington (UPI) Mar 15, 2011 It appeared to be the first global storm since World War II, a commingling of unrelated disasters. For Japan, it was 9/11-plus, the worst disaster since U.S. atomic bombs leveled Hiroshima and Nagasaki 65 years ago and sealed the end of the second world...

Tel Aviv, Israel (UPI) Mar 15, 2011 Israel claims its naval commandos have intercepted a freighter carrying arms, apparently from Syria, bound for Iranian-backed Palestinian militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. The Israelis swooped in the eastern Mediterranean amid spreading political upheaval across the Arab world that they say Iran,...

JEDDAH: The total value of petroleum projects in the Gulf countries was estimated at $726 billion in February 2011, which represents an increase of about $10 billion from last January 2011, Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz) said in its industry note for February.

Farid Ameri: savings in oil products consumption in Iran totaled $1.8 billion.

MANAMA (Reuters) - Helicopters flew overhead and Bahraini riot police fired teargas on Wednesday as they cleared mainly Shi'ite protesters from a central roundabout where they had been camped out for weeks, a Reuters witness said.

Hundreds of Bahraini riot police firing buckshot and tear gas canisters drove pro-democracy demonstrators out of Manama's Pearl Square Wednesday, clearing the symbolic heart of the uprising.

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama travels to Latin America this week seeking to reassert economic leadership in a region Washington once dominated but where it now faces growing competition from China. On his first trip south of the border in nearly two years, Obama will visit countries where many...

As Saudi troops swept into Bahrain on Monday, President Obama kept playing his favorite new role: the Invisible Man. Bahrain is a key US ally and headquarters to the Navy's Fifth Fleet, which patrols the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean from the Horn of Africa to Bangladesh. But its...

WASHINGTON: Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Bahrain amid Shia-led opposition violence has exposed festering political differences between Riyadh and the United States over the revolts rocking the Arab world.

WASHINGTON — General David Petraeus, in his first hearing before Congress since taking command in Afghanistan last summer, said yesterday he will soon recommend a plan for beginning troop reductions, while embracing President Obama’s goal of pursuing a long-term military partnership with the Afghan government.

MANAMA, Bahrain -- The battle for control of this strategic island kingdom intensified Tuesday, as Iran lashed out at the arrival of Saudi troops brought in to help retake the streets from anti-government demonstrators, and the king declared a three-month state of emergency. Two men were killed by security forces...

In March 1941, Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps broke out of western Libya (Tripolitania) and attacked to the east, into Cyrenaica. By the mid-April 1941, the Germans reached the port of Tobruk and surrounded it.

House OKs measure that adds 3 weeks washington The House on Tuesday passed a measure blending $6

The king orders the state of emergency as Shiite clashes spread throughout surrounding villages.

(2010, U.S.-U.K.) Danny Boyle's thriller starring James Franco, Kate Mara and Amber Tamblyn. Khudozhestvenny. The Adjustment Bureau (2011, U.S.) George Nolfi's thriller starring Matt Damon, Natalie Carter and Jon Stewart.

Iran on Tuesday criticized the deployment of soldiers from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states into Bahrain.

Israeli commandos seize ship carrying weapons

JERUSALEM, March 15 -- The Israeli Navy announced that its commando forces stopped and seized a freighter heading for Gaza with containers of arms Tuesday morning in the water some 300 km off shore.

A small crew of technicians, braving radiation and fire, became the only people remaining at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday — and perhaps Japan’s last chance of preventing a broader nuclear catastrophe.

The Associated Press The Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela President Hugo Chavez says the problems at Japan's nuclear plants following an earthquake and tsunami have prompted him to halt Venezuela's plans to develop nuclear energy. Chavez announced last year that his government is carrying out initial studies into starting a nuclear...

Two people died and hundreds were wounded in clashes between anti-regime protesters and Bahrain's security forces, as the king imposed a state of emergency a day after calling in foreign troops.

Saudi club Al Nassr fought back from behind to beat the Iranian team Esteqlal 2-1 in a Group B match of the AFC Champions League 2011.

Poor Barack Obama. If it weren't for all these geopolitical crises, he'd have some fairly decent-sounding news to spin.

Anti-Reagan essay had some readers seeing red

Iran on Tuesday strongly rejected the allegations that the Islamic country is trafficking arms to Afghanistan, the Fars news agency reported. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast said that the government led by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not support Afghan militant groups or arms trafficking to Afghanistan. "The weapons cargo...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Amid signs of deepening war weariness among Americans, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said Tuesday that he will soon recommend a plan for beginning troop reductions, while embracing President Barack Obama's goal of pursuing a long-term military partnership with the Afghan

Architect Nick Sowers returns with the third in his series that explores whether, by re-designing the kitchen around food, we could establish a new and closer relationship to it. Don't miss his introduction, " What If Your Food Hired An Architect to Redesign Your Kitchen? " and the second installment,...

The Japanese emergency prompted the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, to order the immediate closure of seven of the country's 17 atomic power plants yesterday as public opposition to her nuclear energy policies started to threaten her coalition.

The King of Bahrain has declared martial law, giving the military authority to end pro-democracy protests with the backing of 2,000 troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Saudi Arabian-led military intervention in Bahrain failed to end demonstrations in the island-kingdom as hundreds were injured in clashes with security forces yesterday and two lawmakers resigned in protest.

This post is excerpted from the March 15, 2011 Eye on The Market newsletter from Michael Cembalest, chief investment officer for JPMorgan Private Bank.

WASHINGTON - Amid signs of deepening war weariness among Americans, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said Tuesday he will soon recommend a plan for beginning troop reductions, while embracing President Barack Obama's goal of pursuing a long-term military partnership with the Afghan government.

HARRISON, N.J. (AP) — Rafa Marquez said whatever success the Red Bulls have this year will be more about team than the dynamic duo that features himself, the international star midfielder, and his luminous teammate up front, Thierry Henry.

Japan's buildings may have mostly survived the massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake that struck last Friday, but thousands of people died because of the deadly tsunami that followed and swept away entire coastal towns. Now the Japanese have the chance to rebuild even stronger defenses to safeguard the lives of its...

When Persians celebrate their New Year, they usually make a bowl of hearty noodle soup that represents the tangles of life.

Israel's navy on Wednesday escorted into port a ship its commandos seized, saying it had arms from Iran bound for militants in the Gaza Strip, Israel's media reported.

DUBAI: Bahrain's 10-year dollar bond fell, sending the yield to a record, and the country's credit risk climbed to the highest in almost two years after the Gulf nation declared a state of emergency for three months. The yield on the 5.5 percent bond maturing in March 2020 climbed...

They will go out into Jerusalem's summer heat and march down Saladin Street toward the Old City walls. Fifty Palestinians, then 100, then 200 and 1,000 and 10,000. Marching and shouting "Istiqlal," independence.

Associated Press MANAMA, Bahrain — Bahrain’s king declared a three-month state of emergency Tuesday to quell a Shiite uprising, as clashes spread through the capital and surrounding villages in a showdown that drew in the region’s major powers and splintered along its main sectarian faultlines. At least two Bahrainis and...

As catastrophe at home prompts Japan to repatriate chunks of its vast wealth, it is pulling the rug from under stock and bond markets thousands of miles away.

Hillary Clinton has arrived in Cairo seeking a partnership with the new government of Egypt.

The United States and Egypt hinted on Tuesday that their old alliance will endure as the Egyptian people embark on a democratic transition after overthrowing an authoritarian leader.

Release Time:  For Immediate Release 2:18 P.M. EDT      MR. CARNEY:  Good afternoon.  I apologize for the fact that we’re running a little late here today.  Before I get started, I’d just like to give you a short update on the response to the situation in Japan.

NEW DELHI (AFP) - Korean champions FC Seoul took control of their Asian Champions League group Tuesday with a 3-0 win over Hangzhou Greentown in a reduced programme due to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.

Persian halvah is not like the regular halvah you are used to. The word halvah refers to several dense and sweet desserts made with nuts or flour. In contrast to the more popular Israeli halvah made of sesame paste, in Iran, halvah is flour based with a hint of rose...

WikiLeak's disclosures highlight longstanding problems of the overclassification of information and failure of transparency laws, says David L Sobel. When Barack Obama took office as president in January 2009, he identified transparency as one of the highest priorities on his agenda for change. Writing in the current issue of Index...

WASHINGTON - Alarmed by the threat of Sunni-Shiite sectarian strife as unrest spreads in the Mideast, the Obama administration on Tuesday urged Saudi Arabia not to hold back political reform in neighbouring Bahrain, a longtime U.S. friend that is also caught among old loyalties to both majority-Sunni Saudi Arabia...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's military intervention in Bahrain has exposed a diplomatic rift as Riyadh and Washington make different calculations over a crisis that could have a far-ranging impact on their relations. Close Saudi-U.S. ties anchor stability in the oil-rich Gulf. The autocratic Sunni Muslim monarchy provides 12...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has correctly warned that women's rights in Tunisia and Egypt risk being undermined, endangering reforms to gender discriminatory laws and jeopardizing the vital social, economic and political contribution of half the population. In this crucial post-coup stage, women who fought for change should heed...

King announces emergency powers for three months amid reports of more deaths as protests continue in the country. The king of Bahrain has declared a state of emergency for three months on the island following weeks of anti-government protests, state television said.

San Francisco - Twitter has reached the threshold of serving one billion tweets a week, the company founder Jack Dorsey tweeted Tuesday in advance of the micro-blogging site's fifth birthday next week.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Cairo Tuesday seeking a partnership with Egypt in its transition to democracy, as she became the highest US official to visit since Hosni Mubarak was toppled.

MANAMA, Bahrain - Bahrain's king declared a three-month state of emergency Tuesday to quell a Shiite uprising, as clashes spread through the capital and surrounding villages in a showdown that drew in the region's major powers and splintered along its main sectarian faultlines. At least two Bahrainis and a Saudi...

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>BRASILIA, March 15 (Reuters) - Brazil and the United States, the two largest economies in the Western Hemisphere, have a history of close business and diplomatic ties -- as well as disputes over trade and other issues. HISTORY OF BRAZIL-US TIES 1876 - Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro II becomes the...

> Brazil has lobbied for over a decade for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, saying it deserves a greater role in global affairs because its strong growth could establish it as the world's fifth-biggest economy in coming years. Officials have recently been careful not to discuss...