News Archive - 8 May 2011

>Bahrain, a Sunni-ruled island kingdom, cracked down on the protests demanding greater political freedoms, a constitutional monarchy and an end to sectarian discrimination.The crackdown, in which neighboring Sunni-led Gulf states sent troops to back Bahrain's forces, has boosted regional tension with Iran, which Bahrain accuses of manipulating its Shi'ite...

Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal have endured more than 21 months of uncertainty and isolation for no just reason and I urge the Iranian authorities to allow them finally to return home. There is no evidence to support the charges against them. The world will be watching the actions...

>MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's king has ordered a state of emergency to be lifted from June 1, after imposing it following weeks of Shi'ite-led street protests in the Gulf Arab kingdom, the state news agency said Sunday. Bahrain, where the Sunni king rules over a Shi'ite majority, declared emergency law...

>AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian tanks and troops stormed three districts of the central city of Homs and swept into several southern towns on Sunday, residents said, in a campaign to crush an uprising against autocratic Baathist rule. The official state news agency said an 'armed gang', a term used by...

>I’m not talking about routing rules and whether to push the envelope with a program over what is allowable for getting a stopover. I’m talking about some awards that I just shouldn’t book because of who they are for or where they are going?I received a request this morning...

>DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran is basing the oil price for its 2011/12 budget at around $81.50 per barrel and expects the price of oil to pick up again during the start of the summer season, Iran's OPEC governor told Reuters on Sunday. "We are basing the oil price in...

>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Behind Israel's tepid welcome of the popular uprisings convulsing Arab neighbors like Egypt and Syria, a long-running debate is gathering pace: Might the turmoil be enough to spur it to attack Iran? While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been quiet about a war option that would stretch...

>TEHRAN (Reuters) - A power struggle between Iran's top leaders could shake the Islamic Republic to its foundations, with no sign that its hardline president can regain the trust of conservative politicians and clerics, analysts say. The unprecedented public intervention of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in reversing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's decision...

GEORGE TOWN: More than 135 guests attended the 16th Asian Individual Squash Championships 2011's welcoming dinner and opening ceremony held at the Eastern and Oriental Hotel here recently.

President Bashar al-Assad has sent tanks deep into Syria's third city Homs, escalating a military campaign to crush a seven-week-old uprising against his autocratic rule.

Just over a week after the world's most notorious terrorist was killed by a team of elite US Navy SEALS, gamers around the world have been given the chance to pull the trigger themselves.

OSAMA bin Laden's killing is a travesty of justice and will fuel more radicalism.

ISTANBUL - LEADERS of 48 least developed countries, donor countries and institutions gather in Turkey on Monday for a UN conference to discuss a new 10-year development plan for the world's poorest nations. UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will chair the conference and among those attending will be Iran's...

TWO names, Osama and Obama, must go well beyond rhyming or anything light-hearted. Between them, they have sharply divided a world living in fear of terrorism.

CAIRO -- Gunfire and shelling rattled a city in central Syria on Sunday and killed a 12-year-old boy, as President Bashar Assad's autocratic regime expanded its military crackdown on a seven-week uprising by sending tanks and reinforcements to key areas, activists said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has called for closer political and economic cooperation between Iran and the United Arab Emirates.

FILIPINO International Master (IM) Oliver Barbosa defeated Iranian IM Alavi Sayed Javad in the sixth round to boost his chance for a first Grandmaster (GM) norm in the ongoing 10th Asian Continental Individual chess championships at the Hotel Pardisan in Mashhad, Iran on Saturday.

CAIRO — Syrian security forces arrested more than 200 people early Sunday — including a 10-year-old boy — as President Bashar Assad expands a campaign to crush the country’s seven-week, nationwide uprising, activists said. Rami Abdul-Rahman, the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said more than 200 people...

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP): Malaysia will accept 800 asylum seekers who entered Australia illegally by sea in a groundbreaking deal between the two countries to tackle people smuggling.

ISTANBUL - The acute problems of the world's poorest countries form the agenda of a U.N.-backed conference this week in Turkey, which has sought to balance its traditional Western alliances with growing ties to Africa, the Middle East and other developing regions.

Charles Reed Jr. is skipping his college graduation ceremony to do something much more significant to him: retracing the original 1961 Freedom Ride and paying tribute to those who helped win the civil rights that his generation enjoys.

The Associated Press The Associated Press ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates Senior officials in the United Arab Emirates are holding talks with Iran's foreign minister amid growing Gulf accusations of political meddling by Tehran. The official news agency WAM says Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi met Sunday with top...

JERUSALEM: Israel’s recently retired spy chief says a military strike against Iran’s nuclear program would be “stupid,” Israeli media reported Sunday.

Turkey is hosting a U.N.-backed conference this week in an effort to promote development in the world's poorest countries. The conference will address the problems of 48 countries, most of them in Africa, that are particularly vulnerable to unrest, disease, economic turbulence and natural disasters.

The young man stood before the judge, his usually neatly trimmed hair now long enough to brush the collar of his prison jumpsuit.