News Archive - 9 August 2011

>AMMAN (Reuters) - Turkey has demanded that Syria's leaders stop the killing of civilians and said Tuesday it would be watching events there in the next days, raising pressure on President Bashar al-Assad, who said his forces would continue to pursue "terrorist groups." "Developments in the coming days will...

America's rivals and enemies are considered Russia's friends. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the increased U.S influence in the region, Russia is left with one ally -- Syria, and with a hate-love relationship with Iran.

>AL-SHURAFA, Egypt (Reuters) - To the crack of AK-47 assault rifles fired by supporters into the night sky, Amr Moussa pledged to build a "new system" of government if elected president to succeed Egypt's ousted Hosni Mubarak. But perhaps the biggest challenge for the former Arab League chief who was...

>The Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life said government restrictions and public hostility involving religion grew in some of the most populous countries from mid-2006 to mid-2009."During the three-year period covered by the study, the extent of violence and abuse related to religion increased in more...

>LONDON (Reuters) - OPEC, source of more than a third of the world's oil, cut its forecast for global oil demand growth this year as a worsening economic outlook curbs consumption in developed economies. The revision from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in a report on Tuesday follows...

>AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian forces killed at least five civilians and moved into a town near the Turkish border on Tuesday, activists and witnesses said, even as Turkey's foreign minister pressed President Bashar al-Assad to halt assaults on protests against his rule. The anti-Assad Syrian Revolution Coordinating Union said two...

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 — The government of Malaysia practises “very high” restrictions on religion, an influential United States research group said yesterday. The Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion and Public Life said that it was among 10 countries out of 198 studied with very high government restrictions as...

Amid widespread unrest in the United Kingdom over the killing of a Black man in London, a senior Iranian lawmaker warns that Iran may shut down the British embassy in Tehran.

Dubai: Iraq will this week ratify a liquefied gas agreement with Shell and Mitsubishi to modernise energy facilities including a gas-to-liquid project in southern Iraq’s Basra province.

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee clawed back 0.2 percent on Wednesday after falling more than 2.5 percent over six days, as shares rebounded and the dollar dropped after the Federal Reserve pledged to keep money easy for at least 2 years.

WASHINGTON—The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/97e547/travel_and_tourism) has announced the addition of the "Travel and Tourism in Armenia" report to their offering. Growth of arrivals strengthened in 2010 as Armenia continued to be an attractive place to visit for the Armenian diaspora (Armenians living outside their country ...

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 10, 2011 (AFP) - More than 2,000 Kuwaitis have rallied outside the Syrian embassy in the Gulf state demanding the expulsion of the Syrian envoy and the "freezing" of relations with Damascus.

(MENAFN - Arab News) Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Amr said Tuesday he feared that revolt-hit Syria was "heading to the point of no return" and called for an immediate end to ...

With a range of punishment from probation to life in prison to choose from, jurors in the Mariesha Ohlfs trial for aggravated robbery worked for nearly four hours before settling on a sentence of 18 years. Far more than a case of taking property by force, the trial was about...

Being dropped into a former Soviet country with minimal knowledge of the language, culture and what might lie in wait would be a scary prospect for many.

Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation has admitted it hired external agencies to investigate allegations of financial irregularities, but added that nothing untoward had been uncovered.

MALMÖ, Sweden--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Regulatory News: Three months ended 30 June 2011 · Local currency sales increased by 5% and Euro sales decreased by 2% to €366.7m (€375.0m) . Excluding Oriflame’s business in Iran, sales growth was 7% in local currency. · Average size of the sales force increased by 5%...

Iran's Ambassador to Beirut Ghazanfar Roknabadi has met with Lebanese Minister of Culture Gabi Layyoun, discussing Tehran-Beirut cultural ties.

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee snapped a 6-day weakening streak on Wednesday as global equities rebounded and the dollar fell after the U.S. Federal Reserve promised to keep rates low for at least two years.

The Maccabi Haifi professional basketball team of the Israeli Basketball Super League today announced they signed former South Carolina forward Carlos Powell for the 2011-12 season.

“What happened to hope?”

ZEINA KARAM Associated Press BEIRUT As Syria's crackdown on protesters gets bloodier, it is having repercussions for one of Damascus' most crucial allies, eroding the reputation of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. At recent protests, Syrians demonstrating against President Bashar Assad have also unleashed their anger at the Shiite Hezbollah...

A group of 92 senators is calling for "crippling sanctions" on Iran's financial system, writing to President Barack Obama to urge him to blacklist Bank Markazi, the central bank.

Saudi King Abdullah's admirable stance against Bashar Al Assad for committing atrocities against Syrians was a welcome move and offers a ray of hope that the Arab Spring may yet come to Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait recalled their ambassadors, and President Bashar al-Assad replaced the defense minister with the army's chief of staff.

After watching the recent market news, many wonder if we'll ever see the market come back to pre-recession levels again. For many investors with less experience in the market, or investors who

Depending on one s perspective, Twitter and Facebook have been credited and blamed for helping to organize uprisings in Egypt, Iran and elsewhere in the Middle East. But when it comes to the recent London riots, BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) seems to be the organizational tool of choice for coordinating and...

SIOUX CITY, Iowa - Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann said Tuesday at a campaign stop in Sioux City that the President, not the Tea Party, should shoulder the blame for the recent downgrade of the country's AAA credit rating to AA+

Chancellor of Iran's Sharif University Reza Roustazad said Monday that Iran plans to launch a new domestically-manufactured satellite dubbed Sharif in the near future, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Seven Afghan and 31 Special Forces soldiers die after insurgents reportedly shoot down Chinook with rocket The United States suffered its worst loss of life of the nearly 10-year war in Afghanistan last night when a helicopter carrying 31 elite Special Forces soldiers crashed in the east of the country.

One problem with “leading from behind,” as the Obama administration is wont to do, is that you need to find somebody to be behind . In the volatile Middle East, and especially in the case of Syria, President Obama is increasingly relying on Turkey -- a country that is itself undergoing...

Tehran, August 8 (KCNA) -- The export of aquatic products in the first three months of the current Iranian year starting in March this year increased 23 percent as compared with that in the same period of last year.

The Obama administration is planning to explicitly call for Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down in coming days, two administration officials told FoxNews. 

Indonesia has finally lined up a warm-up match prior to the 2014 World Cup qualifiers with time growing perilously short.

The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.S. officials said Tuesday as the State Department signalled for the first time that American efforts to engage the government are finally over.

Republican Shahram Hadian of Everett, a Christian pastor and former Muslim who now lectures on the threat of radical Islam, has launched a campaign for governor.

SOUTHINGTON — Harry Terdjanian’s mission in life is to keep alive the memory of the 1.5 million Armenians who died by Turkish hands early in the 20th century. He especially wants the U.S. government to officially recognize their deaths as a genocide.

Iran's youth volleyball team has downed India to face Brazil for the fifth place of the 2011 FIVB Men's Junior World Championship.

Number of tourists flocking to Batumi, Georgia, is expected to hit 1.4 million this year

We could feel the energy as soon as we stepped out into the open air from the Cairo Metro subway. A low roar of human voices mixed with music and occasional shouting floated over the throngs gathered in the 100-degree dusty summer heat.

A senior Iranian lawmaker says the Islamic Republic is ready to share its experience with Egypt to help the country develop after the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak.

Immigration minister Jason Kenney launched a scathing attack on Amnesty International after the human rights organization criticized the government for releasing the names and photos of war crimes suspects facing deportation.

UNTIL this spring they may not have been the best of friends, but unnerving changes in world affairs can quickly revive alliances. The current government’s relations with Saudi Arabia had been decidedly chilly since it came to power.

Riots that began over a police shooting have inspired broader conversations about austerity measures, economic strains, racial and social tensions and basic government organization.

Israel and the U.S. began conducting in the Mediterranean annual joint military exercises aimed at working out rescue operations and familiarization with other fleets, and conducting exercises in the Mediterranean.

WASHINGTON – Nearly one-third of the world’s population lives in countries where it is becoming more difficult to freely practise religion, a private US research group reported yesterday.

SAUDI Arabian foreign policy is usually a discreet business involving financial incentives and low-profile initiatives, so condemnation of the Syrian repression by King Abdullah is a rare example of high-profile official candour.

Despite speculation that President Barack Obama will face a primary challenge from disaffected liberals in 2012, no candidate has emerged. Former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel tells The Daily Caller that may be about to change.

People who suffer headaches after a spinal tap might have a relatively simple way to ease the painful throb: a caffeine tablet.

WASHINGTON—The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.

CAIRO — Despite the growing number of condemnations of Syria's five-month campaign against anti-government protesters, no foreign government has called for President Bashar Assad's removal from power.

This week's news roundup takes us to Iran, where censorship is getting worse, Turkey, where it might be getting better, and Zimbabwe, where a blogger is under threat.

Jitters over the future of the global economy sent the oil price swinging down to multi-month lows and bouncing back up again just as quickly yesterday, ahead of a much-anticipated economic policy statement from the US Federal Reserve.

An increasingly isolated Syrian regime defied a message yesterday from one of its former allies to end its deadly crackdown on protesters calling for an end to the rule of President Bashar al-Assad.

Posted: Tuesday, August 2, 2011 4:44 pm | Updated: 6:41 pm, Tue Aug 9, 2011.

The United States pressed Tuesday for more international sanctions against Syria over its crackdown on pro-democracy protests, conceding it has abandoned a bid to engage Damascus.

SELAH, Wash. -- Shahram Hadian, a candidate for governor, will speak at 7 tonight at the Selah Civic Center. Hadian was born in Iran, and moved to the U.S. at the age of seven. He is a graduate of the Washington Law Enforcement Academy and served as a Police...

Shock, surprise and just the merest hint of schadenfreude marked world reaction to the rioting that has swept through London and other British cities.

TEHRAN, Iran — An Iranian lawmaker said the country’s first nuclear power plant will not be on line by late August as planned and blamed the delay on Russia, which is building the facility, local media reported Monday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Religious-linked violence and abuse rose around the world between 2006 and 2009, with Christians and Muslims the most common targets, according to a private US study released Tuesday.

Most Russians know Samara as the country’s aeronautics manufacturing capital. Far fewer would think of it as the birthplace of the nation’s beer industry — yet the local brand, whose history is a metaphor for the town as a whole, has become synonymous with beer itself.

The move signaled that American efforts to engage the government and Assad ruling family are finally over. read more

No one seemed surprised. Not the hooded teenagers fleeing home at dawn. Not Ken and Tony, who used to live in Tottenham and had returned to stand vigil over the missiles and torched cars littering an urban war zone. Tony claimed to have seen the whole thing coming. “This was...

CAIRO - The head of Iran's parliament's foreign affairs committee accused the United States of seeking to destabilise Syria after talks on Tuesday in Cairo with Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi.

Here are letters to the editor from recent editions of the Daily News

Iran yesterday urged Britain to show “restraint” in dealing with rioters, the state television website reported.

Five Iranian security forces have been killed when their vehicle was ambushed by members of the terrorist group of the Party for Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK) in northwest Iran, an official says.

Throughout Syria's five-month-old uprising, the Obama administration has carefully avoided calling--as it has with Libya's Muammar Qaddafi--for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down, instead urging Assad to renounce violence and implement reforms to restore his "credibility." That may all change this week, however, as the White House is planning...

BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) and other instant communication platforms have helped to fuel riots and find missing persons this week in some major UK cities. But these events are only the most recent example of how new technology has greased the wheels of social change.   From the horseback ride of...

The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.S. officials said Tuesday as the State Department signaled for the first time that American efforts to engage the government are finally over.

Rival March 8 and March 14 camps faced off Tuesday over the country’s official position on the growing crisis in Syria, which is encountering growing diplomatic isolation and pressure in the region.

Katie Holmes on her new movie 'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark."

Religious tolerance is in retreat in the world, where one-third of people face increasing harassment when seeking to practise their faith, a new study reveals.

Iran's youth volleyball team has defeated Spain in the second round in the 2011 FIVB Men's Junior World Championship in Brazil. Iran achieved its first win of the round to stand in the third place of the Pool E of the tournament at Maracanazinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro on...

Esteqlal has defeated Damash thanks to a first-half solo goal by skipper Farhad Majidi in the second week of Iran's Premier League (IPL). The Blues, coached by Parviz Mazloumi, downed Damash 1-0 before around 70,000 spectators at Tehran's gigantic Azadi Stadium late on Monday.

Rousseff's decision to appoint Celso Amorim a leftist career diplomat who oversaw Brazil's close relationship with Iran in recent years to the post of defence minister has angered a military that is already up in arms over meager resources and is pressuring the president for a larger budget.

Iranians protest high cost of living by refusing to pay electricity bills, but government provides power anyway Syria Defies World Reproach With New Military Aid

Iran urged Britain Tuesday to show restraint in dealing with rioters, the state television website reported.

BEIRUT (AP): Syrian President Bashar Assad came under a new barrage of international pressure Tuesday with the Turkish foreign minister urging him to stop killing protesters and U.S. officials saying the Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand his departure.

The head of the Iranian parliament’s foreign affairs committee accused the United States of seeking to destabilize Syria after talks Tuesday in Cairo with Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi.

OPEC lowers demand rise view for 2011, 2012. 10 Aug 2011 6:54 AM

Five members of Iran’s security forces including an officer were killed when their vehicle was ambushed by “terrorists” in northwestern Iran, a local official told Fars news agency yesterday.

BRADLEY KLAPPER Associated Press WASHINGTON The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.S. officials said Tuesday as the State Department signaled for the first time that American efforts to engage the government are...

Turkish foreign minister in Damascus to deliver “decisive message”. Annasofie Flamand and Hugh Macleod As Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu meets with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad today both parties are under pressure. The Turks will convey to Assad that they mean business when they ask him to stop his security...

The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime...

America Idol’s Anthony Fedorov announces the release of his first EP, Never Over on Tuesday, Aug. 9th.

(Released August 5, 2011) WASHINGTON | Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta today spoke to service members about national security concerns and the defense budget during a visit to U.S. Strategic...

The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.S. officials said Tuesday as the State Department signaled for the...

The Power and Energy Ministry needs another 4500 transformers to supply electricity to rural villages.

TEHERAN — Five members of Iran’s security forces including an officer were killed when their vehicle was ambushed by ‘terrorists’ in northwestern Iran, a local official told Fars news agency on Tuesday.

Anonymous has announced its new target. After taking on the likes of oppressive regimes in Egypt, Iran, and Syria, the hacktivist group has now set its sights on Facebook. In a YouTube post this morning, the group has declared that it wants to “kill Facebook.” Here is part of...

The extraordinary spectacle of anarchy, arson and looting on London's streets resulted on Tuesday in some of the world's most authoritarian regimes - including those of Iran, Libya and even Robert Mugabe - gloating over the 'failure' of Britain's liberal society.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has claimed 'terrorist groups' are behind anti-regime protests.

An inquiry into the death of a black British youth says armed police officers killed the father of four was killed with a single gunshot to the chest.

PARIS — French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe, viewing the political showdown in Syria, stated, “It is not a question of having statements, but to act. What Syria needs is a total political change.”

Islamabad, Aug 9 (IANS) Three blasts were heard Tuesday night near a security checkpost in southwest Pakistan, Xinhua reported.

A visitor walks past an art work titled "Suicide Bomber - 1/1", 2008, created by Slovakian artist Robert Kunec at the exhibition West End at the Museum on the Seam in Jerusalem.

TEL AVIV, Israel, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- The Israeli air force reportedly plans to buy another 20 Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighters under a multiyear procurement plan under review by military chiefs.

LONDON, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Iran is taking concrete steps to ensure that its people are cut off from the outside world through a culture of censorship, London said.