News Archive - 5 November 2012

- 1st half -   -2nd half-

>* Obama and Romney are deadlocked in national polls* Turnout - and Ohio - will be keys to victory* U.S. faces Iran challenge and 'fiscal cliff'* Makeup of Congress likely to stay sameBy John WhitesidesWASHINGTON, Nov 6 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney face the...

>Following are positions offered by the candidates on key foreign policy challenges and global trouble spots ahead of Tuesday's election.AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTANOBAMA - Obama touts the 2011 killing of al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in his compound in Pakistan as a major victory for U.S. counterterrorism. He says his...

>Here are key facts about him.* Romney, 65, espouses traditional Republican positions to cut taxes, reduce federal regulations, shrink government spending and bolster the U.S. military. He vows to create 12 million new jobs in his first term with a plan focused on domestic energy development, expanded free...

>BEIRUT (Reuters) - An Islamist suicide car bomber killed at least 50 Syrian security men in Hama province on Monday, an opposition group said, in what would be one of the bloodiest single attacks on President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the 20-month-old uprising. Another day of relentless violence in Syria...

>* IAEA says Tehran isn't cooperating with investigation* IAEA also criticizes North Korea and Syria* Pakistan also wants end to nuclear discriminationBy Louis CharbonneauUNITED NATIONS, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Discriminatory implementation of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has left many countries feeling that being a party to the anti-atom bomb...

>* Tehran uses some of its stockpile to make reactor fuel* Israel's Barak says this may delay "moment of truth"* But Iran rapidly expanding enrichment capacityBy Fredrik DahlVIENNA, Nov 5 (Reuters) - A slowdown in Iran's accumulation of its most sensitive nuclear material may have helped put off the threat...

>LONDON (Reuters) - A U.S. fine for anti-money laundering rule breaches could cost HSBC significantly more than $1.5 billion and is likely to lead to criminal charges, Europe's biggest bank said on Monday. HSBC said the U.S. investigation had damaged the bank's reputation and forced it to...

>* Fighting follows overnight rebel attacks* Feuding opposition meets in Qatar to seek common frontBy Khaled Yacoub OweisAMMAN, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Syrian warplanes and artillery battered rebel strongholds in southern Damascus on Monday in an onslaught that coincided with another attempt by Syria's fragmented opposition to unite.A Western...

Economy:

It's the consensus among the pundits: foreign policy doesn't matter in this presidential election.

This is a response to Irrawaddy magazine's article, "Fresh Arakan (Rakhine) Strife Bad Omen for Reform". Although I am not a veteran analyst, I just wanted to point out some facts - I thought - you .....

A political winter has descended on the Arab oil states of the Persian Gulf, with the result a far cry from the optimism of last year when the democratizing waves of the "Arab Spring" were seen heading toward Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states as part of a great new Arab...

Indian protested when their coach was shown a green card by the referee.

As Barack Obama and Mitt Romney make their final sprint for the White House, we look at the presidential CV and the major challenges facing the next administration.

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines takes on Myanmar in the opener of the Asian Football Confederation’s Under-16 Women’s Championships 2013 Qualifiers which kicks off tomorrow at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.

For the last 3 presidential elections I have been outside of the US. Still for each one I was legally old enough to vote in, I have. The year Al Gore won the popular vote by half a million votes but George W. Bush won the presidency, I was a...

>Syria's Kurds see the war ravaging their country as an unprecedented opportunity to gain the kind of freedoms enjoyed by their ethnic kin in neighboring Iraq, where they live autonomously from the federal capital in Baghdad.Rivalry between two main camps, the Kurdish National Council (KNC) and another group, the...

>* UAE purchase would total just over $1.1 bln* UAE's first order of Lockheed system came last DecemberWASHINGTON, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have requested the sale of up to $7.6 billion in Lockheed Martin Corp missile-defense systems to counter perceived threats and...

The heirs of Mao Zedong convene this week to anoint China's next leaders, as the Communist Party maintains an iron grip on the economic powerhouse despite mounting calls for change in the Internet era.

The mother of missing Atiya Anjum-Wilkinson, who was abducted by her father, says she prays her "little bundle of joy" is safe and well, three years after she was taken.

TEHRAN, Nov. 6 (MNA) -- The Iranian ambassador to Iraq said on Sunday that the Iraqi government has promised to expel the members of the terrorist Mojahedin Khalq Organization (MKO) from its soil as soon as possible.

The news that Europe's biggest bank, HSBC, faces criminal charges in the US and fines of over €1bn, for alleged financial wrongdoing, leaves us to gaze in awe at our cousins across the water.

This is the story of two very different American presidents and how they each answered their emergency Libyan phone calls.

Akbar Mohammadi’s “Ideas and Lashes” is of fate in prison finally seeing the light of day – it is a clear Allah-inspired message for all believers to disavow violence and seek the next level of faithEncino, CA (PRWEB) November 06, 2012 Ideas and Lashes is the prison diary of Akbar...

The cascade of civil upheaval that began in 2011 continues to alter the Arab world's political landscape and has added new layers of uncertainty to stalemated Israeli-Palestinian peace process, with Palestinians bidding for full membership at the United Nations in 2011. Additionally, the ongoing conflict in Syria and concerns about...

Iran have taken another major step towards reaching the last 16 with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Morocco at Bangkok’s Huamark Indoor Stadium. Goals from Ali Hassanzadeh and Afshin Kameni secured the points for Ali Sanei’s side, who now only need a point in their final Group B match against...

The mother of a missing girl abducted by her father says she prays her "little bundle of joy" is safe and well, three years after she was taken.

An Iraqi Shiite cleric who served in his country’s parliament from 2005 through 2010 gave a lecture on sectarian conflicts in the Middle East at Bridgewater State University on Monday, predicting that war between factions of political Islam will break out during the coming years.

Dr. Saleh bin Abdulrahman Al-Henaki, CEO and vice chairman of Abdulrahman Saleh Al-Henaki Holding Company, speaks to Arab News.

LIES about the Arab-Israeli conflict are many, but the biggest of them is the Golan Heights and Syria, with its alleged opposition and confrontation.

OBAMA looks likely to clinch victory with a larger vote in the Electoral College, The Sun’s pollsters YouGov predict

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak in 2010 ordered the army to prepare an attack against Iranian nuclear installations, though the order was later rescinded, Israeli television said on Sunday.

There's so much to dislike about the campaign season thankfully almost past. Shallow, vicious, ADD, these are only a few words that come to mind. But it may just be that things have gotten so bad that we can learn a few things to slice through frenzied hyper-partisanship, neglectful...

There are human rights violations on all sides in the Palestine-Israel conflict. But today it is Israel that plays Goliath, and U.S. aid has made it so.

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia appointed Prince Mohammed bin Nayef as Interior Minister on Monday, marking a significant move towards a new generation of leaders from the kingdom's ruling family.

FORMER New York Governor Mario Cuomo’s dictum that politicians campaign in poetry but govern in prose was never more apposite than when applied to Barack Obama’s presidency.

Britain is in talks to set up a military base in the Arabian Gulf to deter Iran from attacking its neighbours. The plan would see RAF jets stationed permanently in the United Arab Emirates, according to Downing Street officials.

The Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to the brink of triggering war against Iran in 2010, according to charges levelled in an Israeli TV documentary. Related Stories Mahmoud Abbas: Right to return quote was 'personal view' Israeli forces kill Palestinian at Gaza Strip border...

The international community must take note of the conclusions of the Iran Tribunal in The Hague and make human rights the focus when dealing with Iran.

Israel’s prime minister and defence minister ordered the military to go on alert to prepare to attack Iran’s nuclear programme two years ago, but backed off following opposition from top security officials, an Israeli news show has claimed.

Widely spread rumors circulating within the media in recent days suggest that the United States and Iran have agreed to enter into bilateral talks soon after the U.S. presidential elections in an effort to end the impasse over Iran's nuclear program, which the U.S. suspects is designed...

WASHINGTON -- Had the course of history taken a modest swerve, the United States and Kurdistan might have celebrated their independence on the very same day. It was July 4, 1187 -- 825 years ago -- that Saladin, Islam's greatest ruler, defeated 20,000 outmatched Crusaders at the bloody Battle...

Bahrain’s Islamic bonds jumped in October, sending the yield down the most on record, as backing from the island nation’s neighbours prompted investors to disregard protests.

Officials say several miles of Interstate 15 in Southern California have been closed as a wildfire has grown to 200 acres amid Santa Ana winds and some evacuations have been ordered.

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that a polygamist sect on the Utah-Arizona border waited too long to challenge a court-ordered takeover, clearing the way for state authorities to break up a church trust and sell assets...

BEIJING (AP) — Where can a pop star score a hit by talking about the U.S. Electoral College for 33 minutes? In China, where Gao Xiaosong's straightforward explanation of the system drew more than 1...

Telegraph View: David Cameron was right to promote the sale of 60 Typhoon fighters in the United Arab Emirates

Researchers are reporting a key advance in using stem cells to repair hearts damaged by heart attacks.

Even as streetlamps shine brightly in lower Manhattan and subways begin rumbling through tunnels again, another city slammed by Hurricane Sandy is still struggling to recover.

A 42-year-old Las Vegas man has been sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison in the drunken-driving death of a 12-year-old trick-or-treater a little more than a year ago.

>* Politicians seek to defend Swiss neutrality* Exports to Iran fall by 34 percent after sanctionsBy Emma FargeGENEVA, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Switzerland's neutrality is being tested as Brussels and Washington raise pressure over gaps in sanctions against Iran, in particular measures against its oil industry.While Switzerland has replicated...

Experts agree that research and development (R&D) is the backbone of a globally competitive, knowledge-driven economy. R&D investment helps develop new products and services that drive growth, create jobs, and improve the national welfare.

A new report reveals that a planned Israeli strike against Iran in 2010 was thwarted due to Tel Aviv’s qualms about its own military capabilities as well as top-echelon internal opposition against the measure.

During the worst economic slowdown since the Great Depression, it is important to look at new strategies for stabilization and recovery.

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, Nov. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hague Institute for Global Justice has appointed Dr. Abiodun Williams as the first President of the Institute. Dr. Williams will assume the ...

Crude prices rose in Asia today after the United States, Britain, France and Germany moved to apply more restrictions and sanctions on Iran over its controversial nuclear programme, analysts said.

Senior Vice President for International Services at the American Red Cross David Meltzer has praised Iran’s readiness to send humanitarian aid to the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Iran developing nuclear weapons would not only be a "desperately bad development for our world" but could also "trigger a nuclear arms race across the whole of the region", David Cameron has said.

While living there, Elizabeth Navarro didn't confine herself to mingling with Americans; she went out into society, wearing traditional women's clothing and speaking Farsi. Unable to find work, they ended up settling in San Francisco, where she worked for the State Bar Association of California as a legal secretary. In...

DUBAI (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron sought to balance concern over human rights in Gulf Arab states with winning lucrative arms deals for Britain as he started a tour of the region on Monday.

>By John KempLONDON (Reuters) - Hedge funds' enthusiasm for U.S. crude has cooled off, at least for now, as the relentless rise in domestic shale output and the prospect of extended refinery maintenance in the Midwest extinguishes any hope of a rebound in U.S. oil futures to narrow...

>DUBAI Nov 5 (Reuters) - Five bombs exploded in the heart of the Bahraini capital Manama on Monday, killing two people, officials said, in rare attacks targeting civilians during the 21-month-old uprising against the kingdom's U.S.-backed rulers.The blasts, one outside a cinema, could be a sign that...

>Cairo launched talks involving countries that include three opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - and Iran, a staunch ally in his conflict with rebels fighting to overthrow him.Riyadh, which has long tussled with Tehran for regional influence, sent a representative to preparatory...

>* Refinery, closed on Oct. 26, to restart on Tuesday* Ceypetco struggles to buy Iranian oil due to sanctions (Adds details on future cargoes in paragraph 7)By Ranga Sirilal and Shihar AneezCOLOMBO, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Ceylon Petroleum Corp (Ceypetco) will resume operation of Sri Lanka's sole refinery, a 50,000...

>Excerpts released on Monday of an Israeli Channel 2 documentary said the armed forces' chief of staff at the time, Gabi Ashkenazi, and Mossad intelligence head Meir Dagan both objected to the order to raise the military's alert level to "F-Plus", which means a strike could be imminent.Barak, interviewed...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney make a frenetic dash to a series of crucial swing states on Monday, delivering their final arguments to voters on the last day of an extraordinarily close race for the White House.

The growing enthusiasm for Romney is reminiscent of preparing for a wake. It is a good thing he is rich. Early retirement is a good option.

Recent reports of an increase in Hezbollah's involvement in Syria's civil war as combatants alongside the Syrian military represent a potentially sharp escalation in the regional impact of the ongoing conflict.

Both US President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger in the upcoming presidential election, Mitt Romney, have repeatedly called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel's prime minister ordered the military to go on high alert for a looming attack on Iran's nuclear program two years ago, but backed off following strong objections from senior security officials, a respected Israeli news program reported Monday.

MOSCOW, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said that his country supports the formation of a trilateral committee comprising Iran, Turkey and Russia to resolve the Syrian crisis, Iran's IRNA reported.

MACAU, Macau - Hordes of Chinese high rollers flooding into Macau have turned the city into an Asian casino boomtown but they're also posing a challenge for China's next generation of leaders. Macau's casino industry has mushroomed over the past decade after its government eased restrictions, drawin

JERUSALEM — An Israeli news program claims that Israel’s premier told his military to prepare for a strike on Iranian nuclear sites in 2010, but it was not ready.