News Archive - 3 May 2013

Hanif Omranzadeh | حنیف عمران زاده

>BEIJING (Reuters) - China will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas next week for separate bilateral talks as it tries to shore up its role in a region where its diplomatic influence is limited. Netanyahu's visit -- the first trip by a top Israeli leader...

>GENEVA (Reuters) - The United States said on Friday that Iran and North Korea were trying to obtain high-tech materials linked to their nuclear programs in violation of U.N. sanctions. Iran was also sending weapons and ammunition to Syrian government forces despite a ban, said Thomas Countryman, Assistant Secretary...

>LOD, Israel (Reuters) - The dilemma Israel faces in trying to formulate a strategy on Syria two years into its civil war is symbolized by a case being heard in a small courtroom near Tel Aviv. The state is prosecuting an Arab Israeli who briefly joined the rebel forces fighting...

>* Further U.S. regulations to tighten steel trade* Iranian iron ore exports doubled in one yearBy Silvia Antonioli and Jonathan SaulLONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - China, Russia and Kazakhstan are among the few trade allies still providing a lifeline to Iran's vital steel and iron ore sector after most...

Eurozone to shrink further; job-loss record to shoot up

Mike Fitzgerald, cofounder and CEO of sporting travel agency Frontiers Travel, instilled love of travel in family.

Vienna, May 4 (IANS/AKI): Last year was the deadliest for journalists, and the number of reporters operating freely in the world is shrinking, Vienna-based press freedom watchdog International Press Institute (IPI) has said.

Here is a look at some of the notable events that took place on this day in history, May 4th.

Brussels, May 4 (IANS/AKI): A leading press freedom watchdog has urged China, Iran, Turkey and Eritrea -- the four countries with the highest number of imprisoned journalists in the world -- to release them and end their repression.

Washington, May 4 (IANS/AKI): North Korea, Iran and Syria are among the top 10 countries deemed worst for press freedom, according to an annual ranking by a Washington-based watchdog.

President Barack Obama said he doesn’t foresee circumstances that would require putting U.S. troops on the ground in Syria, where rebels are trying to topple the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

He was addressing the South Carolina Republican Party's annual Silver Elephant fundraising dinner.

For many months he worked with Raed Jaser at a Toronto moving company, while praying beside him at a Scarborough mosque. He says he never considered his friend dangerous.

The rapidly escalating conflict in Syria is raising the collective volume of voices asking, “What can and should President Obama do in Syria?” The reality is that Syria’s future is inextricably tied to the future stability of the entire MENA region. Today, I turn to Cassie Chesley , Chair ...

Sanaullah Ranjay was flown to PGI Chandigarh for treatment within hours of the attack

Referring to the Jammu incident, Khurshid said the attacker and the victim knew each other well and used to smoke together.

The nuclear world we face is more dangerous now and more uncertain than it ever has been in the past. That's how U.S. Senator John Hoeven categorized the need and continued support of America's Nuclear

NEW YORK (AP) - Prosecutors are seeking a 25-year prison sentence for a Texas man who admits he plotted to kill Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States, saying he deserves the maximum in part because he didn't care if an explosive he sought to put in a Washington restaurant...

The Cyberjaya Mosque, to be completed in 2015, will be the country’s first green mosque, writes Intan Maizura Ahmad Kamal

MOSCOW—Seeing the president slam face-first into the ground after falling from a speeding horse would be a shock to any nation. In authoritarian Turkmenistan, many residents didn't even get the chance.

DEARBORN — When city officials convinced the American Arab Chamber of Commerce to move its Arab International Festival this year, the goal was to have a more secure area and try to avoid problems caused by anti-Muslim demonstrators.

There isn’t much sanctuary from the percussive bombardment that is the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting. You could have nipped into the Wild Game Cooking Seminar with chef Paul Meleen on the third level of the convention centre here in Houston. Or for real respite, maybe the gentleman’s loo. Related...

WACC supports May 3 commemoration. The theme of World Press Freedom Day 2013 is “Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media”. How can WACC members and partners help bring about such a world? At the beginning of 2013 WACC joined with its partner SIGNIS to give its...

We live in a crisis-ridden age. But as fast and furious as the crises seem to come, it's important to remember that crises fade, too. In crisis mode today it's about getting to the bottom of the Boston Marathon bombings. That, and the reported use of chemical weapons by...

WASHINGTON — Turner Classics has been playing and replaying the great film “Lawrence of Arabia” this year.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah’s recent speech on the crisis in Syria has dashed hopes for any possible dialogue between the party and the Future Movement, let alone talks among the rival factions.

The dilemma Israel faces in trying to formulate a strategy on Syria two years into its civil war is symbolized by a case being heard in a small courtroom near Tel Aviv.

       

Milken Institute's Global Conference features a who's who among American and international business leaders. And at a time when the economy is among the top news items every day, the annual event becomes a media circus.

A stepped-up military presence along a 43-mile stretch of border in the Golan Heights demonstrates Israel’s growing anxiety over developments in Syria.

India will participate in the upgradation of strategically crucial Chahbahar port in Iran, that gives access to Afghanistan, and the issue will be discussed when External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid holds talks with his counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi.

The new president of the National Rifle Association, whose father was NRA president, is an Alabama attorney who has called President Obama a “fake president,” described Attorney General Eric Holder as “rabidly un-American” and jokingly refers to the U.S. Civil War as the “War of Northern Aggression.” Meet...

Journalist Mark Mazzetti looks at the U.S.' targeted killings and use of drones in the war on terror. Amid the many details, he raises warnings. In October 2002, Barack Obama, then an obscure state senator in Illinois, stood in Federal Plaza in Chicago and gave a speech about...

Government finding new ways to soften the impact of tough sanctions

Don't wait for Beijing to resolve the peace process, but it says volumes about China's evolving view of its place in the world.

Growing doubts about whether reformers might re-emerge to take part in polls

US President Barack Obama’s “Will Not” has come across as half-baked compared to the Hezbollah secretary general’s retort with an arrogant “Will Not” of his own.

Prominent Iranian art collector Ramin Salsali is planning to erect a modern art gallery in the heart of Dubai's commercial centre. The Dubai Museum of Contemporary Art (DMOCA) will be located in the Burj Khalifa district in downtown Dubai and Salsali has announced that he will donate some of his...

The idea of fomenting ethnic tensions in Iran as a means to destabilize the country is not a new one. Rohrabacher, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation, has never been shy about promoting ethnic separatism and supporting violent groups as a way to pressure Iran.

Iranian presidential hopeful Hassan Rohani has raised the possibility of establishing direct relations with the United States so long as national interests are not compromised. Hassan Rohani, Iran's former chief nuclear negotiator, is planning to run in the presidential election under the reformist banner.

While former president Mohammad Khatami has not yet officially announced his decision about running in the June presidential race in Iran, ayatollah Khamenei's representative at the Kayhan group of newspapers, Hossein Shariatmadari, called the reformist president a "traitor" and "corrupt," and predicted that the Guardians Council would reject his qualifications...

The Turkoman horse, or Turkmene, was an Oriental horse breed from the steppes of Central Asia, now extinct. They influenced many other horse breeds, including the Thoroughbred horse. Some horses bred in Turkmenistan today are still referred to as Turkoman, and have similar characteristics.

Like many Iranians, 31-year-old Amir is pondering what to do on June 14, when Iran chooses a new president. He has two options -- to vote or not to vote -- and neither is good, he says. -Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE

The 26th Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF), Iran's biggest trade show of books, opened during a ceremony on Monday. A total of 77 Publishers from different countries including Britain, U.S., Germany, India, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon are attending the TIBF this year.

"You're just not for everybody," comedic curmudgeon Marc Maron is told by the more popular TV clown (at least among a comic-store backroom of Twitter nerds) Dave Foley, who plays a rather unflattering version of his real self, as ...

ANKARA: Japan and Turkey on Friday signed a long-awaited deal to build a major nuclear power plant on Turkey's Black Sea coast, a milestone for the Japanese nuclear industry as it recovers from the 2011 Fukushima disaster.

Dell is investigating a report that a Middle East reseller has sold large numbers of computers to a Syrian company with ties to the embattled government there, in violation of U.S. export restrictions. read more

US factory orders fall sharply in March

EU warns of legal risks as Portugal outlines spending cuts

RAMALLAH [MENL] -- Iran was said to have forged relationships with leading members of the Fatah movement in the West Bank. Officials said Iran and Hizbullah were seeking to coopt members of the Fatah leadership, particularly the Central Committee.

Terrorism acts occur in many countries and occasionally close to home, such as the recent bombings at the Boston Marathon and the conspiracy to derail a New York-bound VIA Rail passenger train. The list of organizations designated as terrorist by … Continue reading →

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- Iran has laid the groundwork for a takeover of Syria regardless of the survival of President Bashar Assad, a report said. Two leading U.S. think tanks said in a joint report that Teheran has exploited its support for Assad to prepare an Iranian presence in Syria...

US job market shows surprising strength in April

New Delhi, May 3 : External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid left on a three day visit to Iran on Friday.

The Iranian nuclear program is a contentious and closely monitored issue in international politics. The Tehran government has rapidly advanced its nuclear program over the past decade, which it claims is for peaceful civilian purposes.

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>(Reuters) - Don't look to Washington. The United States will remain the world's most powerful nation for years to come, but the Obama administration and U.S. lawmakers are now focused on debt, immigration, guns and growth.A war-weary, under-employed American public wants results at home, leaving U.S. officials...

If Paul Heinbecker didn’t exist, the opposition Liberals, New Democrats and Greens would have to manufacture him in a lab. From his perch on the op-ed pages of the Globe and Mail, or on the airwaves of the CBC, this [...]

Prices have been falling recently, but experts say they'll soon flatten out. With gasoline prices just across the border in New Jersey getting tantalizingly close to $3 a gallon, could the Lehigh Valley see summer gas prices with a "2" as their first digit?        

U.S. officials told Israel that the United States has new weapons capable of destroying Iran’s underground nuclear site in Fordow, an American daily reported. Click here for the rest of the article...

U.S. Bulks Up to Combat Iran ( WSJ ) Taking sides in Syria is hard choice for Israel ( Reuters ) Gold Traders Most Bearish in Three Years After Drop ( BBG ) It's a Hard Job Predicting Payrolls Number  ( WSJ ) EU economies to breach deficit limits...

Inflation angst evaporates in race for returns

The FBI has made the fugitive member of a black militant group convicted of murdering a US state trooper, now living in Cuba, the first woman on its list of most wanted terrorists.The rewar...

BOSTON — Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was charged by federal prosecutors in his hospital room Monday with using a weapon of mass destruction to kill — a crime that carries a possible death sentence. Officials have said Tsarnaev...

ADB flags danger of Asia 'asset bubbles'

Chinese President Xi Jinping today figured in a US press censorship list, which also included an al-Qaeda linked Syrian terror group, Muslim Brotherhood supporters and Pakistan’s Baloch armed grou...

>BEIRUT (Reuters) - State forces and militias loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stormed the coastal village of Baida on Thursday, killing at least 50 people including women and children, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The pro-opposition monitoring group said the final death toll was likely to exceed...

Indian External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid is set to pay an official visit to the Iranian capital, Tehran, to attend the 17th meeting of Iran-India Joint Economic Commission.

Minot Air Force Base has long been home to B-52 bombers and Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, the latter in underground facilities in several countie.

A total of 6,569 Indian nationals are currently lodged in prisons of 67 foreign countries, including 254 in Pakistan, according to information accessed by a Kerala-based RTI activist from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Republican lawmakers have stepped up calls for US action against Syria.

U.S. officials show Israeli counterparts video trial of bomb that could be used to destroy Iran's Fordow nuclear installation, Wall Street Journal reports.

China has committed $75-billion to aid and development projects in Africa over the past ­decade, research shows.

(AP)—Determined to kill or capture a murderous Mekong River drug lord, China's security forces considered a tactic they'd never tried before: calling a drone strike on his remote hideaway deep in the hills of Myanmar.

LONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - Turkish imports of Iranian crudeoil rose to an eight-month high in April to average 140,000barrels per day, shipping data showed on Friday. Turkey was importing an average of 100,000 bpd betweenSeptember and February and in March slightly increased purchasesof Iranian oil to 114,000 bpd. The...

>* The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued subpoenas to U.S. auto lenders over the sale of extended warranties and other financial products. ()* The Pentagon has redesigned its biggest "bunker buster" bomb with more advanced features intended to enable it to destroy Iran's most heavily fortified and defended...