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Ahmadinejad Oil Ministry Move Illegal: Iran Watchdog
May 21, 2011
TEHRAN – Iran's constitutional watchdog has said President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's decision to appoint himself caretaker oil minister is illegal, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Friday.
Ahmadinejad, who has been embroiled in a power struggle with other members of the conservative ruling elite in recent months, was reported...
EU to Impose More Sanctions on Iranian, Libyan, Syrian Regimes
on May 21, 2011
>BRUSSELS - Foreign Ministers of the 27-member European Union during their regular meeting in Brussels on Monday are expected to decide on a new round of sanctions on the regimes in Iran, Libya and Syria, EU sources told journalists here Friday.
The EU is expected to add more Syrian officials on the blacklist that includes a ban on visa for the EU and freezing of...
Saleh Calls for Early Election as Yemenis Protest
on May 21, 2011
SANAA – Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has agreed to sign a Gulf-brokered power transition, called on Friday for early elections to prevent bloodshed as three months of protests raged on in the fractious country. Saleh has twice backed out of the Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) transition deal, most recently on Wednesday, despite diplomatic...
India, Uzbekistan Ink More Than 30 Pacts
May 19, 2011
NEW DELHI— India and Uzbekistan on Wednesday signed more than 30 bilateral agreements in varied business entities in areas like information technology, pharmaceuticals, standardization, small and medium enterprises, coal gasification, oil and gas, science and technology, textiles, banking and...
Obama to Visit CIA over Bin Laden Killing
May 19, 2011
WASHINGTON— U.S. President Barack Obama will visit the Central Intelligence Agency on Friday to thank officers for bring down al Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden, the White House confirmed Wednesday. Obama will head to CIA's Langley, Virginia headquarters to thank officers "for the work they do every day to keep America safe and...
Pakistan, China Premiers Meet Amid Tension with US
May 19, 2011
BEIJING — Pakistan’s prime minister sealed a series of agreements with China on Wednesday, highlighting Islamabad’s warm ties with Beijing amid heightened tensions with Washington over the killing of Osama bin Laden.
The signing ceremony followed talks between Yousuf Raza Gilani and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao at the Great Hall of the People at the...
Tanks Shell Syrian Town as West Increases Pressure
May 19, 2011
AMMAN– Tanks shelled a Syrian border town for the fourth day on Wednesday in a military campaign to crush demonstrations against President Bashar al-Assad, under mounting Western pressure to stop repression of protest.
Troops went into Tel Kelakh on Saturday, a day after a demonstration there demanded "the overthrow of the regime," the slogan of...
Iranian Lawmakers File Lawsuit against President: Report
May 18, 2011
TEHRAN -- A senior member of the Iranian Majlis (Parliament) said a number of lawmakers have filed a lawsuit against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration for violating the constitution, the English language satellite Press TV reported Tuesday.
On February 28, a number of legislators filed suit against the...
U.S. Sanctions not to Stop Iran’s Nuclear Work: Iran
May 18, 2011
TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that the U.S. sanctions against Iran will not stop Iranians from pursuing their rights over their nuclear program, the local English language satellite Press TV reported.
"This (using sanctions) is a wrong path that has been taken several times and it has no effect on our nation's will and...
Pakistan PM Hails China Ties Amid Strains with US
May 18, 2011
BEIJING– Pakistan's prime minister declared China his country's best friend in an apparent dig at Washington as he began a visit to China on Tuesday with US ties tested over Osama bin Laden's killing.
Yousuf Raza Gilani's trip follows the killing of the Al-Qaeda leader by US special forces on Pakistani soil this month in a raid that has...
Russia Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Libya
May 17, 2011
MOSCOW - Russia insisted on the immediate ceasefire in Libya and opening talks for settlements to end violence in the Northern African country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday.
After his talks with visiting Namibian Foreign Minister Utoni Nujoma, Lavrov stressed in a press conference that the ceasefire in Libya and the return of the country to political tracks were in interests of...
Iran Hardliners Sail for Bahrain
May 17, 2011
TEHRAN, Iran – Two ships carrying 120 Iranian hardline activists have left for Bahrain, part of an effort to show solidarity with the Shiite majority population of the tiny island nation.
The leader of the group, Mahdi Eghrarian, was quoted by the semi-official Fars news agency as saying that the two ships left the...
Tanks Push Deeper Into Restive Syrian Area
May 17, 2011
AMMAN - At least 15 Syrian tanks pushed overnight into a rural area near the Lebanese border, where security forces have concentrated their latest crackdown against pro-democracy demonstrations, human rights activists said.
The activists, who were in contact with residents, said the tanks deployed around Arida, near the Jisr al-Qomar border crossing point...
ICC Seeks Kadhafi Arrest Warrant
May 17, 2011
THE HAGUE – International Criminal Court's (ICC) chief prosecutor has sought an arrest warrant for Moamer Kadhafi, accusing the Libyan leader of having ordered his forces to gun down civilians in their homes, at funerals and outside mosques.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo also asked for arrest warrants for Kadhafi's second-oldest son Seif al-Islam and his brother-in-law Abdullah...
NATO ‘Cannot Reach Me’: Gaddafi
May 16, 2011
>TRIPOLI - Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has said he is in a place where NATO bombs “cannot reach”, in an audio message broadcast on state television.
He also condemned as cowardly an attack on his compound in Tripoli on Thursday.
Libyan officials said the strike killed three people. NATO officials...
China Rejects Clinton’s Human Rights Comments
May 16, 2011
BEIJING – China has rejected comments by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton about its human rights record and says any attempts to direct the turmoil in the Middle East to China will fail.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said late Friday that it is wrong to compare China to countries that have faced recent...
The Political Struggle Goes on in Yemen
May 16, 2011
SANAA – Yemen is a fertile land with beaches that stretch for more than 1,700km. It is also a country in which more than 10mn people are threatened by starvation, where thousands spend their lives sneaking into neighboring countries in search of better opportunities, and where children are violated in forced labor markets. In an age of...
N. Korea, Iran Trade Missile Technology: U.N
May 15, 2011
NEW YORK– North Korea and Iran appear to have been regularly exchanging ballistic missile technology in violation of U.N. sanctions, according to a confidential United Nations report obtained by Reuters on Saturday.
The report said that the illicit technology transfers had "trans-shipment through a neighboring third country." That country was China, several diplomats told Reuters on condition of...
Libya Buries 11 Imams ‘Killed in NATO Strike’
May 15, 2011
TRIPOLI - Libyans on Saturday buried 11 Muslim clerics killed in what Moamer Kadhafi's regime said was a NATO air strike on the oil city of Brega that the alliance said had targeted a military site.
In Paris, meanwhile, senior Libyan rebel leader Mahmud Jibril met President Nicolas Sarkozy to discuss the three-month-old conflict and the prospects for a...
Iran’s Package of Proposals Benefits the World: MP
May 15, 2011
TEHRAN — Top Iranian legislator Alaeddin Boroujerdi said on Wednesday that Iran's package of proposals for negotiations with the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany) is in the interests of the entire world.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran's package of political proposals presented to the European Union includes all current issues facing the...
Japan Approves TEPCO Nuclear Claims Plan, Reactor Leaks
May 14, 2011
TOKYO– Japan on Friday announced a plan to help Tokyo Electric Power compensate victims of the crisis at its tsunami-crippled nuclear plant without going broke while it struggles to resolve the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.
The plan, agreed after weeks of wrangling between government officials, bankers and Tokyo Electric executives over who should pay...
Bush Tells Obama on Bin Laden: “Good Call”
May 14, 2011
WASHINGTON– Former President George W. Bush, who spent years searching for Osama bin Laden, had two words for President Barack Obama when Obama told him of the al Qaeda leader's death: "Good call."
Bush, who has shied away from the public eye since leaving office in January 2009, spoke about the U.S. raid that killed bin Laden in...
Syria to Pursue “National Dialogue” over Protests
May 14, 2011
AMMAN– Syria said Friday it would hold a "national dialogue" after two months of protests against President Bashar al-Assad and a military crackdown which has killed hundreds of people.
Thousands demonstrated in towns and cities across Syria after the weekly Muslim prayers, activists and witnesses said, but unlike previous Fridays there were few reports of clashes and some protests...
Pakistan Under Pressure After Osama Death: Gilani
May 12, 2011
ISLAMABAD- Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday said his government was under immense domestic and international pressure after the killing of the Al Qaeda leader in the country.
"We are under huge pressure at home and abroad since the Abbottabad operation on May 2," Gilani told upper house of the...
Laden’s Demise Beneficial for Russia: Medvedev
May 12, 2011
MOSCOW - President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday that the killing of Osama bin Laden is beneficial to Russian security, state-run news agencies reported.
“The liquidation of terrorists, even on the level of ... bin Laden, has a direct relationship to the level of security on the territory of our state,” Itar-Tass quoted Medvedev as saying in...
Obama Speech on Arab World in Coming Days: Report
May 12, 2011
WASHINGTON– President Barack Obama's long-expected speech on turmoil in the Arab world could take place as soon as next week, in the aftermath of the death of Osama bin Laden, a report said Wednesday.
Obama's address will focus on the popular uprisings, violence and political change sweeping the region, and also come at a time of deep...
Iran Offers Nothing New in Nuclear Letter: EU
May 12, 2011
BRUSSELS - Iran offers nothing new in a letter in which it agrees to resume international talks on its nuclear programmer and it does not seem to justify a new meeting, the European Union said Wednesday.
"We are surprised to hear the Iranians talking about meetings.
They have not been in touch with us with any proposals," said...
Zardari Visits Russia after Bin Laden Death
May 12, 2011
>MOSCOW– President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in Moscow on Wednesday to strengthen Pakistan's relationship with Russia on his first major foreign visit since the killing of Osama bin Laden by US forces.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday will host Zardari at the Kremlin where officials were also expected to sign agreements on...
Moon Warns of Big Gaps in World Nuclear Safety
May 11, 2011
GENEVA– UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday that the accident at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant suggested that there were large gaps in international systems to deal with safety breaches.
Ban also announced a high-level international meeting on the issue in New York on September 22 during the UN General Assembly session.
"Men and women...
Australia to Boost Foreign Aids by $520 mln
May 11, 2011
CANBERRA— Australian federal government on Tuesday announced to boost foreign aids by 520 million U.S. dollars next year, in a bid to tackle extremism and reduce the numbers of refugees fleeing violence and poverty in the world trouble spots.
Treasurer Wayne Swan on Tuesday night revealed the 2011/12 federal budget, which mainly focuses to return budget to surplus in...
NATO Strikes Gaddafi Compound: Witnesses
May 11, 2011
TRIPOLI– NATO carried out missile strikes on targets in the Tripoli area on Tuesday that appeared to include Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's compound, witnesses said.
Gaddafi has not appeared publicly since April 30 when a NATO air strike on a house in the capital killed his youngest son and three of his grandchildren, raising questions among some Arab diplomats anxious...
NATO Planes Pound Libyan Govt. Weapons Depot
May 10, 2011
RIPOLI– NATO planes pounded Libyan government weapons depots southeast of the town of Zintan on Monday, in a sign of widening conflict in the Western Mountains region as rebel’s battle to unseat Muammar Gaddafi.
"The air strikes occurred around 1100 (5 a.m. EDT). We saw big plumes of smoke and heard explosions," said a rebel spokesman...
Osama Died Long Ago: Moslehi
May 10, 2011
KABUL - Iran's Intelligence Chief has claimed to have concrete evidence to prove that Osama Bin Laden died of natural causes quite long before the US special force raid in Pakistan.
Iranian Intelligence Minister Haider Moslehi has said the Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was not killed in a military operation conducted by a small team of US Special Forces in Abbottabad city in...
Pakistan Not the Birthplace of Al-Qaeda, Did not Invent Osama : Pakistani Prime Minister, Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani
May 10, 2011
ISLAMABAD - In a much-awaited speech on Monday, Pakistani Prime Minister defended country's spy agency, Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), and questioned the making of Osama Bin Laden and his terror network.
The Prime Minister in his speech to the parliament, which came after...
G8 Interior Ministers to Seek Ways to Fight Drug Trafficking
May 09, 2011
PARIS - Interior ministers of the Group of Eight (G8) will meet in Paris Monday to discuss ways to combat cocaine trafficking, the French presidency office said Sunday.
"The President of the Republic will receive on Monday ... the ministers attending the meeting on the fight against cocaine trafficking across the Atlantic, held on May 9 and 10 in Paris under the French...