News Archive - 29 February 2012

India announced Wednesday evening it would continue purchasing Iran’s oil, heeding merely its national interests, apparently giving a negative answer to mounting US pressure to decrease dependence on Iranian energy. India’s official news agency, the PTI, quoting official Indian government officials’ response to the recent remarks by the US Secretary...

IRI Ambassador to Moscow Sayyed Mahmoud-Reza Sajjadi and Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Middle East Affairs Mikhail Bogdanov welcomed a peaceful resolution of Syrian political crisis during a meeting on Monday. The two officials discussed the latest regional and international developments in Middle East and North Africa including the Syrian...

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday the Iranian nation will slap the hegemonic powers in the face in the upcoming parliamentary elections on Friday. Islamic Revolution Leader made the remarks on Wednesday in an address to a large number of people from different walks...

Islamic Revolution Leader, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei in a meeting with thousands of enthusiastic Iranian people on Wednesday said the upcoming parliamentary elections on Friday is highly sensitive and the Iranian nation will massively take part in it. More details will be offered soon.

A senior Iranian aerospace official says the Islamic Republic plans to send satellites, weighing up to a ton, into space within the next ten years in yet another step to “conquer the peaks of progress.” Director of Iran’s Aerospace Industry Organization Mehdi Farahi said on Tuesday that Iran has...

>(Reuters) - Western trade sanctions against Iran have begun to strangle its oil exports, a U.S. advisory body said, amid signs the squeeze on Tehran is only set to intensify and could push global crude prices higher unless Washington eases its grip. With crude prices trading at around 10-month...

>U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the group's cooperation in moving residents from Camp Ashraf would be a "key factor" as the United States weighs whether to remove it from the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.The group, which calls for the overthrow of Iran's clerical...

A better question a legislator can ask himself is whether it is worth losing American lives in an unnecessary war because a president is constrained from utilizing diplomacy to prevent it?

>DUBAI (Reuters) - As international pressure mounts on Iran over its disputed nuclear program, the leadership is seeking to bolster support with rousing revolutionary rhetoric. State-run newspapers, websites and television channels talk incessantly of plots by Iran's "foreign enemies" to bring the Islamic Republic crashing to its knees.Official media...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea agreed on Wednesday to stop nuclear tests, uranium enrichment and long-range missile launches, and to allow checks by nuclear inspectors, in an apparent policy shift that paves the way for resuming long-stalled disarmament talks. The surprise breakthrough, announced simultaneously by the U.S. State Department...

>BEIRUT (Reuters) - An Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear program would set the Middle East ablaze, possibly drag in the United States and unleash a conflict beyond the Jewish state's control, the deputy head of Lebanon's pro-Iranian Hezbollah movement said. World oil prices have risen to 10-month highs on escalating...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday pledged to aggressively implement new U.S. sanctions on Iran but noted that some allies such as Japan face "unique situations" as they seek to reduce Iranian oil imports. President Barack Obama on December 31 signed into law the harshest...

>TEHRAN Feb 28 (Reuters) - Iran will take payment from its trading partners in gold instead of dollars, the Iranian state news agency IRNA quoted the central bank governor as saying on Tuesday.Iranian financial institutions have been hit by sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union...

>A government official in the United Arab Emirates and a source at the bank said on Wednesday Noor Islamic Bank had halted dealings with Iran, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.Noor Islamic Bank, partly-owned by the emirate of Dubai, appears to be the first financial institution in...

Drought one summer followed by unusually heavy snows and then a rain storm and hurricane that shut down the town. This isnât Africa, Texas, Siberia or Pakistan, but Princeton. New Jersey. With heavy flooding to our south and north.

LONDON (SHARECAST) - Crude oil prices fell on Wednesday after a weekly US government report showed a larger than expected glut in oil supplies, an indication of weak demand.

Pyongyang, February 29 (KCNA) -- Sheikh Sabah Al Khalid Al Hamad Al Sabah, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Kuwait, recently expressed opposition to any military attack on Iran.

Israel unveils sophisticated shelters in Tel Aviv, a likely Iran target

Pyongyang, February 29 (KCNA) -- GIs in Bagram air force base in Afghanistan recently burned the Holy Quran, enraging the Islamic world. Serious is that it was executed at the instructions of the U.S. military authorities.

Pyongyang, February 29 (KCNA) -- Some time ago, the Japanese prime minister expressed an intention to examine the issue of dispatching Self-Defense Forces to Hormuz Strait.

Tehran, February 28 (KCNA) -- The minister of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics of Iran warned Israel of its military threats to his country. The minister dismissed a spate of war outbursts let loose by Israeli officials against Iran as foolish.

Tehran, February 28 (KCNA) -- The U.S. has buckled down to getting itself ready for war against Iran citing its nuclear programme. An Iranian TV Sunday reported that the U.S. recently deployed thousands of its troops in Socotra Island of Yemen to strike nuclear facilities of Iran.

>* U.S. agrees to food aid in confidence building measure* Dramatic step follows December death of Kim Jong-il (Adds analyst comment)By Andrew QuinnWASHINGTON, Feb 29 (Reuters) - North Korea has agreed with the United States to suspend major elements of its atomic weapons programme in a surprise breakthrough that...

>* Western sanctions already disrupting Iran oil exports -EIA* Coming Up: U.S. initial jobless claims; 1330 GMTBy Manash GoswamiSINGAPORE, March 1 (Reuters) - Brent crude futures held steady above $122 on Thursday, drawing support from a faster-than-expected expansion of the U.S. economy and better factory data from China...

With equities gaining and economic indicators improving, what could go wrong? Plenty. You need to defend your portfolio against sovereign debt risk and global economic weakness.

Don’t let down your guard this month, writes Jim Lowell.

You can keep your "Jersey Boys," the Philly boys were tremendous. Such entertainment. A treat that was unexpected was the son of Frankie Avalon and son of Phil Everly performing with the group.

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 29 (HealthDay News) -- A federal judge on Wednesday blocked implementation of an FDA mandate that would have forced tobacco companies to place graphic anti-smoking images on packages of cigarettes.

There’s only an 8% chance that the bull market will come to an end in March.

How far is Rick Santorum out of touch with America? He talks about becoming sickened after reading John F. Kennedy's 1960s speech calling for the rigid separation of religion and politics. JFK was a Catholic -- maybe not the best Catholic -- but he was one of America's best presidents.

ISLAMABAD: The Makran division of Balochistan has become free of loadshedding and there will be no power shortage in the area for next five years, thanks to another 35MW of electricity now being supplied by Iran.

Washington (AFP) Feb 29, 2012 The United States has powerful bombs at the ready in the case of possible military action against Iran and work is under way to bolster their firepower, the air force chief said Wednesday. General Norton Schwartz, air force chief of staff, declined to say whether...

Tehran (AFP) Feb 29, 2012 Iran said on Wednesday that "no nuclear activity whatsoever" has taken place at its military site of Parchin, which UN nuclear watchdog inspectors demanded last week to visit but were refused. "No nuclear activity whatsoever has taken place on the Parchin site," the head of...

ISLAMABAD: A high-level meeting held in the Presidency on Wednesday evening reviewed Pakistan-US relations against the backdrop of the situation in Balochistan, Afghanistan and Iran.

results WEDNESDAY Boys hockey Xavier vs. ND-Fairfield at Milford Ice Pavilion, ppd. to Thursday, 6 East Catholic vs. Milford at Milford Ice Pavilion, ppd. to Thursday, 8 Hamden vs. ND-West Haven at Bennett Rink, ppd. to Thursday, 4 West Haven vs. Cheshire at Wesleyan, ppd. to Thursday, 4:15 FCIAC Tier...

The national Iranian football team has played out to a draw against Qatar at the third round of the Asian Football Confederation section of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.

Washington (UPI) Feb 29, 2012 As the White House defuses efforts to restart a 21st-century variant of the ancient Persian wars through a pre-emptive, presumptive Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, history offers several stark warnings and lessons about starting and losing wars to be ignored at our risk.

If you were out of the country last week, you might have missed how quickly the threat of war with Iran shifted from imminent to pushed aside.

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama has a new message: America has gotten its groove back. In ways large and small, Obama has seized on a narrative of national optimism in recent weeks, offering a portrait of a country that, guided by him and powered by the American worker, is making...

The Government is facing widespread revolt over plans to expand "secret justice" laws to ensure controversial court cases and inquests can be held behind closed doors.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 29 (Bernama) -- National car manufacturer Proton Holdings Bhd's pre-tax loss widened to RM84.054 million for the third quarter ended Dec 31, 2011 compared to a pre-tax loss of RM51.535 million in the same period in 2010.

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration sidestepped a congressional deadline Wednesday and an opportunity to unilaterally ratchet up economic pressure on Iran by punishing foreign firms that do business there.

Senior figures in all three main parties expressed horror over proposals by Kenneth Clarke (pictured) to allow controversial court cases and inquests to be held behind closed doors.

>FUNDAMENTALS* NYMEX crude for April delivery was up 1 cent at $107.08 a barrel by 0016 GMT, after settling up 52 cents at $107.07 on Wednesday.The Federal Reserve Beige Book report showed late on Wednesday that the U.S. economy expanded modestly in January through mid-February.For...

Youthful exuberance and enthusiasm were the name of the game Tuesday night in Springfield at a rally held for Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.

Mitt Romney opens up for the second day in a row.

A victorious Mitt Romney and runner-up Rick Santorum both claimed satisfaction from the close Michigan primary on Wednesday as they swiftly shifted their duel for the Republican presidential nomination to Ohio and the rest of next week's delegate-rich Super Tuesday contests.

Oil prices edged up Wednesday amid some new saber-rattling from Washington over Iran's suspect nuclear program.

— We know Democrats want to build railroads, revive manufacturing, pay for college education, support unions, protect affirmative action, provide government jobs and — whew — tax the rich, but was there really anything more to learn from the first debate among the three candidates running in the 5th District...

The Obama administration on Wednesday offered an Iranian opposition group a path to get off of a U.S. terrorism blacklist, a move that would end years of high-profile campaigning from the Mujahadin-e-Khalq and infuriate Iran.

Man charged in plot to export military technology

There's a growing argument that natural gas will buy us enough time to switch to a renewables-led future, but the truth is a lot murkier. 1 Mar 2012 10:39 AM

By some measure the best speech on Oscar night came from an unexpected, or at least, unfamiliar, source: Asghar Farhadi, the director of best foreign language film winner "A Separation."

Opec may ask its current secretary general to remain in the post for an unprecedented third term, Opec delegates said, should the group fail to reach consensus on a Saudi Arabian nominee and other candidates for the role who may emerge.

TAPPER: Another energy company that took a significant loan — accepted a significant loan from the Obama administration, Abound Energy, announced it would be laying off some workers. And I was wondering if the White House had any reaction to that and whether the White...

WikiLeaks targeted the Texas-based civilian spy company Stratfor on Tuesday, saying it would publish more than five million hacked internal emails.

If the 2012 elections were held in May, President Obama might face dire reelection odds.

With India having switched its stance on Syria to being more critical of the Bashar al-Assad regime, New Delhi is ready to lend its considerable diplomatic clout to support the Arab League.

The price of gas has jumped 45 cents since Jan. 1 and is the highest on record for this time of year, an average of $3.73 a gallon. On Wall Street, talk has turned from the European debt crisis to another worry: Will higher gas prices derail the economic...

The violent reaction to the U.S. military's recent Koran burnings in Afghanistan is threatening to undermine American plans to withdraw from the war-ravaged country in 2014. And with relations frayed between the U.S. and Afghan governments, Washington is looking for all the help it can get from neighboring...

Former Green Party nominee Ralph Nader visited MSNBC's Jansing & Co. Wednesday morning, where he gave host Chris Jansing a few solutions to dealing with rising gas prices. Even though President Obama believes there's no "quick fix" when it comes to combating prices at the pump, Nader said, there are...

(AP) Congress, acting in concert with the administration, took steps Wednesday toward overturning a federal court ruling that restricted the government's ability to impose higher tariffs on China and other countries that subsidize exports to the United States.

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Brace for $1.60 a litre this spring, analyst warns

"DR. SEUSS' THE LORAX" (3-D) -- An animated adaptation of the classic children's book about a boy, a girl and the strange, grouchy creature who talks of Truffula Trees and the importance of protecting the environment. With the voices of Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Danny DeVito and Ed Helms.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday offered a tempered view of the U.S. economy, pouring cold water on the notion recent upbeat signs herald a stronger recovery. Bernanke told Congress that unless growth accelerated, the unacceptably high U.S. unemployment rate would not keep dropping.

Oil fell for a third day after government data showed US inventories rose to the highest level in more than five months and on expectations that the Federal Reserve will not take new action to bolster the economy.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Pentagon leaders met with Israel's defense minister Wednesday to discuss the continuing tensions with Iran and Syria, amid escalating speculation that the Israelis will launch a pre-emptive strike against Tehran's nuclear facilities.

It's been a busy week. Rush became news again, Franken didn't, and John Boehner rode into the sunset with the gang. And Obama is smiling. Why? Didn't he have a bad week? . . .

Yesterday President Obama signed two important energy-related Executive Orders (EOs) as he declared a national goal of ending dependence on foreign oil and promised new U.S. leadership in the fight . . .

The Air Force’s next-generation bomber comes with a hefty price tag: $550 million per aircraft — and that assumes no cost overruns similar to those plaguing the F-22 and F-35 fighter programs.

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel's prime minister sets off this week on a U.S. visit clouded by a deepening rift with Washington, which is pressing Israel to hold off on any attack against Iran's suspect nuclear program.

KUALA LUMPUR: The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower prompted by a technical correction and subdued demand, dealers said.

>VIENNA (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog believes unspecified "activities" may be taking place at Iran's Parchin military facility that make its request to visit the site more urgent, Western diplomats said on Wednesday. It was unclear what kind of activities the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) suspected, or...

ISLAMABAD - Iran has offered 80,000 barrels per day of oil to Pakistan on a three-month deferred payment plan, an official in Islamabad said on Wednesday, in an attempt to soften the impact of Western sanctions and ease some of Pakistan’s energy needs.

NEW YORK - The number of American mosques has increased dramatically in the last decade despite post 9/11 protests aimed at Muslim houses of worship, according to a new study. The new Islamic centers serve Muslims who moved into the suburbs and newer immigrants from Africa, Iraq and elsewhere.

‘this Is Not a Film” was made surreptitiously by a politically persecuted filmmaker in Iran and smuggled out of the country in a cake. Presumably the dessert was tastier than this dry and dutiful piece of cinema. The movie is a video diary that is so vague and circumspect that...

Three years after he was busted in a Pulitzer Prize-winning  New York Times   investigation , General Barry McCaffery is still stoking fears of Iran on NBC and consulting the network's executives and producers. It's hard to say which activity is more disturbing given that, in 2008, the Times'  David...

NEW YORK, Feb. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue: Strategic Pipelines Set to Change Geopolitical and Demand Supply Paradigm ...

>* This raises costs, closes some markets for them* But money exchange houses, hawala are options* Companies forming new partnerships to conduct trade* Trade routes changing in response to pressuresBy Daniel FinerenDUBAI, Feb 29 (Reuters) - Iranian firm AHT exports millions of dollars worth of nuts and dried fruit from...

Israel’s Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman says Tel Aviv will not heed warnings to not attack Iran over the country’s nuclear energy program.

The Israelis, along with GOP presidential hopefuls and senators and some hawkish Democrats, want Obama to keep Iran from potentially building a nuclear weapon. The White House indicated Tuesday that President Obama would resist pressure for a tougher Iran policy coming from Israel and some U.S. lawmakers who argue...

Iran supports the simplification of visa procedures with Ukraine, Iranian Ambassador to Ukraine Akbar Ghasemi-Aliabadi has said.

Oil rebounded after two days of losses as traders awaited US inventory data amid lingering market worries about Iran supply disruptions.

Saif Al-Aldel is on the FBI's "most wanted terrorists" list because of his involvement with the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

JERUSALEM, Feb. 29 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama are at odds over Israel's threat to attack Iran, a senior Israeli official said.

Allowing Tehran to achieve a "latent" nuclear capability might be the best way to avert war.

>The sanctions, aimed at pressuring Tehran to prevent its nuclear program being used to make weapons, will punish financial institutions that deal with Iran's central bank, the channel for oil transactions.A breach of the sanctions could result in companies being shut out of the U.S. market, which could...