News Archive - 2 May 2012

1st Half – Highlights         2nd Half – Highlights  Share and Enjoy • Facebook • Twitter • Delicious • Digg • Google Buzz • StumbleUpon • Add to favorites • Email • RSS...

Thousands of 99-percenters across the United States are organizing a coordinated general strike for May Day to protest against corporate greed and economic inequalities, according to Press TV. The Occupy Wall Street organizers say they are planning to hold hundreds of rallies, strikes, and sit-ins in 120 cities on Tuesday...

The first complete genome-sequencing of "Otzi," Italy's prehistoric iceman, is revealing a wealth of details about the man who roamed the Alps 5,300 years ago and could unleash a frenzy of activity among scientists thanks to open data. Over the last 20 years, scientists have painstakingly collected data from the...

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At least six people, protesting against the junta in Egypt, have been killed by unknown armed men near the Defense Ministry building in the capital, Cairo, Egyptian security officials say. The officials said that the incident took place early Wednesday when the unidentified armed men used rocks, clubs and firebombs...

First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi left Tehran for Beirut on Wednesday to review issues of mutual interest with senior Lebanese officials. Heading a politico-economic delegation, Rahimi s two-day visit is taking place at the invitation of the Lebanese prime minister. During his visit, Rahimi is planned to meet with top...

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that the Iranian nation will demonstrate their vigilance, insight and sagacity on the run-off general election. The Islamic Revolution Leader made the remarks in a meeting with thousands of enthusiastic teachers marking Teachers Day. Ayatollah Khameni praised the...

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Tehran and Beirut underlined the enhancement of the ties during the seventh summit of the Iran-Lebanon Joint Commission, which was held in the presence of Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development Ali Nikzad and Lebanon’s Minister of Economy Nicolas Nahhas in the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Tuesday. Nikzad...

The International Monetary Fund has rejected a call by a US-based anti-Iranian group to cut its ties with the Central Bank of Iran. The IMF said on Tuesday that its relationship with the Central Bank of Iran is based on its constitution, noting that Iran's membership does not contravene US...

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>* U.S. crude stocks at highest since September 1990* Coming Up: ECB rate decision; 1145 GMT (Updates prices, adds Brent/WTI spread)By Manolo Serapio JrSINGAPORE, May 3 (Reuters) - Brent crude steadied above $118 a barrel on Thursday, reflecting caution among investors ahead of a key U.S. employment report...

>BEIJING (Reuters) - Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng appealed on Thursday for asylum in the United States, throwing into doubt a deal used to coax him out of hiding in the U.S. embassy in Beijing and fanning U.S.-China tensions at a sensitive time. The standoff appears particularly...

>CHANTILLY, Virginia (Reuters) - In a blast from the past, Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting Mitt Romney is likening President Barack Obama's economic record to the weak performance of a Democratic predecessor, Jimmy Carter. Romney returned to the familiar ground of talking about the economy on Wednesday after the campaign trail was...

VIENNA (AP) - A senior Iranian official says Israel's undeclared nuclear weapons pose the greatest threat to Mideast peace. He also is suggesting that the United States and other Western nuclear-weapons states are hypocritically ignoring their disarmament commitments.

The 10-year security compact that President Barack Obama signed with Afghan President Hamid Karzai contains promises the United States and Afghanistan cannot guarantee they will keep, and loopholes for both nations.

>By Fredrik DahlVIENNA May 2 (Reuters) - Iran is optimistic about progress in talks with world powers over its nuclear programme but it will never give up its right to the peaceful use of atomic energy, a senior Iranian official said on Wednesday.Tehran reopened negotiations with six world powers...

>BEIJING (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged China on Thursday to help defuse tension over Iran, North Korea and other global flashpoints, seeking to salvage talks that have been overwhelmed by negotiations over a dissident. In her opening remarks to the two-day U.S.-China Strategic and Economic...

>By Andrew Quinn and Ben BlanchardBEIJING May 2 (Reuters) - Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng left the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on Wednesday "of his own volition" after six days, the Foreign Ministry said, and a senior U.S. official said he planned to stay put in China.China's Foreign...

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish autonomous region in northern Iraq, is threatening to declare independence if the dysfunctional Shiite fundamentalist-dominated ...

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) Perhaps it is going too far to say, as someone did after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill two years ago, that most Americans want a president who is cool, calm and collected in a ...

(MENAFN - Arab Times) Kuwait was again rated 'Partly Free' in this year's Freedom of the Press Report released Tuesday by the Freedom House. However, Kuwait, which ranks 57 in the world, is still ...

Iran imported weapons worth over £350 million in the space of three years despite being the target of a United Nations arms embargo, Oxfam will disclose on Thursday.

TEHRAN, May 3 (MNA) - Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Mehdi Akhondzadeh has said that France has made every effort to help Israel in its efforts to develop nuclear weapons.

Chidambaram said the government had in 2009 said it would initiate the process of formation of Telangana after the political parties of AP endorsed the demand.

The 10-year security compact that President Barack Obama signed with Afghan President Hamid Karzai contains promises the United States and Afghanistan cannot guarantee they will keep, and also loopholes for both nations.

WASHINGTON -- One moment he boasts about taking out America's No. 1 enemy, and the next he vows to bring home troops from an unpopular war.

UN observers said they were having a "calming" impact on the ground as Syrian rebels killed 22 troops in the army's deadliest day of a shaky three-week-old ceasefire deal.

>HANCHENG, China (Reuters) - In a ramshackle township in northwest China's Shaanxi province, red Communist Party banners call on a nearby steel mill's workers to seek "progress" and avoid making "backward steps". The slogans demonstrate the hybrid nature of China's floundering steel sector, which as it tries to serve the...

Washington (AFP) May 2, 2012 Top US officials preparing for international missile defense talks in Russia said Washington remains committed to fully implementing its missile shield for eastern Europe despite Moscow's opposition. On the eve of the two-day talks involving 50 countries, one of the officials, Ellen Tauscher, also said...

Plus LG on Windows Phone, tablet rollout for health workers, Google's big data cloud offering and more A quick burst of 8 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team Motorola posts Q1 loss, despite rise in smartphones shipments ZDNet Motorola's mobile device unit accounted for...

The idea of a longer-term commitment in Afghanistan is being greeted skeptically by President Barack Obama’s fellow Democrats in Iowa.

Nouriel Roubini gives an audience no shortage of scenarios to keep them up at night, but his number one worry right now is the looming threat of Iran building nuclear weapons.

International soccer fans are some of the most passionate in the world. Unfortunately, that can often mean that competitive matches can turn ugly and sometimes even violent. In fact, we're less than three months removed from the tragic Egyptian match that erupted in violence and cost over 70 people their...

Esteghlal boss Parviz Mazloumi acknowledges his side are far from through to the Round of 16 despite Wednesday's 3-0 win over Al Rayyan putting them in the driver's seat to progress in Group A.

The Arab Spring heralded improvements to press freedom in 2011, but many free countries are placing more limits on media

Elham Seyed Javad is on a mission to help Muslims on the soccer field

Bush's numbers and Obama's have been almost exactly tracking each other for the past three months. Bush had a 48.6 approval rating at this point, and a 46.9 percent disapproval rating. Both are within one point of where Obama now stands.

>FUNDAMENTALS* NYMEX crude for June edged up eight cents to $105.30 a barrel by 2350 GMT, after falling nearly a dollar the previous session.* U.S. crude oil stocks rose 2.84 million barrels last week to 375.86 million barrels, more than forecast, and hitting the highest...

The blind Chinese dissident who boldly fled house arrest and placed himself under the wing of U.S. diplomats balked Wednesday at a deal delicately worked out between the two countries to let him live freely in China, saying he now fears for his family

Japan’s Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba has urged Israel to exercise “patience” on Iran’s nuclear programme and give sanctions a chance to work, his spokesman said yesterday. Gemba, who arrived in Israel on Tuesday, met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

President Barack Obama returned from Afghanistan to the uncertainty of election year politics and the complications of foreign policy Wednesday after traveling halfway around the world on the anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death.

A rare interview with Bahrain's most famous protester

A former member of Iraq’s Parliament says Iran is using...

This year, a handful of countries are considering fiercely debated bills that would ban the marriage of girls under the age of 17. This horrific practice exists in almost every corner of the world where there is poverty or lack of education.

ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Saudi Arabia has reported an Iranian plot to assassinate its ambassador in Egypt. The Saudi Foreign Ministry asserted that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps planned to kill ambassador Ahmed Al Qattan in Cairo in 2012. A ministry official said Egyptian authorities arrested three Iranian agents in...

Two top Israeli security officials say the prospect of early national elections will have no influence over a decision over whether to strike Iranian nuclear sites.

NICOSIA [MENL] -- Iran has disclosed another submarine project for the navy. Copyrights 2008, Middle East Newsline. All rights reserved.

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- The United States has enhanced its campaign against suspected violators of sanctions on Iran and Syria. Copyrights 2008, Middle East Newsline.

New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma has been suspended without pay for the entire 2012 season by the NFL, one of four players punished for participating in...

Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba discussed Iran's nuclear program and other issues with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday evening, Foreign Ministry officials said. Genba told Netanyahu about the circumstances in which Japan has been cooperating with European countries and the United States to reduce crude oil imports from Iran,...

The parents of missing British girl Madeleine McCann say they believe Portuguese authorities will eventually reopen the investigation into their daughter's disappearance.

By ANN M. JOB For The Associated Press With European-style handling, luxury looks, surprising refinement and new features for 2013, Ford's compact sport utility vehicle, the Escape, doesn't seem...

>* Government looking at new laws for social media* MPs back death penalty for insulting God, ProphetBy Sylvia WestallKUWAIT, May 2 (Reuters) - Kuwait is about to take a firmer line on regulation of social media, uneasy about people who it says use Twitter and Facebook to stoke sectarian tensions...

>LONDON (Reuters) - Oil eased to around $119 a barrel on Wednesday as weak economic data in Europe and the United States hit the outlook for demand, and a rise in weekly U.S. crude inventories underlined ample supplies. The euro zone's manufacturing sector slipped further into decline last month,...

>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The prospect of an imminent election in Israel will not affect its strategy for tackling Iran's nuclear program, including plans for a possible preemptive war, Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Wednesday. Rifts in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's conservative coalition over military conscription and budget cuts have...

>* Iran, 6 world powers to meet in Baghdad on May 23* Islamic Republic says "optimistic", wants sanctions lifted* West suspects Iran is seeking nuclear arms capability* Iran sees Western double standardsBy Fredrik Dahl and Marcus GeorgeVIENNA/DUBAI, May 2 (Reuters) - Iran said on Wednesday it would seek an end...

COLUMN DIARY, a check of big headlines, small wonders and other highlights:

(AP) A senior International Monetary Fund official said Wednesday the fund remains willing to consider a much-needed $3.2 billion aid package for Egypt but is waiting for sufficient consensus from …

Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng left the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on Wednesday "of his own volition" after six days, the Foreign Ministry said, and a senior U.S. official said he planned to stay put in China.

Mitt Romney just received an emphatic reminder that he’s not running against an ordinary candidate – he’s running against the president of the United States. For a while, it was beginning to feel like the presumptive GOP nominee might be getting the better of Barack Obama in their tiff over...

NEW YORK, May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:  Next Generation FTTX: Fibre Optics Innovations 2012-2017 http://www.reportlinker.com/p0789002/Next-Generation-FTTX-Fibre-Optics-Innovations-2012-2017.html#utm_source=prnewswire&utm_medium=pr&utm_campaign=Broadband Report ...

Goal.com rounds up all the exciting action from Tuesday's fifth matchday of the Asian Champions League fixtures as they happen all around the continent...

TEHRAN, May 2 (MNA) – Zimbabwean Ambassador to Tehran Nicholas Dlamini Kitikiti held talks with Mehr News Agency and Tehran Times Director General Reza Moghadasi on expansion of media cooperation between Zimbabwe and Iran.

The Iranian government acknowledged today that authorities have found evidence of recent cyberattacks against several agencies, according to reports by state-sponsored media outlets.

>* US crude stocks rise less than forecast last week-API* Coming up: U.S. weekly EIA petroleum status report; 1430 GMT (Updates prices, adds development on Iran in paragraph 13)By Simon FalushLONDON, May 2 (Reuters) - Oil eased on Wednesday as weak economic data in Europe hit the demand outlook,...

A timeline of Osama bin Laden's life history, from birth, to terrorist leader, to his death in a compound in Pakistan.

DOHA, May 2 (Bernama) -- Robina Flooring Sdn Bhd, South- East Asia's largest laminated flooring manufacturer, aims to expand its presence in Qatar through its participation in Malaysia Services Exhibition 2012 (MSE 2012).

TEHRAN, May 2 (Bernama) -- Iran has urged London to stop intervening in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of defending human rights, Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman as saying.

In President Barack Obama's twin narratives, the United States is both leaving Afghanistan and staying there. The different messages are meant for different audiences, one at home and one away.

Iran's Police Chief Brigadier General Esmail Ahmadi-Moqaddam has lashed out at ‘big powers’ for fueling insecurity in the Persian Gulf, saying the Islamic Republic seeks constructive ties with the security forces of the Persian Gulf littoral states.

>"High prices for raw materials put pressure on product prices ... in the first quarter, and margins were negative, especially in January and February," chief executive Hayati Ozturk said.Sales at Petkim, owned by Azerbaijani state oil company Socar, rose 28 percent to 1.21 billion lira in the first three...