News Archive - 17 June 2012

>U.S. crude rose 67 cents to $84.70 per barrel by 2245 GMT, while Brent crude rose 99 cents to $98.60 per barrel.Both Brent and U.S. crude touched one-month highs earlier.Official vote projections from Greece's interior ministry showed the pro-bailout New Democracy taking 29.5...

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood has announced that its candidate Mohamed Morsi has won the country’s run-off presidential election. At a pre-dawn press conference on Monday, the Brotherhood officials declared their victory over ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister Ahmad Shafiq in the election. The officials said that results from 98...

The Islamic Republic of Iran has provided the Group 5+1 (five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) with different options and that it is rational for them to seize this opportunity, IRI parliament speaker Ali Larijani said. Mr. Larijani made the remarks to reporters on the sidelines...

20 operatives behind the assassination of the Iranian nuclear scientists have been arrested, Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi said on Sunday. The arrests took place following an extensive intelligence work in which several Israeli-operating bastions inside the country were tracked down, IRI Ministry of Intelligence had said in a statement earlier,...

On the auspicious occasion of Mabaath, appointment of the Last Messenger of Allah, Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH), the Islamic Revolution Leader Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei pardoned or commuted prison terms of 871 inmates. The amnesty was granted upon a request by the Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani.

Assistant secretary of the IRI Supreme National Security Council talked Sunday with vice Chinese minister of foreign affairs in Moscow on the agenda of the upcoming 5+1 talk with the Islamic Republic of Iran. During the meeting which took place in the Iranian embassy in Moscow, the two sides discussed...

>* Successor likely to be another son of Abdulaziz ibn Saud (Adds detail, background throughout)By Angus McDowallRIYADH, June 17 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah prepared to bury his former heir, Crown Prince Nayef, on Sunday before naming a new successor at a challenging time for the world's top oil...

IRI's car manufacturer Iran Khodro Co. (IKCO) started the mass production of the third indigenously-manufactured car, Runna, in a ceremony attended by state and automotive industry officials. Runnaa will be exported to 24 countries, including Turkey, Syria and Iraq , Hamid Reza Taqavi, manager of the project told IRNA. The...

>(Reuters) - In less than two weeks, Iran's biggest oil buyers will lose access to the London-based insurance market that protects 95 percent of the world's tanker shipments against oil spills or catastrophic collisions. Barring an unexpected last-minute deal to relax European Union sanctions, Europe's Protection and Indemnity (P&I) clubs...

As part of his argument that President Obama deserved an "F" on foreign policy, Mitt Romney recently said, "the Arab Spring has become the Arab Winter." This seasonal metaphor, with its implied freezing of the hopes of last year's revolutions, has become widespread in recent months as Islamist...

>LOS CABOS, Mexico (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will press Vladimir Putin over Russia's role in the Syrian crisis when they meet on Monday but appears to have little chance of persuading him to budge on Moscow's resistance to tougher U.N. action against Damascus. After a week of Cold...

Everybody's stance on Syria is rather wobbly these days, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's recent editorial explaining his government's policy should raise a few eyebrows. According to Lavrov the objective of a majority of countries (at least rhetorically) is to encourage "the aspirations of the Arab peoples for...

As the next round of international talks over Iran's nuclear program approaches, both sides find themselves in familiar positions. Despite agreeing to use the nuclear non-proliferation treaty as the basis for a step-by-step approach based on reciprocity, the devil has remained in the details. Iran is pushing to broaden...

>AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's army intensified shelling of Sunni Muslim districts in the northwest city of Homs on Sunday, killing at least 11 people and wounding dozens hours after U.N. monitors suspended their work, opposition activists said. The monitors' decision on Saturday was the clearest sign...

>Senator Joseph Lieberman, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder's appointment on June 8 of two federal prosecutors to investigate the suspected leaks did not go far enough."We need a special counsel because a special counsel avoids any appearance...

>* No breakthrough seen in Moscow, talks likely to continue* Israel threatens air strikes, West tightens sanctionsBy Justyna Pawlak and Steve GuttermanMOSCOW, June 18 (Reuters) - World powers will seek to avert a collapse of diplomacy over Iran's nuclear programme at talks starting in Moscow on Monday, hoping to win...

>KABUL (Reuters) - Kabul's Shahzada money market and its crush of bearded traders thumbing crumpled piles of cash is a world away from Europe, but Eurozone worries and a meeting of rich nation leaders in Mexico cut through even Afghanistan's decade-long insurgent war. As polls opened in Greece for an...

(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) America's most vital national security concern is to maintain calm, productive relations with Russia. The reason is obvious: Russia and the United States have thousands ...

A Pakistani police official says a motorcycle bomb has ripped through a university bus in southwestern Pakistan, killing four students and injuring 50 people.

Uzbekistan internationals Aleksandr Geynrikh and Timur Kapadze have signed with Aktobe according to the Kazakh club. Geynrikh, 27, joins the club from UAE outfit Emirates, while Uzbek captain Kapadze, 30, arrives from Al Sharjah.

Web giant says it received more than 1,000 requests from government officials for the removal of content in the past six months, complying with more than half. Originally posted at News - Internet & Media

>* Greek voters broke months of political stalemate by narrowly endorsing pro-bailout forces in a momentous election, easing fears of an imminent rupture with the euro zone-for the moment.* Egypt's military tightened its grip on power, even as the Muslim Brotherhood claimed that its candidate won the country's first...

>* Greece to forge new govt after pro-bailout parties win* Market optimism in check given other Europe worriesBy Manolo Serapio JrSINGAPORE, June 18 (Reuters) - Commodities rose on Monday on relief after pro-bailout parties triumphed in Greece's election, averting another financial turmoil, but the rally was seen losing steam as...

THE Judicial and Bar Council is currently receiving applications for the position of Chief Justice. The first step, however, is for the JBC to draw up a job description. We hope it has done this. Evaluating applicants without referring to a formal description of the position to be filled becomes...

Egyptian authorities began counting votes for Islamist candidate Mohamed Mursi and Ahmed Shafiq, former President Hosni Mubarak's last premier.

South Korea and the United States have agreed to strengthen âcomprehensive and combinedâ defences against North Koreaâs missile threats and to enhance cooperation to fend off its increasing cybe .....

Iranian giants Persepolis have announced they have agreed to a two-year deal with 2011-12 Pro League topscorer Karim Ansarifard.

After a decade of costly conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan, the American way of war is evolving toward less brawn, more guile.

World powers and Iran resume nuclear crisis talks Monday amid fears that failure on this occasion may lead to a permanent breakdown and push the sides ever closer to the use of force.

BEN GURION AIRPORT, Israel (Reuters) - Israel is set to deport a planeload of migrants to South Sudan early on Monday, the first of a series of weekly repatriation flights intended as a stepping stone to dealing with much greater influxes of migrants from Sudan and Eritrea. Related Stories Israel...

LOS CABOS, Mexico (Reuters) - Leaders of the world's major economies are set to confirm they will make new crisis-fighting loans to the International Monetary Fund even though some emerging nations are frustrated with the slow pace of winning more power at the global lender. Related Stories Israel launches African...

Nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 countries in Moscow on Monday will be watched closely in India.

Los Cabos, Mexico (dpa) - China welcomed the results of Sunday‘s election in Greece that saw a pro-bailout party secure the most votes while emphasizing the need for Athens to remain in the euro."We believe Greece should stay in the eurozone to maintain the integrity and stability of the...

Republican prosecutor in heavily Democratic state has won bipartisan support Just days after Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosensteinand another federal prosecutor were appointed to look into national security leaks, a group of Republican senators called for their ouster, claiming the men can't be trusted to investigate the Obama...

After a decade of costly conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan, the American way of war is evolving toward less brawn, more guile. Drone aircraft spy on and attack terrorists with no pilot in harm's way. Small teams of special operations troops quietly train and advise foreign forces. Viruses sent from ...

Syria today has become a high stake theatre of three distinct, yet interconnected, wars — local or internal, regional and extra-regional.

Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will leave politics after his second term ends in 2013, according to a report from a German publication on Saturday.

For the second day in a row, GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney labeled his rival weak on combating a nuclear Iran, saying President Barack Obama is more worried about Israel, an American ally, taking preventative military action than about Iran itself.

THE US government may have a penchant for adventures on foreign soil and blind loyalty to Israel, but the American people generally have isolationist tendencies.

Annaud heads the international jury. He once angered Chinese officials with his film “Seven Years in Tibet ” and won an Oscar for Best Foreign-Language Film in 1976 for “ Black and White in Color .”

KUCHING: Following its success in penetrating markets in Europe and the Middle East, national motorcycle manufacturer Motosikal dan Enjin Nasional Sdn Bhd (Modenas) plans to expand its market further to several Asian countries.

>MARKET SNAPSHOT: * The Malaysian benchmark stock index gained 0.53 percent on Friday, led by casino operator Genting Malaysia Bhd's 5.88 percent rise and Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings' 5.88 percent increase. * U.S. stocks rallied on Friday to close a second straight week of...

>Here is a look at events involving Iran's nuclear program:October 1, 2009 - Iran meets six world powers in Geneva and approves in principle a plan to send 75 percent of its low-enriched uranium to Russia and France, where it would be made into special fuel for a Tehran reactor...

An extreme right party that campaigned to rid Greece of illegal immigrants largely held its bloc of seats in parliamentary elections Sunday, retaining support after a party official slapped a female politician and threw a...

ANALYSIS/OPINION: You don't have to be a determinist - believing, as orthodox Marxists do, that all life's decisions lie in the stomach - to occasionally believe that overwhelming national and international economic movements likely will determine the future. But it sometimes helps. The thought comes after reading an analysis by ...

Brussels (dpa) - Austerity and economic reforms are the right way forward for Greece, the eurozone‘s finance ministers said Sunday, as they promised to continue helping the country, following an election win for Greek pro-bailout parties."The Eurogroup acknowledges the considerable efforts already made by the Greek citizens and is...

President Obama's Russian "reset" will face another big test Monday, as he and his diplomats meet with their Moscow counterparts in two different cities on two of the trickiest foreign policy challenges of his administration -- Syria and Iran. 

A student in northeast Ohio injured in a school shooting earlier this year that killed 3 others threw the ceremonial first pitch at a local baseball game.

The Sri Lankan cricketers now that they are leading the Five-match one day series 2-1,must not relax or let complacency set in, but go hard at the Pakistanis in the final game at the R.Premadasa Stadium, today. A 3-1 victory will be sweet revenge.

A video journalist covering the Syrian uprising for The Associated Press was wounded while filming clashes between rebels and the Syrian army.

Mourners carry the coffin of Iranian nuclear scientist Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan in Tehran on Jan. 13, one day after he was killed when two men on a motorbike slapped a magnetic bomb on his car.

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen has lost her race for a parliamentary seat, but her anti-immigrant National Front party will have its first seats in parliament in years.

Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson says he is reintroducing a flame-red bird to the British Virgin Islands.

The fall in the oil price amid growing economic fears has laid bare divisions within the world’s energy producers.

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will leave politics when his second term comes to an end, and does not envision a Vladimir Putin-style return to office after sitting out for a term, a German newspaper reported Sunday.

The virus used USB ports found on every PC as a pathway to avoid detection by network-guarding security systems.

CAIRO (AP) — Mahmoud Abou Adhma’s despair over Egypt’s course the past 16 months has turned him from an avid revolutionary who camped out in Tahrir Square for most of the 18 days of protests demanding the fall of Hosni Mubarak to working for the presidential campaign of the deposed...

BRUNSWICK, Ohio — Mitt Romney in an interview aired Sunday repeatedly refused to say that he would overturn President Barack Obama’s new policy allowing some young illegal immigrants to stay in the United States. He claimed Obama’s decision was political, while senior White House adviser David Plouffe said the move...

The negotiations over Iran's nuclear program during the past few months have produced nothing more than a diplomatic dance in the face of persistent Iranian ploys for time coupled with intransigence on key issues. In failing to reach a negotiated settlement, the conflict with Tehran is inching closer toward...

Mitt Romney kicked off his three-stop bus tour of Ohio by telling rain-soaked voters in the battleground state that the country is about to get "a little brighter."

Much has been said about the similarities between the chaos in Syria and the Balkan wars of the 1990s. But, while the prolonged killing may indeed be reminiscent, the political and diplomatic effort that finally ended the war in Bosnia is hardly in evidence today.

White House official David Plouffe declined to answer when Sen. Joseph Lieberman put the challenge before him on “Fox News Sunday.” Plouffe said the back-and-forth in this case at the height of the presidential campaign was “a game of distraction.”

Can Burma grasp the opportunity provided by political reform?

The latest round of talks over Iran's nuclear program are set to begin Monday in Moscow, but analysts are not expecting a breakthrough that would avoid sanctions in coming weeks.

World leaders will gather June 18-20 in Los Cabos, Mexico, for the Group of Twenty nations summit.

The European Union Ambassador to Ukraine has been prevented from visiting former Ukrainian premier Yulia Tymoshenko in a hospital where she is being treated.

International Olympic officials have opened a high level investigation into allegations that authorized agents in more than 50 countries - including a national Olympic committee - were involved in selling London Olympics...

AMMAN: As Saudi Arabia mourned the death of another heir to the throne, a small group of women in the capital Riyadh were preparing to do what the late Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud vowed never to allow - drive.

Sen. John McCain says the lack of U.S. aid to Syrian rebels is "shameful," and that helping the opposition would be the biggest blow to Iran in 25 years. The United States has refused to arm Syrian rebels in part to avoid a proxy fight with Iran and Russia,...

The kingdom faces unprecedented demands for reform.

The deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has hailed the progress of the Iranian youths in the aerospace and military sectors, saying the missiles that they produce “send shivers down enemy spines.”

New Delhi, June 17: The Taliban has come out with a rare praise of India for reportedly standing up to the US over the Afghan situation, and promised that Afghanistan won't be used to hurt Indian interests.

MOSCOW, June 17 (MNA) – The Iranian negotiating team does not seem optimistic about the result of nuclear talks with the major powers which will start in Moscow on Monday, the Mehr News Agency correspondent says.

Yet again, the American media misleads by uncritically printing unverified, false claims from the U.S. military

LONDON, June 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Iran-Interlink -- Critics of Iran's human rights record are being warned by former MEK members in Europe not to be fooled into giving support to a terrorist cult. The Iranian Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) wants to be removed from the U.S. FTO list and...

Iran's deputy minister of foreign affairs has highlighted the significance of Muslim unity in the face of intensifying enemy plots in a meeting with Tunisian Muslim scholars and other elites.

MOSCOW (AP) — Iran and six world powers resume nuclear talks Monday no closer to progress than in previous rounds, and with the clock ticking on international diplomatic efforts to persuade Tehran to curb activities that could be used to make atomic arms.

Mitt Romney addressed a group of Christian conservatives on Saturday, saying he would reverse President Barack Obama's policy on Israel, which is dominated by the fear that the Jewish country might attack Iran. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee also backed other conservative social issues, and received support from former GOP...

June 17, 2012: The U.S. Navy recently revealed that it had successfully tested the Griffin B missile against speedboats in a live fire exercise. The speedboats were under remote control as they were hit by the small missiles.

LOS CABOS, Mexico - G20 summit host President Felipe Calderon of Mexico said Saturday that he expects the world's largest economies to deliver more than the $430 billion pledged to stop the spread of the European financial crisis.

Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has hailed the recent arrest of the perpetrators behind the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists by the country's Intelligence Ministry, saying the nation’s path to defend its rights is irreversible.

After losing their opening two Group B games against Denmark and Germany respectively, Netherlands face a tough task to qualify for the quarter-finals at Euro 2012. Not only are they reliant on the result of the match between the Germans and the Danes, but they also need to beat Portugal...

A senior Iranian lawmaker censures the politically-motivated move by Saudi Arabia to execute a number of Iranian nationals, stressing that Tehran will follow the issue through international circles.

When UN monitors finally gained access to the town of Haffeh they found state buildings burnt down, shops abandoned and a body lying in the street.

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin will use their meeting Monday, the first since Putin returned to Russia's top job, to claim leverage in a mutually dependent but volatile relationship.

World powers resume crisis talks with Iran tomorrow in hopes that a crippling oil embargo will finally force the Islamic Republic to scale back its nuclear drive.

WASHINGTON - It will be President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin's first meeting since Putin returned to Russia's top job. Monday in Mexico City, each leader will try to claim leverage in a mutually dependent but volatile relationship.