News Archive - 31 July 2012

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* Brent hits lowest level in almost one week * China official PMI at 50.1 in July, below expectations * Investors eye Fed policy decision, ECB meeting * Coming Up: U.S. EIA weekly stocks report; 1430 GMT ...

GDANSK, Poland - It wasn't supposed to be this way.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama announced new U.S. sanctions on Tuesday against foreign banks that help Iran sell its oil and said the measure would add pressure on Tehran for failing to meet its international nuclear obligations.

The new bill imposes sanctions on anyone who mines uranium with Iran; sells, leases or provides oil tankers to it.

Beijing reacted furiously today to new US sanctions imposed on a Chinese bank over transactions with Iran, urging Washington to revoke them and saying...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A second Israeli who set himself on fire in protest at economic difficulties has died of his injuries, the hospital treating him said on Wednesday. Related Stories More drama ahead in pool after Phelps record Syrian aircraft strike Aleppo, rebels claim successes Obama tightens sanctions on banks...

Israel's threats to attack Iran and the violence convulsing Syria top the agenda of U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta's meetings Wednesday with Israeli government leaders.

NEW DELHI — Electric crematoria were snuffed out with bodies inside, New Delhi’s Metro shut down and hundreds of coal miners were trapped underground after three Indian electric grids collapsed in a c

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration and Congress each moved Tuesday, July 31, to further pressure Iran over its disputed nuclear program.

In Tuesday, July 31st's, "Trending at 10"... sanctions against Iran, Snoop Dogg changes his name to Snoop Lion (which somehow transpired into suggestions for Eric Thomas's rap name), a major blackout in the country of India and, last but not least, social media ant The Olympics.  What's your take?  Too...

Indian Shares Seen Little Changed After Gains

The Warrick County 911 system is down, and officials are still not sure when it will be restored. However, if you are in Warrick County and dial 911 your call will be answered. The Sheriff says Vanderburgh

The State Department's top counterterrorism official, Daniel Benjamin, warned that the United States has "no illusions" that further progress against terrorism will be easy or quick, and certain Al Qaeda affiliates remain a troubling threat.

Asian Markets Mostly Trade Lower Ahead Of Fed, ECB Decisions

Beirut, Lebanon (UPI) Jul 31, 2012 German defense contractors are eyeing big arms deals in the Middle East, Africa and India as Berlin moves toward relaxing its long-tight restrictions on arms exports. That marks a major shift in Berlin's foreign policy and underlines how defense exports have assumed a new...

Jerusalem (AFP) July 31, 2012 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that he had not yet made any decision about a possible attack against Iran but reaffirmed his country's right to defend itself. "I have not taken a decision" on any attack against Iranian nuclear facilities, Netanyahu said...

Beirut, Lebanon (UPI) Jul 31, 2012 The United Nations-mandated Special Tribunal on Lebanon says it plans to issue five new indictments in the 2005 murder of Lebanese statesman Rafik Hariri, a move likely to escalate sectarian rivalries already enflamed by the civil war in neighboring Syria. The indictments will almost...

Here is the most implausible scenario in presidential history: Nearly four years after voters vented their rage over fiscal, domestic and foreign policies that had wrecked the U.S. and world economies, the country is poised to elect a candidate who promises a return to all those policies. by Ernest...

NEW YORK, July 31, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC praised President Barack Obama for imposing additional sanctions on Iran's energy and banking sectors. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100816/AJCLOGO ) Two Executive Orders signed today will further restrict access...

WARSAW — Mitt Romney had just delivered a policy speech here Tuesday — hailing Poland for its fiscal austerity — when ABC’s “Good Morning America” came on air back home with a live report from the speech venue. Read full article >>

A few hours after Mitt Romney departed Poland to return to the United States, President Barack Obama's re-election campaign piled on to its criticism of the presumptive GOP nominee's foreign trip, calling it an "embarrassing disaster."

WASHINGTON, July 31 -- Presumed Republican Party presidential nominee Mitt Romney on Tuesday ended his trip to Europe and Israel, during which he tried to contrast himself with President Barack Obama on foreign policy while looking presidential.

ALEPPO, Syria, August 1 (Reuters) - Syrian combat aircraft and artillery pounded Aleppo late into the night as the army battled for control of the country's biggest city, where rebel fighters said troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad had been forced to retreat.

A few hours after Mitt Romney departed Poland to return to the United States, President Barack Obama's re-election campaign piled on to its criticism of the presumptive GOP nominee's foreign trip, calling it an "embarrassing disaster." "As he left, he set the lowest expectations imaginable for a foreign trip,"...

JERUSALEM, July 31 -- In an interview with Israel's Channel 2, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that he is still deliberating whether or not to strike Iran's nuclear facilities and downplayed report that the military echelon are not in favor of attacking Iran.

Australian Market Trades Lower

WASHINGTON : It’s easy to dismiss Mitt Romney’s foreign trip as a debacle after the White House hopeful’s controversial comments in London and Israel. Harder to discern is whether he has helped or hurt his case with US voters.

Syria's Aleppo has been the scene of fierce fighting, after the govt warned of looming widespread conflicts

ALEPPO, Syria and BEIRUT, Lebanon | As evidence mounts that foreign Islamists are fighting alongside Syria's increasingly radicalized rebels, Christians in Aleppo and elsewhere are taking up arms, often supplied by the regime. "We saw what happened to the Christians in Iraq," Abu George, a Christian resident of Aleppo's Aziza...

Obama hits Chinese, Iraqi banks accused of doing business with Tehran. 1 Aug 2012 10:00 AM

The Air Force general responsible for U.S. military operations in most of Latin America said Tuesday that he does not believe Venezuela, despite ongoing arms purchases and close ties to Iran, poses a national security threat to the United States.

Mitt Romney returns from an erratic, six-day overseas tour with no discernible boost to his foreign policy credentials, and facing fresh questions about his campaign operation as it enters a critical period.

Romney’s campaign is promising to become more media-friendly after tensions rise with traveling press. Read more...

WARSAW (Reuters) - U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney wrapped up a gaffe-filled European tour on Tuesday dismissing criticism he had undermined his attempt to present himself as a replacement for President Barack Obama on the world stage as one of his aides lost his cool with the media.

WASHINGTON DC, United States - White House challenger Mitt Romney pivoted away from his gaffe-riddled foreign foray Tuesday, July 31, to refocus on the home front, as his campaign confirmed a mid-August bus tour fueling speculation he could soon unveil his running mate. With the all-but certain Republican nominee wrapping...

Massacres ‘amount to war crimes that are punishable under inter national law,’ Arab League chief says

Mitt Romney has been on the national political stage for nearly a decade - through two presidential bids, countless campaign events and millions spent on TV ads. But the likely Republican presidential nominee still isn't...

Mitt Romney may be glad his less-than-perfect trip to London, Israel, and Poland has wrapped up – ending with his press secretary cursing at pushy reporters. But the good news for him is that few voters are paying attention.

A college professor has been charged with arson after he's accused of setting a series of fires this month at an Orange County high school and threatened to kill school officials and students after his son committed...

The sanctions reducing Iran’s oil exports have played in the favour of major producers such as Saudi Arabia, Russia and Venezuela which now export about 21% more crude to Asia’s biggest buyers compared to a year ago.

Offensive letters, tearful stories and reams of statistics have been shared as plaintiffs' lawyers rest their case Tuesday in a racial profiling lawsuit against an Arizona sheriff and his department.

MOSCOW — Hampstead Heath is a popular real estate destination for wealthy Russians who are wary of central London.

A longtime St. Louis-area teacher has been charged with rape and statutory sodomy after turning himself in, apparently in the mistaken belief that the statute of limitations had expired, authorities said Tuesday.

A bill to help Marines and family members sickened by contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune over three decades heads to President Barack Obama.

Star tailback Silas Redd is bolting Penn State for Southern California.

Michael Mitrisin could be sentenced to 35 years in prison

Firefighters are battling a blaze that threatened to consume a landmark building in a small town south of Columbus. More >>

Firefighters are battling a blaze that threatened to consume a landmark building in a small town south of Columbus. More >>

The United States has spent nearly $80 billion to develop the most advanced stealth fighter jet in history, the F-22 Raptor, but the Air Force recently found out firsthand that while the planes own the skies at modern long-range air combat, it is “evenly matched” with cheaper, foreign jets when...

Firefighters are battling a blaze that threatened to consume a landmark building in a small town south of Columbus. More >>

To remember the collapse of a busy Minnesota highway bridge, state historians preserved items they thought would vividly convey the chaotic scene that unfolded back in 2007: a battered Interstate 35W sign, an emergency...

The Islamic Republic of Iran began participating in the International Monetary Fund’s General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) on August 6, 2012, marking a major step forward in the development of its statistical system.

A federal judge says the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped its powers by setting up water-quality criteria for coal mining operations in Appalachia.

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and his wife are separating. More >> Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and his wife are separating. More >>

Jerusalem (AFP) July 31, 2012 US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta arrived in Israel on Tuesday for talks to share information on Iran's nuclear programme, but said there would be no discussion about "potential attack plans." Shortly after Panetta's arrival, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told private Channel 2 television Israel...

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq on Tuesday told an Iranian dissident group that was given a base in Iraq by Saddam Hussein but is now out of favour with a government that is close to Iran that it must move out of the camp immediately or be forced to leave. Related...

AMERICAN lawmakers are now targeting Iran’s shipping and energy sectors with a new, even tougher set of sanctions. ...

IF THE bill seeking to declare Malapascua Island as a tourism zone is passed into law, resort owners and developers will be able to obtain titles to lots in the area. Daanbantayan Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot said she is...

Iranian officials unleashed sharper attacks against tightening Western sanctions Tuesday, equating the financial pressure to "warfare" and vowing to counter by retooling the country's oil-dependent economy.

Police filed charges in an Indian court Tuesday accusing a journalist of conspiracy in a bomb attack that wounded an Israeli diplomat's wife in the capital in February.

Dennis Ross emphatically denied any indication that he no longer supported President Obama. Click here for the rest of the article...

WASHINGTON — Congress is pressing ahead with a new package of crippling sanctions on Iran, expanding financial penalties and targeting Tehran’s energy and shipping sectors in the hope that economic pressure undercuts its suspected nuclear weapons program.

Republican White House contender stirs controversy by seeming to back unilateral Israeli strikes against Iran Steve Bell

BAGHDAD (AP) — A double bombing struck at an upscale neighborhood Iraq's capital Tuesday, killing at least 21 even though police stopped three attackers storming a counterterror unit, as the government strained to control al-Qaida-based chaos gripping the country.

NEW YORK—Al-Qaida, the Taliban and Iran should pay $6 billion to relatives of Sept. 11 victims for aiding in the 2001 terrorist attacks, a federal magistrate judge recommended Monday in a largely symbolic decision.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil slipped below $106 a barrel on Tuesday as concerns that new central bank stimulus measures would fail to revive fragile economies outweighed China's pledge to keep its economy growing. Brent crude was off 31 cents to $105.91 per barrel by 1345 GMT, having dropped to...

Mitt Romney wants American Jewish voters to know he’s ready (if not eager) to back an Israeli preemptive war against Iran. Romney’s recent bellicose comments in Jerusalem add pressure on President Obama to escalate his support for an Israeli strike, too, says ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern.

TEHRAN - Iran's central bank has established a special cell to fight back against Western economic sanctions that the institution's chief described as "no less than military war," the official IRNA news agency reported on Tuesday.

After a recent announcement by the deputy chief of the Iranian navy that it is considering nuclear propulsion for its submarines, actions have proceeded swiftly. A bill an Iranian Parliament (Majlis) committee was approved, and debate has followed, parallel to the latest round of P5+1 talks with Iran in Istanbul,...

A federal judge has ordered al-Qaida, the Taliban and Iran to pay $6 billion to relatives of Sept. 11 victims for aiding in the 2001 terror attacks.

When Chelsea FC Soccer School (Hong Kong) technical director Luam Khen Koo watched some highlights of the opening ceremonies in the 2012 London Olympic Games last weekend, he could not resist recalling his own Olympic experience, 40 years ago.

>The Israeli liberal Haaretz daily on Sunday quoted an unnamed U.S. official as saying the adviser, Thomas Donilon, had described the plan over dinner with Netanyahu earlier this month."Nothing in the article is correct. Donilon did not meet the prime minister for dinner, he did not meet him...

There is open-source information available for businesses looking to expand globally, particularly into emerging markets

An Erie chiropractor has completed a 24-mile swim across Lake Erie and is donating money he raised in the effort to the Erie City Mission, an emergency homeless shelter.

DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - Iran should stop exporting crude oil and instead try to sell refined oil products, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on Tuesday, a day after the United States moved to tighten sanctions on Tehran further.

An Erie chiropractor has completed a 24-mile swim across Lake Erie and is donating money he raised in the effort to the Erie City Mission, an emergency homeless shelter.

Voters in metro Atlanta will decide Tuesday whether to levy a penny sales tax to fund transportation projects in their communities.

A watchdog organization is accusing the head of the European Central Bank of conflict of interest for his membership of the "Group of Thirty," which it describes as a banking lobby group.

Chinese leaders have warned that economic growth could slow further and are calling for renewed efforts to boost domestic demand. More >> Chinese leaders have warned that economic growth could slow further and are calling for renewed efforts to boost domestic demand.

There’s relatively little that operatives on either side think they can do to shift the dynamics of the race.

In many ways, the showdown between the oil market and Saudi Arabia is one between sentiment and market fundamentals

Electricite de France saw profits rise 4.6 percent in the first half of the year as growth in renewable energy offset lower nuclear output.

An Erie chiropractor has completed a 24-mile swim across Lake Erie and is donating money he raised in the effort to the Erie City Mission, an emergency homeless shelter.

The question for voters in Tuesday's Texas runoff isn't whether a Republican will likely succeed Kay Bailey Hutchison in the U.S. Senate, but what kind of Republican?

(Reuters) - Brent crude oil fell to near $106 per barrel on Monday as worries that expected stimulus from the United States and Europe may not be enough to lift their slowing economies

China rejects US report on religious freedom, calling it biased and ignorant

Panasonic Corp. said Tuesday it returned to the black in the April-June quarter, logging a net profit of 12.8 billion ($163 million) mainly on lower costs after cutting more than 38,000 jobs over the last year.

Police say a man has been arrested in relation to malicious Twitter postings directed at British Olympic diver Tom Daley.

Commodities were mixed yesterday despite market optimism about non-standard measures to be adopted by the ECB. Weakness in confidence in the Eurozone and economic contraction in Spain

The saga of Drew Peterson and his ill-fated wives has drawn widespread attention outside the courtroom, and now the murder case against the ex-police officer finally goes to trial Tuesday with opening statements and...

Oil company BP has reported a loss of $1.4 billion pounds for the second quarter on the back of lower prices for oil and gas as well as reduced output.