News Archive - 3 September 2012

PART 1 PART 2

>SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent futures rose for a fourth day in Asia on Tuesday, reaching more than $116 per barrel on persistent hopes for stimulus measures from central banks in the United States and Europe, with key policy meetings this week and next. Prices were also underpinned by expectations that...

>"A decision has been taken to respond and the response will be very great," Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in an interview with the Beirut-based Al Mayadeen television."The response will not be just inside the Israeli entity - American bases in the whole region could be Iranian targets.""If Israel...

>* Netanyahu ramps up pressure on Obama to set "red line"By Mark FelsenthalTOLEDO, Ohio, Sept 3 (Reuters) - The White House on Monday denied an Israeli newspaper report that accused Washington of secretly negotiating with Tehran to keep the United States out of a future Israel-Iran war.The Jewish state...

>* Iran upgrading weapons systems, holding drills to show defence readiness* Israel warns time running out to halt Iran nuclear programmeDUBAI, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Iran has built about 30 percent of a missile defence system it is developing in place of the Russian S-300 system Moscow refused to sell...

>* China's factory sector contracts further in August* U.S. jobs data, ECB meeting outcome keenly awaited* Investors hope for economic stimulus, monetary easing* Norwegian oil workers' strike averted by pay dealBy Christopher JohnsonLONDON, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Oil rose on Monday, despite Chinese data showing a deepening slowdown in...

>* Netanyahu ramps up pressure on Obama to set "red line"By Jeffrey HellerJERUSALEM, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Israeli officials played down a report in an Israeli newspaper on Monday that accused Washington of secretly negotiating with Tehran to keep the United States out of a future Israel-Iran war.Israel's most...

>* U.S. jobs data, ECB meeting outcome keenly awaited* Last-minute deal with Norway's oil drill workers averts strike (Updates prices)By Ramya VenugopalSINGAPORE, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Brent crude edged lower on Monday after Chinese data pointed to a further slowdown in the world's No.2 oil consumer, but prices...

1. Vladislav Novy et al. report "MegaFon Draws Up Yevroset" says that mobile phone operator MegaFon is buying Alexander Mamut's stake in mobile phone retailer Yevroset; pp 1, 9 (921 words).

Charlotte, North Carolina (Reuters) - The Democratic Party late on Monday unveiled its election platform, a non-binding political document that party delegates will vote to adopt at the national convention in Charlotte on Tuesday evening. The document highlights a sharp divide in the economic and cultural agendas of the Democratic...

A wildfire in the Angeles National Forest that forced the evacuation of thousands of visitors has grown another 500 acres and additional firefighting resources have been requested.

With the prospects of gold on the track, in the pool and in the Paralympic sport of boccia, British competitors are looking to consolidate second place in the medals table.

Underlining that United States President Barack Obama is committed to using all instruments of national power to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, the ruling Democratic Party has warned that the preferred diplomatic option is not going to remain open for an indefinite period.

>ONGC has been in talks with U.S. company ConocoPhillips (COP.N) about cooperation on shale gas. ONGC is also considering a bid for part of ConocoPhillips' Canadian oil sands holdings worth about $5 billion, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters in June.ONGC has exploration...

Secretary of State heads Tuesday to Beijing after talks in emerging US ally Indonesia as she voiced hope for progress in managing soaring tensions in the South China Sea.

Where is the GOP majority?

Give him the heave-ho! Activist groups are demanding that the posh Warwick hotel on Sixth Avenue refuse to host America-bashing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad when he comes to talk at the United Nations this month. “This is a true outrage, particularly considering that US Secret Service and NYPD will be...

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly was informed on Monday that work on Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project is expected to start by December this year, while gas flow would be available by the end of December 2014.

Returning from an official trip to Iran Sunday, Binay turned the tables on broadcaster Korina Sanchez for her personal remarks that maligned his name and previous preference for the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“Thirty trade unions, church, environment, health and other community groups have written to the Trade Minister urging him to implement his policy of opposing the right of corporations to sue governments in international tribunals in the 14th round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPPA) negotiations to be held this week in Leesburg,...

Pacific Scoop, edited and published by Auckland University of Technology’s Pacific Media Centre, has been covering the Pacific Islands Forum. More >>

Access to information including education programmes for rural women to enable them to participate in formal decision making structures, transforming structures to increase levels of participation at local level to comply with women's human rights treaties and conventions including UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (Women, Peace and Security) will be...

WASHINGTON - Democrats unveiled a party platform at their national convention Monday that echoes President Barack Obama's call for higher taxes on wealthier Americans while backing same-sex marriage and abortion rights.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton heads Tuesday to Beijing after talks with emerging ally Indonesia as she voiced hope for progress in managing soaring tensions in the South China Sea, including that with the Philippines, which calls the area the West Philippine Sea.

source: TJ Manotoc | abs-cbnnews.com Barely a week after their historic win at the 2012 Jones Cup, Smart Gilas Pilipinas 2 is back on court preparing for yet another important tournament. At today's practice that was open to the media, Coach Chot Reyes admits that the coaching staff was...

This undated publicity photo released by Rocky Mountain Pictures shows a poster for the documentary film, "2016: Obama's America."

Ben Affleck's 'Argo' and Dror Moreh's Shin Bet documentary 'The Gatekeepers' get early awards attention. Telluride also features foreign-language contenders. TELLURIDE, Colo. — Two years ago, a prominent Oscar voter left the Telluride Film Festival's world premiere screening of "The King's Speech" and said with certainty that the film would...

>FUNDAMENTALS* NYMEX crude for October delivery was up 46 cents at $96.93 a barrel by 0038 GMT, after rising as high as $97.30. There was no settlement price on Monday, with U.S. financial markets closed for the Labor Day holiday.* London Brent crude for October delivery...

The building of the largest Roman Catholic church in the Gulf was supposed to be a chance for the tiny island kingdom of Bahrain to showcase its traditions of religious tolerance in a conservative Muslim region where churches largely operate under heavy limitations.

The leader of Lebanon's militant Hezbollah said Monday the group has no chemical weapons but can still cause great damage to Israel if there is a war, linking his remarks to tension over Iran's nuclear program.

KUALA LUMPUR: A Nigerian living like a king in his little palace hideout in Lukut, Port Dickson, was nabbed by the police on suspicion of running a multi-million ringgit international drug syndicate.

Israel Hayom, the newspaper seen as having close ties to the PM, has been laying off the war drums lately. Does this indicate that Netanyahu is seeking a ladder to climb down from the tree?

NASHVILLE, Tennessee — British boy band One Direction and a U.S. punk group of the same name have reached an agreement that allows the U.K. group to continue use of the name. The two groups issued a news release from London saying the California-based group will change its...

BUOYED by the spirit of the late Mohd Salam Sidik, archer Hasihin Sanawi, 27, powered his way to clinch a silver medal at the Paralympic Games here yesterday.

Meeting expected to focus on Iran, Syria's civil war and the Muslim Brotherhood's rise to power in Egypt.

Nation & World briefing JAKARTA, Indonesia -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called Monday, Sept. 3, for Southeast Asian states

All cultured men belong to two nations: his own and Syria. These beautiful and consecrating words of historian André Parrot hardly can be predicated of another nation, but it is superbly illustrated by Syria in the history of mankind.

Andrew "Six Heads" Lewis won the vacant WBA welterweight title in 2001 and defended it once before having all six of those heads knocked off by Ricardo Mayorga in 2002. Lewis (23-4-2 20 KO) had good power and won a world title, but his career lacks a signature win. He...

Reuters/Dubai Iran has built about 30% of a missile defence system it is developing in place of the Russian S-300 system Moscow refused to sell it, and hopes to complete the system by next year, a senior military official said yesterday.

JERUSALEM — Israeli officials said on Friday that a new United Nations report adds credibility to their warnings about Iran, as tensions grow between the Jewish state and its allies over how to tackle Tehran’s suspect nuclear program.

The Syrian regime has said there will be no dialogue with the opposition before the army crushes the rebels, the latest sign that President Bashar Assad is determined to solve the crisis on the battlefield even if many more of his...

Once, I berated a girlfriend for wasting money on clothing. She taught me a valuable lesson. "What you don't understand," she said, "is I never buy fashion. I buy classical lines and hopefully will wear this jacket in 40 years' time."It...

This year’s lineup at the Telluride Film Festival featured movies that, while clearly fictional, have that bracing feeling of reality.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that the international community must set a "clear red line" in order to avoid a war over Iran's controversial nuclear programme.

North Korea and Iran are now best friends, and they're going to help each other with a wide variety of science and technology projects because they have "common enemies."  According to state media , the two countries have signed an agreement that will see them "cooperate in research, student...

Egypt’s Fatma Omar won a fourth successive Paralympic Games gold medal in Powerlifting but needed a world-record lift to see off Nigeria’s Lucy Ejike in a thrilling women’s -56kg division competition. (PRWeb September 03, 2012) Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/9/prweb9863318.htm

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) set-up a special unit to investigate complaints regarding several men misusing the computer and Facebook to deceive girls. The Unit will also conduct investigations into computer crimes, CID DIG Jayantha Kulathillake said.

The use of Arabian Light crude oil has not reduced the production capacity of petrol, kerosene, aviation fuel and other fuel products by 50 percent as alleged by certain quarters, the CEYPETCO Refinery Division said in a release yesterday.

The Syrian regime said Monday there will be no dialogue with the opposition before the army crushes the rebels, the latest sign that President Bashar Assad is determined to solve the crisis on the battlefield even if many more of his people have to pay with their lives.

The prince attended WellChild Awards ceremony after being away from the public eye.

LONDON, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- National senior powerlifter P. Mariappan had to be satisfied with eighth placing in the 75kg category weightlifting event that was competed by 13 participants at the 14th Paralympic Games here Monday.

Comparing Mitt Romney's RNC speech to what the last Republican president with a successful foreign-policy record said

This is likely to be the biggest campaign speech of his career that won't focus largely on biography.

4:09 P.M. MDT MR. CARNEY:  Thank you for coming aboard Air Force One as we make our way to Toledo.  I just have one brief update to give you, which is that tomorrow, when the President goes to Louisiana, he will receive a briefing.  He will also...

Veteran US investor Jim Rogers believes the US Fed has already launched a third round of quantitative easing, despite chairman Ben Bernanke failing to mention stimulus measures in Jackson Hole last week.

Government warplanes bombed a town in northern Syria today, killing at least 19 people, activists said, while the new UN envoy to the country acknowledged that brokering an end to the nation's civil war will be a “very, very difficult” task. Related Stories French foreign minister warns Syria over chemical...

Iran's Majlis (parliament) Speaker Ali Larijani has lashed out at Western powers for their efforts to intensify violence in Syria, stressing that Iran supports democratic reforms in the Arab nation.

PARIS (Reuters) - Any use of chemical or bacterial weapons by government forces in Syria would trigger a "massive and lightning fast" response from the West, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Monday. "We talk about this, in particular with our American and British partners, and follow it closely...

Pakistan's ruling political dynasty has been accused of abusing its power after it emerged that President Asif Ali Zardari's 23-year-old son met several world leaders during a recent summit in Tehran.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday asserted it has not given up its demand for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's resignation but would allow Parliament to function only if all the coal block allocations made during the United Progressive Alliance rule are cancelled and a fair, impartial probe is ordered.

When it burst upon the scene in the summer of 2010, Stuxnet changed everything in the world of cyberwarfare.

BEIRUT (AP) — Government warplanes bombed a town in northern Syria on Monday, killing at least 19 people, activists said, while the new U.N. envoy to the country acknowledged that brokering an end to the nation's civil war will be a "very, very difficult" task. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory...

(TOLEDO, Ohio) — In the warm-up to the Democratic National Convention, both parties jockeyed for the economic high ground Monday, with Republican Mitt Romney labeling Labor Day “another day of worrying” for too many Americans anxious about finding a job. Supporters of President Barack Obama worked to put a glossy...

Gas prices are higher than they've been going into any other Labor Day weekend on record, but experts predict some relief at the pump is coming fairly soon.

The current embargo on Iranian oil and political pressure on the Islamic Republic will result in higher oil prices on international markets, Petroleum Minister Rostam Qasemi said.

SINGAPORE: The Middle Eastern crude market was little changed on Monday as traders awaited the announcement of official selling prices (OSPs) from producers, which are expected to begin this week.

Iran has opened its main uranium enrichment plant to a visiting foreign leader for the first time in the history of the site. State TV on Monday showed footage of Mongolia's President Tsakhia Elbegdorj inspecting centrifuges at a facility in the central Iranian town of Natanz.

>By John KempLONDON (Reuters) - Hedge funds and other money managers have started to ready themselves for another big spike in oil prices in the next few months, according to positioning data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).By August 28, hedge funds had accumulated a net...

>By Mirwais Harooni and Amie Ferris-RotmanKABUL, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Afghanistan's Chamber of Commerce said on Monday it would not heed any calls from the United States to halt some business conducted with neighbouring Iran, saying abiding by U.S. sanctions would stifle its already suffering economy.A U.S.

An Iranian athlete refused to shake the Duchess of Cambridge's hand after she presented him with a silver medal in the Olympic Stadium on Sunday night for "cultural reasons", it has emerged.

French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Laurent Fabius, said Monday that any Israeli strike against Iran would "turn against Israel" and called for stronger sanctions to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Iran is to spend 18 percent of its stabilization fund for the development of the oil and gas sector, Petroleum Minister Rostam Qasemi said.

ISTANBUL—Kurdish militants have killed 10 police and soldiers in an assault near the Iraqi border, Turkish officials said Monday, amid concern that rebels are seeking to capitalize on regional tensions caused by Syria's civil war with a more intense campaign of attacks in Turkey.

[Daily Trust]The two-day 16th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement ended in Teheran, Iran, on Friday. Nigeria's delegation was led by Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo.

Finding a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Syria is 'nearly impossible', admits Lakhdar Brahimi, new envoy of the United Nations and the Arab League to Syria.

September 03, 2012 6:13 PM WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama's administration is undertaking "a range of steps short of war" that it hopes will prevent an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, The New York Times reported on Monday.

According to Petroleum Ministry, the Islamic Republic currently produces 4 million barrels of crude per day, half of which is exported.

'Little America,' by Rajiv Chandrasekaran According to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the United States will have spent $641 billion in Afghanistan by 2013. About 30 percent - $198 billion - is earmarked for 2012-13, leading the authors to offer this monument to understatement: "This...

>Turkey imported just over 48,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian crude in July, the lowest since December 2009, the data showed.That was down sharply from June, when it imported 167,000 bpd, and a fraction of Turkey's 2011 average of 180,000 bpd.Turkey's sole refiner, Tupras, has been forced...

[Leadership]Sequel to the resignation of former power minister Prof. Barth Nnaji in controversial circumstances, development partners are beginning to express worry over the fate of the power sector reform measures.

An Iranian-Australian man accused of organising an asylum boat that broke up off Christmas Island in 2010, killing 50 people, admits people-smuggling charges.

The Obama administration has conveyed a message to the Iranian government that the US will not support a unilateral Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear installations.

Funding Dispute Foils Iran, China Gas Project Worth $3.3B

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Southeast Asian states must present a united front to the Chinese in dealing with territorial disputes in the South China Sea to "literally calm the waters," U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday. And she urged all involved to make "meaningful progress" on...

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) - In his warm-up for the Democratic National Convention, President Barack Obama is tangling with a couple of rivals, only one named Mitt. The other is voter apathy, especially among the young.

>* New rules, regulators' push have driven negotiations* String of European banks warn of possible U.S. payoutsBy Douwe Miedema and Edward TaylorLONDON/FRANKFURT, Sept 2 (Reuters) - For years, the United States struggled to get foreign bankers to comply with its effort to throttle Iran's economy - but a couple...