News Archive - 27 December 2012

>* Lawmakers criticize the dismissal (Adds comments from parliament, detail)DUBAI Dec 27 (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday dismissed his only female cabinet minister, Health Minister Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, after she criticised her colleagues for failing to provide funds to import vital medicines.Appointed in 2009, Dastjerdi was...

>LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher wrote an emotional letter to U.S. President Ronald Reagan during the 1982 Falklands War calling him the "only person" who could understand her position, formerly secret documents showed on Friday. Newly declassified files from 1982 lift the lid on contacts...

>* Iranian reporter among those freedBy Lada EvgrashinaBAKU, Dec 27 (Reuters) - The president of Azerbaijan has pardoned 87 people, including journalists, rights activists and opponents jailed in cases the opposition says were evidence of shrinking political freedoms, state media reported on Thursday.Rights groups accuse President Ilham Aliyev, who...

>* Russia's Lavrov says conflict must not be resolved by force* Opposition wary of Brahimi proposal* Rebels attack military base on main Damascus-Aleppo highwayBy Dominic Evans and Erika SolomonBEIRUT, Dec 27 (Reuters) - The international envoy seeking a solution to Syria's 21-month-old conflict said on Thursday political change was needed...

>The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) believes Iran conducted explosives tests with possible nuclear applications at Parchin, a sprawling military base southeast of Tehran, and has repeatedly asked to inspect it.Western diplomats say Iran has carried out extensive work at Parchin over the past year to cleanse it of...

Gasoline costs this past year in Massachusetts have run the price spectrum, from a low of $3.29 about a year ago to nearing the dreaded $4 mark both in April and September.

Iran’s state TV is reporting the country’s navy has begun manoeuvres in the area of the Strait of Hormuz, where one-fifth of the world’s oil passes.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran started on Friday six days of naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz, the official IRNA news agency reported, maneuvers aimed at showcasing its military capabilities in what is a vital oil and gas shipping route. Naval commander Habibollah Sayyari said the "Velayat 91" drills would...

Image via Reuters It's no secret that the US and China have a bit of a disagreement on their hands when it comes to Huawei , the ostensibly-private Chinese telecommunications company. Today, though, I ...

Oil Ends Little Changed in Sleepy Session

Washington, Dec. 28 (Xinhua-ANI): Retired U.S. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, who led the coalition forces to drive former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's army out of Kuwait in Operation Desert Storm, died at age of 78, local media reported Thursday.

Washington • Retired Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who topped an illustrious military career by commanding the U.S.-led international coalition that drove Saddam Hussein’s forces out of Kuwait in 1991 but kept a low public profile in controversies over the second Gulf War against Iraq, died Thursday.

MIAMI, Dec 27, 2012 (AFP) – Norman Schwarzkopf, the US general who led Operation Desert Storm, which liberated Kuwait from Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in 1991, has died at the age of 78, a US official said Thursday. Schwarzkopf, an American hero known popularly as “Stormin’ Norman,” died in Tampa,...

BBC experts predict next year's big stories

These South Floridians are willing to go to extremes — dive into an icy river in South Korea, drink pig's blood in Hungary or eat a frog's fallopian tubes in China — all for a chance to win $1 million.

Much decorated veteran led 1991 Operation Desert Storm against Saddam Hussein

(The Associated Press) WASHINGTON — Retired Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who topped an illustrious military career by commanding the U.S.-led international coalition that drove Saddam Hussein’s forces out of Kuwait in 1991 but kept a low public profile in controversies over the second Gulf War against Iraq, died...

President Obama's return to the discourse of nuclear disarmament earned him the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009. Earlier that year the recently elected President of the United States went to Prague and sounded a clarion call for a ban on all nuclear testing and a new treaty to end...

Which films were the best in 2012? Find out with our annual list.

Odeon boss says major threat to cinema is not DVDs

Iran would let the United Nations into a base it suspected was used for atomic weapons work if threats against the republic are dropped, a government official said.

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dismissed his only female cabinet minister, health minister Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, yesterday after she criticised her colleagues for failing to provide funds to import vital medicines.

The BBC's most read technology stories of 2012 revealed

John Goodman (left) Alan Arkin (center) and actor-director Ben Affleck in a scene from 'Argo.' / AP PHOTO It seems like every year works out the same.

Here is something we know about the coming year: It is going to be crucial for the future of Iran, the region and American interests in the Middle East. In assessing what the Iranian regime's behavior will be in the near future, the best guide is how it has...

The punishment needs to fit the crime, but are some giant multinational corporations now so large that they no longer can be punished effectively? Our free enterprise system depends upon all competitors playing by the rules and when one seeks special advantage by paying bribes, then the system is...

West Bloomfield — Crime Stoppers of Michigan is offering additional reward money for one day only in hopes of drawing out tips into the shooting death of a West Bloomfield husband and father of seven.

Market Chatter: Brent Oil's Third Year Over $100 Looms on Supply Risk

Iran has a plan. It wants to expand its co-operative sector to account for 25 per cent of GDP. This is no small task. It would represent a five-fold lift in contribution from the co-operative sector to the national economy from the five per cent of GDP it already accounts...

Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) is running for the seat expected to be vacated by Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) upon his confirmation as secretary of state, the Boston Globe reports Thursday.

Intelligence experts believe Syria has one of the largest chemical weapons arsenals in the world. Experts ask whether the Syrian government might use these weapons against insurgents and whether the rebels could gain access to chemical weapons and use them against the Syrian armed forces. Western analysts say Syria’s chemical...

With India-Pakistan talks on conventional confidence building measures (CBMs) failing to break new ground, New Delhi hopes that Islamabad will favourably consider its request to make progress on n...

Dr. Marzieh Vahid-Dastjerdi, who was appointed in 2009, apparently angered the president by criticizing the government’s response to acute shortages of medicine imports.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird is counting on statecraft to rein in Iran and its nuclear ambitions next year.

Because lists and predictions are in vogue and because "our memories are poor that only work backward" (Lewis Carroll's "Through the Looking Glass"), I have put together a brief list of some positive transportation fuel news in 2012 and used my crystal ball to predict...

An Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) correspondent who was recently released from prison in Baku says he had been framed by the Azerbaijani police.

MANAMA – Arab Saudi, negara eksportir minyak mentah terbesar di dunia, didesak supaya menghapuskan subsidi minyak karena sudah sangat menggerogoti kesehatan fiskal negara ini. Negara lain, seperti Iran, sudah melakukan penghapusan subsidi bahan bakar minyak secara bertahap sejak 2010.

Showcase Artisan Zahiruddin and artist Janak Singh are displaying their work at the ‘Odisha Tribal Craft’ exhibition.

Culled together from 12 months of blog posts, sketches, features, interviews and links, a...

(BRUSSELS ) - The European Union's rotating six-month presidency has lost much of its authority in recent years as the eurozone crisis and increased powers for Brussels have undercut its role and importance.

President Barack Obama speaks during a Thursday campaign event at Cheyenne Sports Complex in Las Vegas. / AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais Four years ago, with the stock market in free fall, moving trucks lining up in the Financial District, hundreds of thousands hitting the unemployment lines each week, and an...

TEHRAN, Dec. 27 (MNA) – With the Swedish Parliament passing a resolution acknowledging the massacre of Kurdish people by Iraq in 1991, former Rajavi cult escaped members have sent a letter to Swedish Parliament Speaker, Per Westerberg to provide testimony to role played by Monafeqin Kurd genocide.

Read full story for details.

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TEHRAN, Dec. 27 (MNA) – The first memorial for the Iranian martyr artists in Saddam Hussein’s war of 1980-1988 on Iran was held in Vahdat Hall. Participant to the memorial was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, today dismissed his only female cabinet member, Health Minister Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, after she criticised her colleagues for failing to provide funds to import vital medicines. Related Stories Israel advances plans to build 942 new homes in east Jerusalem Netanyahu reaches out to women who...

TEHRAN, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- Iran's Civil Aviation Organization announced aircraft will be prohibited from flying across the country during the call to prayer five times a day.

TRADE re-export cargoes to Iran from the UAE dropped by nearly one-third in the first half of 2012, the Wall Street Journal reported today. ...

A former Cockermouth School pupil who quit his job to cycle 10,000 miles around the world spent Christmas on a tropical island south of Thailand.

The Higher Islamic Shiite Council calls on relatives of the Lebanese pilgrims held hostage in Syria to exercise more patience and place their trust in the relevant authorities working to secure the return of their loved ones.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian state TV is reporting the country's president has dismissed the health minister after her ministry put out a statement criticizing authorities for not providing money to import medicine.

International political and general news events for 2013 (FirstDraft). * All dates subject to change. * Further updates will be added periodically * TBC dates are based on historical data * Items marked '**' denote new or amended listings * Please email diaries@thomsonreuters.com foradditions/corrections TUESDAY, JANUARY 1 EUROPEAN UNION...

Actor Ben Affleck says he will not run for the US Senate, after speculation he would stand for a seat in Massachusetts.

TEHRAN, Dec. 27 (MNA) – An exhibition of paintings by two physically challenged Iranian artists is currently underway at the Museum of Modern Art in Kuwait.

ANTHONY HALL || United Press International Intimidation is the name of the game in the Middle East, and the game is played on every stage imaginable.

News highlights of 2012 from the Flyer’s print issue and memphisflyer.com. by Bianca Phillips January — Strippers are forced to cover their lady bits — essentially converting strip clubs into bikini bars — when rules regulating adult businesses finally go into effect on January 1st.… [ Read more...

Here is part of an Associated Press article from Dec. 20: “Declaring the time for action overdue, President Obama promised … to send Congress broad proposals in January for tightening gun laws and curbing violence after last week’s schoolhouse massacre in Connecticut.”

Every December, the analysts at Goldman Sachs publish their top macro trades for the coming year – an event that attracts much hype among the investment community. But how did the bank's trades for 2012 pan out?

The oil-rich emirates have somehow avoided al Qaeda’s attention. That may be changing now. By Eli Lake.