News Archive - 1 February 2013

>"There is no question when you start passing MANPADS around, that becomes a threat, not just to military aircraft but to civilian aircraft," Panetta told the newspaper in an interview. "That is an escalation."MANPADS are shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles. Western officials have worried about the spread of such weapons and...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Chuck Hagel's cautious testimony may not have won converts during his contentious nomination hearing for U.S. defense secretary, but it appeared on Friday not to have cost support he will need to be confirmed as the new Pentagon chief. Republicans hammered Hagel when he appeared before...

>Iran has announced plans to install and operate advanced uranium enrichment machines, in what would be a technological leap allowing it to significantly speed up activity the West fears could be put to developing a nuclear weapon."Should Iran decide to install advanced centrifuges, this could significantly increase the production...

>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Military secrets are not readily divulged anywhere. But in Israel the blanket silence that envelops officials after an event like Wednesday's mysterious air strike on Syria reflects a deeper strategy involving both deterrence and outreach. Beyond customary concern to safeguard spies and tactics for a government currently...

>JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - An external committee appointed by African mobile phone group MTN to investigate claims by rival Turkcell of corrupt dealings in Iran has dismissed the allegations as "a fabric of lies, distortions and inventions". The committee, chaired by retired British judge Lord Hoffmann, also found nothing to support...

TEHRAN, Feb.2 (MNA) – President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has inaugurated a new phase of a gasoline production facility, enabling the country to join the world’s jet fuel exporters.

ICE Brent Crude oil futures ended the week at $ 116.76 per barrel. Its counterpart NYMEX Light Sweet Crude Oil for March delivery settled at $ 97.77 per barrel, up 2%. US data spurted buying in Crude oil prices.

Review: The Colonel

Excuse the horrible image to begin a dialogue on art and its impacts, but… if tomorrow the Louvre burned to the ground and everything in it was destroyed for all time, would that news bump you much over your breakfast coffee? Let’s say that economically you had no ties to...

Bill Maher kicked off a conversation with a rare all-liberal panel tonight by saying "Republicans really disappointed me this week." Though he admitted he shouldn't have been surprised, Maher found it hard to believe that Republicans in the Senate hammered President Obama 's pick for Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel .

Following is a summary of current science news briefs. Blimps to bolster Washington's air shield in test WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A pair of big, blimp-like craft,moored to the ground and flying as high as 10,000 feet, are tobe added to a high-tech shield designed to protect theWashington D.C. area...

Watch Video | Listen to the Audio JEFFREY BROWN: This was Hillary Clinton's last day on the job as secretary of state. Ray Suarez looks at the diplomatic career of the former first lady and U.S. senator. FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE HILLARY CLINTON , United States: I am more...

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - The Wall Street Journal reported that in his coming book, Google chairman Eric Schmidt brands China an Internet menace that sanctions cyber crime for economic and political gain.

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room 11:51 A.M. EST MR. CARNEY:  Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.  Happy Friday.  I have no questions -- I mean, I have no announcements, so I’ll go straight to questions. Oh, wait, I do have -- you probably have in your inbox...

The leader of the Syrian National Coalition has called on the international community to intervene in Syria. Moaz al-Khatib has also reiterated his offer to negotiate with the regime of President Bashar Assad.

Listen to the Audio JUDY WOODRUFF: And to the analysis of Shields and Brooks. That is syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks. Well, gentlemen. MARK SHIELDS: Judy. JUDY WOODRUFF: So, Hillary Clinton, we just heard this discussion, David. The two of you weighed in on...

JERUSALEM: Israeli officials are maintaining a stony silence about their air strike in Syrian territory on Wednesday, a tactic experts say is part of a longstanding strategy to give targeted countries face-saving opportunities to avoid conflict escalation.

Washington: As Hillary Clinton made her final speech as America’s top diplomat, she suggested US had encouraged India’s “Look East” policy as an exercise in ‘smart power’ in its pivot to Asia Pacific. “There are limits to what soft power on its own can achieve,” said Secretary of State Clinton...

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that in his coming book, Google chairman Eric Schmidt brands China an Internet menace that sanctions cyber crime for economic and political gain.

DUBAI, Feb 2 — The revolts that began in Tunisia at the end of 2010 and spread across the Middle East and North Africa had a devastating impact on tourism, but not everyone in the region lost out. While recovery from the turmoil has been at best tentative, at worst...

# drones America's deadly flying war robots are in the hands of users of the popular geek message board Reddit. And as with any profession in which Redditors can be found, U.S. Army drone operators have apparently taken to Reddit to chat about their controversial jobs with fellow users...

WASHINGTON: The United States is increasingly concerned that "chaos" in Syria could allow Hezbollah to obtain sophisticated weapons from the Damascus regime, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told AFP in an interview.

Chuck Hagel is very much in the mainstream of U.S. foreign policy, has a resume and experience that would be valuable at the Pentagon and is capable of speaking his mind, even if he allowed himself during the confirmation hearings Thursday to back off on some positions. He should...

Germany has said Europe’s defence interests are best served not by creating a European army but by pursuing a “strategy of resolute pragmatism” that “recognises the limits of our power”.

"In the largest ever fundraising conference in U.N. history, the international community pledged [Wednesday] more than $1.5 billion in humanitarian aid for the people of Syria," IRIN reports.

THIS year, stagger your investments and make room for equities, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (OCBC Bank) wealth management head of content and research Vasu Menon tells StarBizWeek.

WASHINGTON is worried the Lebanese Shi'ite militia Hezbollah could exploit the 22-month conflict in Syria.

Delta Airlines Got an Oil Refinery: The Math Does Not Work

AMMAN/MUNICH (Reuters) - Senior U.S., Russian and U.N. officials, along with the leader of the Syrian opposition, were all expected at a security conference in Munich on Saturday, providing a rare opportunity for talks to revive efforts to end the civil war in Syria.

You could tell on inauguration day how determined President Barack Obama was about his pick of Chuck Hagel to be the new secretary of defense. As he signed the warrants officially forwarding his choices for several offices to the Senate, he dropped the levity when it came to the...

DAMASCUS: The United States said Iran is stepping up its support for the Syrian regime and that Russia is still arming it, heightening fears on Friday that the conflict may spill over the country's borders.

Former New Hampshire Senator Warren Rudman was honored on the Senate floor by New Hampshire’s two current senators Thursday. On the Senate floor Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen used Warren Rudman’s life as an example for today’s hyper-partisan lawmakers. “Senator Rudman was widely and deservedly hailed in both life and now...

Jenkins is the latest to sacrifice his payout, with RBS boss Stephen Hester already waiving a £2.4m award. Attention will now turn to Lloyds' Antonio Horta-Osorio and his counterparts at HSBC and Standard Chartered.

B.A. Shapiro: The Art Forger, 6:30 p.m., Phoenix Books Burlington, 191 Bank St. Meet New York Times bestselling author B.A. Shapiro. http://phoenixbooks.biz or 448-3350.

The monkey the country said it sent to space looks very different from the monkey that came back.

In-depth analysis of the interview given by Lakhdar Brahimi, Joint United Nations and Arab League Envoy to Syria, to Al-Hayat on Wednesday indicates that the only means to save Syria from “the wound festering”, as well as from fragmentation and disintegration, resides in an American-Russian agreement that would lead to...

The orchestra drawn from Israel and many countries across the Middle East and North Africa play two of Beethoven's Symphonies Nos. 2 and 9 as part of their "Beethoven for All" initiative — using music as a model for nonpolitical communication.

A former US ambassador to Israel explains the links between the Syrian crisis and the conflict over Iran's nuclear program. He also tells DW what he views as the only chance to change Assad’s power calculations.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On Friday, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) revealed the results of a new investigation into the Iranian regime’s actions to evade international oil sanctions. UANI’s investigation is based on shipping information, news reports, and information from whistleblowers. The results of the investigation reveal that Iran has been orchestrating...

In this photo taken on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2013, Paruir Airikian, candidate for the Armenian presidency, attends a news conference in Yerevan, Armenia. The longshot candidate for the Armenian presidency was shot in the chest by an unidentified gunman late Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013 officials said.

The 17-year-old man is charged with administering prescription drugs and identity theft.

Stock Market Update from Briefing.com

VIENNA (AP) — In a defiant move ahead of nuclear talks, Iran has announced plans to vastly increase its pace of uranium enrichment, which can make both reactor fuel and the fissile core of warheads. Eager to avoid scuttling those negotiations, world powers are keeping their response low-key. read more

Through much of history the abnormal has been the norm. This is a paradox to which we should attend. Aberrations, so plentiful as to form a terrible normality of their own, descend upon us with frightful consistency.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has arrested 16 journalists in the capital Tehran, accused of cooperating with foreign Persian-language media…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Iran and Russia on Thursday to rethink their support for Syria, saying the most dire scenarios of the conflict spilling beyond its borders could come to pass.

The Ceylon Transport Board has earned Rs.1,925,918 in the form of fines by raids by the flying squad of the CTB. The flying squad also detected misconducts and malpractices of bus conductors, a spokesman for the flying squad said.

BEIRUT (AP) — Israeli warplanes flew over southern Lebanon Friday, two days after the Jewish state launched an airstrike near Damascus, as Syria's army chief of staff warned against testing his cou...

Malaya or Malaysia did not attend the conference because Malaya and Malaysia did not exist yet at time. Malaya was created only in 1957 and Malaysia in 1963. Hence Malaya/Malaysia is not a party to that treaty or a recipient of any compensation.

A suicide bomber killed himself and a Turkish security guard on Friday at the United States Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, the Associated Press reported. American citizens have been warned to avoid diplomatic facilities in Turkey and be careful in large crowds.

Sarai Sierra, 33, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul.

Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein recently sat down with Deadline's Mike Fleming for a lengthy Q&A to talk everything from this year's Oscar nominated films to campaigning for President Obama.

Turkish officials say a suicide bomber belonging to a radical leftist organization blew himself up just outside the U.S. Embassy in Ankara Friday. The blast killed a Turkish security guard. Istanbul police identified the bomber as Ecevit Shanli, a member of DHKP-C, a Marxist Leninist terror group.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Friday he believes former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, who had a rocky confirmation hearing on Thursday, will be confirmed by the Senate as U.S. defense secretary. Carney told reporters he believed the number of votes in favor of Hagel's...

IT was hailed by the Iranian media as the moment the country joined the international dash into space, and a rare technological triumph.

Down to the media campaign.

Turkish officials say a suicide bomber belonging to a radical leftist organization blew himself up just outside the U.S. Embassy in Ankara Friday. The blast killed a Turkish security guard. Istanbul police identified the bomber as Ecevit Shanli, a member of DHKP-C, a Marxist Leninist terror group. Hasan Selim...

As President Obama starts his second term, a quick scan of global headlines might appear to reveal a bleak picture of a world coming off its hinges.

Turkish officials say a suicide bomber belonging to a radical leftist organization blew himself up just outside the U.S. Embassy in Ankara Friday. The blast killed a Turkish security guard. Istanbul police identified the bomber as Ecevit Shanli, a me...

(David Rohde is a Reuters columnist but his opinions are hisown) Feb 1 (Reuters) - Viewers of Thursday's confirmation hearingof Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel can be forgiven forthinking they were watching a years-old C-SPAN rerun. Theimportance of America's intercontinental ballistic missilesdominated initial questioning. Then the war in Iraq was...

NEW YORK — Gasoline prices are getting an early start on their annual spring march higher. The average U.S. retail price rose 13 cents over the past two weeks to $3.42 per gallon, and within a few days it will likely set a record for this time of...

High-level talks with the Chinese government to address persistent cyberattacks against U.S. companies and government agencies haven't worked, so officials say the Obama administration is now considering a range of actions.

While the world watched the pomp and ceremony surrounding President Barack Obama's inauguration, a darker story was playing out behind the scenes in Washington.The Washington Post reported that the United States Justice Department...

The Assad regime says the attack underscores the need for unity. The opposition has contrasted the regime's lack of response with its relentless attacks on its own people.

During the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, I interviewed then-Senator Barack Obama on the subject of the Middle East. Much of our discussion was pro forma -- he was trying to convince certain hawkish elements of the American Jewish community that he wasn’t Yasser Arafat in mufti -- and so...

WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Vietnam war veteran tapped to lead the Pentagon, Chuck Hagel, came under a withering attack from Republican critics on Thursday (Friday in Manila) as he struggled to explain his stance on Israel and Iran.

DAMASCUS: Syria has threatened to retaliate over what it says was an Israeli air raid, which threatens to take the conflict beyond Syria’s borders, as Washington warned that Iran was stepping up support for Damascus.

It has been two years since the so called Arab Spring. The Arab spring happened in January 2011. Since then it has seen the downfall of powerful muslim leaders. In Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, the so called great arab leaders falled like dominos. It spurred unrest in Qatar, in Syria...

Secretary of State John Kerry is likely to visit the Middle East as part of his first official overseas trip, wasting no time in demonstrating an urgency for reviving stalled peace talks and addressing political chaos in Egypt.

China said Friday it had approved British bank HSBC's sale of its stake in insurance giant Ping An to a Thai conglomerate for $9.4 billion, ending speculation that the deal was on the verge on the collapse.

Chuck Hagel, the former Republican senator picked by President Barack Obama as his new Secretary of Defence, told his confirmation hearing yesterday that he was committed to defending Israel and stopping Iran from building an atomic bomb. "My policy is one of prevention, and not one of containment," he said.

US secretary of state Hillary Clinton issued a parting warning about Syria's civil war, accusing Iran of playing an increasingly prominent role in directing the violence. Related Stories UN plan for new Mali peace force Boy's captor talking through pipe David Cameron admits 'dangers' in Libya with boost to aid...

OTTAWA — Health spending makes up a higher share of the gross domestic product in Nova Scotia than in any other province, according to a new report by the Conference Board of Canada. While health spending is steadily growing across the country, only...

(BRUSSELS ) - The European Union voiced "serious concern" Friday over Iran's decision to install more modern equipment at its Natanz nuclear plant, saying it would be in "clear violation" of its international obligations.

A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device on the outside perimeter of the U.S. Embassy in the Turkish capital Friday, officials said, in a terrorist attack believed to be the work of either Al Qaeda or a proxy for Iran. 

Fox News host says he's "truly contemplating" a run for U.S. Senate in New Jersey.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan—A suicide bomber detonated his explosives outside a Shiite mosque in northwestern Pakistan as worshippers were leaving Friday prayers, killing 23 people and wounding over 50 in the latest apparently sectarian attack in the country, police said.

WASHINGTON - Republican senators went after former GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel at his confirmation hearing Thursday on issues ranging from Israel and Iran to his support for a group that advocates the elimination of nuclear weapons. But with most Democrats in his corner, an unflustered Hagel seems headed for approval...

The price of oil slipped to near $97 a barrel on Friday after figures showed weak growth in China's manufacturing sector and as investors awaited a key U.S. jobs report.

Patna, Feb 1 (IANS) Eight architectural companies, including six from abroad, have shown interest in designing the upcoming Nalanda University in Bihar, the vice chancellor said Friday.

Lord Hoffmann’s committee’s report on allegations of bribery and improper conduct in Iran finds there was no conspiracy or bribery by MTN

The FBI is ramping up its efforts to find out who leaked information about the Stuxnet worm used to attack Iranian nuclear facilities in 2010, and that has reignited debate over whether the Obama administration's aggressive pursuit of those who leak classified information is trampling privacy rights.

US Vice President Joe Biden on Friday warned Iran that opportunities for diplomacy over its disputed nuclear programme were not unlimited but offered direct talks between Washington and Tehran.

AMMAN (Reuters) - A leading Syrian opposition source said the opposition would meet officials from the United States, Russia and the United Nations in Munich on Saturday to discuss a political transition for Syria.

Kokabee was a doctoral student at the University of Texas when he was jailed in Iran.