News Archive - 28 February 2014

>MIDYAT, Turkey (Reuters) - When Louis Bandak fled the violence in Syria, he sought refuge in the country his grandfather was forced to abandon exactly 90 years ago this week. Bandak, his wife and two daughters are part of a small but growing trickle of Christians arriving in Turkey after...

>* Saudi Arabia trims output, Libyan supply falls* OPEC output below 30 million bpd target for fifth monthBy Alex LawlerLONDON, Feb 28 (Reuters) - OPEC's oil output has risen further in February from December's 2-1/2-year low, due to more shipments from Iraq and Angola, and further upward creep in Iranian...

>* Sources had told Reuters possible Iran report discussed last year* They said idea apparently abandoned as Tehran ties improved* Israel urges IAEA to go public with all Iran information (Adds IAEA statement, Vienna dateline, bylines)By Dan Williams and Fredrik DahlJERUSALEM/VIENNA, Feb 28 (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog...

Watch Video | Listen to the Audio JUDY WOODRUFF: Late today, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations proposed sending an urgent independent and credible mediation mission to help resolve Ukraine’s crisis. However, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin dismissed the idea, saying he was against imposed mediation. Our Jeffrey Brown...

The Saudi Arabian crown prince and Iranian foreign minister's visits this week point to the challenges facing India's new Look Middle East policy

Here's where all you can head to for a breakfast before sunrise

Healthy and aromatic, basil is popular in Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, writes Elaine Yim

A junior commissioned officer (JCO) of the Rashtriya Rifles Friday killed himself in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said. Subedar Surinder Singh of 2 Rashtriya Rifles shot himself ...

Pyongyang, February 28 (KCNA) -- Celebration events such as receptions, photo and book exhibitions and film shows took place at DPRK missions abroad between February 7 and 15 on the occasion of the birth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il (Day of the Shining Star).

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room 12:30 P.M. EST      MR. CARNEY:  Good afternoon.  Happy Friday.  Welcome to the White House briefing room.  Before I take your questions I wanted to note that President Obama today will host students, parents and teachers at the first-ever White...

Erick Barkley, the basketball player, looked like Iran Barkley, the boxer, when he allegedly went berserk after his 9-year-old son’s basketball team lost a close playoff game in Westchester by...

When Turkey’s AK Party swept to power in 2002, it did so through striking a deep ideological chord with the people of dozens of unremarkable regional cities in Anatolia.

Pyongyang, February 28 (KCNA) -- Events were held in foreign countries on the occasion of the birth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il. They included a meeting, round-table talks, seminar and book and photo exhibition in Brazil, Pakistan, Iran and Germany from Feb. 10 to 18.

Ukraine closes Crimean airspace; an official says 13 Russian jumbo jets carrying about 2,000 troops landed. WASHINGTON — President Obama issued a blunt warning to Moscow on Friday that "there will be costs" if Russia sends its troops into Ukraine, saying he is deeply concerned about reports of Russian military...

The United States warned on Friday that President Barack Obama and other European leaders could snub the G8 summit in Sochi if they judge Russia is usurping Ukraine's sovereignty.

A chemical weapons attack in Syria last summer that the U.S. says killed more than 1,400 people was the world’s worst human rights violation of 2013, the Obama administration concluded Thursday.

Today the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat that will support work to strengthen national policy, institutional and legal frameworks to reduce the risk of disasters, mitigate their effects when they occur and expedite the...

TEHRAN, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the country plans to continue its nuclear energy program.

WASHINGTON – As the situation in Ukraine continues to worsen, President Obama made a statement at the White House on...

LAS VEGAS — Computer hackers stole the personal information of tens of thousands of Las Vegas Sands customers during a data breach earlier this month, the casino company said Friday. The company said in a regulatory filing that information about some patrons at its Bethlehem, Pa., hotel-casino was compromised...

First Military Investigative Judge Riad Abu Ghayda issued indictments Friday in the case of firebrand Sheikh Ahmad Assir and his supporters, who orchestrated deadly clashes with the Army last June, demanding the death penalty for the fugitive preacher.

New Delhi, Feb 28 : The Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the opening of 54 new Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) under Civil Sector during the 12th Five Year Plan as recommended by the Expenditure Finance Committee.

Citing Venezuela's "inexcusable" violence against anti-government demonstrators, US lawmakers introduced a measure Friday condemning the oppressive tactics and urged President Barack Obama to ...

Forty years of scarcity has taught us to think in extremes. That’s why we continue to frame discussions of “energy independence” in absolute terms.

New Delhi, Feb 28 (PTI) India and Iran have agreed to take a decision on Chabahar port by March-end, during the meeting of External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid with his Iranian counterpart Javad Sharif there, official sources said.

BAGHDAD, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's dispute with Iraq's Kurdish minority over its independent oil exports has escalated with the central government blocking Kurdistan's share of the state budget and banning two airlines that operate between Europe and the Kurds' semiautonomous northern enclave.

Betrayals occur in high places, even the highest offices of the land. Furthermore, betrayals occur with some of the most important allies for the nation. See the official German gold account thefts, called euphemistically the repatriation demand.

Israeli Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz criticized the International Atomic Energy Agency’s reported decision to shelve for now a report on Iran.

>* May milling wheat, the most traded contract on the Paris-based Euronext market, was down 0.75 euros or 0.4 percent at 197.25 euros a tonne at 1421 GMT.* March held up better, trading unchanged at 201.75 euros, as the front month continued to be supported...

Major Democratic donors, many of them Jewish, wrote to party congressional leaders urging them not to advance new Iran sanctions legislation. Click here for the rest of the article...

Iran External Affairs Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is on a two-day visit to India to boost mutual cooperation on energy, port and transit of goods, met Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari

Comment: While it seems unlikely, it is in the nature of Black Swans that they spring from the seemingly insignificant

Iran, India and Oman are planning to begin official negotiations for delivery of the Iranian natural gas to the Indian market through a deepwater pipeline.

NEW DELHI (AP) — For six years in a row, India's monopoly coal producer has missed its production targets, leading to chronic electricity shortages and sending power producers scrambling for pricier imports. But what looks like a looming crisis could turn out to be an almost accidental energy overhaul. Like...

A bill designed to improve the lives of the nation’s veterans stalled in the U.S. Senate Thursday.

DOHA: New signing Alessandro Diamanti starred with two magical strikes as AFC Champions League title-holders Guangzhou Evergrande fought back from two goals down to beat Melbourne Victory 4-2 on Wednesday.

>* Retail tranche 600 times oversubscribed* Shares to debut in Hong Kong on March 6 (Adds Poly Culture's business, use of proceeds, underwriter, context)HONG KONG, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Poly Culture Group Corp Ltd, China's largest art auctioneer, is set to raise $331 million after pricing its Hong Kong initial...

>* Global surplus oil capacity inches up in Jan, Feb -EIA* Iran's oil fleet looks to come in from cold as exports pick up* Brent targets $107.85-$108.11 range -technicals (Update prices)By Manash GoswamiSINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Brent crude futures slipped below $109 a barrel on Friday due...

>By Matt Spetalnick and Jeffrey HellerWASHINGTON/JERUSALEM Feb 28 (Reuters) - For years, Israeli leaders visiting Washington have been boosted by America's main pro-Israel lobby, its influence on U.S. Middle East policy long accepted as a matter of conventional wisdom.But when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses an annual convention...