International - Most recent war games in Iran

Sun 19/02/2012 12:34

NNA - 19/02/2012 - Most recent war games in central Iran, featured Sunday land maneuvers by elite troops of the Iranian revolutionary guards.

Code-named "dawn" land forces partaking in the war games were commanded by General Mohammad Pakpour.

According to Pakpour the purpose of Sunday's exercise is to test the preparedness of revolutionary guards' land forces in order to demonstrate their ability to confront any potential military threat.

A secondary purpose the general added, is to show to the enemy Iranian deterrent and defensive capability.

General Pakpour disclosed a number of Iranian-made top-of-the-line weapon systems specially devised for tactical defensive purposes.

The 2-day land-based war games were preceded by sea maneuvers in the strait of Hormoz to show Iran's determination to close the strait in the event of outside aggression the general concluded.

International - Romania nightclub blasts injure 17

Sun 19/02/2012 12:13

NNA - 19/02/2012 (Reuters) - Two explosions injured 17 people at a nightclub in the northern Romanian town of Sighetu Marmatiei, emergency services said on Sunday.
The first explosion ripped through the club in the early hours of Sunday, injuring seven. A second blast at the building several hours later injured another ten people, said Cornel Babut, spokesman for the local Maramures emergency office.
"Seven people were injured in the first explosion and another ten in the second," Babut told Reuters. "We are checking what caused it."
Some of the victims were evacuated by air to the capital Bucharest, about 650 km (400 miles) away along snow-covered roads, for specialist burns treatment.

International - Japanese emperor's heart bypass operation a success - NHK

Sat 18/02/2012 11:48

NNA - 18/02/2012 (Reuters) - Japan's Emperor Akihito had on Saturday a successful heart bypass operation, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Akihito, 78, has been receiving treatment for heart problems for the past year and doctors decided last week that he needed a coronary bypass operation.
Akihito ascended to the throne after the death of his father, Hirohito, in 1989. He has spent much of the past two decades working to heal the wounds of a war waged across Asia in his father's name and helped bring the monarchy closer to ordinary citizens.
Akihito checked into the University of Tokyo Hospital on Friday and is expected to remain hospitalised for about two weeks.
Akihito had surgery for prostate cancer in 2003 and suffered stress-related health issues in late 2008. The following year, the royal agency said he would cut back on official duties such as speeches and meeting foreign dignitaries.
Save for rare occasions, the Japanese imperial family is spared the intense public attention or media scrutiny that Britain's royals get.
But it serves as a comforting link with tradition at times of distress.
Five days after a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck northeastern Japan on March 11, Akihito made a rare public televised address and in April travelled to the disaster area with Empress Michiko.
Akihito's hospital stay last year gave Japan a rare opportunity to see his heir Crown Prince Naruhito, 51, step in for his father and perform public duties.
While Akihito's reign was defined by his reconciliation efforts, it is less clear what role the scholarly Naruhito may play, though royal commentators expect him to continue his father's efforts to reach out to ordinary citizens.

International - U.S., EU welcome Iran nuclear letter, suggest talks possible

Fri 17/02/2012 21:08

NNA - 17/02/2012 (Reuters) - The United States and European Union expressed cautious optimism on Friday over prospects that Iran may be willing to engage major powers in new talks, but underscored any new negotiations must be sustained and focus on the nuclear issue.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told reporters that Iran's recent letter to Ashton might mark a step forward.
"We think this is an important step and we welcome the letter," Clinton said in a joint meeting with Ashton. She stressed that the major powers were still reviewing their formal response to Tehran's offer.
Ashton, who handles contact with Iran on behalf of the "P5+1" group comprised of the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany, said the letter showed "a potential possibility that Iran may be ready to start talks."
Iran's letter to Ashton, which was obtained by Reuters on Thursday, proposed resuming the stalled talks and said Tehran would have "new initiatives" to bring to the table.

But the brief letter, which responded to a letter Ashton sent to her Iranian counterpart in October, offered no specific proposals, leaving a question mark over Tehran's willingness to enter substantive negotiations on its nuclear work.
Clinton, however, said the Iranian letter "appeared to acknowledge and accept" the western countries' longstanding condition that any talks begin with a discussion of its nuclear program.
"We must be assured that, if we make a decision to go forward, we see a sustained effort by Iran to come to the table, to work until we have reached an outcome that has Iran coming back into compliance with their international obligations," Clinton said.

International - UN chief ups pressure on nuclear test ban holdouts

Fri 17/02/2012 20:46

NNA - 17/02/2012 (Reuters) - The United Nations chief stepped up efforts on Friday to persuade eight holdout states to ratify a 1990s treaty to ban nuclear weapon tests, and said governments were now spending vast amounts on building "arsenals of death."
More than 150 countries have so far ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) but the United States, China, India, Pakistan, Israel, Iran, North Korea and Egypt must also do so before it can become international law.
"It is distressing that this treaty has yet to enter into force," U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told a conference on the pact in Vienna, where its Preparatory Commission is based.
"Any country opposed to signing or ratifying is simply failing to meet its responsibilities as a member of the international community."
Ban said he was ready to meet leaders of those states which are still reluctant or may have doubts about the ratification of the test ban treaty, which was negotiated in the 1990s but has yet to take force.
India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel are outside the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the 1970 pact aimed at preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. Iran is part of the NPT but the West accuses it of seeking to develop a capability to build atomic bombs. Tehran denies the charge.
The United States and China are among the world's five recognised nuclear weapons states, together with Russia, France and Britain.
Proponents say U.S. ratification of the pact, rejected by lawmakers in 1999, could encourage other holdouts to sign.
"It is irresponsible to see this treaty still waiting to come into effect 15 years after it was opened for signature," Ban said, without naming the eight states. "Governments now spend vast sums of money to build and test arsenals of death."
The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama said in May last year that it was preparing a push for approval of the treaty, arguing that Washington no longer needs to conduct such tests but does need to stop other countries from doing so.
But it has not given a precise time when it would seek a Senate vote on the treaty, which the chamber rejected when fellow Democrat Bill Clinton was president in the 1990s. A two-thirds majority would be needed for approval.
Obama, who will seek a second term this year, has made clear he sees the test ban pact as a step toward his vision of a world without nuclear weapons, such as the new START arms reduction treaty the Senate approved last year.
At the time of the Senate vote in 1999, opponents argued that a permanent end to testing could erode the reliability of the U.S. nuclear arsenal. The country last carried out a test nearly 20 years ago.
Some also questioned whether cheaters could be detected.
Ban said: "There is no good reason to avoid signing or ratifying this treaty."

International - NATO to stay out of Syria even if UN mandate emerges

Fri 17/02/2012 18:13

NNA - 17/2/2012 - Reuters - NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the Western alliance had no intention of intervening in Syria even in the event of a U.N. mandate to protect civilians, and urged Middle East countries to find a way to end the spiraling violence.

"We have no intention whatsoever to intervene in Syria," Rasmussen said in an interview, during a visit to mark the 60th anniversary of Turkey joining the alliance.

While NATO had acted under a United Nations mandate to protect civilians in Libya and had also received active support from several fellow Arab countries, neither condition had been fulfilled in Syria.

Asked if NATO's stance would change if the United Nations provided a mandate, Rasmussen was doubtful.

"No, I don't think so because Syria is also a different society," he said.

International - U.N. head sees possible crimes against humanity in Syria

Thu 16/02/2012 16:12

NNA - 16/2/2012 -Reuters- U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on Syrian authorities to stop killing civilians and said potential crimes against humanity were taking place in the country.

"We see neighbourhoods shelled indiscriminately, hospitals used as torture centres, children as young as 10 years old killed and abused. We see almost a certain crimes against humanity," he told reporters after meeting Austrian President Heinz Fischer on Thursday.

Ban said he had read of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's plan to hold a referendum that could lead to multi-party elections within 90 days but said the priority now had to be halting the bloodshed.

"What is important at this time is that first Syrian authorities must stop killing their own people, must stop violence. This violence should stop from all sides, whether by national security forces or by opposition forces," he said.

Ban, who opened an international conference on fighting the illicit drugs trade from Afghanistan, said he would meet the foreign ministers of Russia and France in Vienna on Thursday to discuss stalled U.N. Security Council action on Syria.

He called it "regrettable" that the Council could not agree so far on a resolution, and said: "Now that is behind us. We have to look to the future."

International - U.S. sneers at Assad's call for referendum on new constitution

Wed 15/02/2012 21:42

NNA - 15/02/2012 - The U.S. described Assad's call for referendum over a new constitution as laughable, according to a White House Statement issued on Wednesday.

"It makes a mockery out of the Syrian revolution," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters.
R.H.

International - Iran stops oil exports to six EU countries - state TV

Wed 15/02/2012 17:04

International - U.N. head sees possible crimes against humanity in Syria

Thu 16/02/2012 16:12

Print Article

[ - ] Text [ + ]

NNA - 16/2/2012 -Reuters- U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on Syrian authorities to stop killing civilians and said potential crimes against humanity were taking place in the country.

"We see neighbourhoods shelled indiscriminately, hospitals used as torture centres, children as young as 10 years old killed and abused. We see almost a certain crimes against humanity," he told reporters after meeting Austrian President Heinz Fischer on Thursday.

Ban said he had read of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's plan to hold a referendum that could lead to multi-party elections within 90 days but said the priority now had to be halting the bloodshed.

"What is important at this time is that first Syrian authorities must stop killing their own people, must stop violence. This violence should stop from all sides, whether by national security forces or by opposition forces," he said.

Ban, who opened an international conference on fighting the illicit drugs trade from Afghanistan, said he would meet the foreign ministers of Russia and France in Vienna on Thursday to discuss stalled U.N. Security Council action on Syria.

He called it "regrettable" that the Council could not agree so far on a resolution, and said: "Now that is behind us. We have to look to the future."

NNA - 15/2/2012 - Reuters - Iran has stopped oil exports to six European states in retaliation for European Union sanctions imposed on the Islamic state's key export, its English-language Press TV reported on Wednesday.

"Iran cuts its oil exports to six European countries," Press TV reported.

Press TV said Iran has stopped exporting oil to Netherlands, Greece, France, Portugal, Spain and Italy.

Brent crude oil prices were up �1 a barrel to �118.35 shortly after the announcement.

The EU's 27 member states have decided to stop importing crude from Iran from July 1 over its disputed nuclear programme.

Iran's oil minister said on February 4 that the Islamic state would certainly cut its oil exports to "some" European countries.

Internatioanl - Sarkozy set to enter election race Wednesday

Tue 14/02/2012 14:48

NNA - 14/02/2012 (Reuters) - Nicolas Sarkozy is set to formally enter France's 2012 presidential race on Wednesday, kicking off a rapid-fire re-election campaign with the odds stacked in favour of Socialist challenger Francois Hollande.

The conservative leader is expected to declare his candidacy on prime time television on Wednesday evening and hold his first campaign rally on Thursday in the Alpine town of Annecy, where his ruling UMP party expects a deluge of supporters.
Sarkozy is set to flesh out his campaign platform in a keynote speech to an audience of several thousand in the Mediterranean port city of Marseille on Sunday.
Sarkozy's office would not comment on the timing of the launch, but TF1 television has the president as a provisional guest on its 8 p.m. (1900 GMT) news show and Le Figaro daily, which backs Sarkozy, said he would make the announcement then.

Stuck with a 68 percent disapproval rating and trailing Hollande in opinion polls, Sarkozy has been working for weeks on a campaign based around reforms to boost flagging industrial competitiveness and restore growth that has petered out to zero.

International - China's Wen says urgent to prevent chaos in Syria

Tue 14/02/2012 12:36

NNA - 14/02/2012 Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said on Tuesday it was urgent to prevent war and chaos in Syria and vowed to work through the United Nations to seek an end to civil strife in the country.
His comments came days after China and Russia blocked a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that backed an Arab plan urging Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to quit amid his government's violent crackdown on opposition groups.
Wen, briefing reporters with the European Council and European Commission presidents at the start of an EU-China summit in Beijing, added that Beijing did not seek to protect any party, including the government of Syria.
"On the issue of Syria, what is most urgent and pressing now is to prevent war and chaos so that the Syrian people will be free from even greater suffering," Wen said in response to question from reporters.
"To achieve this objective, China supports efforts consistent with the UN charter and principles and we are ready to strengthen communication with all parties in Syria and the international community and continue to play a constructive role. China will absolutely not protect any party, including the government of Syria."
China has come under fire for blocking the draft UN Security Council resolution, a stance it has defended as being consistent with its practice of not interfering in the internal affairs of other nations.
Joining Wen at the Great Hall of the People, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said all UN Security Council members should act on Syria.
Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso were in Beijing for a summit with Chinese leaders, delayed since late last year as European leaders struggled to deal with an escalating debt crisis.
On Monday, U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of launching an "indiscriminate attack" on civilians to end pro-democracy protests and said he had been emboldened by the failure of the Security Council to condemn him.
Pillay told the 193-nation U.N. General Assembly the Feb. 4 veto by Russia and China of a draft Security Council resolution condemning the Syrian government and endorsing an Arab League plan for Assad to step aside had encouraged Damascus to intensify its attacks.
Syria's uprising, in which the United Nations says more than 5,400 people have been killed, has become one of the bloodiest of the Arab Spring revolts sweeping the region since the end of 2010.

International - France warns of foreign military intervention in Syria

Mon 13/02/2012 17:58

NNA - 13/2/2012 - French Foreign Minister, Alain Juppe, on Monday warned of any foreign military intervention in Syria, following an Arab League's decision to deploy a joint Arab-international peacekeeping force in the unrest-swept nation.

"We believe that any foreign military intervention would only exacerbate the situation as long as the Security Council, considered as the sole body empowered to allow a military intervention, has not issued any resolution yet," Juppe told a news conference in Bordeaux today.

R.A.H.

International - Pope to Syria: Respect People's 'Legitimate' Hopes

Sun 12/02/2012 15:29

NNA - 12/02/2012 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict urged the Syrian government on Sunday to recognize the legitimate aspirations of its people and embark on a national dialogue to put an end to a violent crackdown on protesters which has killed thousands since March.

Speaking to pilgrims after his weekly Angelus blessing, the pope said Syrian authorities also had to answer to the concerns of the international community over the fighting and unrest.
"It's urgent to respond to the legitimate aspirations of the different sections of the nation, as well as the auspices of the international community," the pope said.
R.Z.

International - Russia to continue search for solution to crisis in Syria

Wed 8/02/2012 18:26

NNA - 8/2/2012 - The search for a solution to the crisis in Syria must continue, including in the Security Council, a statement by the Kremlin quoted Russian President Dmitri Medvedev as saying on Wednesday.

Medvedev highlighted to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a telephone conversation today the necessity to continue the search for a solution, the statement added.

R.A.H.

International - France calls Syrian president's promises "manipulation"

Wed 8/02/2012 16:09

NNA - 8/2/2012 - Reuters - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's promises to Russia to implement reforms (...) are a "manipulation" that France does not believe, Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said on Wednesday.

"It is a manipulation and we are not going to fall for it," Juppe told France Info radio when asked if he believed Assad was being sincere.

"It's not the first time someone has gone to meet Bashar and been given guarantees."

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met Assad in Damascus on Tuesday, where he said both nations wanted to revive an Arab League monitoring effort that was suspended due to violence and push ahead with a reform programme.

Paris, which helped draft a U.N. resolution with Arab League backing that was vetoed by Russia and China, is working on creating an international group to bring together all those opposed to the violence.

International - Russia's Putin warns against outside interference

Wed 8/02/2012 16:06

NNA - 8/2/2012 - Reuters - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday the world faced a growing "cult of violence" and Moscow must not let events like those in Libya and Syria be repeated in Russia, issuing a warning to the West against interference.

"We of course condemn all violence regardless of its source, but one cannot act like an elephant in a china shop," Putin told Russian religious leaders at a meeting as talk turned to Libya and Syria.

"Help them, advise them, limit, for instance, their ability to use weapons but not interfere under any circumstances," said Putin, whose country vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution last week backing an Arab League call for Syria's president to cede power.

International - Netherlands recalls ambassador to Syria

Tue 7/02/2012 18:19

NNA - 7/2/2012 - Netherlands recalled Tuesday its ambassador to Syria for "consultations."

"I decided to recall the Dutch ambassador in Damascus for consultations, and he will be probably returning today," Netherlands' Foreign Minister said from The Hague today.

He added that the Syrian ambassador to Netherlands, residing in Brussels, was also recalled.

R.A.H.

International - Spain recalls Ambassador to Syria

Tue 7/02/2012 15:57

NNA - 07/02/2012 - Italy recalled its Ambassador to Syria for negotiations, a statement issued by the Italian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
Earlier today, Spain recalled its Ambassador to Syria for negotiations, a statement issued by the Spanish Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, the Italian Embassy, located in the Syrian capital, kept its doors open and continued support to Italian nationals residing on Syrian territories, the statement added.

Yesterday, British Foreign Minister, William Hague, said that Britain's Ambassador to Syria had been recalled for consultations. The decision was announced after the U.S. said it had closed its Embassy in Damascus and pulled all American diplomats out of Syria.
R.H.

International - Italy recalls Ambassador to Syria

Tue 7/02/2012 13:24

NNA - 07/02/2012 - Italy recalled its Ambassador to Syria for negotiations, a statement issued by the Italian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Italian Embassy, located in the Syrian capital, kept its doors open and continued support to Italian nationals residing on Syrian territories, the statement added.

Yesterday, British Foreign Minister, William Hague, said that Britain's Ambassador to Syria had been recalled for consultations. The decision was announced after the U.S. said it had closed its Embassy in Damascus and pulled all American diplomats out of Syria.

International - Britain recalls Ambassador to Syria

Mon 6/02/2012 19:14

NNA - 06/02/2012 - The British Ambassador to Syria has been recalled for consultations, British Foreign William Hague said on Monday.
The decision was announced after the U.S. said it has closed its Embassy in Damascus and pulled all American diplomats out of Syria

"We have summoned the Syrian Ambassador to London to voice objection to the prevailing situation there. Britain is resorting to multiple channels to express its abhorrence at the violent crackdown on dissidents by the Syrian regime," Hague said, deeming said acts as utterly unacceptable.
R.H.

International - Washington closes embassy in Damascus

Mon 6/02/2012 16:54

NNA - 6/2/2012 - Washington announced Monday the closure of its embassy in Damascus and the evacuation of its personnel in Syria.

A statement by the US Department of State read "the US embassy in Damascus suspended all its activities as of February 6, 2012, considering the continuity of violence and the deterioration of the security juncture."

"The embassy's personnel and their families already left [Syria]," the statement said, calling Americans who are still in Syria to leave the country.

R.A.H.

International - Republican Romney sails to easy win in Nevada

Sun 5/02/2012 11:03

NNA - 05/02/2012 (Reuters) - Republican front-runner Mitt Romney cruised to an easy victory in Nevada on Saturday, crushing his three remaining rivals and taking firm command of the party's volatile presidential nominating race.

With support from a broad cross-section of Republicans, Romney won by a big double-digit margin over former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Representative Ron Paul and former Senator Rick Santorum.

The victory was Romney's second in a row and his third in the first five contests in the state-by-state battle to find a Republican challenger to President Barack Obama in November's general election.

It propels Romney into the next contests - in Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri on Tuesday - on a growing wave of momentum.

Gingrich held a news conference after the results to head off speculation that he might put an early end to his campaign.

"I'm not going to withdraw," Gingrich told reporters, repeating his frequent vow to continue all the way to the Republican nominating convention in Florida in August. "I'm actually pretty happy with where we are."

Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, took control of the Nevada contest early after recapturing his front-runner status with a convincing win over Gingrich in Florida last Tuesday.

He benefited from a huge financial and organizational edge in Nevada, which he won with 51 percent of the vote during his failed 2008 presidential bid. A faltering economy and a big bloc of Mormon voters made Nevada friendly terrain for Romney, a Mormon and former head of a private equity firm.

Romney stressed his business background as a cure for the state's ailing economy, which suffers from the country's highest unemployment rate, 12.6 percent in December, and the highest home foreclosure rate.

Entrance polls in Nevada showed that was a persuasive argument, with the economy ranking as the top issue and Romney winning nearly two-thirds of the voters who listed it as their biggest concern.

"America needs a president who can fix the economy because he understands the economy, and I do and I will," Romney told cheering supporters at a Las Vegas casino hotel, aiming his criticism at Obama and ignoring his Republican rivals.

The entrance polls showed Romney won a broad swath of voters, including moderates, conservatives, men, women, the elderly, Tea Party supporters and those who believed the most important quality in a candidate was the ability to beat Obama.

International - Republican Romney sails to easy win in Nevada

International - Panetta reassures European allies over defense cuts

Sat 4/02/2012 11:43

NNA - 04/02/2012 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reassured European allies on Saturday that Washington remains committed to their security despite an austerity drive, pledging greater support for a NATO rapid-action force even as he cuts U.S. troops in the region.

Panetta said the U.S. Army would still have about 37,000 soldiers in Europe even after it withdraws two of its four combat brigades -- about 7,000 soldiers - as part of efforts to trim �487 billion from the defence budget over the next decade.

"Our military footprint in Europe will remain larger than in any other region of the world," Panetta told a Munich security conference.

"That's not only because the peace and prosperity of Europe is critically important to the United States, but because Europe remains our security partner of choice for military operations and diplomacy around the world. We saw that in Libya last year, and we see it in Afghanistan every day," he said.

The United States has about 80,000 military personnel in Europe when Air Force, Navy and other troops are included. There are 28 U.S. military bases - 16 Army, 8 Air Force and 4 Navy.

The U.S. decision to cut its troop presence in Europe has raised concerns among the North Atlantic allies about waning support for its treaty commitment to mutual security and whether NATO forces would be able to train together enough to be able to conduct joint wartime operations.

Panetta has said the United States would rotate U.S.-based soldiers to Europe for training on a regular basis. On Saturday he pledged to commit one U.S.-based brigade as Washington's contribution to the NATO Response Force.

"The NRF was designed to be an agile, rapidly deployable, multinational force that can respond to crises when and where necessary," he said. "The United States has endorsed the NRF but has not made a tangible contribution due to the demands of the wars - until now."

U.S. lawmakers have been critical of Europe for low levels of defense spending and have pressed for the withdrawal of American forces, saying it was time for the continent to shoulder more of the expense of defending itself.

But with all NATO allies facing budget constraints and falling defense spending, Panetta urged nations to work together to identify key military capabilities they would need over the next decade and cooperate to ensure they are maintained.

"We must all continue to invest in national defence and in the shared responsibility and capabilities of NATO in order to best manage the security challenges of the future," he said.

International - Syrians storm embassy in Cairo, rally in UK, US

Sat 4/02/2012 10:54

NNA - 0402/2012 (Reuters) - A crowd of Syrians stormed the Syrian embassy in Cairo smashing furniture and equipment and setting fire to parts of the building in protest over the latest bloodshed in the country, an embassy official and a witness said on Saturday.
Rallies also broke out outside Syrian embassies in Britain, Germany and the United States after human rights activists reported more than 200 people were killed in shelling by government forces in the city of Homs.
In Cairo, embassy official Ammar Mohamed said he had been told by security officials about the overnight attack and arrived at the site to assess the damage. The scene was calm by early morning and Egyptian police were guarding the embassy.

It was the second such attack on the mission. The embassy was broken into last week in another demonstration against President Bashar al-Assad who has turned his army against demonstrators seeking an end to his rule.
Hundreds of demonstrators also gathered at a police station a few streets from the Cairo embassy to demand the release of as many as 11 Syrians and an Egyptian who they said were detained during the protest at the mission.
"God you are so strong, help us secure victory over Bashar," chanted protesters outside the Cairo police station where they said the detainees from the demonstration were taken.
The gate of the embassy in central Cairo was broken and furniture and computers were smashed on the second floor of the building, a Reuters witness said, viewing the site after the attack. Parts of the first floor were burned, he said.
At the United Nations, the Security Council was due to meet later in the day to vote on a European-Arab draft resolution endorsing an Arab League plan calling for Assad to resign.
In London, more than 100 people hurled stones at the Syrian embassy, smashing windows and shouting slogans, and five people were arrested after trying to break in, according to TV reports.
A live internet stream from the Washington rally showed dozens of people shouting "Syria soon will be free".
Syrians have also held regular protests outside the Cairo headquarters of the Arab League, which has suspended Syria's membership, imposed sanctions and sent Arab monitors to Syria to assess whether the government was heeding an Arab peace plan.
The League called on Assad to step aside and hand powers to a deputy to start a dialogue with the opposition. Arab officials travelled to New York to seek U.N. Security Council backing for the resolution.

International - Al-Araby: Russia's stance on Syrian unrest positive

Wed 1/02/2012 12:06

NNA - 1/2/2012 - The Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby Wednesday depicted Russia's stance regarding Syrian issue as positive.

Al-Araby said the positivity lies in what the stance bore of Moscow's call on the Syrian government and protesters to hold talks.

"The main target is to come up with a political solution to the Syrian crisis," he said.

International - Germany sees international resolution on Syria "urgent"

Tue 31/01/2012 18:13

NNA - 31/1/2012 - Germany said Tuesday it is urgent that the UN Security Council adopts resolution allowing exerting pressure on Damascus with a view to ceasing violence.

"An urgent resolution must be adopted sooner or later so that we can make progress during today's [Security Council] session," German Foreign Minister told a news conference in Cairo today, following his meeting with his Egyptian counterpart.

As deeming the situation in Syria as "unacceptable," the German Minister said the Security Council must condemn violence on this country.

R.A.H.

International - Syrian authorities agree to Moscow talks - Russia

Mon 30/01/2012 17:01

NNA - 30/1/2012 - (Reuters) - Syria has agreed to take part in Moscow-mediated talks on solving the country's crisis, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday, calling on the Syrian opposition to join the planned negotiations.

"We have received a positive response from the Syrian authorities to our call (to hold talks in Moscow)," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"We hope ... that the Syrian opposition will agree to that in the next few days, putting the interests of the Syrian people above all other concerns."

International - Ahmadinejad latest warning

Sun 29/01/2012 14:39

NNA - 29/01/2012 - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad issued a stern warning against what he termed as western attempts at sawing seeds of religious-sectarianism in the region for the sake of salvaging Israel.

Ahmadinejad who addressed a conference of Islamist awakening in Tehran added that democracy emerging out of the barrel of western guns would never materialize.

The Iranian President said 6 billion dollars worth of western arms supplied to Arab countries were never meant for democracy rather than for war and destruction. He cited the example of western plots to strike at Syria via Turkey which he failed to call by name.

Ahmadinejad also condemned in vigorous terms what he termed as the liberty of offending God and religious sacrosancts in Europe on account of defending Zionist excesses.

Also taking the word pro-Iranian Palestinian official of Islamic Jihad, Ramadan Shalah, called on all Arabs and Muslims to rally about Iran which is the main sponsor of his organization. He stressed that Iran remains to be the main protagonist of anti-occupation resistance to Israel as the principle enemy.

Other speakers including Ali Akbar Wilayati stressed the Islamist character of the Arab revolutions and that all of them marched under the banner of Khumeini.

G.G./P.BC.

International - US police arrests hundreds at Occupy Oakland

Sun 29/01/2012 11:17

NNA - 29/01/2012 Oakland police launched Sunday a brutal crackdown on protestors participating in Occupy Wall Street offshoot, arresting around 300 citizens.

The social justice movement spurred out of New York last summer, in a popular struggle against politics of Wall Street; hence, assuming the name of Occupy Wall Street.

Police stormed the rally in Frank Ogawa Plaza with tear gas and sound bombs. In turn, Oakland PD said protestors attacked officers with bottles and metal pipes, injuring three.

Less than two hours after arrests began, cops began erecting barricades around the plaza to curb further protests. However, protesters intend to reconvene this afternoon to regroup at the main branch of the city library.

R.Z.

International - 26 perish in rehab center fire - Peru

Sun 29/01/2012 10:56

NNA - 29/01/2012 A fire ravished through a drug rehab facility in Peru, killing 26 and injuring 12 others, authorities reported Sunday.

The three story building situated on the outskirts of Lima was set ablaze when one of the patients set fire to his mattress, following a dispute with other residents at the facility.

Fire department commandant Antonio Zavala said most victims suffocated to death as doors of facility were locked and they could not escape.

International - Yemeni chief arrives in US

Sun 29/01/2012 10:45

NNA - 29/01/2012 (Reuters) - Barely clinging to power, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh arrived in the United States on Saturday, apparently to treat burns and other wounds suffered in an assassination attempt in June.
U.S. and Yemeni officials confirmed his arrival for a private, short-term medical visit but withheld details. An aide said he was headed to New York but his whereabouts could not be confirmed.
Saleh, who has ruled the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country for more than three decades, traveled to the United States after spending a week in Oman under a plan for him to step down to end a year of protests against his rule.
Under a power transfer plan drawn up by Gulf Arab countries, Vice-President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is presiding over a national unity government with presidential elections set for Feb. 21.
U.S. officials first revealed in December Saleh wanted into the country for medical treatment for lingering injuries suffered on June 3, when a bomb blast ripped through a mosque within the presidential palace.
Saleh escaped with his life but suffered burns over much of his body. He went to Saudi Arabia for treatment after the attack and returned to Yemen in September.
Saleh, however, has publicly denied he needed medical attention, saying in December he planned to return to Yemen after a few days in America to help prepare for elections.
The attempt on Saleh's life came after he tried to duck the power-transfer accord, leading to street battles that devastated parts of the Yemeni capital.
Hundreds of people were killed during months of protests seeking Saleh's ouster, part of the Arab Spring that toppled leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and rattled other countries such as Syria.

International - Russia will not back UN call for Assad to go

Fri 27/01/2012 16:03

NNA - 27/1/2012 - Reuters - Russia will not support any U.N. Security Council resolution demanding Syrian President Bashar al-Assad resign, a senior Russian diplomat was quoted as saying on Friday.

"Any decision about a future political settlement in Syria must be made during the political process without ... preliminary conditions," Interfax news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov as saying.

"We cannot support a call to support Assad's departure in any U.N. Security Council resolution," he was quoted as saying.

International - Iranian military jet crashes

Thu 26/01/2012 12:17

NNA - 26/1/2012 - Iranian military jet crashed in the early hours of Thursday near the Gulf coast, according to Fars news agency.

"An f-14 crashed three minutes after take-off at 4:30 am near the city of Bushehr", a local government official told the agency.

A.A.M

International - EU imposes oil sanctions against Iran

Mon 23/01/2012 11:34

NNA - 23/1/2012 - EU agreed on Monday to impose an embargo on Iranian crude oil imports.

EU foreign ministers would meet today (Monday) to impose serious sanctions against Iran through banning the import of Iranian crude oil and imposing restrains on finance and gold sectors.

These measures are aimed to limit the Iranian capability to fund nuclear armed program amid rising fears of confrontations.

EU meeting came following the announcement that a U.S. aircraft carrier sailed through the Strait of Hormuz and into the Gulf, a day after Iran backed away from an earlier threat to take action if an American carrier returned to the strategic waterway.

A.A.M

International - Moscow denies diplomats' expulsion from Canada

Fri 20/01/2012 20:33

NNA - 20/01/2012 Russian Foreign Ministry rebuffed Friday media reports that four of its diplomats were forced out of Canada due to espionage charges.

Media rumors said earlier this week that four Russian diplomats were expelled from Canada due to their involvement in a spying case.

"The diplomats in question left Canada in 2011 upon completion of their mission," a statement by the Ministry said.

R.Z.

International - France to avert military action against Iran

Fri 20/01/2012 14:58

NNA - 20/1/2012 - France will do its best to eschew any military intervention in Iran, France's Nicolas Sarkozi said as addressing the French diplomatic corps Friday.

He said any military action to coerce Iran to halt its nuclear program would only sow seeds of war and chaos throughout the Middle East and the world.

But the French President maintained that tightening a pile of firmer sanctions would be an alternative to any likely military intervention.

R.A.H./A.B.

International - Sarkozy: France will not remain silent over oppression in Syria

Fri 20/01/2012 13:23

NNA - 20/1/2012 - The French President Nicolas Sarkozy confirmed Friday that France will not remain silent over the Syrian scandal, refusing to accept the brutal oppression conducted by the Syrian regime against the protestors, dragging the country into total chaos.
D.K./A.B.

International - Russia: Iran sanctions strangle economy

Wed 18/01/2012 10:28

NNA - 18/1/2012 Western newly imposed sanctions on Iran aim at strangling the country's economy, Russian News Agency reported Wednesday.

L.W.

International - Gunmen kill tourists in northern Ethiopia

Tue 17/01/2012 21:34

NNA - 17/01/2012(Reuters) - Gunmen have killed five foreign tourists in Ethiopia's remote northern Afar region, after crossing into the Horn of Africa country from neighbouring Eritrea, state television said on Tuesday.
A Western diplomat told Reuters German nationals were among those killed in the attack which happened late on Monday. He did not confirm the total number of dead.
Afar is known to be a haunt of Ethiopian rebels who regularly cross over the border with Eritrea, Ethiopia's bitter foe, Addis Ababa says. Eritrean rebels and bandits are also in the area at times.

"Five foreign tourists were killed yesterday evening and two seriously injured when armed men attacked the group in Afar region. One tourist has escaped unharmed," Ethiopian state television said, citing security officials.
"The gunmen crossed the border from Eritrea," it said.

Five Europeans were kidnapped in 2007 in the barren, searingly hot corner of the Horn of Africa country where rock-strewn hills rise above vast deserts below sea-level.

R.Z.

International - Ban sees situation in Syria unacceptable

Mon 16/01/2012 17:06

NNA - 16/1/2012 - The situation in Syria is unacceptable, and the Security Council must have a serious stance to cease bloodshed in the country, UN Chief told a news conference in Abu Dhabi Monday.

R.A.H.

International - 5-Survivors plucked from Italian shipwreck

Sun 15/01/2012 15:04

NNA - 15/01/2012 (Reuters) - A South Korean honeymoon couple and an injured crewmember were plucked from a capsized Italian liner on Sunday, more than a day after it was wrecked, as rescue workers struggled to find any others still trapped on board.

Teams were painstakingly checking thousands of cabins on the Costa Concordia for people still unaccounted for after the huge vessel foundered and keeled over with more than 4,000 on board, killing at least three people and injuring 70.

The task is akin to searching a small town - but one tilted on its side, largely in darkness and partly submerged in freezing water. Scores of divers were taking part.

At about 1 p.m. rescue workers airlifted Manrico Gianpetroni, chief purser, hours after making voice contact with him several decks below.
Gianpetroni, who had a broken leg, was lifted from the ship on a stretcher by a helicopter and taken directly to hospital.
"I never lost hope of being saved. It was a 36-hour nightmare," he told reporters.
After midnight, rescue workers had found the two South Koreans still alive in a cabin, after locating them from several decks above, and brought them ashore looking dazed but unharmed.
The captain of the luxury 114,500-tonne ship, Francesco Schettino, was under arrest and accused of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship, Italian police said.
Passengers, comparing the disaster to the movie "Titanic", told of people leaping into the sea and fighting over lifejackets in panic when the ship hit a rock and ran aground near the island of Giglio, late on Friday.
Two French tourists and a Peruvian crew member were known to have died. There was confusion about the number of people still unaccounted for. The president of the Tuscan region said the number stood at 17 but other estimates were as high as 34.
The vast hulk of the 290-metre-long cruise ship, resting half-submerged on its side, loomed over the little port of Giglio, a picturesque island in a maritime nature reserve off the Tuscan coast. A large gash was visible in its side.
Rescue workers including specialist diving teams were working their way through more than 2,000 cabins on the ship, a floating resort that boasted a huge spa, seven restaurants, bars, cinemas and discotheques.
As the search continued, there were demands for explanations of why the vessel had come so close to the shore and bitter complaints about how long it took to evacuate the terrified passengers after the ship ran aground late on Friday.
State prosecutor Francesco Verusio
said investigations might go beyond the captain.
"We are investigating the possible responsibility of other people who could be responsible for such a dangerous manoeuvre," he told SkyTG24 television. "The command systems did not function as they should have."

International - France can overcome crisis with reforms - Sarkozy

Sun 15/01/2012 14:09

NNA - 15/01/2012 (Reuters) - President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Sunday France could overcome its debt crisis as long as it was prepared to pull together to adopt economic reforms, two days after the country lost its prized triple-A credit rating.

Sarkozy said he would announce reforms at the end of the month and that he intends to implement them rapidly following talks with union leaders and employers this coming week.
"I will tell them (the French people) the important decisions that we need to take without losing any time," he said in a speech to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Michel Debre, father of the constitution of France's Fifth Republic.
"The crisis can be overcome provided we have the collective will and the strength to reform our country."
Three months away from a presidential election, Sarkozy has turned his focus to growth, vowing to overhaul welfare financing, company labour charges and job flexibility, with plans for a so-called "Social VAT" to fund welfare and a tax on financial transactions.
The president is due to meet union leaders and employers for talks on Wednesday.
Sarkozy did not directly address the decision by Standard Poor's to cut France's top-notch rating during the speech, despite criticism this weekend from opposition Socialist politicians who said it was his policies that had been downgraded, not France.

International - Three die after huge Italian cruise ship runs aground

Sat 14/01/2012 11:02

NNA - 14/01/2012 (Reuters) - At least three people were killed and rescuers were looking for other victims on Saturday after a large Italian cruise ship carrying more than 4,000 people ran aground overnight, took on water and tipped over.

A dramatic nighttime rescue operation involving lifeboats, ships and helicopters was continuing hours after the 114,500 gross tonnes Costa Concordia hit a sandbar near the island of Giglio as passengers were eating dinner.

"We were sitting down do dinner and we heard this big bang. I think it hit some rocks. There was a lot of panic, the tables overturned, glasses were flying all over the place and we ran for the decks where we put on our life vests," passenger Maria Parmegiano Alfonsi told Sky Italia television.

The 290-metre-long ship took on water and started listing.

Pictures taken by rescued passengers after daybreak and broadcast on television showed the shiny, multi-story luxury vessel on its side and about half submerged on the sandbar just a few hundred metres (yards) from Giglio.

Coast guard Captain Luciano Nicastro and police official Giuseppe Lunardi said three people were confirmed dead, fewer than the six reported earlier by Italian media.

But, speaking on live television, Nicastro said rescue workers were still searching the ship, which had just started a winter Mediterranean cruise, and the waters around it.

Most of the 3,200 passengers and 1,023 crew on board the ship had been evacuated to the island of Giglio and from there were being taken to the mainland.

Alfonsi said she and other passengers were first put up in churches on the island and later, with only some blankets to protect them from the cold, were later taken to the mainland.

Nicastro said scuba divers were searching the water and rescue squads were looking in lower decks to see if any people were still on board.

Another unnamed coast guard official on television said the ship was believed to have suffered a large gash on its side.

Most of the passengers on board were believed to be Italian but the cruises are popular with foreigners too.

The cruise ship company said the cause of the incident was being investigated.

International - UK, KSA to step up strategic partnership

Fri 13/01/2012 15:51

NNA - 13/1/2012 - Saudi King Abdullah Ben Abdul Aziz and UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, on Friday took up the means to beef up ties between "the world's strategic partners."

The pair met today in Riyadh over a wide-ranging array of most recent developments on both the local and international scenes.

"The visit comes within the framework of the continuous efforts aimed to boost relations between the strategic partners in the world," a statement by Cameron's press office indicated.

"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia enjoys an unmatched power in the region and Islamic world," it added.

The statement maintained that KSA is Great Britain's top trade partner in the Middle East, with an annual exchange volume mounting to 15 billion Pounds Sterling.

R.A.H.

International - France demands Syria for clarifications over French reporter death

Wed 11/01/2012 18:30

NNA - 11/1/2012 - France demanded clarifications over the circumstances of the death of France 2 reporter, Gilles Jacquier, in Syria today, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said on Wednesday.

"We sternly condemn this atrocious act and we call the Syrian authorities to guarantee the security of international journalists operating in Syria," Juppe said in a statement.

R.A.H.

International - Iran official blames Israel for assassinating Iranian professor

Wed 11/01/2012 10:09

NNA - 11/1/2012 - Tehran accused Israel of the assassination of the Iranian university professor, according to AFP.

International - Iranian professor killed by bomb in Tehran

Wed 11/01/2012 09:38

NNA - 11/1/2012 - An Iranian university professor was killed by a bomb placed on his car by a motorcyclist in Tehran on Wednesday, according to Fars news agency.

Witnesses told Fars agency that they saw two people on the motorbike stick the bomb to the car. As well as the person killed in the car, a pedestrian was also killed by the blast. Another person in the car was gravely injured, they said.

A.A.M

International - Iran shall not succumb before sanctions, says Khamenei

Mon 9/01/2012 18:17

NNA - 9/1/2012 - Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei on Monday avowed that Iran shall not succumb before US and European sanctions imposed on Iran down to its controversial nuclear program.

Iran's most senior official said the Islamic Republic's firm decision was to resist pressures exerted by great powers.

"Leaders of the West have said repeatedly that they sought to frustrate the [Iranian] people through sanctions and pressures and to push officials to relinquish their projects," Iran's Supreme Leader said in a screened speech today.

The US and Europe have decided to tighten new pile of sanctions on Iran in an effort to make it renounce its nuclear program.

Iran announced today the start of uranium enrichment at underground Fordow and Natanz nuclear plants under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran's envoy to the agency Ali Asghar Soltanieh told Al-Alam TV network.

R.A.H.

International - Pope urges 'fruitful dialogue' in Syria

Mon 9/01/2012 14:22

NNA - 9/1/2012 Pope Benedict XVI Monday said a "fruitful dialogue" between political forces in Syria should be encouraged in the presence of independent observers.

Pope Benedict called, before 160 ambassadors to the Vatican in a speech, for a halt of bloodshed in Syria.

L.W.

International - N.Korea hails new leader as "genius of geniuses"

Sun 8/01/2012 14:52

NNA - 08/01/2012 North Korea praised Sunday its new leader as a genius among geniuses in a documentary aired on his birthday following sudden death of his father Kim Jong-Il last month.

State television showed the leader Kim Jong-Un, believed to be in his late 20s, driving a tank and giving orders to troops in artillery, navy and air force units. The documentary dubbed him as a "great successor" to his father who passed away due to a heart attack on December 17.

International - Ahmadinejad tours Latin America

Sun 8/01/2012 11:51

NNA - 08/01/2012 President of Iran left Tehran Sunday morning heading to Venezuela, as part of a five-day-trip to Latin America, during which he is scheduled to also visit Nicaragua, Cuba and Ecuador to work on fortifying bilateral relations with these four countries.

It will be Mahmud Ahmadinejad's fifth visit to Venezuela, to be followed by a trip to Nicaragua for Tuesday's inauguration of re-elected President Daniel Ortega, and then stops in Cuba and Ecuador. Ahmadinejad has been to all the countries before, and the visit seems aimed at reinforcing ties with leaders who speak up for Iran.
R.Z.

International - Chinese held for firebomb attack at Japan embassy in Seoul

Sun 8/01/2012 11:42

NNA - 08/01/2012 (Reuters): A Chinese man who reportedly said his grandmother was one of many thousnds forced into prostitution for the Japanese army during World War Two was arrested on Sunday for a firebomb attack at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, police said.

The 37-year-old man, identified by his family name Liu, hurled four petrol bombs at the embassy building in central Seoul on Sunday morning, scorching an outer part of the wall, a Seoul police officer said.

There were no reports of injuries.

Police were questioning Liu, a resident of the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, who entered the country on a tourist visa via Japan late last month, to determine the reasons behind the attack, the officer said.

The Yonhap news agency said the man had told investigators that his grandmother had served as a "comfort woman" for Japanese troops and that he had staged the attack in protest against Japan's wartime atrocities.

Historians say hundreds of thousands of women from Asian countries, mostly Koreans and Chinese, were forced to work at front-line brothels for the Japanese military. The Korean peninsula was under Japansese colonial rule from 1910 to 1945.

Tokyo has apologised for its treatment of the women but refused to hold talks on compensating the ageing victims.

International - Iran welcomes US rescue of 13 fishermen

Sat 7/01/2012 15:27

NNA - 07/01/2012 Iran welcomed Saturday the compassionate act of the US Navy, following rescue of 13 Iranians from Somali pirates, dubbing it a "positive" move.

The US military reported one of its warships, the USS Kidd, rescued 13 Iranian fishermen from the ferocious clasp of Somali pirates after 45 days of capture. The pirates were taken into custody and the Iranians were released to return home on their dhow, which was refueled and restocked with provisions courtesy of the U.S. navy.

"We consider the actions of the U.S. forces in saving the lives of the Iranian fishermen to be a humanitarian and positive act and we welcome such behavior," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast in a statement, "we think all nations should display such behavior," he added.

International - Turkish ex-army chief in jail over anti-govt plot

Fri 6/01/2012 11:30

NNA - 06/01/2012 (REUTERS): Former Turkish armed forces chief General Ilker Basbug spent his first night behind bars on Friday, charged with trying to overthrow the government in an unprecedented development likely to exacerbate tensions with the military.

Basbug, who retired in 2010, is the highest-ranking officer to be caught up in the so-called Ergenekon case, a long-running crackdown on EU candidate Turkey's once all-powerful military and secularist establishment.

The former general was taken from an Istanbul courthouse in the early hours of Friday for a health check before being transported in a police convoy to Silivri prison, some 80 km (50 miles) west of the city, where hundreds of defendants in the Ergenekon case are being tried in a specially-built courtroom.

"The Republic of Turkey's 26th general chief of staff has been remanded in custody for forming and directing a terrorist group. I leave it to the great Turkish nation to judge," Basbug said as he was lead from the courtroom.

The decision to send Basbug to jail came hours after prominent Turkish journalists on trial over alleged ties to the ultra-nationalist Ergenekon network said the charges against them were "a massacre of justice".

Ergenekon is accused by prosecutors of being behind multiple conspiracies against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party government, and several hundred suspects, including retired senior military officers, academics, lawyers and journalists, have been detained in cases related to the network.

Basbug's lawyer said he would challenge the decision to jail him pending trial, state-run Anatolian news agency reported.

International - Iran tests ground-to-ship cruise missile

Mon 2/01/2012 14:11

NNA - 02/01/20122 Iran successfully tested Monday a Ghader ground-to-ship cruise missile on the last day of navy war games near the Strait of Hormuz, the official news agency IRNA reported.
The Ghader missile has a range of 200 kilometers (120 miles), and was built entirely by Iranian experts.
"This missile�successfully hit its target and destroyed it," Commodore Mahmud Mousavi told IRNA. He added that it was the first time the missile had been tested.
Iranian leaders and military officials have warned that additional Western sanctions could push them to close the Strait of Hormuz, an essential life-line for the transport of oil, as 40 percent of the world's oil passes through it.
The United States, which bases its Fifth Fleet in the Gulf, said it would not tolerate a closure of the strait.
R.Z.

International - Unknown assailants destroy John Paul II statue

Mon 2/01/2012 13:49

NNA - 02/01/2012 A statue of Pope John Paul II which stood erect in the Italian town of Riccione was wrecked by unknown goons, reported Italy's news agency ANSA Monday.
Local police is investigating the attack, which saw the head and hands of the statue smashed beyond repair.
R.Z.

International - Educate young for peace, Pope says at New Year Mass

Sun 1/01/2012 16:37

NNA - 01/01/2012 (Reuters) - Humanity faces a decisive challenge educating new generations in justice and peace in order to avoid the violent tragedies of the past, Pope Benedict said in his New Year address on Sunday.

Benedict, 84, marked his seventh New Year as pope by celebrating a Mass for several thousand people in St Peter's Basilica on the day the Roman Catholic Church calls its annual World Day of Peace.

The pope said this year's theme, "Educating Young People in Justice and Peace," is a task for every generation following the two world wars in the 20th century and other conflicts since. Educating the young "in knowledge of the truth, in fundamental values and virtues, is to look to the future with hope," he said in his homily.

Young people needed all-round education, and this required a social commitment to justice and peace, the leader of the world's 1.3 billion Roman Catholics said. They must use advances in communications technology to promote peaceful coexistence, mutual respect, dialogue and understanding.

"Young people ... are open to these attitudes but the social reality in which they grow up can lead them to think and act in the opposite way, even to be intolerant and violent," he said.

International - Iran successfully tests domestically made nuclear fuel rods

Sun 1/01/2012 16:34

NNA - 01/01/2012 (Reuters) - Iran has successfully produced and tested fuel rods for use in its nuclear power plants, state television reported on Sunday, in a snub to international demands that it halt sensitive nuclear work.

The rods, which contain natural uranium, were made in Iran and have been inserted into the core of Tehran's research nuclear reactor, the television reported.

Nuclear fuel rods contain small pellets of fuel, usually low-enriched uranium, patterned to give out heat produced by nuclear reaction without melting down.

"This great achievement will perplex the West, because the Western countries had counted on a possible failure of Iran to produce nuclear fuel plates," the Tehran Times newspaper said.

The development was announced at a time of growing tension between Western powers and Iran after the U.N. nuclear agency reported in November that Tehran appeared to have worked on designing a nuclear weapon. Secret research to that end may be continuing, it said.

The United States and its European allies have increased the sanctions pressure on Iran, one of the world's largest oil producers, to push Tehran to halt the enrichment.

R.Z.

International - Strong earthquake jolts Japan, no tsunami warning

Sun 1/01/2012 12:16

NNA - 01/01/2012 (Reuters) - A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 jolted eastern and northeastern Japan on Sunday, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damages and no tsunami warning was issued.

The earthquake measured 4 in central Tokyo, Fukushima and their surrounding areas on the Japanese intensity scale, which measures ground motion, according to Japan Meteorological Agency, which uses a different measuring system than the U.S. Geological Survey.

A spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power said there were no reports of any abnormalities at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plan following the quake.

Some high-speed train services in northern Japan were suspended after the earthquake, but soon resumed operations, Kyodo news reported.

The 7.0 magnitude earthquake, at a depth of nearly 217 miles, was recorded off Japan's southeastern Izu islands on Sunday at 0527 GMT, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The Hawaii-based U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has not issued a tsunami warning following the earthquake located south-southwest of Hachijo-jima in the Izu islands.

R.Z.

International - Obama expects 2012 to witness more significant changes

Sat 31/12/2011 20:06

NNA - 31/12/2011 - US President, Barrack Obama, considered that this past year of 2011 has witnessed great challenges and progress. He referred herein to the complete withdrawal from Iraq and the beginning of withdrawal from Afghanistan. He expected that the upcoming year of 2012 will witness even more significant changes as well.
"We have put an end to a war, and have begun putting an end to another one," said Obama during his weekly speech via the radio and internet. He indicated that a huge blow has been directed to the 'Qaeda" and America's security has been boosted, referring herein to the killing of Ussama ben Laden last May in Afghanistan. He went on to indicate that the United States has supported its friends in the world in the wake of the natural earth quakes that have occurred; in addition to revolutions during a year that has witnessed what has come to be known as "Arab Spring."
With the outset of the New Year, Obama hoped that his country would have all it takes to confront the upcoming challenging changes, and to achieve a more significant economic growth; thus, allowing for additional job opportunities for middle class citizens. It is to note that these points will feature high amongst the major issues President Obama will focus on during his re-election campaign.
R.Sh.

International - British soldier killed in Afghanistan blast

Sat 31/12/2011 16:32

NNA - 31/12/2011 British Ministry of Defense announced Saturday the death of one of its soldiers in an explosion in Afghanistan, bringing up the toll of dead British soldiers to 46 in 2011.

The soldier was killed in an explosion while on foot patrol in the district of Helmand province.

The majority of Britain's 9,500 troops in Afghanistan are based in Helmand, a province in the south, fighting Taliban militants as part of an international coalition led by the United States.

R.Z.

International - France urges Iran to respect Hormuz shipping rights

Wed 28/12/2011 18:47

NNA - 28/12/2011 - REUTERS - France urged Iran on Wednesday to adhere to international law allowing freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran threatened to stop oil moving through the strategic shipping lane.

"We call on the Iranian authorities to respect international law and in particular the freedom to navigate international waters and straits," French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said in a regular online news briefing on Wednesday.

"The Strait of Hormuz is an international strait. As a result, all ships regardless of their nationality benefit from the right of transit in line with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and international maritime customs," he added.

International - EU adamant to tighten sanctions on Iran

Wed 28/12/2011 18:16

NNA - 28/12/2011 - The European Union on Wednesday said it would not go back on imposing new sanctions on Iran, albeit a menace by Tehran yesterday to close Hormuz Strait, the world's most important oil chokepoint.

An EU spokesperson revealed a possible decision on a new pile of sanctions on Iran could be issued during the European Foreign Ministers' Jan.30 meeting in Brussels.

But Iran's navy chief Habibollah Sayyari today told Iran's English language Press TV that "it is too easy for Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz."

R.A.H.

International - 6.9 magnitude earthquake hits southeastern Russia

Tue 27/12/2011 18:53

NNA - 27/12/2011 A quake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale hit southeastern Russia near the borders with Mongolia on Tuesday, US Geological Survey said.
-------------L.Y

International - 25 dead in Nigeria church blast

Sun 25/12/2011 15:26

NNA - 25/12/2011 (Reuters) - At least 25 people were killed in a bomb attack on a church in a satellite town on the outskirts of the Nigerian capital Abuja on Sunday, emergency services said.
"I cannot give an exact figure of casualties now. But we (National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA) came with 25 body bags and we have exhausted them all. So at this point we are talking of 25 bodies in those bags," said Slaku Lugard, a NEMA official.

International - Pope ushers in Christmas, decries commercialisation

Sun 25/12/2011 12:08

NNA - 25/12/2011 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict ushered in Christmas for the world's 1.3 billion Roman Catholics on Saturday, urging humanity to see through the superficial glitter and commercialism of the season and rediscover the real significance of the humble birth of Jesus.

The 84-year-old pope, celebrating the seventh Christmas season of his pontificate, also urged that those marking the holiday in poverty, suffering or far from home not be forgotten.

At the start of a Christmas Eve service, he was wheeled up the central aisle of St Peter's Basilica standing on a mobile platform which he has been using since October.

The Vatican says it is to conserve his strength, allow more people to see him and guard against attacks such as one on Christmas Eve, 2009, when a woman lunged at him and knocked him to the ground. He is believed to suffer from arthritis in the legs.

But he seemed to be in good shape during the solemn service in Christendom's largest church as choirs sang, cantors chanted and organ music filled the centuries-old basilica.

Benedict, wearing resplendent gold and white vestments, urged his listeners to find peace in the symbol of the powerless Christ child in a world continually threatened by violence.

"Today Christmas has become a commercial celebration, whose bright lights hide the mystery of God's humility, which in turn calls us to humility and simplicity," he said in his homily to about 10,000 people in the basilica and millions more watching on television throughout the world.

"Let us ask the Lord to help us see through the superficial glitter of this season, and to discover behind it the child in the stable in Bethlehem, so as to find true joy and true light."

The Christmas story of how Jesus, who Christians believe is the son of God, was born powerless "in the poverty of the stable" should remind everyone of the need for humility... let us strip away our fixation on what is material, on what can be measured and grasped. Let us allow ourselves to be made simple by the God who reveals himself to the simple of heart," he said.

International - Mass rally in Moscow raises pressure on Putin

Sat 24/12/2011 15:43

NNA - 24/12/2011 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of flag-waving and chanting protesters called on Saturday for a disputed parliamentary election to be rerun, increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin as he seeks a new term as Russian president.

The protesters chanted "Russia without Putin" and "New elections, New elections" as speakers called for an end to Putin's 12-year domination of the country at the second big opposition rally in two weeks in central Moscow.

"Do you want Putin to return to the presidency?" novelist Boris Akunin asked from a large stage. Whistling and jeering, protesters chanted: "No!"

Police said at least 28,000 attended the rally on Prospekt Sakharova (Sakharov Avenue), named after Soviet-era dissident Andrei Sakharov. One opposition leader put the crowd size at up to 100,000 people.

The big turnout is likely to encourage organisers to believe they can keep up the momentum of the biggest opposition demonstrations since Putin rose to power 12 years ago, although the prime minister seems intent on riding out the protests.

Tens of thousands of people protested in Moscow on Dec. 10 and many more demonstrated across the world's largest country the same day to complain against alleged vote-rigging in the Dec. 4 election won by Putin's United Russia party.

The protesters were heartened by the Kremlin's human rights council saying a new election should be held, although it is only an advisory body whose recommendations are regularly ignored by Russia's leaders.
Many of the protesters wore white ribbons, the symbol of the protests, and others carried balloons and flags at the rally, which brought together liberals, nationalists, anarchists, environmentalists and urban youth on a bitterly cold day.

International - Canada imposes sanctions on Assad

Fri 23/12/2011 20:33

NNA - 23/12/2011 Canada announced sanctions on Syrian regime and trade, a statement by the Foreign Affairs Ministry said Friday.

The Syrian people's uprising, which began over nine months ago demanding the ousting of President Bashar Assad and his Baathist regime, was met with extreme violence in an attempt to put down the revolt.

"Canada will continue to put the clutch on Assad's regime," said Foreign Minister John Baird, "We will not sit idly by, not while Assad and his thugs continue to violate the rights of the Syrian people."

Canada planned the freezing of assets of persons loyal to Assad.
Baird added that Assad's violence must stop, and that, "He must go."

International - Saudi Air-force plane crashes, pilot survives

Tue 20/12/2011 19:31

NNA - 20/12/2011 A Royal Air-force plane from the fleet of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia crashed Tuesday while on a training mission near Defense Ministry, whereas its pilot successfully managed to eject in the nick of time.

Spokesperson at the Air-forces said that a bird collided with the plane causing an engine malfunction. "The pilot parachuted out of his plane and survived."

R.Z.

International - Palestine flag flutters over UNESCO in Paris

Tue 13/12/2011 14:34

NNA - 13/12/2011- The Palestinian flag flutters today for the first time over an organization affiliated with the United States, UNESCO, in Paris where Palestinians earned full membership on 31st of October, as mentioned by "French Press Agency" correspondent.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas took part in the official celebration that was held for the occasion in which the Palestinian national anthem was performed.

This event recorded a diplomatic success for Palestinians towards the international recognition of their country.

L.Y.R/N.AF

International - France finds no relation between UNIFIL attack and Syrian uprising

Fri 9/12/2011 20:08

NNA - 09/12/2011 Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs denied Friday finding any relation between attack on French UNIFIL contingent in south Lebanon and France's role in events in Syria.
French government voiced strict condemnation of violence used against civilian protestors in Syria, and called upon Bashar Assad to step down. Today, four French soldiers and a Lebanese civilian were wounded when a bomb went off near a UNIFIL patrol in Naba'a area located between Housh and Burj al Shamali towns east of Tyre.

"We do not have any components that allow us to charge anyone yet," said spokesman Bernard Lavaro, adding that the role of French unit within the UNIFIL may be modified.

R.Z.

International - Juppe condemns attack against UNIFIL

Fri 9/12/2011 14:37

NNA - 9/12/2011 French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe Friday said France is resolved to proceed with practicing its role within UNIFIL.

"I condemn in the strongest terms the cowardly attack carried out against UNIFIL this morning, wounding five French peacekeepers and a civilian," he said.

L.W.

International- Pakistani president suffers minor heart attack

Wed 7/12/2011 10:42

NNA- 7/12/2011- Pakistani Minister Moustapha Khokhar told Agency of France Press (AFP) that the Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari suffered yesterday (Tuesday) a minor heart attack.

He added that " (the Pakistani President) is now in a good health condition and does not intend to resign."

Zaradari was transported yesterday (Tuesday) to Dubai where he had medical tests and check-up.

It has been mentioned that the Pakistani President would return to Pakistan tomorrow (Thursday).

L.Y.R/N.AF

International - Moscow attempts to cursh protestors

Tue 6/12/2011 14:33

NNA - 06/12/2011 (Reuters): Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's spokesman said on Tuesday any unsanctioned street protests must be stopped.

"Those who hold sanctioned demonstrations should not have their rights limited in any way -- and that is what we are observing now," spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the day after several thousand Russians protested against the result of Sunday's parliamentary election, which they said was rigged.

"The actions of those who hold unsanctioned demonstrations must be stopped in the appropriate way," he said.

International - Germany recalls its ambassador in Tehran for deliberations

Wed 30/11/2011 19:06

NNA - 30/11/2011 German Foreign Ministry summoned its Ambassador to Tehran on Wednesday for deliberations, in the wake of demonstrators'' attack on British Embassy in the Iranian capital, German Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"Considering Tuesday incident [Embassy attack] in Tehran, Foreign Minister Gido Festervelli recalled German Ambassador in Tehran to Berlin for deliberations", statement said.

--------------L.Y

International - London tells citizens in Iran to stay home

Tue 29/11/2011 20:45

NNA - 29/11/2011 The UK asked all its nationals residing in or visiting Iran to keep to their homes and avoid the scene of attack on British embassy Tuesday.

R.Z.

International - Putin runs for presidency...again

Sun 27/11/2011 13:09

NNA - 27/11/2011 United Russia ruling party nominated Sunday Vladimir Putin as its candidate in a March 4 presidential vote, paving the way for his return to the country's top office after four years as Premier.

Putin, happy with the nomination, accepted it even before being subject to a final vote at a United Russia congress also attended by President Dmitry Medvedev. Putin and Medvedev had announced plans to swap jobs next year at party meeting on Sept. 24, according to Reuters.

R.Z.

International - Sarkozy receives Hariri

Thu 24/11/2011 13:19

NNA - 24/11/2011 French President Nicolas Sarkozy received this morning former Prime Minister Saad Hariri at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
The meeting focused on the latest developments, especially those linked to the funding of the Special tribunal for Lebanon, and recent events on the regional scene.

International - Italian plane crashes in Dubai

Fri 18/11/2011 19:39

NNA - 18/11/2011 Italian military aircraft crashed Friday off the shores of the United Arab Emirates, with both pilot and co-pilot ejecting in the nick of time, stated Dubai police.

The plane took part in Dubai's Air-show and was bound home before crashing. The Air-show opened last Sunday and closed Thursday. Over a thousand exhibitors from some 50 countries attended the show.

The pilot and his assistant were rescued and rushed to hospital for treatment.

R.Z.

International - Juppe: France summons its Ambassador to Syria

Wed 16/11/2011 17:04

NNA - 16/11/2011 - Foreign Affairs Minister Alain Juppe summoned Wednesday the French Ambassador to Syria Eric Chevallier after the violent acts targeting the French "interests" in Damascus.
D.K.

International (corrected) - Mexican interior minister perishes in helicopter crash

Fri 11/11/2011 20:53

NNA - 11/11/2011 Mexican Interior Minister Francisco Blake was killed in a helicopter crash on Friday, statement by cabinet said.

Mexican television images showed the scattered wreckage of the helicopter on a hillside south of the capital, and the government confirmed that Blake and all others on board were killed. It did not say what caused the crash.

International - Mexican interior minister parishes in helicopter crash

Fri 11/11/2011 20:48

NNA - 11/11/2011 Mexican Interior Minister Francisco Blake was killed in a helicopter crash on Friday, statement by cabinet said.

Mexican television images showed the scattered wreckage of the helicopter on a hillside south of the capital, and the government confirmed that Blake and all others on board were killed. It did not say what caused the crash.

International - (corrected) Greece's Papandreou steps down

Wed 9/11/2011 19:30

NNA - 9/11/2011 - Prime Minister of Greece, George Papandreou, officially resigned Wednesday and wished success for the new Premier, in a screened message broadcast shortly before an expected meeting with President Carlos Papoulias.

He hoped that the new political agreement government, to be soon formed, would "address a strong message to our partners, as per which we, the Greek, know how to shoulder our responsibilities and cooperate."

R.A.H.

International - Greece's Papandreo steps down

Wed 9/11/2011 19:21

NNA - 9/11/2011 - Prime Minister of Greece, George Papandreo, officially resigned Wednesday and wished success for the new Premier, in a screened message broadcast shortly before an expected meeting with President Carlos Papoulias.

He hoped that the new political agreement government, to be soon formed, would "address a strong message to our partners, as per which we, the Greek, know how to shoulder our responsibilities and cooperate."

R.A.H.

International = Iranian Foreign Ministry: we are ready for talks on our nuclear program

Wed 9/11/2011 19:09

NNA - 9/11/2011 Iran is ready to hold "beneficial and positive" talks on its nuclear program, if undertaken on the basis of equality and respect, Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
"We have always voiced our readiness to hold fruitful and positive talks", Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mahmenbrast stressed, reiterating that the success of such talks is conditioned on being undertaken on the basis of equality and respect of people's rights.
Mahmenbrast stressed that confrontation approach does not constitute a good path for talks.
---------------L.Y

International - Ahmadinejad: Israel's end is near

Mon 7/11/2011 13:55

NNA - 07/11/2011 Iranian President Ahmadinejad accused Monday Israel and the US of seeking world support for a military assault on Iran, in an interview with Egyptian newspaper Akhbar.

Israeli President Shimon Peres warned Iran Sunday of the increasing possibility of an attack. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad countered that by warning Peres of any attack on Iran, stating that the Zionist state was bound to collapse.

"Israel and the West, particularly America, fear Iran's capabilities and role," he said, adding that the US and Israel were shoring up international support for a military operation to halt Iran's position. "The arrogant should know that Iran will not allow them to take any action against it."

Ahmadinejad accused Washington of trying to "Save the Zionist entity, but it will fail to do so." He repeated Iran's frequent denial of seeking nuclear armament and asserted that its atomic program was purely for peaceful purposes.
"[Israel] can be compared to a liver transplanted in a body that rejected it," he said. "Yes it will collapse and its end will be near."

International - Lavrov stands by Iran

Mon 7/11/2011 11:07

NNA - 07/11/2011 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced Monday that his country is against any military hostility on Iran, dubbing such an act a "grave mistake." Lavrov made his comments at the end of talks held with his Irish counterpart Eamon Gilmore.

Israeli President Shimon Peres warned on Sunday that an attack on Iran was becoming increasingly likely, days before a report by the UN's nuclear watchdog on Iran's nuclear program.

"Military intervention only leads to a multiple rise in casualties and human suffering," said Lavrov, adding that there can be no military solution to the Iranian nuclear problem, "just like there can be none for any other problem in the modern world."

R.Z.

International - Maliki visits Washington Dec 12

Fri 4/11/2011 19:36

NNA - 4/11/2011 Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki visits Washington on Dec 12, 2011, and will meet with US President Barrack Obama, to discuss strategic partnership between the US and Iraq, the White House announced in a statement on Friday.
"President Obama hails the sacrifice and success of the Iraqi people and all those who served in Iraq in the aim of reaching these rich moments in promises for a permanent friendship between the US and Iraq", White House said.
--------------L.Y

International - Russia hopes to join WTO in December

Sun 30/10/2011 13:29

NNA - 30/10/2011 An official visit by Swiss Foreign Minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, to Moscow resulted in optimistic talks that Russia may join the World Trade Organization (WTO) by end of year, Reuters reported.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev kindled similar aspirations, and was reported stating that Russia "also very much wants that."
R.Z.

International - Bomber attacks Afghan capital

Sat 29/10/2011 10:39

NNA - 29/10/2011 A suicide bomber attacked a convoy of foreign troops in Kabul, Reuters reported Saturday.

Spokesman for Kabul police chief reported no details about casualties as of yet.

R.Z.

International - Commonwealth: Monarch's first born ascends throne

Fri 28/10/2011 20:20

NNA - 28/10/2011 Sixteen member countries of the Commonwealth agreed Friday to change succession rules allowing the British monarch's first-born child, girl or boy, to ascend the throne.

Commonwealth national leaders reversed centuries of tradition by also agreeing at a summit in the Australian city of Perth to lift a ban on monarchs marrying Roman Catholics.

"The idea that a younger son should become monarch instead of an elder daughter simply because he is a man, or that a future monarch can marry someone of any faith except a Catholic - this way of thinking is at odds with the modern countries that we have become," British Prime Minister David Cameron told Perth reporters.

R.Z.

International - Gunman shoots at US embassy in Bosnia

Fri 28/10/2011 18:34

NNA - 28/10/2011 A gunman opened fire at the United States embassy in Sarajevo, wounding one security guard, Bosnian state radio reported Friday.

Police cordoned off the area in the central district of the Capital. The gunman armed with a Kalashnikov rifle appeared to be middle aged Wahhabi Islamist. He was shot by a police sniper after an altercation The assailant was reported by police to be wounded but still alive.

The US embassy made a short statement confirming that an incident took place within its vicinity. For the time being the embassy is locked down. No further details were issued.

International - Obama supports new Crown Prince

Fri 28/10/2011 18:21

NNA - 28/10/2011 President Barrack Obama congratulated Saudi Arabia for choosing a new Crown Prince, a White House statement said Friday.

Following the passing of Sultan bin Abdelaziz Al Saud, Prince Nayef bin Abdelaziz was declared the new Crown Prince.

The US administration praised the 35 year long career of Prince Nayef as Interior Minister of the Kingdom. "The United States recognizes and respects his commitment towards combating terrorism," Obama said.

R.Z.

International - Russia alerts U.S. not to issue nuclear report

Wed 26/10/2011 12:20

NNA - 26/10/2011 Russia warned Wednesday the U.S. from issuing its next quarterly report on Iran which is thought to increase doubts over the Iranian Nuclear Program.

"This report might harm diplomatic endeavors aiming at solving the major forces' conflict with Iran," Russia said.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report issuance timing might hamper any attempt to conduct serious talks, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated.

Hence, Russia urged IAEA to enclose more civility in handling the publication of such a report on the Iranian cause.

"Such a delicate issue requires serious, responsible, and unbiased management," the statement said.

L.W.

International - Turkey quake death toll rises

Mon 24/10/2011 13:39

NNA - 24/10/2011 Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Bashir Atalay said Monday that the earthquake's death toll rose to 239 killed people and over 1300 injured.

During a press conference, Atalay said major relief campaign is taking place whereby tents are being built and food supplements distributed.

As a result of this massive earthquake, the death toll might increase, Atalay said.

L.W.

International - Washington demands clarification over Gaddafi's death

Fri 21/10/2011 21:11

NNA - 21/10/2011 The US Administration requested transparency from Libya's National Transitional Council in circumstances of Gaddafi's death, a Washington source said Friday.

"The Obama administration would like prisoners to be treated in a humane manner," Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mark Toner said.

R.Z.

International - Obama: Iraq war over end of 2011

Fri 21/10/2011 19:59

NNA - 21/10/2011 US President Barack Obama announced Friday that war in Iraq will be over by end of 2011, in a statement given from the White House.

The 9 year long war in Iraq will come to a conclusion as American troops return gradually to their homeland. The last of these troops are scheduled to leave Iraq by end of 2011.

R.Z.

International - EU imposes sanctions against five over Saudi envoy scheme

Fri 21/10/2011 16:03

NNA - 21/10/2011 - The European Union declared on Friday an intention to take steps against five people involved in the alleged Iranian assassination attempt of the Saudi Ambassador to the United States.

"Following the frustrated plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the U.S., the Council subjected five persons to EU restrictive measures aimed at combating terrorism," the Council of EU governments said in a statement.

The statement also indicated that their financial assets in the EU would be frozen and that they would have no access to their funds.

"Member states will afford each other the widest possible assistance with respect to enquiries related to these individuals," the statement read.

International - NATO operation winds up, says Juppe

Fri 21/10/2011 10:50

NNA - 21/10/2011 French Foreign Minister said Friday that the NATO operation in Libya ought to be considered "finished" now that Gaddafi had been killed.

"We can now say that the military operation is finished, that the Libyan territory is under the National Transitional Council (NTC) control and that, other than few transitory measures in the week to come, Nato operation has arrived at its end," he told Europe 1 radio.

L.W.

International - UN urges to cease violence in Syria

Mon 17/10/2011 14:40

NNA - 17/10/2011 - The UN renewed calls on Monday to cease violence in Syria immediately, calling President Assad to accept an international investigation into human rights' violations.
Speaking from Bern today, UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki -moon said murdering Syrian civilians must be stopped immediately. He reminded that he had warned Assad to stop "before it was too late."
According to Ban, 3000 people were killed during the repression campaign leveled by the Syrian regime.
R.A.H.

International - Ki-moon calls for listening to the demonstrating youth

Sun 16/10/2011 23:11

NNA - 16/10/2011 - United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, considered that ever since the dawn of the Arab Spring, the youth of the world have resorted to the streets demanding more opportunities to partake in the economic and social life. He added that their future is our future. Hence, he called for listening to the youth demonstrators for fear that the coming centuries would bear instability and oppression, which would constrain aspirations for peace and security flourishing for all.
Ban-Kimoon's words came during the opening Sunday of the 125th conference by the World Parliamentary Union taking in the Swiss Capital, with around 1200 delegates from 130 states participating.
R.Sh.

International - Hammond named Britain's Defense Secretary

Fri 14/10/2011 20:39

NNA - 14/10/2011 Philip Hammond was named new Defense Secretary of Britain Friday following sudden resignation of Liam Fox.

Former Defense Secretary resigned Friday after scandalous outing of his friendship with a business man who posed as his adviser. Fox admitted he had allowed the lines between his personal and professional life to blur.

Hammond is a Conservative Party politician, who served as Transport Secretary. Many viewed him to be on the right of the governing Party, but not to the same degree as Fox.

R.Z.

International - Vatican urges to protect peace between Copts, Muslims

Wed 12/10/2011 14:37

NNA - 12/10/2011 - Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday called for peaceful coexistence among communities in Egypt.

At least 20 persons were killed and over 150 were wounded in fierce clashes which erupted after an attack on a Coptic Church in Egypt Sunday.

The incident earned the Pope's "deep grief," as he mentioned in a word he delivered today at Saint Peter square.

He voiced support for the Egyptian civil and spiritual authorities and urged them to face bids aiming to sabotage Christians-Muslims coexistence.

R.A.H.

International - IMF expects recession in 2012

Wed 5/10/2011 13:09
NNA - 5/10/2011 - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned on Wednesday that it doesn't rule out the possibility of an international recession in 2012 parallel to a regress in the economic activity.

The IMF director in Europe, Antonio Borges, said in a press conference held in Brussels that a slight growth is expected in 2012, yet the economic activity might be regressing what makes more likely the international recession.
D.K.

International - Earthquake jolts Japan

Thu 29/09/2011 16:47

NNA - 29/9/2011 - An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 hit the northeastern prefecture in Japan on Thursday.

The epicenter is situated off Fukushima, which was struck last March by a violent earthquake, American CBS network said.

R.A.H.

International - Palestine's membership bid 'legitimate', says EU Parliament

Thu 29/09/2011 16:20

NNA - 29/9/2011 - European Parliament said Palestinian Authority's bid for a UN membership is legitimate, in a decision approved Thursday.

The Parliament called therein upon its members to sidestep divisions through a unified position vis-a-vis PA's bid.

It also called Israel to cease settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Some states, namely France, have told the UN last week that they backed granting Palestine the capacity of an interim observatory state.

R.A.H.

International - Typhoon "Nesat" hits HK

Thu 29/09/2011 11:19

NNA - 29/9/2011 The Hong Kong stock market, schools, and most of the government's institutions will remain shut down on Thursday as it has been hit by the Typhoon "Nesat" which left at least 35 dead in Philippines.

The Hong Kong Observatory signaled at night a N.8 warning when heavy rains and severe winds blew in the region.

L.W.

International - No shortcut to end Palestinian-Israeli conflict, says Obama

Wed 21/09/2011 19:25

NNA - 21/9/2011 - US President Barack Obama on Wednesday said there is no shortcut to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in reference to the Palestinian bid for a UN full membership.

Speaking before the UN General Assembly, Obama said he was convinced that there cannot be any shortcut to finish a decades-aged conflict.

"Peace cannot come through statements and resolutions at the UN, or else, it would have been accomplished by now," he added.

R.A.H.

International - Obama calls UNSC to impose sanctions on Syria

Wed 21/09/2011 19:14

NNA - 21/9/2011 - US President Barack Obama called the Security Council to impose sanctions on Syria, in a word he delivered before the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday.

"There is no excuse for idleness. It is time that the UNSC imposes sanctions on the Syrian regime," he said.

R.A.H.

International - Yemeni Vice Premier calls for cease fire in Sanaa

Tue 20/09/2011 21:00

NNA - 20/9/2011 Yemeni Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi called on Tuesday for a cease fire between Yemeni loyal forces and opponents to President Ali Abdullah Saleh in the capital Sanaa, Yemeni Defense Ministry said.
It was reported that partial tranquility is prevailing this evening in Sanaa, after a day of bloody clashes that led to the killing of seven people, raising the death toll to more than 60 in three days.
-------------L.Y

International - Air tragedy in Reno kills 3

Sat 17/09/2011 11:38

NNA - 17/09/2011 An air racing show in Nevada ended in tragedy on Friday as a World War II fighter plane flown by veteran Hollywood stunt pilot Jimmy Leeward plunged into the ground killing 3 people and injuring more than 50 spectators.

Reports from the scene of the crash stated that the plane spiraled out of control without warning and appeared to disintegrate upon impact in Reno.
An event official indicated that mechanical problems were to blame for the accident. However, authorities opened an investigation into the crash hoping to find further answers to avoid future tragedies of the sort.