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U.S. chides Russia over missiles as peace plans suffer

Sat, 18 May 2013 07:50:30 -0400

By Erika Solomon BEIRUT (Reuters) - The United States chided Russia for sending missiles to the Syrian government as plans for a peace conference promoted by Washington and Moscow were hit by diplomatic rifts over its scope and purpose. Sectarian bloodshed in neighboring Iraq during Friday prayers, a hacking attack on a Western newspaper by sympathizers of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and defiant comments by a rebel commander filmed eating a slain soldier's flesh were all reminders of how the two-year-old civil war is metastising. ...

Russian missiles to Syria could embolden Assad: U.S. general warns

Fri, 17 May 2013 17:19:57 -0400

By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top U.S. military officer on Friday condemned Russia's shipment of advanced anti-ship missiles to Syria, saying it could embolden President Bashar al-Assad's forces to keep fighting a bloody civil war. "It's at the very least an unfortunate decision that will embolden the regime and prolong the suffering," General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at the Pentagon when asked about the weapons shipment. "So it's ill-timed and very unfortunate," he said. ...

Iran's Farhadi and China's Jia make Cannes splash

Fri, 17 May 2013 16:14:58 -0400

CANNES, France (AP) — Two directors from countries with tough film censorship brought bold and probing movies to the Cannes Film Festival on Friday — one exploring China's social problems, the other delving into the mysteries of the human heart.

Turkey's Erdogan says U.N. must decide on any Syria no-fly zone

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:40:20 -0400

By Nick Tattersall WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday it would be up to the U.N. Security Council to decide whether to establish a no-fly zone inside Syria and said he backed the involvement of Russia and China in planned peace talks. Speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington a day after discussing Syria with President Barack Obama, Erdogan said a no-fly zone could be discussed at a planned international conference on Syria backed by Washington and Moscow. Turkey, a U.S. ...

Bombs targeting Sunnis kill at least 58 in Iraq

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:25:15 -0400

BAGHDAD (AP) — Bombs struck Sunni areas in Baghdad and surrounding areas Friday, killing at least 58 people in the deadliest day in Iraq in two months, officials said, as a spike in violence has raised fears the country could be on the path to a new round of sectarian bloodshed.

Top Russian Diplomat Explains Reasons for Syrian Arms Sales

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:19:18 -0400

In the past two weeks, the U.S. and its allies have done just about everything short of getting down on their collective knees and begging Russia to stop delivering weapons to the Syrian government. President Vladimir Putin has received visits this month from three of the most powerful statesmen in the western world — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on May 7, British Prime Minister David Cameron three days later and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu three days after that. Along with U.S. ...

Bomb strikes Sunni area in Baghdad, killing 7

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:12:22 -0400

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say a bomb has exploded in a commericial area in a mainly Sunni neighborhood in western Baghdad, killing at least seven people and wounding 20.

Gazans struggle to reel in a livelihood

Fri, 17 May 2013 13:54:40 -0400

Mounir Abu Hasira’s name is synonymous with fish in Gaza, where his grandfather once owned more than 50 percent of the fishing boats and employed more than 2,000 workers to bring in the daily catch.

Turkish PM says no decision yet on further Iran oil import cuts

Fri, 17 May 2013 13:50:25 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday Turkey had already significantly reduced its oil imports from Iran, which is under the choke of Western sanctions, and further cutbacks would depend on his country's energy needs. "On crude oil, there has been a significant decrease in the amount of oil we import from Iran ... As to whether we would cut back any further, it will depend on our need. Time will tell," Erdogan said at the Brookings Institution in Washington. ...

Bombs at mosques in northwest Pakistan kill 15

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:36:48 -0400

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Bombs that exploded outside two mosques in a village in northwestern Pakistan killed at least 15 people Friday, underlining the challenge of militant violence facing a new government set to take power under the leadership of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Analysis: Upgrade crowns Turkey's peaceful rise but pitfalls loom

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:29:49 -0400

By Paul Taylor PARIS (Reuters) - Turkey's achievement of investment-grade status crowns a decade of rapid growth, financial stability and political reform by a "tiger" economy on the seam of Europe and Asia, but the rising power still faces pitfalls in a dangerous neighborhood. Moody's Investors Service raised its rating on Ankara's sovereign bonds to Baa3, or investment grade, from Ba1 late on Thursday, following in the footsteps of Fitch credit ratings agency, which took that step last November. ...

Mosque, funeral bombings kill 47 in Iraq

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:48:59 -0400

BAGHDAD (AP) — Twin explosions ripped through a crowd of Sunni worshippers outside Baghdad on Friday, an attack which, combined with a second deadly bombing at a Sunni funeral to the south of the capital, deepened fears Iraq may be headed toward a new round of sectarian conflict.

Russia boosts its naval presence in Syria, sends regime new missiles

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:25:00 -0400

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Wait Until You Hear Who the Turkish Prime Minister Reportedly Invited to Join His Entourage During U.S. Visit

Fri, 17 May 2013 08:12:10 -0400

Son wanted to be a "martyr."

Iran may ban candidates who seek ties with US

Fri, 17 May 2013 08:04:29 -0400

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The head of Iran's constitutional watchdog says it may disqualify candidates in June presidential elections who seek full relations with the United States.

Bombs at mosques in northwest Pakistan kill 13

Fri, 17 May 2013 07:55:25 -0400

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Bombs that exploded outside two mosques in a village in northwestern Pakistan killed at least 13 people Friday, underlining the challenge of militant violence facing a new government set to take power under the leadership of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Iraqis mourn 2 Shiite fighters killed in Syria

Fri, 17 May 2013 06:32:21 -0400

BASRA, Iraq (AP) — Hundreds of Iraqis attended the Friday funeral in a southern city of two Shiite fighters killed in Syria. Several such funerals have been held in recent months, the latest sign that the conflict has taken on a sectarian regional dimension.

CIA chief makes unannounced Israel visit

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:14:14 -0400

JERUSALEM (AP) — An Israeli defense official says the head of the American CIA spy agency has made an unannounced visit to Israel.

U.N. chief Ban says must not lose momentum on Syria conference

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:03:45 -0400

SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday a proposed international conference on Syria should be held as soon as possible, but that no date had yet been agreed. "We should not lose the momentum," Ban said of a U.S.-Russian proposal to bring the Syrian government and opposition representatives to a peace conference. "There is a high expectation that this meeting should be held as soon as possible," he said after talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Lavrov agreed. ...

Obama: U.S. preserves diplomatic, military options on Syria

Thu, 16 May 2013 20:32:47 -0400

By Nick Tattersall and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Thursday he reserved the right to resort to both diplomatic and military options to pressure Syrian President Bashar al-Assad but insisted that U.S. action alone would not be enough to resolve the Syrian crisis. Taking a cautious line at a joint news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, Obama voiced hope that the United States and Russia would succeed in arranging an international peace conference on Syria, despite signs of growing obstacles. ...

Turkey’s Erdogan Visits the U.S.: 4 Problems That Won’t Be Solved

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:29:52 -0400

As domestic scandals clouded Washington, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived for a U.S. visit enveloped in his own fog. The Turkish Premier has been one of the most outspoken international statesmen on the need for intervention in the brutal Syrian civil war raging on his country’s border. The main agenda of his American sojourn was to seek support from an Obama Administration that has watched the conflict warily. ...

Syrian troops flush out rebels from prison

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:02:37 -0400

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian government troops on Thursday flushed out rebels who had stormed a prison compound in the northern city of Aleppo in a bid to free hundreds of political prisoners inside.

US, Turkey project united front on Syria

Thu, 16 May 2013 17:43:39 -0400

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan projected a united front Thursday on Syria, keeping stark differences about how much the U.S. should intervene behind closed doors as they looked to Russia and the global community to close ranks behind efforts to oust Syrian President Bashar Assad.

U.S. adds sanctions on Syria, labels rebel chief a terrorist

Thu, 16 May 2013 17:12:19 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Thursday blacklisted four Syrian government ministers, an airline and a television station it said helped the Assad government in its two-year crackdown on opposition forces. The same day, the State Department labeled as a terrorist Mohammad al-Golani, for being the leader of the al-Nusra Front. The group is one of the most effective forces fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but also pledged allegiance to al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri last month. ...

UN: 14 Iranian exiles moved from Iraq to Albania

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:49:30 -0400

BAGHDAD (AP) — The first exiles from an Iranian opposition group have moved to Albania from a camp near Baghdad as part of a relocation process, the United Nations said Thursday, a step toward defusing an explosive dispute left over from the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s and the U.S.-led ousting of the regime of Saddam Hussein.

Iran's chief nuclear negotiator: we're being asked to make all the sacrifices

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:41:20 -0400

Saeed Jalili, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator and a presidential candidate, says that offers from six world powers demand far more short-term sacrifices of his government than the Islamic Republic considers reasonable or reciprocal.

U.S. widens sanctions to four Syrian officials, TV station, airline

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:05:13 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Thursday blacklisted four Syrian government ministers, an airline and a television station it said helped the Assad government in its two-year crackdown on opposition forces. The move follows broad U.S. sanctions on any aid to Syria since the beginning of the civil war between President Bashar al-Assad's government and opposition groups that has killed an estimated 80,000 people. The U.S. ...

Russia says Iran must take part in proposed Syria talks

Thu, 16 May 2013 15:13:28 -0400

By Thomas Grove MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Iran must take part in a proposed international conference to end Syria's civil war, but that Western states wanted to limit the participants and possibly predetermine the outcome of the talks. Conflicting comments from Russia and the West over Iran's role in the possible meeting have added to disagreements which already threaten to derail the conference proposed by Moscow and Washington last week. ...

Iranian cleric says women can't be president

Thu, 16 May 2013 10:14:30 -0400

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A member of Iran's constitutional watchdog group insists that women cannot be presidential candidates, a report said Thursday, effectively killing the largely symbolic bids by about 30 women seeking to run in the June 14 election.

Iran, world powers to resume nuclear talks

Thu, 16 May 2013 07:49:51 -0400

ISTANBUL (AP) — Iran's chief nuclear negotiator says Tehran and the six world powers will resume talks on its nuclear program "in the near future."

Iranian cleric: Women can't be president in Iran

Thu, 16 May 2013 07:20:11 -0400

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A member of Iran's constitutional watchdog says women cannot be presidential candidates, effectively killing the longshot bids by about 30 women seeking to run in the June 14 election.

Polish exports of meat for Jews, Muslims in limbo

Thu, 16 May 2013 06:52:28 -0400

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — For some, it was a barbaric way to treat animals. For others, it was great business.

Seen and heard in Cannes

Thu, 16 May 2013 06:47:11 -0400

CANNES, France (AP) — Associated Press journalists open their notebooks at the Cannes Film Festival:

Iran says ready for nuclear talks with world powers

Thu, 16 May 2013 06:24:19 -0400

By Parisa Hafezi ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Iran is prepared to pursue nuclear diplomacy with world powers before or after next month's presidential election in the Islamic Republic, its chief negotiator said on Thursday. Saeed Jalili, who is also a candidate in the presidential race, was speaking after talks on the nuclear dispute with European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. "We are ready to continue our talks with the (six powers) whenever they are ready, before or after the presidential election in Iran... ...

U.N. condemns Assad forces, but unease grows about rebels

Wed, 15 May 2013 22:35:52 -0400

By Michelle Nichols and Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. General Assembly condemned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces and praised the opposition on Wednesday, but a decline in support for the resolution suggested growing unease about extremism among Syria's fractious rebels. While the non-binding text has no legal force, resolutions of the 193-nation assembly can carry significant moral and political weight. ...

CA-NEWS Summary

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:42:18 -0400

Bombs kill more than 35 people across Iraq BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Bomb attacks in Shi'ite areas of Baghdad and in northern Iraq killed more than 35 people on Wednesday, following weeks of violence by Sunni Islamist insurgents determined to unleash sectarian confrontation. Tensions between minority Sunni Muslims and the Shi'ites who now lead Iraq are at their highest since U.S. troops pulled out in 2011, with relations coming under more pressure by the day from the largely sectarian conflict in neighboring Syria. ...

Iran nuclear talks in Istanbul show progress remains elusive

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:24:08 -0400

Even before the top two nuclear negotiators from Iran and six world powers sat down to a rare shared dinner in Istanbul tonight, events showed how far apart they are as they wrestle over how to limit Iran’s nuclear program.

Egypt militants planned to hit US and French embassies: MENA

Wed, 15 May 2013 14:41:09 -0400

CAIRO (Reuters) - An al Qaeda-linked militant cell detained in Egypt was planning suicide attacks on the French and U.S. embassies, the state news agency MENA reported on Wednesday, quoting investigators. Authorities on Saturday announced the capture of three Egyptians with links to al Qaeda, saying they had been found in possession of 10 kg (22 pounds) of explosive materials. ...

Bahrain court jails six for insulting king on Twitter

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:57:38 -0400

DUBAI (Reuters) - A Bahraini court jailed six people for a year on Wednesday for insulting King Hamad bin Issa al Khalifa in messages on the microblogging site Twitter, the official news agency said. The six were accused of writing remarks "undermining the values and traditions of Bahrain's society towards the king on Twitter," the Bahrain News Agency quoted the head of the public prosecutor's office, Nayef Youssef, as saying in a statement. ...

No breakthrough in nuclear talks with Iran: U.N

Wed, 15 May 2013 12:54:50 -0400

VIENNA (Reuters) - Talks between the U.N. nuclear watchdog and Iran about Tehran's nuclear program failed to clinch an accord and no date has been set for more meetings, a senior U.N. official said on Wednesday. "We had intensive discussions today but did not finalize the structured approach document that has been under negotiation for a year and a half now," Herman Nackaerts, deputy director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told reporters after meeting Iranian officials in Vienna. "Our commitment to continue dialogue is unwavering. ...