domingo, 31 de outubro de 2010

Obama loses temper in Connecticut rally

US President Barack Obama loses his cool at an election rally in Connecticut, amid reports suggesting his party is mulling whether he should serve a second term.


"Excuse me ... excuse me. You've been appearing at every rally we've been doing. And we're funding global AIDS (prevention). And the other side is not. So I don't know why you think this is a useful strategy to take," USA Today quoted Obama as saying to AIDS activists who interrupted his speech on Saturday, UPI reported.

A group of activists heckled the US president over funding for the global fight against AIDS, as he began his speech for the "Moving America Forward" rally in Bridgeport in the South Side Hyde Park neighborhood.

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segunda-feira, 18 de outubro de 2010

'Iran's nuclear program poses a major risk to Mideast stability'

Senior U.S., Israeli officials pledge to keep Iran from acquiring atomic arms during semiannual U.S.-Israel Strategic Dialogue.

'Iran's nuclear program poses a major risk to Mideast stability'
Senior U.S., Israeli officials pledge to keep Iran from acquiring atomic arms during semiannual U.S.-Israel Strategic Dialogue.
By The Associated Press Tags: Israel news Iran nuclear

The United States and Israel on Monday said Iran is among the greatest challenges to stability in the Middle East and reaffirmed their commitment to preventing the country from developing nuclear weapons.

After talks in Washington, senior U.S. and Israeli officials said in a joint statement that Iran's nuclear program, along with its support of anti-Israel militant groups, are of "grave concern," and they pledged to keep Iran from acquiring atomic arms. The discussions were part of the semiannual U.S.-Israel Strategic Dialogue.

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Hamas has obtained anti-aircraft missiles

Netanyahu: Hamas has obtained anti-aircraft missiles
Israel's aerial freedom has been compromised by new weaponry in Gaza, presumably smuggled through tunnels connected to Egypt, PM tells Likud members for the first time.

Gaza's Hamas rulers have obtained anti-aircraft missiles, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday, in a potentially game-changing development that could threaten the Israeli air force's ability to strike at the Islamic militant group.

Israeli aircraft have long dominated the skies over Gaza, striking suspected Hamas military installations and assassinating dozens of wanted militants. The Israeli air force played a key role in a fierce three-week offensive in Gaza early last year, which began with airstrikes that killed hundreds of Hamas fighters.

Speaking to his Likud Party, Netanyahu disclosed that Israel's aerial freedom has been compromised by the new weaponry in Gaza, presumably smuggled into the area through tunnels connected to neighboring Egypt. He said any future peace agreement would have to include security arrangements to deal with the threat.


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sábado, 16 de outubro de 2010

'FBI knew of Mumbai attacks in advance'

A media report says that US intelligence officials were aware of plans to attack Mumbai years before the terrorist incident killed more than 170 people in India's main port city in 2008.


A report published by the Washington Post on Wednesday said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had been tipped off in 2005 about an American national, who masterminded attacks on the Indian financial hub three years later.

The man identified as David Coleman Headley underwent intensive training with banned militant groups in Pakistan, the report added.

Based on the report, Headley's wife told FBI agents that her husband was in close contact with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the group blamed by India for the deadly attacks on Mumbai.

The report also says Headley went to Mumbai five times to scout landmark locations and targets for the attack on the city.

The report comes months after the Pakistani interior ministry suggested that the Mumbai attack were planned outside Pakistan.

sexta-feira, 15 de outubro de 2010

Russia, Venezuela agree on nuclear power project

Moscow - Russia and Venezuela agreed Friday to jointly build what would be the South American country's first nuclear power plant.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were on hand while representatives of the two countries signed the agreement.

The United States reacted to the deal with caution.

"Any new nuclear programme or activity should be conducted in accordance with the highest standards of nonproliferation - you know, safety and security, including IAEA safeguards," US State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said.

"Venezuela and Russia have international obligations, and we expect them to meet those obligations."

Sergei Kiriyenko, head of the Russian nuclear company Rosatom, said that the power plant could go on stream within 10 years or less, according to the Interfax agency.


Article

Russia, Venezuela agree on nuclear power project

Moscow - Russia and Venezuela agreed Friday to jointly build what would be the South American country's first nuclear power plant.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were on hand while representatives of the two countries signed the agreement.

The United States reacted to the deal with caution.

"Any new nuclear programme or activity should be conducted in accordance with the highest standards of nonproliferation - you know, safety and security, including IAEA safeguards," US State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said.

"Venezuela and Russia have international obligations, and we expect them to meet those obligations."

Sergei Kiriyenko, head of the Russian nuclear company Rosatom, said that the power plant could go on stream within 10 years or less, according to the Interfax agency.


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quinta-feira, 14 de outubro de 2010

Ahmadinejad: 'The Zionists will not last long'

Iranian president speaks in front of thousands of Hizbullah supporters in southern Lebanese village, which he calls "capital of freedom, resistance and victory."

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gave a speech to a crowd of thousands in the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil on Thursday, telling his audience that "Lebanese resistance is more powerful than the swords of Zionists."

"Resistance is the key to the Lebanese nations and all the nations in the region," he said. "The people of Lebanon, of all religions and all walks of life, have found the secret to victory."


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Ahmadinejad tells Hezbollah supporters in South Lebanon: Israel can never beat you

Ahmadinejad tells Hezbollah supporters in South Lebanon: Israel can never beat you
Ahmadinejad welcomed by thousands of people in Bint Jbeil, location of heavy fighting during Second Lebanon War, where signs hang praising Iranian president as 'protector of resistance'.


Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in the south Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil on Thursday, close to the border with Israel, a state he has said should be wiped from the map.

Speaking to thousands of supporters waving Iranian flags and cheering, Ahmadinejad praised Hezbollah and its southern stronghold as "the foremost shield of Lebanon."

"You are the heroes that guard Lebanon's sovereignty," he told them. "You are have proven that there no force in the world can beat you. The resistance of the Lebanese nation, born from faith in God, can stand up to any Israeli force – planes, tanks and ships."

quarta-feira, 13 de outubro de 2010

Israel signs $400 million deal to sell spy drones to Russia

The sale of unmanned aerial vehicles helps improve Israel's ties with Russia, an important country in international efforts to contain Iran's nuclear program.
By Yael Fater Tags: Russia

Israel Aerospace Industries signed a $400 million agreement to sell unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia, it announced on Wednesday.

Russian arms maker OPK Oboronprom will buy the UAVs over a period of three years.

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MK Eldad: Ahmadinejad should not return home alive

Addressing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to Lebanon, Knesset Member Arieh Eldad (National Union) said, "History would have been different if in 1939 some Jewish soldier would have succeeded in taking Hitler out. If Ahmadinejad will be in the crosshairs of an IDF rifle when he comes to throw rocks at us, he must not return home alive." (Roni Sofer)

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terça-feira, 12 de outubro de 2010

No chance of peace with Palestinians in near future

Ya'alon tells Army Radio that Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state shows they are not serious about two-state solution.

Vice Prime Minister and Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Tuesday that he saw "no chance of reaching a peace deal with the Palestinians in the near future".

"In the eyes of Palestinians, the occupation began in '48 and not in '67," Ya'alon told Army Radio. "Not only Hamas thinks this – Abu Mazen [Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas] does too."

"Their refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state shows they have no interest in having Israel as a state beside theirs," he added.

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segunda-feira, 11 de outubro de 2010

Taliban capture US base in Afghanistan



Taliban militants have claimed that they have driven US troops out of a military outpost in Afghanistan's northeastern Kunar Province.


They also said that the Americans fled the military outpost in Kunar's Marawara district in helicopters on Monday.

A senior Taliban commander said the group is now in full control of the district where the outpost is located.

He added that the militants attacked the outpost with rockets and machine guns.

Taliban say the ensuing clashes forced the US forces stationed there to flee.

The militants say they have seized all weapons and munitions left behind in the outpost.

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European foreign ministers furious with Israeli counterpart

French, Spanish FMs: Lieberman violated every rule of diplomacy

European foreign ministers furious with Israeli counterpart, who told them to 'solve their own problems before they complain to Israel.'

During a dinner meeting on Sunday, Lieberman told France's Bernard Kouchner and Spain's Miguel Angel Moratinos to "solve your own problems in Europe before you come to us with complaints. Maybe then I will be open to accepting your suggestions."

Lieberman emphasized to that "Israel will not be the Czechoslovakia of 2010," at their meeting at the foreign ministry offices in Jerusalem.

During the telephone conversation between the three FMs Monday, the European ministers voiced their extreme dismay with the fact that details of the meeting were made public an hour after it took place. "You violated our trust," they said to Lieberman.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/french-spanish-fms-lieberman-violated-every-rule-of-diplomacy-1.318404

MESS Report / Fearing civil war, Lebanese citizens arm themselves

Volatile probe into 2005 murder of Ex-Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri, upcoming Ahmadinejad visit, could easily set off a country on verge of explosion.

The latest reports from Lebanon describe a frightened country; the Lebanese are terrified about the prospect of a slide toward civil war. Several reports speculate that Beirut residents are arming themselves in expectation of a flare-up of violence between the two main antagonists in Lebanon today: Hezbollah and its allies on the one hand, and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri and his supporters on the other.

The investigation of the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, the father of the current premier, could turn out to be the spark that sets off the tinderbox.

Article

sábado, 9 de outubro de 2010

Syria: Israel-U.S. fighter jet deal destabilizes region

Speaking at Arab League summit in Libya, Syrian FM expresses disappointment at Netanyahu's decision not to extend settlement freeze.



Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Saturday that a recently finalized deal, in which Israel would purchase 20 U.S.-made F-35 stealth fighter jets, would destabilize the region.

Under the contract signed Between Israeli and U.S. delegates in New York last week Israel will get 20 of the warplanes for more than $3 billion, which would be delivered by approximately 2016. It has an option for 75 more.

Speaking at the Arab League summit in Libya, the Syrian minister expressed disappointment at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision not to extend the 10-moth settlement freeze in order to continue talks with the Palestinian Authority.


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Iran acknowledges espionage at nuclear facilities

Iran revealed for the first time Saturday that some personnel at the country's nuclear facilities were lured by promises of money to pass secrets to the West, but that increased security and worker privileges have put a stop to the spying.

The stunning acknowledgment by Iranian Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi provides the clearest government confirmation that Iran has been fighting espionage at its nuclear facilities.

In recent weeks, Iran has announced the arrest of several nuclear spies and battled a computer worm that it says is part of a covert Western plot to derail its nuclear program. And in July, a nuclear scientist who Iran says was kidnapped by U.S. agents returned home in mysterious circumstances, with the U.S. saying he was a willing defector who was offered $5 million by the CIA but then changed his mind.

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quarta-feira, 6 de outubro de 2010

Hamas threatens attack on Palestinian Authority officials



Despite efforts toward Fatah-Hamas reconciliation, Hamas spokesperson says group will strike PA officials if they continue to arrest Hamas members.

Hamas threatened Wednesday to attack senior Palestinian Authority officials if the PA continues to 'hunt down' Hamas members.

The spokesperson for the military wing of Hamas, Abu Obeida, warned that his organization will take drastic measures if the PA continues its policy of arresting Hamas officials.

Hamas and Fatah have recently taken steps toward reconciliation, when Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmed met with Hamas leader Khaled Meshal in Syria two weeks ago. The meeting concluded with an agreement and a promise to continue talks.


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terça-feira, 5 de outubro de 2010

Egypt president warns of 'global terror' if Mideast peace talks fail

PM Netanyahu to convene inner cabinet Tuesday to discuss two-month extension of settlement, in bid to save peace talks.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has warned that a failure in Israel-Palestinian peace negotiations would lead to "violence and terrorism" across the world.

In an interview with the journal of the Egyptian armed forces, given to mark the anniversary of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, he said he has told several leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that "if the peace process collapses, violence and terrorism will erupt in the Middle East and all over the world."

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domingo, 3 de outubro de 2010

IDF soldiers convicted of using 11-year-old as human shield in Gaza

Two soldiers forced Palestinian child to open bags, feared to have been booby trapped, during Operation Cast Lead.

The southern command military court convicted two Israeli soldiers on Sunday of using human shields during Operation Cast Lead, Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip, in the winter of 2008-2009.

The soldiers were convicted of offenses including inappropriate behavior and overstepping authority for ordering an 11-year-old Palestinian to search bags suspected to have been booby trapped.

The conviction is the first such conviction for what is termed in the Israel Defense Forces "neighbor procedure" – the use of human shields during searches and pursuits, which has been outlawed.


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sábado, 2 de outubro de 2010

Israel braces for regional escalation

Israel braces for regional escalation ahead of Ahmadinejad's Lebanon visit
London-based newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi reports Iran leader wants to reach border fence to hurl stones at Israeli soldiers on the other side.

Israel braces for regional escalation ahead of Ahmadinejad's Lebanon visit
London-based newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi reports Iran leader wants to reach border fence to hurl stones at Israeli soldiers on the other side.
By Avi Issacharoff, Barak Ravid and Amos Harel

Israel is stepping up preparations for the visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Lebanon next week, during which he is scheduled to visit the country's border area with Israel.

Through United Nations, U.S. and French mediators, Israel has urged the Lebanese government to prevent Ahmadinejad from visiting the border and engaging in what Jerusalem described as "provocation."


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