Irans Ahmadinejad wants to attend Olympics
Posted by admin on May 17, 2012 | Leave a Comment
TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Thursday he hopes to attend this summer’s Olympic Games in London but that the British authorities were reluctant to allow him, state media reported.
“I would like to be beside the Iranian athletes at the Olympic Games in London to support them, but (the British) have issues with my presence,” Ahmadinejad said, without offering further explanation.
“The...
New French cabinet cuts pay 30pc for president ministers
Posted by admin on May 17, 2012 | Leave a Comment
PARIS: French leader Francois Hollande’s new Socialist government ordered a 30 percent pay cut for the president and ministers as it held its first cabinet session on Thursday, several ministers said.
Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault earlier said the top item on the meeting’s agenda would be the salary cut, a Hollande campaign promise that the premier said was about “setting an example” for France.
The...
Indian cabinet clears Turkmenistan gas deal
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NEW DELHI: The Indian government has approved a deal to buy natural gas from Turkmenistan via a $7.6 billion pipeline passing through Afghanistan and Pakistan, reports said on Thursday.
The cabinet approved the signing of the Gas Sale and Purchase Agreement as well as the payment of a transit fee to Afghanistan and Pakistan for allowing the pipeline to pass through their territory, the Press Trust of India reported.
The...
US denies role in arming Syrian rebels
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WASHINGTON: Obama administration denied media news report claiming that the US has been helping to coordinate shipment of ‘more and better weapons’ to the Syrian rebels, with Persian Gulf nations picking up the tab.
During a daily press briefing, US State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland denied that Washington was playing any role in arming the rebels. “With regard to any assertions with regard...
Iran flouts UN sanctions sends arms to Syria panel
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UNITED NATIONS: Syria remains the top destination for Iranian arms shipments in violation of a U.N. Security Council ban on weapons exports by the Islamic Republic, according to a confidential report on Iran sanctions-busting seen by Reuters on Wednesday.
Iran, like Russia, is one of Syria’s few allies as it presses ahead with a 14-month old assault on opposition forces determined to oust Syrian President Bashar...
Iran vows never to renounce nuclear rights
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TEHRAN: Iran rejects Western pressures over its nuclear activities and will never give up its rights, Tehran’s chief nuclear negotiator said Thursday ahead of crunch talks with world powers in Baghdad next week.
“If we participate in the negotiations… it is because of our resistance (to Western powers). Thanks to our resistance, we have defended the rights of the Iranian people,” Saeed Jalili said...
Greece forms technocrat cabinet to prepare for new vote
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ATHENS: Greece Thursday unveiled a caretaker cabinet of technocrats tasked with organising the cash-strapped nation’s second elections just six weeks after an inconclusive vote sent jitters across the eurozone.
The temporary team led by 67-year-old Panagiotis Pikrammenos, the head of Greece’s top administrative court, is made up of mainly prominent university professors, a retired general and a respected diplomat.
Greece’s...
Israeli tank fire hurts seven in Gaza medics
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GAZA CITY: An Israeli tank shell fired into the Gaza Strip on Thursday wounded seven Palestinians, leaving two of them in critical condition, Palestinian medical officials told.
The shell hit near the Karni crossing east of Gaza City, according to the medics.
But Israeli security officials said that no tank shells were fired in that area this morning.
An Israeli army spokesman said that “a short while ago, Israeli...
Plans to strike Iran ‘ready’ US Israel envoy
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JERUSALEM: US plans for a possible military strike on Iran are ready and the option is “fully available”, the U.S. ambassador to Israel said, days before Tehran resumes talks with world powers which suspect it of seeking to develop nuclear arms.
Like Israel, the United States has said it considers military force a last resort to prevent Iran using its uranium enrichment to make a bomb. Iran insists its nuclear...
Four attackers die in assault on Afghan governor official
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KABUL: Four attackers who stormed the governor’s compound in Afghanistan’s western Farah province Thursday were shot dead in a firefight, an official said.
“Four suicide attackers who stormed the governor’s compound exchanged gunfire with the police. All four attackers were killed by the police. There were no casualties among police or civilians,” the governor’s spokesman Naqeebullah...
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