| Breakthrough deal curbs Iran's nuclear activity Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:02 PM PST By Parisa Hafezi and Justyna Pawlak GENEVA (Reuters) - Iran and six world powers clinched a deal on Sunday to curb the Iranian nuclear programme in exchange for initial sanctions relief, signalling the start of a game-changing rapprochement that would reduce the risk of a wider Middle East war. Aimed at easing a long festering standoff, the interim pact between Iran and the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia won the critical endorsement of Iranian clerical Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But Israel, Iran's arch-enemy and a U.S. ally, denounced the agreement as a "historic mistake". The agreement was announced in the middle of the night in Geneva after long and tortuous negotiations. |
| Afghanistan's Karzai rejects elders' advice to back U.S. deal quickly Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:31 PM PST  By Hamid Shalizi and Mirwais Harooni KABUL (Reuters) - An assembly of Afghan elders endorsed a crucial security deal on Sunday to enable U.S. troops to operate in the country beyond next year, but President Hamid Karzai left the matter up in the air by refusing to say whether he would sign it into law. The gathering, known as the Loya Jirga, had been convened by the president to debate the pact outlines the legal terms of continued U.S. military presence in Afghanistan. It voted in favour and advised Karzai sign it promptly. But Karzai, in his final remarks to the four-day meeting, said he would not sign it until after a presidential election due next April.
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| Tight Honduras vote offers swing to left or militarized drug fight Posted: 24 Nov 2013 04:37 PM PST  By Gabriel Stargardter and Gustavo Palencia TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - Hondurans voted for a new president on Sunday, choosing between a tough militarized response to drug gang violence fueling the world's highest murder rate and a shift to the left that could revive the political career of deposed leader Manuel Zelaya. A photo-finish finale is expected in a race that pits the ruling National Party's candidate, conservative Juan Hernandez, the head of Congress viewed as Honduras' most powerful politician, against Zelaya's wife, Xiomara Castro. The two rivals offer distinct visions for Honduras, the biggest coffee exporter in Central America - and a nation saddled with a murder rate of 85 per 100,000, the world's worst. How to tame drug gangs is a key focus of the vote.
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| Scores killed as rebels battle to break siege of Damascus suburbs Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:26 PM PST  By Erika Solomon BEIRUT (Reuters) - Fierce fighting to the east of Damascus has killed more than 160 people in the past two days as Syrian rebels struggle to break a months-long blockade by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, activists said on Sunday. It began on Friday when rebel units attacked a string of military checkpoints encircling the opposition-held suburbs in an area known as Eastern Ghouta, which has been under siege for more than six months. The battle has also drawn in hundreds of foreign fighters on both sides, underlining how Syria's civil war has stirred Sunni-Shi'ite sectarian tensions across the region. The conflict in Syria has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the United Nations, and is also destabilizing Syria's neighbors.
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| Insight: Road builder Sata enthuses Zambians but unnerves foreign investors Posted: 24 Nov 2013 04:43 PM PST  By Ed Stoddard and Chris Mfula KATOBA, Zambia (Reuters) - John Moyo is at the end of the road. At least now it's paved. "I never imagined a paved road coming to my village," said the spry and bespectacled 82-year-old Zambian as he sat in the shade of a tree. About 42 km (26 miles) of freshly tarred road, replacing a gravel one, end exactly at his homestead. President Michael Sata's drive to upgrade the country's rough roads, which often become impassable in the rainy season, is popular with many Zambians like Moyo. ...
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| Mali election marred by low turnout and voting abuses Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:48 PM PST  By Tiemoko Diallo and Adama Diarra BAMAKO (Reuters) - Low turnout and vote abuses marred Sunday elections meant to complete democratic transition in Mali, after a coup last year led to an Islamist takeover of the north that was crushed by French military intervention. Officials said armed men carried off ballot boxes from some bureaux in the Timbuktu region of northern Mali, preventing some people from casting their votes in the legislative poll. The West African country has suffered a surge in Islamist violence since President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was elected in August in a vote that marked a return to democracy after the March 2012 coup. The military putsch plunged Mali into chaos and allowed al Qaeda-linked fighters to seize the northern two-thirds of the country.
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| Bad Iran nuke deal better than no deal: British press Posted: 24 Nov 2013 04:22 PM PST  The historic deal to curb Iran's nuclear programme should be given time to work, but Tehran's intentions must be viewed with deep scepticism, Britain's newspapers said Monday. "Given that Iran's nuclear ambitions have had no rational purpose except to give its ruthless leaders the option of building the ultimate weapon, we are entitled to approach this deal with deep scepticism and caution," said its editorial. "But rejecting the deal would have meant that Iran's nuclear programme expanded month by month, until the terrible moment arrived when America would have had little choice but to go to war," it added. Iran agreed to curb its nuclear programme for the next six months in exchange for limited sanctions relief, in a preliminary accord meant to lay the foundations for a comprehensive agreement later this year.
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| British govt hands RBS report to City watchdogs Posted: 24 Nov 2013 04:21 PM PST  The Royal Bank of Scotland faced fresh damage to its reputation on Monday after the British government handed financial watchdogs a report claiming it forced small firms to default in order to seize their assets. Business Secretary Vince Cable confirmed on Sunday that he had given the report, written by Lawrence Tomlinson from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). The report, published Monday, has been compiled over the past six months and focuses on claims against the bank's Global Restructuring Group (GRG), which deals with risky loans. RBS -- 81 percent owned by the state following its near collapse during the 2008 financial crisis -- announced on November 1 it was to create an internal 'bad bank' to run down £38 billion of high-risk assets as the government looks to return the rescued lender to the private sector.
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| Dominicans expel 244 Haitians over border killings Posted: 24 Nov 2013 04:03 PM PST  PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The Dominican Republic expelled at least 244 Haitians after an elderly Dominican couple was slain in an apparent burglary near the border between the two countries and a mob retaliated by killing a Haitian man, two migrant advocates said Sunday.
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| Honduras, plagued by poverty and crime, picks new leader Posted: 24 Nov 2013 03:55 PM PST  Hondurans went to the polls amid tight security Sunday to pick a new president for their Central American nation, the world's deadliest and among the region's poorest. The election pits Xiomara Castro, leftist wife of ousted former leader Manuel Zelaya, against conservative Juan Orlando Hernandez. As the around 5,400 polling stations opened at 7:00 am (1300 GMT) with a ceremony at a school in the capital Tegucigalpa, electoral tribunal chief David Matamoros expressed hope the vote would "heal the wounds" of the 2009 coup d'etat that toppled Zelaya. The candidates are vying to succeed President Porfirio Lobo, who was elected after the coup in a controversial election boycotted by Zelaya's leftist allies.
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| Vote count begins as Hondurans choose president Posted: 24 Nov 2013 03:52 PM PST  TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — Hondurans cast ballots for a new president Sunday in a country reeling from violence, poverty and the legacy of a 2009 coup, and if opinion polls were accurate, the vote could fail to produce a clear winner.
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| Rooney lashes out at TV commentators Posted: 24 Nov 2013 03:48 PM PST  Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney hit out at two television commentators for saying he deserved to be sent off during his side's 2-2 draw at Cardiff City on Sunday. Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler and pundit Graeme Souness, the former Liverpool manager, said Rooney was fortunate not to be shown a red card for kicking Jordon Mutch during the early stages of the Premier League game. Rooney was instead shown a yellow card by referee Neil Swarbrick and went on to score the opening goal for United and set up their second goal, which was scored by Patrice Evra.
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| EU climate chief says UN talks hinge on 2015 deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:57 PM PST  WARSAW, Poland (AP) — After another U.N. climate conference gave only modest results, European Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard says the process needs to provide a "substantial answer" to global warming in two years to remain relevant.
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| Obama has leeway on Iran, despite U.S. lawmakers' concerns Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:47 PM PST  By Patricia Zengerle and Caren Bohan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican and Democratic U.S. senators on Sunday voiced skepticism about a nuclear deal reached with Iran but Congress looked likely to give President Barack Obama room to see if the agreement works. The deal does not need to be ratified by Congress and Obama is using his executive power to temporarily suspend some existing U.S. sanctions on Iran. On Sunday, influential Democrats - who control the Senate - made clear that any new sanctions against Iran would include a six-month window before they took effect. That would allow time to see if Iran is sticking by the pact, worked out between Tehran, the United States and other world powers.
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| Congress plans tough Iran sanctions if deal fails Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:47 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers from both parties said Sunday they are skeptical that Iran will stick to a new nuclear deal and want Congress to prepare beefed-up economic penalties to hit Tehran if the accord falls apart.
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| US risked Israeli ties in bid for security Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:35 PM PST  The Iran nuclear deal will raise US-Israeli tensions, yet Washington risked Israel's fury believing a global settlement will ensure security for both the US and the Middle East, analysts said Sunday. Just hours after the six powers guiding the talks with Iran announced a ground-breaking deal in Geneva, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu angrily denounced it as a "historic mistake." But US officials have long said privately that nothing short of a total dismantling of Iran's nuclear energy program will satisfy the Israeli leader -- something they warn is totally unrealistic. In a bid to soothe tensions, US President Barack Obama Sunday phoned Netanyahu and urged the two nations "to begin consultations immediately regarding our efforts to negotiate a comprehensive solution" with Iran, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
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| Iran nuclear deal fuels anger, jitters in Mideast Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:34 PM PST  JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's prime minister harshly condemned the international community's nuclear deal with Iran on Sunday while Saudi Arabia remained conspicuously quiet, reflecting the jitters felt throughout the Middle East over Iran's acceptance on the global stage.
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| Iran nuclear deal shipping insurance element may help oil sales Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:33 PM PST  By Daniel Fineren DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's nuclear deal with the West is not intended to let more of its oil into the market, the White House said, but an easing of the ban on European shipping insurance may help smooth crude exports to its big Asian customers. Iran and six world powers reached a deal early on Sunday to curb Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for limited sanctions relief. U.S. and European Union sanctions that prevent energy companies from investing in Iran, and have slashed Tehran's oil exports from 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) to around 1 million bpd, remain in place. "In the next six months, Iran's crude oil sales cannot increase," a fact sheet posted by the White House on the U.S. State Department's website on Sunday said.
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| Obama, Netanyahu discuss Iran nuclear deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:17 PM PST  President Barack Obama called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday to discuss an international nuclear deal with Iran that has threatened to raise tensions between the close allies, the White House said. Just hours after the six world powers clinched the historic agreement with the Islamic republic, Netanyahu lashed out at what he called a "historic mistake" that left open Iran's ability to develop a nuclear arsenal. But the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany -- known as the P5+1 -- involved in the talks hailed it as a key first step that for now warded off the prospect of military escalation. "The two leaders reaffirmed their shared goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon," deputy White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters aboard Air Force One As Obama headed to the US West Coast.
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| Anatomy of Iranian nuclear deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:13 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — In a potentially history-shaping choice of diplomacy over confrontation, the U.S. and other world powers agreed Sunday to give Iran six months to open its nuclear sites to possible daily inspections in exchange for allowing Tehran to maintain the central elements of its uranium program, in a multi-layered deal to test Iran's claim that it does not seek atomic weapons.
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| Turkey mending ties with Shiite powers as regional clout wanes Posted: 24 Nov 2013 02:00 PM PST  Turkey's ambitions to become a regional leader with a "zero problems" foreign policy have been left in tatters by the Syrian civil war, rising sectarian tensions and a fresh diplomatic fallout with Egypt. The predominantly Sunni Muslim NATO member state is now seeking to mend fences with Shiite powers Iraq and Iran to restore its waning clout in the Middle East in the wake of the Arab spring uprisings. The Syrian conflict has upset the balance of power in Turkey's backyard and dealt a blow to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's lofty regional goals, his stature on the international stage also tarnished by the wave of anti-government protests that gripped the country in June. Disputes with Israel, Cyprus and Armenia also linger on, while the spat with Cairo came to a head Saturday when Egypt's military rulers expelled Turkey's ambassador over Erdogan's support for ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
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| Hondurans head to polls with violence as top worry Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:47 PM PST TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — Hondurans cast ballots for a new president Sunday in a country reeling from violence, poverty and the legacy of a 2009 coup, and if opinion polls were accurate, the vote could fail to produce a clear winner. |
| Congo arrests senior opposition member on ICC warrant Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:45 PM PST The Democratic Republic of Congo arrested a senior opposition politician on Sunday after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant accusing him of trying to influence the war crimes trial of former presidential candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba. The ICC said in a statement that Fidèle Babala Wandu's arrest was part of a wider operation to bring other Bemba associates based in Europe into custody for allegedly influencing witnesses in his case. Bemba faces trial at the ICC for crimes against humanity and war crimes because of actions allegedly committed by his rebel group in neighbouring Central African Republic in 2002 and 2003. The ICC said that Judge Cuno Tarfusser had issued arrest warrants for Wandu, deputy secretary of Bemba's opposition MLC party, two members of Bemba's defence team - Aimé Kilolo Musamba and Jean-Jacques Mangenda Kabongo - and defence witness Narcisse Arido. |
| Obama seeks to reassure Israel's Netanyahu on Iran nuclear deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:42 PM PST President Barack Obama attempted to reassure a skeptical Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday about a deal struck with Iran on its nuclear program and said he wants to begin consultations with Israel about it immediately. Obama spoke to Netanyahu by phone prior to departing the White House on a Democratic fund-raising trip to the West Coast. White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters on Air Force One that the two leaders reaffirmed the shared goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. |
| Egypt's president issues law restricting protests Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:37 PM PST  CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's interim president on Sunday banned public gatherings of more than 10 people without prior government approval, imposing hefty fines and prison terms for violators in a bid to stifle the near-constant protests roiling the country.
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| Judgement day in sensational Indian double murder trial Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:32 PM PST  An Indian judge is due to hand down his verdict Monday in a sensational murder trial in which a prosperous dentist couple stand accused of slashing the throats of their teenage daughter and live-in servant. Rajesh and Nupur Talwar are charged with murdering their only child, 14-year-old Aarushi, and their 45-year-old Nepalese domestic worker Hemraj by slitting their throats "with clinical precision" at their home in an affluent New Delhi suburb on the night of May 15, 2008. This has been a never-ending nightmare," Rajesh Talwar told AFP in a recent interview outside the rundown courtroom where the witness stand is held together by rope and monkeys romp on the roof. Officers then arrested Rajesh Talwar's Nepalese dental assistant along with two other local servants who hailed from Nepal, Hemraj's friends.
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| White House says Obama spoke to Israel's Netanyahu about Iran nuclear deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:18 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday to discuss a nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers that Israel opposes. The White House announced the call as Obama flew aboard Air Force One from Washington to Seattle. (Reporting by Steve Holland; editing by Jackie Frank) |
| N.American moviegoers devour 'Hunger Games' sequel Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:14 PM PST  Los Angeles (AFP) - "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" took in $161.1 million at the North American box office this weekend in one of the biggest movie debuts ever, industry estimates showed Sunday.
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| Qatar gives $350 mn to Yemen compensation fund Posted: 24 Nov 2013 01:03 PM PST  Qatar has donated $350 million to a fund to compensate civilians and security force members in south Yemen who were forced out of their jobs, the UN special envoy said Sunday. "The south was marginalised under the former regime, its residents discriminated against and its resources plundered," Jamal Benomar said at a ceremony marking the donation. Thousands of southerners lost their jobs after North and South Yemen united in 1990. The UN envoy said he saw in the donation "a sign of solidarity from Qatar and the Arab nations of the Gulf with the Yemeni people".
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| Israel blasts Iran nuclear deal as 'historic mistake' Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:57 PM PST  Israel on Sunday lashed out at the Geneva nuclear deal brokered by world powers as being heavily stacked in Iran's favour, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling it a "historic mistake." Following a months-long diplomatic campaign warning of the dangers of easing economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for steps to curb its contested nuclear programme, senior cabinet ministers chimed in, with one saying Israel reserved the right to strike Iran on its own. Speaking later at a ceremony in Jerusalem, he said that the more details emerged on the deal, "the more it becomes clear how bad the deal is for Israel, the region and the world." "Iran gets billions of dollars in sanction relief without paying an actual price," said Netanyahu.
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| Japan warns of 'unpredictable events' over China's new air zone Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:56 PM PST  Japan warned Sunday of the danger of "unpredictable events" and South Korea voiced regret following China's unilateral declaration of an air defence zone over areas claimed by Tokyo and Seoul. Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said his country was considering making stronger protests "at a higher level" after China announced Saturday it was setting up the zone over an area that includes Tokyo-controlled islands claimed by Beijing. US Secretary of State John Kerry and Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said Saturday they were "deeply concerned" at China's move and were committed to defending Japan.
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| Afghan assembly backs US troops pact, Karzai sets terms Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:51 PM PST  An Afghan grand assembly Sunday endorsed a crucial security agreement allowing some US troops to stay on after 2014, although President Hamid Karzai set conditions for signing the deal. The "loya jirga" gathering of about 2,500 chieftains, tribal elders and politicians overwhelming backed the pact setting the terms for any US military presence beyond 2014, and urged Karzai to sign it by the end of this year. Opening the assembly on Thursday, Karzai said he wanted to delay signing the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) until after the successful completion of April's presidential election -- exasperating Washington, which wants it sealed quickly. "Very significantly, the loya jirga also urged that the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) should be signed before the end of the year," he stressed.
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| DR expels 244 Haitians after killings along border Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:48 PM PST PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Dominican authorities expelled 244 Haitians after an elderly Dominican couple was slain in an apparent burglary near the border between the two countries and an angry mob retaliated by killing a Haitian man, a priest and migrant advocate said Sunday. |
| Republicans in Congress wary of Iran nuclear deal Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:28 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans in Congress are skeptical about the Iran nuclear deal hammered out by the U.S. and world powers. |
| Over 11,000 children killed in Syria: study Posted: 24 Nov 2013 12:26 PM PST More than 11,000 children have been killed in Syria since the conflict there began over two and a half years ago, many of them summarily executed or targeted by snipers, a UK-based think tank said in a report published on Sunday. The Oxford Research Group study, which called on all sides in the conflict to stop targeting children, said seven out of 10 of the children killed in the war had lost their lives in shell fire, by aerial bombardment or by improvised explosive devices. One in four children had been killed by small arms fire, with almost 800 executed and almost 400 targeted by snipers. The United Nations puts the overall death toll in Syria at more than 100,000 dead. |
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