Yemenis protest over power cuts, fuel shortages
SANAA — Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Yemeni president's house in the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, June 11, to call for the fall of the government, angry at a city-wide power cut about to enter its third day and severe petrol shortages.President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has replaced five ministers in his cabinet amid...NSA may be putting Israeli security interests above U.S., new document reveals
A document suggesting that the U.S. National Security Agency may put the interests of Israel above those of the United States was released Wednesday by journalist Glenn Greenwald.The document is one of the many slides leaked by NSA defector Edward Snowden, currently a fugitive from American law in Moscow.Greenwald,...US accuses Israel of ‘alarming, even terrifying’ levels of spying
Friends do not spy on friends. That illusion about America’s attitude to its allies was conclusively debunked by Edward Snowden’s revelations about America’s National Security Agency and its British partner in global electronic eavesdropping, GCHQ. But by every account, the US is being repaid in kind by one of its closest...Deadly Middle East virus MERS officially hits the U.S.
WASHINGTON — The first U.S. patient to test positive for the often deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome virus will remain isolated at home after he is released from an Indiana hospital, officials said this week.The patient will remain in isolation until the Indiana State Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control...Muslim ‘Happy’ YouTube video goes viral, spawns negative reactions
Pharrell's "Happy" is currently the number one song in the country. Its video - featuring a bunch of happy people dancing and clapping in different locations around LA - is really easy to copy, so there are loads of tributes and parodies on YouTube.This week, a Muslim version of the music video has become a big viral hit....Criminal Court a U.S.-Israeli “red line” for Palestinians
UNITED NATIONS — When Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas decided to defy the United States and Israel over stalled peace negotiations, he formally indicated to the United Nations last week that Palestine will join 15 international conventions relating mostly to the protection of human rights and treaties governing conflicts and prisoners...UWindsor students put controversial Israel boycott on the back burner
The University of Windsor Student’s Association has delayed the ratification of a controversial Israel boycott, a move some say is capitulating to the administration.Earlier this month, the student body voted in favor of a proposal to join the growing Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement. The referendum — which calls on the...Russia stands strong against U.S. sanctions; places entry ban on American lawmakers and officals
MOSCOW- As the West imposes what have been called the most comprehensive sanctions on Russia since the end of the Cold War, many ordinary Russians say they have no fear of any economic measures the United States or the European Union may take against their country.Since the Russian invasion of the Crimean peninsula at the end of last...
World powers and Iran make ‘good start’ towards nuclear accord
February 21st, 20140 VIENNA — Six world powers and Iran made a "good start" in talks in Vienna towards reaching a final settlement in the decade-old stand-off over Tehran's nuclear program, although they conceded that their plan to get a deal in the coming months was very ambitious.By late July, Western governments hope to hammer out an accord that would...UN, Syrian government reach agreement over besieged Homs
DAMASCUS — The United Nations on Thursday, Feb 6, welcomed reports that an agreement had been reached to allow the evacuation of civilians from the besieged Syrian city of Homs and for aid to be delivered, a U.N. spokesman said.The United Nations made clear that it was not a party to the deal and while it was ready to send in aid, it...Yemenis protest to scrap ‘corrupt’ gas deals with foreign firms
SANAA — Several hundred protesting Yemeni youths demanded Thursday, Feb. 6, that the government scrap "corrupt" gas deals with foreign firms, including France's Total, which they claim are at vastly lower rates than market prices."Total out! Our gas is ours," chanted the demonstrators, who had gathered outside the Sanaa residence of...Opposition leader meets Russian FM, agree to continue Geneva 2 talks
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks with Syrian National Coalition (SNC) leader Ahmad Jarba on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Following the talks — which took place in Moscow and focused on the temporarily halted peace conference in Switzerland — Jarba confirmed to Russian media that the SNC will come to Geneva on February 10.The...Oxfam: 85 richest people as wealthy as half the world
The world’s 85 wealthiest people have as much money as the 3.5 billion poorest people on the planet – half the Earth’s population. That’s according to Oxfam’s latest report on the risks of the widening gap between the super-rich and the poor.The report, titled “Working for the Few,” was released Monday, and was compiled by...Major Dutch pension firm divests from Israeli banks over settlements
AMSTERDAM- A major pension fund manager based in the Netherlands said on Wednesday, Jan. 9, that it will divest from five Israeli banks over their dealings with Jewish settlements on occupied land.The decision by PGGM reflects tension between Israel and the European Union over doing business with Israeli institutions involved in...Iran sanctions bill: Big test of Israel lobby power
WASHINGTON - This week’s introduction by a bipartisan group of 26 senators of a new sanctions bill against Iran could result in the biggest test of the political clout of the Israel lobby here in decades.The White House, which says the bill could well derail ongoing negotiations between Iran and the U.S. and five other powers over......
Yemeni parliament votes against drone attacks
SANAA - Yemen's parliament on Sunday, Dec. 15, called for a stop to drone attacks in a symbolic vote that reflected growing public anxiety about Washington's use of the unmanned aircraft to combat al-Qaeda in the impoverished country.Motions passed by the Yemeni parliament are not binding and can be struck down by the president, and are...U.S. defense bill boosts funding for missile defense, Israeli efforts
Washington - A compromise defense bill proposed on Monday by U.S. lawmakers would boost spending on missile defense by $358 million to $9.5 billion, mandating an additional homeland defense radar and increasing funding for U.S.-Israeli cooperative efforts.Leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives Armed Services committees......
Nelson Mandela dies, world mourns loss of legend
December 6th, 20130 South African anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela died aged 95 at his Johannesburg home on Thursday after a prolonged lung infection, plunging his nation and the world into mourning for a man hailed by global leaders as a moral giant.Although Mandela had been frail and ailing for nearly a year, Zuma's announcement late on Thursday of the...
Poll: Americans overwhelmingly support Iran nuclear agreement
November 29th, 20130 Washington - Americans back a newly brokered nuclear deal with Iran by a 2-to-1 margin and are very wary of the United States resorting to military action against Tehran even if the historic diplomatic effort falls through, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Tuesday.The findings were rare good news in the polls for President Barack Obama,...
Iran, West struggle to reach agreement at Geneva nuclear talks
November 22nd, 20130 GENEVA - France and Iran traded tough words on Thursday, Nov. 21, as major powers struggled to finalize an interim deal to curb Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief, with Paris urging the West to hold firm and Tehran deploring a loss of trust.Each side appeared to be dampening down anticipation of an imminent...Grappling with troubled peace process, Kerry urges Israeli settlement limits
Israel-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Israel on Wednesday to limit settlement building in occupied territories to help push peace talks with the Palestinians back on track.Faced with grim Israeli and Palestinian assessments of progress in the talks, Kerry also appeared to slap down Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and......
Maliki visits Washington, faces criticism for sectarian violence from U.S. lawmakers
U.S. lawmakers had tough criticism for Iraq's government, after meeting with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Wednesday, saying they were open to meeting his request for military assistance only if Baghdad made significant changes.Maliki is on his first visit to Washington in two years, urgently seeking U.S. Apache attack helicopters and...Amnesty: U.S. drone strikes killed Pakistani grandmother, laborers
ISLAMABAD — U.S. drone strikes killed a Pakistani grandmother and 18 civilian laborers last year, Amnesty International said on Tuesday, Oct. 22, shedding new light on a major source of tension in U.S.-Pakistani relations.Islamabad publicly opposes drone attacks, saying they kill too many civilians in addition to their intended target......
HRW: U.S. missile attacks killed civilians in Yemen
SANAA — U.S. missile strikes, including armed drone attacks, have killed dozens of civilians in Yemen as the United States tries to crack down on al-Qaeda in the country, Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday, Oct. 22.Human Rights Watch detailed, in a 96-page report, what it said were six "unacknowledged" U.S. military attacks on targets...
Iran nuclear deal may have started in Geneva
October 18th, 20130 GENEVA - Talks between Iran and world powers known as the P5+1 over Iran’s nuclear program wrapped up here Wednesday with expressions of encouragement and hope, a commitment to reconvene in just three weeks, and several welcomed “firsts”. Officials remained determinedly mum Wednesday about the much sought-after details of the......