| Kerry: US and Karzai agree on language for pact Posted: 20 Nov 2013 03:40 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday that the U.S. and Afghanistan have agreed on the language of a bilateral security pact that could clear the way for thousands of U.S. troops to train and assist Afghan forces after the NATO combat mission ends in 2014.
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| Defiant Toronto mayor still in 'Desert Storm mode' Posted: 20 Nov 2013 02:31 PM PST  Toronto's disgraced mayor is in "Desert Storm mode" and will fight to regain the powers stripped from him after he admitted smoking crack and binge drinking, his deputy said Wednesday. Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly, who assumed most of Mayor Rob Ford's powers after a vote of the City Council on Monday, told the Toronto Star that he would like to come to terms with his colleague. But he added: "I said I reached my hand out to him, but he seems to still be in a Desert Storm mode."
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| Analysis - Beirut blast: jolt from past and omen of dark future Posted: 20 Nov 2013 01:38 PM PST  By Dominic Evans BEIRUT (Reuters) - Thirty years after the Lebanese capital gave birth to the modern suicide bomber, a killer has again driven his explosive-packed car towards an embassy in Beirut, hurling charred corpses through the street. Many Lebanese say they now believe their country is doomed to become the next battlefield for Sunni jihadists, looking for soft targets to inflict blows on the Shi'ite supporters of neighboring Syria's President Bashar al-Assad. Lebanon has already been caught in the blowback from the 2 1/2-year-old civil war in Syria, with scores killed in clashes between Shi'ite Muslim supporters of Assad and their Sunni foes. It resurrected the tactics born in a previous generation's Lebanon war, which are now the signature of neighboring states' bloodbaths.
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| 1 year down: American walking from Africa to Chile Posted: 20 Nov 2013 01:24 PM PST  NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — In Paul Salopek's first year of his trek across the globe, the reporter walked alongside his camels for days in Ethiopia without seeing glass or bricks or any other signs of modern humanity, ate a hamburger on a U.S. military base and was shadowed by minders in the Saudi desert. He has only 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) to go.
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| Lebanon blasts expose Iran and Qaeda face-off over Syria Posted: 20 Nov 2013 01:24 PM PST  Twin bombings against Iran's embassy in Hezbollah's Beirut stronghold point to a confrontation between Tehran and Al-Qaeda in Lebanon, which is paying a heavy price for the Syrian war, analysts said. "It is a direct confrontation between Al-Qaeda on one side, and all those who back the Syrian regime and Iran on the other," said Hilal al-Khashan, a political science professor at the American University of Beirut. "The two blasts are a direct message to Iran that says: 'You are the origin of the problem in Syria, we will face you directly, not by proxy.'"
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| Israel needs to seek allies other than US: FM Posted: 20 Nov 2013 12:24 PM PST  Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Wednesday that Israel needs to seek partners other than Washington, ratcheting up tensions with its closest ally as Iran nuclear talks come to a head. The hawkish, blunt-talking chief diplomat, who returned to office earlier this month after seeing off graft charges, spoke as major powers, including the United States, sought to seal a deal with Iran on its controversial nuclear programme. "The link between Israel and its main strategic partner the United States has weakened," Lieberman said. The Americans have got too may challenges -- North Korea, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, and they've got their own domestic economic problems.
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| Baghdad bears brunt as Iraq attacks kill 49 Posted: 20 Nov 2013 11:35 AM PST  A wave of attacks, most of them car bombs targeting Shiite neighbourhoods of Baghdad, killed 49 people on Wednesday in the latest bout of deadly violence to hit Iraq. The bombings and shootings, which also wounded more than 100 people, came amid a protracted surge in bloodletting just months ahead of a general election that has forced Iraqi officials to appeal for international help in combating the country's deadliest unrest since 2008. At least eight explosions, including seven car bombs, went off mostly against Shiite Muslim neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital, killing 36 people and wounding nearly 100, security and medical officials said. Wednesday's attacks struck in areas ranging from the city's main commercial district of Karrada to the predominantly Shiite neighbourhood of Shaab, as well as Sadriyah, one of Baghdad's oldest districts.
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| Suicide bombs hit Syrian troops north of Damascus Posted: 20 Nov 2013 11:29 AM PST  BEIRUT (AP) — Suicide bombers targeted Syrian troops and a hospital on Wednesday in the rugged Qalamoun hills north of Damascus, where rebels are struggling to reverse government gains that threaten to cut one of their chief supply lines, activists and officials said.
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| Israel tests short range missile defence system Posted: 20 Nov 2013 11:27 AM PST  The defence agencies of both states "completed a successful intercept test of the David's Sling Weapon System against a short-range ballistic missile today," it said in a statement. A year ago the David's Sling interceptor was successfully tested, according to the statement. The first test took place in November 2012, days after a truce brought an end to eight days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza during which over 1,000 rockets, much of them Grads, were fired at the Jewish state. Many of the rockets were intercepted by the Iron Dome short-range defence system.
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| Exclusive: FBI Video Shows Al Qaeda in Kentucky Handling Heavy Weapons Posted: 20 Nov 2013 11:02 AM PST  An al Qaeda-linked terrorist, who was resettled in the U.S. as an Iraq War refugee after allegedly killing American soldiers, was caught on camera in Kentucky handling heavy weapons that the FBI said he believed would be sent to insurgents back in Iraq. The 2010...
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| Suicide bombers hit Syria troops near Lebanon Posted: 20 Nov 2013 10:18 AM PST  Four suicide car bombs struck Syrian regime targets Wednesday in the Qalamoun region near Lebanon, killing at least seven soldiers, a monitor and state news agency SANA said. The attacks come a day after troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad made gains in the Qalamoun area north of Damascus. The attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Al-Nusra Front, two Al-Qaeda-affiliated groups, came after rebels were driven out of nearby Qara village on Tuesday, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
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| Flooding in central, southern Iraq kills 11 Posted: 20 Nov 2013 10:07 AM PST  Flooding in central and southern Iraq killed at least 11 people as rising waters swamped city streets and toppled buildings, sparking anger over the dilapidated sewage system, officials said Wednesday. Three days of driving rain led to flooding in the capital, as well as major cities in the south, including Nasiriyah, Diwaniyah and Hilla, sparking protests among residents angry over poor public services. "What is happening is because of the government," said Ali Hussein, a protester in Nasiriyah. Six people died in building collapses caused by flooding in Nasiriyah, while two women and a child were killed in similar circumstances in Diwaniyah.
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| The Abdullah Azzam Brigades: Behind the Terror Group That Bombed Iran’s Beirut Embassy Posted: 20 Nov 2013 10:03 AM PST The al-Qaeda-linked Abdullah Azzam Brigades took responsibility for Tuesday's suicide bomb attack on the Iranian embassy in Lebanon, raising fears that the Lebanese-based Sunni group may unleash a new spate of religious conflict in a country that is still recovering from its own sectarian civil war. The attack is but the latest spectacle brought about by a loosely-aligned terror group with branches in Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Formed in 2004 as an offshoot of al-Qaeda in Iraq, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades initially set out to attack Western interests in the Middle East and the Levant. The organization's mandate has since expanded, calling for the overthrow of the Saudi Monarchy and a Sunni uprising in multi-ethnic Lebanon. |
| Bombs kill 23 in Baghdad Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:55 AM PST  Seven bombs exploded across Baghdad on Wednesday, killing 23 people and wounding scores, police and medical sources said, part of the worst wave of violence to hit Iraq in at least five years. The Shi'ite-led government has blamed Sunni Muslim insurgents linked to al-Qaeda for the increased bomb attacks, which have mainly targeted Shi'ite civilians.
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| US panel: China navy power growing in the Pacific Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:53 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — A congressional advisory panel sounded a warning Wednesday about China's military buildup, predicting Beijing could possess the largest fleet of modern submarine and combatant ships in the western Pacific by 2020. |
| Marco Rubio calls for 'a new vision for America's role abroad' Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:44 AM PST  Rubio calls for a "strategic" and aggressive role for the U.S. abroad
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| Rubio pushing for diplomacy and foreign aid Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:35 AM PST  MIAMI (AP) — GOP Sen. Marco Rubio is trying to separate himself from a growing isolationist wing of the Republican Party by pushing to make "decisive" diplomacy and foreign aid, rather than military power, the pillars of American foreign policy.
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| Wave of attacks in Iraqi capital kills at least 35 Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:28 AM PST  BAGHDAD (AP) — A wave of bombings hit mainly Shiite commercial areas in and outside Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 35 people, Iraqi officials said.
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| Hezbollah calls for calm after Iranian embassy bombing Posted: 20 Nov 2013 09:21 AM PST  By Stephen Kalin BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Hezbollah leader appealed for calm on Wednesday and an easing of sectarian tensions in Lebanon, a day after twin suicide bombings struck the Iranian embassy in Beirut. "The solution to this confrontation begins politically," the Shi'ite Muslim group's deputy leader, Sheikh Naim Qassem, said on Lebanese radio, calling for unity. The remarks by Qassem, the most senior Hezbollah official to speak publicly about Tuesday's bombings, suggested a restrained response from Hezbollah, which is funded by Iran and has sent fighters to Syria to support President Bashar al-Assad. Hezbollah's military role in Syria has helped to inflame sectarian tension there and in Lebanon.
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| Sentence cut for Bosnian who attacked US embassy Posted: 20 Nov 2013 08:58 AM PST SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — A Bosnian court on Wednesday reduced the 18-year-prison sentence of a man who shot at the U.S. Embassy in Sarajevo to 15 years, saying it believed he regrets the crime. |
| Suicide attack stems Assad advance near Syria-Lebanon border Posted: 20 Nov 2013 08:15 AM PST  Two suicide bombers from al Qaeda-linked groups blew themselves up at an army post in the Syrian town of al-Nabak on Wednesday, halting an advance by President Bashar al-Assad's forces near the Syrian-Lebanese border, activists said. The battles raging around the Qalamoun range spanning Syria and Lebanon are part of a much-anticipated offensive by Assad's forces to secure a highway linking Damascus to the province of Homs and thus consolidate their grip on central Syria. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said suicide bombers attacked the army checkpoint in explosive-laden cars, killing and wounding several soldiers, but gave no precise toll.
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| 'Comfortable' Bush happy to let history judge Posted: 20 Nov 2013 07:56 AM PST  Nearly five years after he left the White House for good, George W. Bush says he has no problem with history taking its time to judge the impact of his presidency. "I really don't miss the spotlight," said Bush, 67, on Jay Leno's late-night talk show Tuesday on NBC television.
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| In Qatar desert, Syrian opposition mourns fallen commander Posted: 20 Nov 2013 07:49 AM PST By Amena Bakr UMM AL-AMAD, Qatar (Reuters) - On a patch of desert far from Syria, dozens of men gathered under a white tent to commemorate Abdelqader Saleh, a renowned Syrian rebel commander who died this week from wounds after an air strike in Aleppo. The mourners, who included senior Syrian opposition members and relatives of Saleh, assembled on Tuesday evening in the empty expanses of Qatar, 20 km (13 miles) from the skyscraper-dotted skyline of the gas-exporting Gulf Arab state. Qatar has long armed and supplied Saleh's Islamist al-Tawhid brigades, one of the largest rebel units operating in the sprawling northern city of Aleppo and the surrounding region. Tawhid fighters, mostly from the countryside, led an assault on Aleppo in July 2012, capturing about half the city before a fightback by Assad's forces backed by intensive air strikes ushered in a bloody stalemate which still endures. |
| Suicide bombs hit Syria troops north of Damascus Posted: 20 Nov 2013 04:53 AM PST  BEIRUT (AP) — Suicide bombers targeted Syrian troops and a hospital on Wednesday in the rugged Qalamoun hills north of Damascus, where rebels are struggling to reverse government gains that threaten to cut one of their chief supply lines, activists and officials said.
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| Why the left is terrified of a Hillary Clinton coronation Posted: 20 Nov 2013 03:25 AM PST  Nearly every poll about the 2016 presidential race shows Hillary Clinton scooping up about two of out every three Democratic primary voters and leading every possible Republican contender. As a mainstream left-of-center Democrat, she would extend Obama's policy legacy, and in turn, help facilitate a generational ideological shift. At the same time, the bitter 2008 primary allows her to avoid being perceived as an Obama clone, so she can distance herself from any unpopular aspect of Obama's tenure. No matter what conservatives claim about Benghazi, Hillary Clinton is beyond vetted.
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| Wave of attacks in Iraqi capital kills at least 29 Posted: 20 Nov 2013 03:18 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — A wave of bombings hit mainly Shiite and busy commercial areas in and outside Baghdad on Wednesday morning, killing at least 29 people and wounding 104, Iraqi officials said. |
| Israel's new missile defense system passes test Posted: 20 Nov 2013 03:14 AM PST JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel successfully tested its newest missile defense system on Wednesday, a key step toward making the third and final leg of the country's three-part defense system operational by next year, the defense ministry said. |
| Flight of Iraq Christians resumes amid surge in unrest Posted: 20 Nov 2013 02:52 AM PST  Awshalim Benjamin is desperate to leave Iraq, where a sack of faded photographs is all that remains of the happy life he and his ancient, dwindling Christian community once knew. The 74-year-old waits by the phone for the call that will tell him he can finally depart Baghdad to join his family in the United States -- and leave behind a 2,000-year-old community that has shrunk by more than half since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. The patriarch of the Iraq-based Chaldean church, due to join other Middle Eastern Christian leaders at a meeting with Pope Francis this week, has urged Christians to stay and spoken out against Western countries offering visas to the rapidly shrinking minority.
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| U.S.-Arab strains hand Russia chance to regain some Mideast clout Posted: 20 Nov 2013 12:17 AM PST  By William Maclean and Michael Georgy DUBAI/CAIRO (Reuters) - Unfamiliar strains between Washington and its Arab allies have given Russia an opportunity to regain some lost influence in the Middle East, capture arms sales from U.S. competitors and enjoy the unusual spectacle of its old rival looking puny. No one expects Moscow to challenge the United States as the dominant security guarantor in the Gulf. Nor will Washington cede its place as the main outside player in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, Iran's nuclear dispute or other regional issues. Arabs feel the balance of world power is changing, and perceptions of U.S. weakness as it withdraws from Iraq and Afghanistan mean Gulf Arabs in particular are hedging their bets.
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| Wave of attacks in Iraqi capital kills at least 24 Posted: 20 Nov 2013 12:15 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — A wave of attacks, mostly by car bombs, hit mainly Shiite and commercial areas of Baghdad on Wednesday morning, killing at least 24 people and wounding 87, Iraqi officials said. |
| Wave of attacks in Iraqi capital kills at least 21 Posted: 19 Nov 2013 11:43 PM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say a wave of attacks has hit commercial areas in Baghdad, killing at least 21 people and wounding 72 in mostly Shiite areas. |
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