AFP: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya were all attending the opening ceremony of the Asian Games on Friday.
Ahmadinejad, Assad and Hamas PM attend Games opening
Iran cleric says ‘trapped’ US forces have no choice but to quit Iraq
AFP: The United States has no choice but to pull its “trapped” forces out of Iraq, Iran’s official IRNA agency quoted top cleric Ahmad Khatami as saying during Friday prayers.
Europeans narrow scope of Iran UN sanctions draft
Reuters: New European proposals for U.N. sanctions on Iran’s nuclear program, aimed at meeting objections from Russia, would ease restrictions to be imposed on goods and technology Iran could buy and sell, diplomats said.
Security of Congo’s uranium worrying–diplomats
Reuters: Countries suspsected of seeking nuclear arms may have exploited lax security in the Democratic Republic of Congo to get their hands on uranium from the giant central African state, diplomatic and intelligence sources say.
Iran’s ‘Hercules’ cleared to compete in Doha
Reuters: Twice Olympic champion Hossein Rezazadeh is clear to compete at the 15th Asian Games after Iran’s weightlifting federation agreed to pay a $400,000 fine imposed for doping violations.
UN sanctions on Iran scaled back, European envoy says
Bloomberg: Britain, France and Germany scaled back proposed limits on Iran’s ability to acquire materials and technology for its nuclear program to gain Russian support for United Nations sanctions, a European diplomat said.
Dissent weakens coalition pressing Iran on nuclear program
New York Times: After months of missed deadlines, threats and counterproposals in the effort to rein in Irans nuclear ambitions, the fragile coalition of six world powers that has been facing down Tehran may be about to splinter.
Surprise: Oil woes In Iran
Businessweek Online : Few countries can match Iran in its ability to generate angst among Westerners. It appears determined to become a nuclear power. Tehran’s Islamic leaders aid radical groups across the Middle East. And as the U.S. gets bogged down in Iraq, Iran’s influence in the region is on the rise, fueled in large part by its vast energy wealth.
China near deal to develop huge Iran oilfield
Reuters: China’s Sinopec Group is near to clinching one of its biggest overseas deals, to develop Iran’s giant Yadavaran oilfield, a top Chinese industry official said on Wednesday.
Stepping into Iraq
Washington Post: In February 2003, a month before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, the Saudi foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, warned President Bush that he would be “solving one problem and creating five more” if he removed Saddam Hussein by force. Had Bush heeded his advice, Iraq would not now be on the brink of full-blown civil war and disintegration.
