Middle East News Headlines - Yahoo! News CA

A win for Canada at the UN; country keeps its only United Nations agency

Fri, 24 May 2013 17:35:23 -0400

MONTREAL - The spirits of Canadian politicians were soaring Friday with news that the country's only UN agency, the International Civil Aviation Organization, will not be flying the coop.

Dog taken amid allegations of abuse reunited with family

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:39:18 -0400

A dog that went missing in Saint John earlier this week amidst online allegations of abuse and neglect has been reunited with its owners.

Lobbying saved Montreal's UN aviation agency, Paradis says

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:22:39 -0400

Qatar's decision to drop its bid to bring the International Civil Aviation Organization's headquarters to Doha from Montreal was the result of hard work and intense lobbying on the part of three levels of government, federal Industry Minister Christian Paradis said Friday.

The Bachelorette: Meet 5 Of Desiree's Men

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:59:59 -0400

Desiree Hartsock's season of "The Bachelorette" premieres on ABC on Monday night and AccessHollywood.com's Laura Saltman got to know five of the men vying for the single lady's heart.

Taliban attack int'l compound in Afghan capital, killing 2 guards and wounding 4 aid workers

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:30:47 -0400

KABUL - In the latest militant strike on the Afghan capital, Taliban gunmen backed by a suicide car bomber attacked an international aid group's compound on Friday, killing two guards and setting off an hours-long street battle with police in the heart of Kabul .

Guest lineups for the Sunday news shows

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:00:57 -0400

WASHINGTON - Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows:

Obama wants to end 'war on terror' but Congress balks

Fri, 24 May 2013 14:34:25 -0400

By Patricia Zengerle and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama wants to roll back some of the most controversial aspects of the U.S. "war on terror," but efforts to alter the global fight against Islamist militants will face the usual hurdle at home: staunch opposition from Republicans in Congress. In a major policy speech on Thursday, Obama narrowed the scope of the targeted-killing drone campaign against al Qaeda and its allies and announced steps toward closing the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba. He acknowledged the past use of "torture" in U.S. ...

Q&A: Questions and answers about restrictions proposed on alcohol sales and ads in Turkey

Fri, 24 May 2013 11:17:59 -0400

ANKARA, Turkey - A look at legislation passed in Turkey's parliament early Friday that would ban all alcohol advertising and tighten restrictions on the sale of such beverages, and how such a law could affect tourists and liquor companies in the mainly Muslim but secular country.

Lisa LaFlamme joins Journalists for Human Rights as Expert Media Mentor in DR Congo

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:45:00 -0400

Top Canadian journalist and news anchor to mentor local reporters on gender-related security issues, investigative skills and human rights reporting TORONTO , May 24, 2013 /CNW/ - Lisa LaFlamme, CTV News' ...

Switzerland's top tax negotiator steps down as showdown with US looms

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:46:41 -0400

GENEVA - Switzerland's top negotiator in talks to resolve disputes over tax evasion with Europe and the U.S. is stepping down.

The most popular country in the world: revealed

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:01:04 -0400

Europe's largest economy, Germany, which has been criticized for not doing enough to help struggling euro zone countries, has topped a poll as the world's most popular country.

Kerry says Iranian election manoeuvring stands in the way of real democracy

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:47:58 -0400

TEL AVIV, Israel - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry harshly criticized Iranian authorities on Friday for eliminating hundreds of presidential candidates, suggesting that Tehran is standing in the way of legitimate, representative democracy.

Kerry says focus should be on peace talks, not settlements, but seeks Israeli restraint

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:08:01 -0400

TEL AVIV, Israel - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Israel's government on Friday to prevent further settlement construction where possible to help revitalize Middle East peace hopes, but stressed that the Jewish state and Palestinians alike should remain focused on the larger goal of restarting direct negotiations.

US official praises India for supporting sanctions against Iran by reducing oil imports

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:42:02 -0400

NEW DELHI - A senior American official on Friday praised India for reducing oil imports from Iran and said the U.S. government will decide soon on New Delhi's request to renew a waiver from sanctions on ...

Extremists claim responsibility for twin suicide attacks in Niger; 26 dead, soldiers hostage

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:18:18 -0400

NIAMEY, Niger - Suicide bombers in Niger detonated two car bombs simultaneously, one inside a military camp in the city of Agadez and another in the remote town of Arlit at a French-operated uranium mine, killing 26 people and injuring 30, according to officials in Niger and France. A surviving attacker took a group of soldiers hostage, and authorities were attempting to negotiate their release.

Obama defends drones but seeks to move US beyond war years, outlining narrower terror threat

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:19:51 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama sought to move the U.S. beyond the war effort of the past dozen years, defining a narrower terror threat from smaller networks and homegrown extremists rather than the grandiose plots of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida.

Muslim hard-liners ID suspect seen in video after British soldier killed in London

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:59:24 -0400

LONDON - A man seen with bloody hands wielding a butcher knife after the killing of a British soldier on the streets of London was described as a convert to Islam who took part in demonstrations with a banned radical group, two Muslim hard-liners said Thursday.

Film Review: 'We Steal Secrets' is a juicy look at the WikiLeaks story

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:32:53 -0400

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Prolific documentary-maker Alex Gibney delivers a gripping account of the wins and losses of hard-charging idealism on the front lines of the information wars in "We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks." Exhaustively researched and balanced in its view of the controversial key player, the film slips in ahead of DreamWorks' dramatic take on the exploits of Julian Assange, "The Fifth Estate," which is currently shooting.

Obama shifts US from 'perpetual war-footing,' limits drone strikes

Thu, 23 May 2013 19:38:32 -0400

By Matt Spetalnick and Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Thursday shifted the United States away from a "boundless global war on terror," restricting deadly drone strikes abroad and signaling that America's long struggle against al Qaeda will one day end. In a major policy speech, Obama narrowed the scope of the U.S. targeted-killing campaign against al Qaeda and its allies and took new steps toward closing the Guantanamo Bay military prison - controversial elements of the U.S. counterterrorism fight that have drawn condemnation at home and abroad. ...

Palestinian-Israeli conflict a key part of 'Omar,' but director says romance at forefront

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:27:37 -0400

CANNES, France - One of the more buzzed-about films at the Cannes Film Festival, "Omar," is set in the West Bank, and the Palestinian conflict is a key part of the plot.

Obama says he will consider ways of increasing oversight of drone operations beyond war zones

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:35:26 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says his administration is willing to consider accepting increased oversight of lethal drone strikes outside of war zones like Afghanistan.

Retail Council of Canada Inducts John Williams and John Torella into Canadian Retail Hall of Fame

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:06:00 -0400

TORONTO , May 23, 2013 /CNW/ - Retail Council of Canada (RCC) is pleased to announce that John Williams , founder and senior partner at the J.C. Williams Group, and John Torella , senior partner at the ...

Convicted Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof bringing banned movie to Cannes

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:16:42 -0400

CANNES, France - Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, whose movies are banned in his country and who has been sentenced to jail by the Islamic regime there, is coming to Cannes for a screening of his latest film, publicists for the movie said Thursday.

In Jerusalem, Kerry and Netanyahu raise hopes for possible Mideast peace talks restart

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:12:44 -0400

JERUSALEM - The United States and Israel raised hopes Thursday for a restart of the Middle East peace process, despite little tangible progress so far from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's two-month-old effort to get Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.

Glencore says Iran metals swap deals did not violate sanctions

Thu, 23 May 2013 12:50:27 -0400

Swiss-based commodities giant Glencore Xstrata said on Thursday that it had done nothing wrong when it engaged in metal swaps with Iran, rejecting a suggestion by U.N. experts that such bartering could ...

British police arrest two more over London attack

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:13:19 -0400

By Guy Faulconbridge and Michael Holden LONDON (Reuters) - British police arrested two more people on Thursday in a hunt for accomplices of two British men of Nigerian descent accused of hacking a soldier to death on a London street in revenge for wars in Muslim countries. The two suspected killers, now under guard in hospitals, had been known to security services before Wednesday's daylight attack, security sources said. Another man and a woman, both aged 29, were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to murder. ...

British Prime Minister seeks answers after soldier hacked to death

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:43:32 -0400

By Maria Golovnina and Guy Faulconbridge LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron convened an emergency meeting of his intelligence chiefs on Thursday after two Islamists hacked a soldier to death with meat cleavers on a south London street. A dramatic clip filmed by an onlooker just minutes after Wednesday's killing showed a man with hands covered in blood shouting Islamic slogans and promising revenge on Britain for its participation in wars in the Muslim world. "We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you. ...

Man killed in Fla. by FBI shares similar background to deceased Boston bombing suspect

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:42:14 -0400

ORLANDO, Fla. - A Chechen immigrant shot to death in central Florida after an altercation with an FBI agent had several ties to that of one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects who authorities were questioning him about at the time.

Brave woman tried to calm London attackers and reasoned with them before police came

Thu, 23 May 2013 07:57:38 -0400

LONDON - A brave scout leader who may have prevented further violence has emerged as an unlikely hero in the apparent terror attack that left one man dead on the streets of London.

Man shot to death in Fla. while being questioned in Boston Marathon bombing investigation

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:23:52 -0400

ORLANDO, Fla. - A Chechen immigrant was shot to death by authorities early Wednesday after he turned violent while being questioned about his ties to one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects, officials said.

CA-NEWS Summary

Sat, 25 May 2013 01:36:15 -0400

UK fighters escort Pakistan plane to airport, two arrests LONDON (Reuters) - British fighter jets escorted a Pakistan International Airlines passenger plane to Stansted Airport near London on Friday, where police went on board and arrested two men on suspicion of endangering an aircraft. Passengers were leaving the plane and no one was hurt in the incident, a spokesman for the airport said. ...

In Syria's shadow, Iraq violence presents new test for U.S.

Sat, 25 May 2013 01:05:14 -0400

By Warren Strobel WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saddled with Middle East problems ranging from Iran to Syria and beyond, President Barack Obama now faces one that is both old and new: Iraq. Unresolved sectarian tensions, inflamed by the raging civil war in neighboring Syria, have combined to send violence in Iraq to its highest level since Obama withdrew the last U.S. troops in December 2011, U.S. officials and Middle East analysts say. A Sunni Muslim insurgency against the Shi'ite-led Baghdad government has also been reawakened. ...

Delta strengthens its hand in battle for NY travel market with $1.4 billion JFK terminal

Fri, 24 May 2013 19:13:00 -0400

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Delta's formula for winning over New York travellers is simple: floor-to-ceiling windows, abundant power outlets and a burger joint with a cult-like following.

WHO to help Saudi Arabia's coronavirus investigation before hajj

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:04:38 -0400

The World Health Organization plans to help Saudi Arabia dig deeper into deadly outbreaks of a new coronavirus to draw up advice ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage, which attracts millions of Muslims.

Swedish capital rocked by 5th night of riots

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:18:42 -0400

Stockholm suburbs suffer a fifth straight night of unrest as rioters burn two schools and 15 cars, and try to damage a police station.

RCMP moving to freeze assets in widening SNC-Lavalin probe

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:44:12 -0400

The RCMP is moving to freeze millions of dollars in bank accounts and real estate holdings in Montreal and Florida as part of its expanding probe into Canadian engineering firm SNC-Lavalin.