| Hard News
10 dead on third day of suicide blasts:
Attacks north of Baghdad, including a third suicide blast in as many days, killed at least eight people on Tuesday, officials said, amid a spike in violence that has left almost 70 people dead in all.
Six killed, two held captive in northern Yemen sectarian clashes:
A sectarian dispute between the Shiite Houthi group and Salafis left six people dead in the northern province of Sa'ada, a province that has experienced sporadic fighting since 2011.
Nobel peace prize winner predicts political collapse in Yemen:
Yemeni Nobel peace laureate Tawakkul Karman warned in an interview with AFP that her country's transition process is on the brink of collapse and demanded ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh be banned from politics.
Turkey says Syrian opposition should not be pressured into talks with Assad regime:
Turkey on Sunday pledged its continued support for the Syrian opposition, saying its leaders should not be pressured into talks with the regime as civil war rages.
Clinton: Syrian rebels getting 'messages' from Pakistan region known as Qaeda haven:
What do these fighters, who now have fighting experience and possibly even a line to al-Qaeda's central command, do once the civil war ends?
Aleppo bishop speaks out against Christian kidnappings:
The bishop of the war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo on Monday urged the international community to pay greater attention to the fate of Syria's Christian minority, saying they were being terrorised by a spate of kidnappings for money.
Mossad vs Assad: 'Syrian rebels ally of Israel intelligence' : Video report:
President Bashar al Assad says Syria can take-on any force that confronts it, while accusing Israel of trying to destabilize the country.
Israel deploys missile defence system near Syria:
Israel has deployed a third Iron Dome missile defence battery to the north of the country a few days after carrying out an air strike inside neighbouring Syria, Israeli media says.
Netanyahu: Hezbollah planning 'global terror attacks':
World leaders should declare Hezbollah a terrorist entity, Israel's leader has said, hours after Bulgaria blamed the Lebanese group for a deadly bus bomb.
Iran boosts export muscle with new oil tankers:
Iran has taken delivery of several new tankers from Chinese shipyards, giving it greater flexibility in maintaining oil exports in the face of Western sanctions.
Ahmadinejad attacked with shoe in Cairo [VIDEO]:
Someone threw a shoe at Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad during his visit to Cairo.
Syrian arrested after Ahmadinejad shoe-attack in Cairo:
The attacker, who attempted to hit President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as he left a mosque, is reported to be a young man with "a Syrian accent". Egyptian security forces managed to seize and arrest the man following the incident.
Mali conflict: Chad army 'enters Kidal':
Some 1,800 soldiers from Chad have entered Kidal, the last major town in northern Mali under rebel control, the French military says.
Libyan new rulers fear second revolution against 'revolution':
New rulers are under attack for lack of reforms, face protests on February 15 being touted by some as 'second revolution'.
Restaurant bombing kills 5 in northern Afghanistan:
The former commander, Mohammad Nadir, was among seven people wounded in the blast in the upscale district of Khwaja Sabz Poshi Wali, Batash said, adding that two suspects had been arrested.
US Occupation Forces Kill 2 Afghan women:
According to local authorities in western Herat province of Afghanistan, at least two women were killed and three children were injured following a military operation by US special forces in this province.
'Pak could shoot down US drones if it wanted to':
The Pakistani government continues to clear the air space whenever the United States asks them to do so for their drone strikes, Micah Zenko, Douglas Dillon Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations -- a Washington-based think-tank -- told reporters on Monday during a conference call ahead of the Congress
'CIA used ISI's detention centres in Pak during war on terror':
Detention facilities in Pakistan in which detainees were held at the behest of the CIA include the ISI detention facility in Karachi, which was allegedly used as an initial detention and interrogation point before detainees were transferred to other prisons.
Bangladesh politician jailed for war crimes;
A Bangladesh war-crimes tribunal has sentenced a senior leader of the country's biggest Islamist party to life in prison, the second verdict in trials that have reopened wounds about the country's independence war and sparked riots.
Justice Department White Paper Details Rationale for Targeted Killing of Americans:
Document Outlines Government's Claimed Authority to Kill American Citizens Outside Combat Zones
Cyberstrikes : US draws up battle plan :
Pre-emptive strikes will be launched under secret guidelines to protect computer systems
Report: U.S. Muslim Terrorism Was Practically Nil in 2012:
"Until public opinion starts to recognize the scale of the problem has been lower than we feared, my sense is that public officials are not going to change their policies,"
Two killed, four injured in Ecuador pro-government rally:
Two supporters of Ecuador's president Rafael Correa were killed on Monday and four more suffered stab wounds during a campaign rally almost two weeks before a presidential election that the leftist leader is expected to win comfortably.
Falklands 'will be under our control in 20 years', says Argentine foreign minister:
Argentina will wrest control of the Faklland Islands within 20 years, according the country's foreign minister who used a meeting with MPs on Tuesday to compare the British claim to Israel's occupation of the West bank.
Hand of U.S. Is Seen in Halting General's Rise in Mexico:
That back-channel communication provides a rare glimpse into the United States government's deep involvement in Mexican security affairs - especially as Washington sizes up Mr. Peña Nieto, who is just two months into a six-year term.
U.S. Sues S&P Over Ratings:
The civil charges by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder against the New York company, one of the bond-rating industry's three giants, are the first federal enforcement action against a credit-rating firm over the crisis. Several state attorneys general are likely to join.
UBS reports $2.8 billion loss:
Swiss banking giant UBS on Tuesday reported a massive fourth-quarter loss and announced it is capping its largest bonuses to bankers after a difficult year in which it settled charges of manipulating interest rates.
Fake Food found In The Grocery Aisle:
A new scientific examination by the non-profit food fraud detectives the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), discovered rising numbers of fake ingredients in products from olive oil to spices to fruit juice.
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"Let us be peace and joy"
Tom Feeley
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