| Hard News
56 killed as Syria rebels clash with Kurds - activists:
At least 56 people have been killed in a week of fighting in northeast Syria between anti-government rebels and members of the long-oppressed Kurdish minority who have seized on the civil war to try to secure self-rule, activists said on Tuesday, January 22, according to Reuters.
Syria car bomb kills 30, separate blast rocks capital:
A suicide car bombing in central Syria killed at least 30 people, a watchdog said, also reporting a powerful blast in Damascus, as the Arab League said UN efforts to end the conflict had failed to bring even a "glimmer" of hope.
At least 23 regime forces killed in Syria's Homs: activists:
At least 23 soldiers and pro-regime militiamen have been killed, and dozens wounded, in three days of fierce clashes in the central city of Homs, a flashpoint in Syria's conflict, activists said Tuesday.
Syrian rebel politicians show scant progress:
Syria's main rebel group said yesterday that it had postponed a decision on forming a government-in-exile at its meeting in Istanbul. The organisation, which has so far found it almost impossible to agree on anything significant, said that it needs guarantees of support from dissident forces on the ground inside Syria.
Russia pulls a hundred citizens from Syria.:
Though the Kremlin said the move was 'absolutely not an evacuation,' some wonder if it preludes the withdrawal of the tens of thousands of Russians living in war-torn Syria.
Moscow not to evacuate nat''ls from Syria:
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov said here Tuesday his country has no plan to evacuate its nationals from Syria, which has been hit by unprecedented protests and unrest
Turkish Police Arrest Dozens of Anti-Patriot Protesters:
Turkish police have arrested 25 protesters on Monday who condemned the arrival of NATO's Patriot missiles to be deployed near the border with Syria after they tried to get through the barricades at Incirlik Air Force Anti-Patriot protestsBase in the city of Adana.
Turkish forces kill four Kurdish militants as clashes rage on:
The four Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas were killed in countryside in the Midyat district of Turkey's southeastern Mardin province, near the border with Syria, and fighting was ongoing, the officials said.
Spate of Iraq attacks kill 26:
Tuesday's bloodiest blasts struck an army checkpoint south of Baghdad, a military base north of the capital, and a mostly Shiite neighbourhood in the city's north, security and medical officials said.
Iran, Russia sign security agreement:
Iran and Russia have signed a joint security agreement today in Tehran, Mehr news agency reported. The agreement was signed by Iran's Intelligence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar and his Russian
counterpart Vladimir Kolokoltsev.
Obama regime kills dozens in Afghanistan:
Dozens of people have been killed in two successive US-led assassination drone strikes in eastern Afghanistan, Press TV reports. The deadly attacks took place in eastern Nuristan province late on Monday.
Obama regime kills another 8 people in Pakistan:
"US drones fired missiles on two militant compounds. At least eight militants have been killed,"
Drone attacks violation of international law, counter productive, says Hina :
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar Tuesday said drone attacks on Pakistani territory are violation of international laws and virtually proving counter productive.Speaking in Senate, she said the drone
attacks are against the independence and national security of the country
Pak should admit to its support for US drone attacks:
This is a clear case of expediency taking precedence over principle, it further said.
Afghan police killed in Kabul suicide attack:
At least two police officers were killed Monday when five gunmen armed with suicide vests and rocket-propelled grenades stormed the headquarters of the Kabul traffic police department, setting off a firefight that lasted more than eight hours, Afghan officials said.
Prince Harry's assertion that he killed Taliban in Afghan combat draws intense coverage in UK:.
Asked if he had killed from the cockpit, the third-in-line to the British throne said: "Yeah, so, lots of people have."
'Arrogant and insensitive': Stop the War Coalition attacks Prince Harry for admitting he has killed Taliban insurgents:
The Taliban have also condemened the third in line for the throne, calling him a 'coward'
Obama regime kills another 3 people in Yemen:
Three "suspected" Al-Qaeda militants were killed in a US drone strike on Tuesday north of the Yemeni capital, tribal sources and witnesses said.
Yemen minister blasts drone use:
A cabinet minister criticised on Tuesday the use of pilotless U.S. drones against suspected al Qaeda militants in Yemen, a tactic that has outraged communities in targeted areas, and urged a move to ground operations to avoid hurting civilians.
Britain says Israeli-Palestinian two-state solution almost dead;
Britain said on Tuesday prospects for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are almost dead because of expanding Jewish settlement in occupied territory, and warned Israel it was losing international support.
Suspected Islamist gunmen kill 18 in northeast Nigeria:
Suspected Islamist gunmen fired on residents of a market town in northeast Nigeria, killing 18 in one of their deadliest attacks for several weeks, a local government official said on Tuesday.
French retake key town in Mali:
"The operation in Diabaly is currently ongoing," said a French military spokesman. The town appeared to be back under control of Malian and French forces.
Is Qatar fuelling the crisis in north Mali?:
Oil-rich gulf state Qatar has a vested interest in the outcome of the north Mali crisis, according to various reports that have been picked up by French MPs, amid suspicion that Doha may be siding with the rebels to extend its regional influence.
Algerian PM: Canadian coordinated hostage-takers:
"A Canadian was among the militants. He was coordinating the attack," Sellal told a news conference, adding that the raiders had threatened to blow up the gas installation. The Canadian's name was given only as Chedad.
Algeria hostage-takers aided by Libyan Islamists:
Militants who seized an Algerian gas plant before they were killed in a bloodbath received logistical aid from Islamists in Libya, a well-informed source told AFP on Tuesday.
Terrorists 'may have carried' British arms:
Terrorists "squarely" responsible for the deaths of Britons in Algeria could have been carrying British weapons from neighbouring Libya, William Hague admitted yesterday.
Terror in North Africa: are Westerners pulling the strings?
English-speaking jihadis seen in Mali, as a Canadian is reported to have co-ordinated Algeria attack
Panetta: U.S. Assistance to French in Mali Could Serve as Model;
Panetta's comments came at the same time that the first American C-17 landed in Mali as part of a U.S. effort to assist France's military intervention in that country against al Qaeda affiliated insurgents.
House calls on Italian govt to give Mali air support;
The proposal calls for support over a two-month period and extendable to three. Italy's contribution would include aircraft to transport personnel and equipment.
Hollande has set alarming precedent for intervention: Op-Ed:
Although France became involved in Mali under the banner of anti-terrorism, it is not entirely accurate to say that Malian rebels are terrorists. The nature of the Mali issue is more akin to that of a civil
war among different political groups.
China's Buying A Fleet Of Russian Bombers Perfect For Taking On The US Navy:
The deal struck with Russia includes 36 aircraft: a batch of 12 followed by a second batch of 24 additional bombers.
The U.S. prepares for military action in Bolivia:
To carry out such operations without the formal permission of the host country, is an open challenge, demonstrating a disregard for the laws of Bolivia and its leadership. According to Vice-President Garcia, this is an «attack on the sovereignty of the country, and a preparation for a military attack on Bolivia.
Chavez Preparing Venezuela Return, Bolivia's Morales Says;
Bolivian President Evo Morales said cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez is preparing to return home, a day after Venezuela's foreign minister said the self- declared socialist joked and laughed during a meeting at his hospital bedside in Havana.
US commandos boost numbers to train Mexican forces;
The Pentagon is stepping up aid for Mexico's bloody drug war with a new U.S.-based special operations headquarters to teach Mexican security forces how to hunt drug cartels the same way special operations teams hunt al-Qaida, according to documents and interviews with multiple U.S. officials.
Mexico: victims' movement calls for US gun control:
On Jan. 14 Mexican poet and human rights activist Javier Sicilia and Mexican political scientist Sergio Aguayo Quezada brought the US embassy in Mexico City a letter signed by 54,558 people calling on US president Barack Obama and other officials to stop the flow of smuggled firearms from the US to Mexico.
Source: Multiple people shot at Texas college:
Campus officials confirm that the campus has been locked down, and students and staff are being evacuated.
Harvard professor looks for 'adventurous woman' who agrees to give birth to cloned Neanderthal:
Prehistoric men may soon be walking the earth again. One of the world's leading geneticists is in search of a female volunteer to give birth to a Neanderthal - a species that went extinct more than 33,000 years ago.
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"Let us be peace and joy"
Tom Feeley
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