Eurasia

Syria has sent a list of proposals to Israel aimed at laying the groundwork for direct peace talks between the two foes, President Bashar al-Assad says.

Seven people were killed when a helicopter crashed into an oil rig off the coast of Dubai, officials say.

After further falls on Friday, the Russian stock market has plunged more than 30% since the country’s invasion of Georgia last month.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran voiced strong opposition against plans to lay pipelines on the seabed of the Caspian Sea, warning that the move would cause irreparable environmental pollution in the world’s biggest lake.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev received a visiting Iranian delegation led by the Deputy Foreign Minister Mehdi Safari on Thursday.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Turkmenistan seeks a price for the gas to be sold to India via TAPI pipeline three times higher than Iran’s price of gas via the Iran-Pakistani, India (IPI) pipeline.

MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) – At least five people were killed on Friday in a missile attack by a suspected U.S. drone in Pakistan’s North Waziristan region, in a stepped up campaign against militants near the Afghan border.

LISBON (Reuters) – Condoleezza Rice hailed as “historic” her trip to Libya later on Friday, the first by a U.S. secretary of state to the former pariah nation in 55 years and a visit aimed at erasing decades of enmity.

A third US naval ship has been delivering humanitarian aid to Georgia. However, unlike the two other American vessels, the USS Mount Whitney was offloading supplies at the Russian-patrolled port of Poti. Earlier US shipments steered clear of a potential showdown with the Russians by diverting to Batumi.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Oil prices closed modestly lower Wednesday as the market focused on demand amid a slowing global economy and signs that OPEC is under pressure to cut supply.