Middle Orient

TEHRAN (AFP) — Iran said Sunday it would not return to a full freeze of its disputed nuclear activities, but nevertheless voiced confidence it would not face referral to the UN Security Council. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has called on Iran to halt uranium conversion work at its …

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s landmark constitution seemed assured of passage after initial results Sunday showed that a strong push by Sunni Arabs to veto fell short. Adoption would cross a major hurdle in the attempt to establish a democratic government and could pave the way to an eventual pullout of …

TEHRAN (AP) — Tehran launched a double-barrelled diplomatic assault on Britain and America on Sunday, accusing London of possible involvement in weekend bombings that killed five people and charging that Washington was bent on hauling Iran before the UN Security Council over its nuclear programme. Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi …

Iran considers itself to be the “main winner” of the US-led invasion of Iraq and the toppling of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, with the forthcoming Iraqi constitutional referendum likely to reinforce this sentiment, officials said. The Islamic republic appears happy to keep a low profile ahead of Saturday’s vote …

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will lobby Russia to pressure Iran over its suspected nuclear arms programmes at talks in Moscow on Saturday, U.S. officials said. The former Soviet specialist will squeeze a Russian leg into a previously scheduled trip to France and Britain that focuses on shoring up …

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. Bush sought Thursday to revive waning public support for the war in Iraq, accusing militants of seeking to establish a “radical Islamic empire that spans from Spain to Indonesia” with Iraq serving as the main front. Radicals are being sheltered by “allies of convenience like Syria and …

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — The US military said on Sunday it had no reason to believe a militant group’s claim to have seized two Marines during fighting in Iraq, but said it was doing an inventory of personnel all the same. “There are no indications that Al Qaeda claims of having …

BEIRUT (Reuters) — A UN team investigating the killing of Lebanon’s former prime minister, Rafiq Hariri, will ask for an extension of its mandate until mid-December, the Lebanese prime minister said on Sunday. A UN team led by German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis is due to report to the Security Council …

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel suspended an offensive against fighters in the Gaza Strip, including targeted killings, as clashes between Hamas gunmen and Palestinian police trying to enforce an arms ban killed at least three in Gaza City. Medical sources said three Palestinians, including a police major, had been killed …

KHARTOUM (AFP) — The African Union Mission in Sudan has accused government forces and Arab militias of launching joint attacks on villages and refugee camps in Darfur, in which at least 44 civilians were killed. These include an attack Wednesday on the Aro Sharow refugee camp in which the UN …