Iran has massively cut down its dependence on the dollar in the face of US pressure over its nuclear program and now 70 percent of its foreign assets are saved in other currencies or in gold, an official said on Monday.

MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (AFP) – Pakistani authorities on Tuesday recovered the bodies of 15 soldiers killed in clashes with pro-Taliban militants in a tribal area bordering Afghanistan, officials said.The troopers were reported to have died on Monday in fierce clashes with the Islamist rebels at a military checkpost in North Waziristan, …

KABUL (AFP) – The Afghan government strongly rejected Tuesday any conditions for peace talks with the Taliban after the Islamic militants demanded the withdrawal of Western troops as a prerequisite for dialogue.The government would guarantee safe passage for Taliban negotiators at any talks but this was all, President Hamid Karzai’s …