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| January 01, 2014 |
 China mulls revamping military regions: Japan report Tokyo (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - China is considering reorganising its seven military regions into five in a bid to respond more swiftly to a crisis, the Japanese daily Yomiuri Shimbun reported on Wednesday. The news comes amid rising tensions over Beijing's territorial claims in the region, with China and Japan squaring off over a chain of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea. Each of the new military regions will ... more |  |
Abe says Japan's pacifist constitution may be revised by 2020 Tokyo (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Japan's nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the country's pacifist post-World War II constitution which limits its military to self-defence could be amended by 2020. In a New Year comment published in the conservative daily Sankei Shimbun on Wednesday, Abe predicted the constitution "will have been revised" by 2020 when Tokyo hosts the Summer Olympics. His comments come days a ... more |  |
 N. Korea warns of nuclear disaster, threatens US Seoul (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un said Wednesday the Korean peninsula would be engulfed by "massive nuclear disaster" if war breaks out there again, warning the US it will not be safe in the event of a conflict. "If the war breaks out again in this land, it will bring about a massive nuclear disaster and the US will never be safe," Kim said in his New Year message, broadcast on state TV. ... more |  |
 Apple denies 'backdoor' NSA access Washington (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Apple said Tuesday it had no "backdoor" in its products after a security researcher and a leaked document suggested the US National Security Agency had unfettered access to the iPhone. Apple said in an email to AFP that it "has never worked with the NSA to create a backdoor in any of our products, including iPhone." The statement added that " we have been unaware of this alleged NSA prog ... more |  |
 Syria must 'intensify' chemical disarmament: mission chief Damascus (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Syria must "intensify efforts" to destroy its chemical arsenal in line with a timetable set by the United Nations, its disarmament mission chief told AFP Tuesday as a year-end target date was missed. Sigrid Kaag said she could not specify a new date for Syria to complete shipping out the most dangerous components of its chemical weapons programme for destruction under international supervisi ... more |  |
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 Iraq army to quit tense cities after protest cleared Baghdad (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki Tuesday announced the army would leave cities in Anbar province, apparently seeking to defuse simmering tension after security forces cleared a major anti-government protest camp. Deadly clashes erupted Monday as security forces tore down the sprawling Sunni protest camp near Ramadi city, west of Baghdad, and sporadic fighting continued for a second day, l ... more |  |
 Pakistan's truck art masters fret over NATO withdrawal Karachi (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Pakistan's truck artists, who transform ugly lorries into flamboyant moving works of art, fear boom times for their trade could be at an end as NATO winds down its mission in Afghanistan. The workhorses of the Pakistani haulage industry are often ageing, patched-up Bedford and Dodge models, but almost without exception they are lavishly decorated. Elaborate colourful designs, calligraphy ... more |  |
Uighur group urges independent probe into Xinjiang violence Beijing (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - An exile Uighur group on Tuesday demanded Chinese authorities allow independent investigations into a clash in Xinjiang where eight "attackers" were shot dead by police, the latest deadly incident in the largely Muslim region. The Xinjiang regional government should "fully disclose all information" on the Monday violence and allow "an independent investigation to be conducted by internationa ... more |  |
Japan's Abe should learn from Germany: Xinhua Beijing (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Chinese state media kept up the heat on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the first day of 2014, urging him to learn from Germany in dealing with divisive historical issues. "Abe's conspicuous lack of historical honesty contrasts shamefully with the courage and vision of late West German Chancellor Willy Brandt," the official Xinhua news agency said in a commentary Wednesday. It high ... more |  |
Switzerland takes over OSCE helm Vienna (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Switzerland on Wednesday assumed the rotating chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, naming the Western Balkans and South Caucasus as its priorities. During its year at the helm of the 57-member body, Switzerland vowed to make a "tangible contribution to fostering security and stability, improving people's lives and strengthening the OSCE's capacity to act ... more |  |
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Iraq suffers worst year of violence since 2008 Baghdad (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Violence in Iraq surged in 2013 to its worst level in five years, figures released Wednesday showed, fuelled by discontent among the Sunni Arab minority and the civil war in neighbouring Syria. Bombs tore through markets, cafes, football fields and mosques, militants assaulted prisons, police stations and other government facilities, and families were killed in their homes. And while Ira ... more |  |
Iraq militants free prisoners, burn police stations Ramadi, Iraq (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Militants freed more than 100 prisoners, clashed with security forces and burned police stations in cities west of the Iraqi capital on Wednesday, police and an AFP journalist said. Gunmen attacked the headquarters in the city of Fallujah but gave the police a chance to leave, which they took, officers said, after which the militants freed 101 prisoners and stole weapons. In Ramadi, fart ... more |  |
Israel, Palestinians talk tough ahead of Kerry visit Jerusalem (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Israel and the Palestinians sharpened their rhetoric as US Secretary of State John Kerry headed to the region Wednesday hoping to nudge the two sides towards a peace framework. The latest US quest for a long-elusive peace deal has shown little sign of progress since Kerry revived direct talks in July, and this week leaders from both sides questioned the other's commitment to ending the decad ... more |  |
Date 'set' to apply Iran nuclear deal: report Tehran (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Experts from Iran and the P5+1 group of world powers have chosen January 20 to begin implementing the Geneva deal on Tehran's nuclear programme, IRNA news agency said Wednesday. "One of the main proposals is to begin applying the agreement from January 20," the agency cited Hamid Baeedinejad as saying. "There is agreement in principle on this date, which has yet to be approved by the pol ... more |  |
Iraq PM to deploy more troops to combat Anbar unrest Baghdad (AFP) Jan 01, 2014 - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Wednesday reversed a decision to withdraw soldiers from Anbar cities and ordered reinforcements to the mainly Sunni Arab province to tackle attacks by militants. Clashes broke out in Anbar, west of Baghdad, as security forces tore down a year-old Sunni Arab protest camp outside the provincial capital Ramadi on Monday. On Wednesday, police reportedl ... more |  |
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Outside View: A new dictator takes Iraq to the brink Edinburgh, Scotland (UPI) Dec 31, 2013 - The violent arrest in Iraq of leading Sunni Member of Parliament Ahmed al-Alwani marks yet another step in that country's rapid descent into sectarian anarchy and civil war. Alwani is chairman of the Iraqi Parliament's important Economics Committee. More significantly, he is a leading critic of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and an arch opponent of the spread of Iranian influence ... more |  |
Outside View: Game changers for 2014 Washington (UPI) Jan 1, 2013 - New Year's Day marks the time for making predictions and resolutions. Game-changing events are among the former. So, here are three game changers that you might not have considered. 2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his pregnant wife Sophie in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, and, of course, the war that followed. Simply put, a handful of bu ... more |  |
Increase in Iraq executions draws international ire Baghdad (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Iraq's use of the death penalty has increased despite international condemnation, with some fearing execution rates could rise further as officials seek to appear tough on security ahead of elections. At least 169 people were put to death in 2013, by far the country's highest such figure since the 2003 US-led invasion, and one that puts it third in the world, behind just China and Iran. ... more |  |
Syria says peace meet invites unsent, blames opposition: paper Damascus (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - Invitations to a Syria peace meeting in Switzerland next month have not been issued as planned because of delays in the formation of an opposition delegation, a Syrian newspaper said Tuesday. "An official source at the foreign ministry said that invitations to attend the 'Geneva 2' conference were not sent out as planned on December 28th," reported the Al-Watan newspaper, which is close to t ... more |  |
 Last Uighurs freed from Guantanamo arrive in Slovakia Washington (AFP) Dec 31, 2013 - The last three Uighurs who had languished in the US prison at Guantanamo Bay for over a decade without charge have been freed and sent to Slovakia, officials said Tuesday. As the world was ushering in 2014, the men were swapping the austere, remote military facility in southeastern Cuba for a refugee camp in their new homeland. "They are already in Slovakia. They will now stay at a camp ... more |  |
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