Month: March 2011

Cairo, March 30: Newly appointed Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil al-Arabi has said that his country is ready to promote ties between Tehran and Cairo.

In his first press conference as the country’s foreign minister on Tuesday, al-Arabi said Cairo is ready to open “a new page with Iran,” IRNA reported.

The official went on to say that the Egyptian government does not see Iran as an enemy state, noting the two countries have historically rooted relations.

He further stated that the establishment of diplomatic ties depends on the Iranian side.

Tripoli, March 30: On the eleventh day of the US-led military airstrikes in Libya, participants in the London conference on Tuesday formed a united front in order to continue the Western alliance’s mission in the country and unanimously agreed that Gaddafi must leave Libya.

The leaders decided that military operations should continue until Colonel Gaddafi abides by UN demands for a ceasefire, stops attacking civilians and allows humanitarian assistance to reach Libya, a Press TV correspondent reported on Tuesday.

Gaza, March 30: Israeli troops have demolished six homes of a group of Palestinians living in an area south of the West Bank, eyewitnesses have said.

According to local residents, two Israeli bulldozers entered the area located near the city of al-Khalil (Hebron) on Tuesday razing the homes of dozens of Palestinians living in the area.

Israeli troops also arrested seven Palestinians after clashes erupted between the residents and Israeli forces. Israel claims the homes were “illegally built.”

There is yet no comment from Israeli authorities.

Sudan, March 30: Sudan is to hold a referendum to determine the permanent administrative status of the country’s Darfur region amid criticism from main rebel groups.

“President Omar al-Bashir issued a decree today to conduct a referendum to determine the permanent administrative status of Darfur,” Sudan’s official SUNA news agency reported on Tuesday.

Sudanese officials have not specified the exact date of the referendum, but they stressed that the government is committed to holding the plebiscite before May under the 2006 Abuja peace accord.

Gaza, March 30: Leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has discussed the new cabinet with the chief of the country’s Progressive Socialist Party.

In a meeting with Walid Jumblatt in the Lebanese capital city of Beirut, Nasrallah also talked about the ways for strengthening relations between Hezbollah and the Progressive Socialist Party.

Nasrallah and Jumblatt on Monday talked about Arab World’s latest developments.

Manama, March 30: Gunshots were also heard in the villages near Manama on Tuesday, a Media correspondent reported.

Saudi-backed Bahraini forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters in the village of Tashan on Tuesday, our correspondent added.

On March 13, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar dispatched armed forces to the country to intensify crackdown on anti-government protesters.

At least 24 people have been killed and at least 1,000 others injured since riot police and troops initiated a second round of offensives against the protesters.

Ankara, March 30: Turkey has asked Germany to take serious actions to counter a recent rise in the number of attacks aimed at Turkish and other immigrant workers in the country.

“We expect German authorities to apprehend the perpetrators in the shortest possible time and to bring them to justice… We believe they will take the necessary measures to prevent the repetition of such attacks,” a Tuesday statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.

Kabul, March 30: Dr. Zalmay Zabuli, a prominent Afghan senator made the remarks during an open session of senate attended by Afghan defense minister, intelligence officials and several other government authorities in Kabul, a Media correspondent reported.

Zabuli reiterated that the US forces have installed vey advanced communication tools in and around the sensitive government facilities, adding that they have spent at least 75 million dollars in a bid to infiltrate into communication network.

Sanaa, March 30: Thousands of Yemeni protesters have gathered in the capital of Sana’a, calling for political reform and an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s three-decade rule.

The protesters hit the streets of Sana’a on Tuesday, blaming Saleh for his mismanagement, repression and use of deadly force against peaceful demonstrators, the Associated Press reported.

Many opposition protesters have been camping near Sana’a University since mid February, vowing not to relent until Saleh’s step-down.

Tripoli, March 30: Two loud explosions have rocked the Libyan capital, Tripoli, close to the residence of embattled Libyan ruler Muammer Gaddafi, a report says.

The first explosion struck around 1630 GMT , followed by a second some three minutes later, AFP reported.

Seven other explosions were reported in the suburb of Tajoura — site of several military camps — at around the same time.

This comes as aircrafts belonging to US-led military alliance had been seen in the skies over the capital earlier in the afternoon.

Misratah, March 30: Latest reports say heavy fighting continues between revolutionaries and forces loyal to the embattled Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi in town of Misratah.

Gaddafi troops have reportedly launched a new attack on the positions of the revolutionary fighters in Misratah, the town located some 200 kilometers east of the capital Tripoli.

“Misrata is in danger. The criminal forces are advancing on the city and the tanks are firing shells indiscriminately,” AFP quoted an opposition spokesman as saying.

Tehran, March 30: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Paraguayan counterpart Fernando Lugo Mendez have called for more cooperation between the two sides.

In a telephone conversation on Tuesday, the two officials discussed the ways to expand relations between Tehran and Asuncion, IRNA reported.

President Ahmadinejad noted that the Islamic Republic is keen to increase the level of bilateral ties in all spheres, particularly in trade and transfer of know-how.