Iraqi VP is sentenced to death as bombs kill 80

Source: Gulf Times (read full story)

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Hashemi, a senior Sunni Muslim politician, fled Iraq after the authorities issued a warrant for his arrest in December, a move that threatened to collapse a fragile power-sharing deal among Shia, Sunni and Kurdish blocs at a time when US troops were pulling out.

Hashemi, who is unlikely to return to Iraq from Turkey, had accused Shia Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of orchestrating a crackdown on Sunni opponents and refused to appear in a court he dismissed as biased.

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Saleh calls on Yemen government to resign

Source: Gulf Times (read full story)

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There have been calls for Saleh to step down from the leadership of the GPC and make way for President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who is currently one of the party’s vice presidents.

Many of the opposition forces who took to the streets in 2011 to call for Saleh’s ouster accuse him of continuing to obstruct the country’s transition process behind the scenes.

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Greater unification of Gulf states in focus

Source: Arab News (read full story)

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Abdulatif Al-Zayani, GCC secretary general said: “The initiative to move from a GCC bloc to a Gulf Union will be discussed in detail by GCC foreign ministers.”
Gulf States are already tied through unified policies, militarily, politically and economically under the mandate of the GCC Charter.
Al-Zayani said, “Unification is meant to empower GCC bloc countries and empower members to come to the aid of one another in times of threat,” he said.

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UAE urges for peaceful solution to occupied islands

Source: Gulf Today (read full story)

TEHRAN: The UAE is committed to all the principles on which the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) was established, in particular respecting the sovereignty of states, the settlement of conflicts through peaceful means as well as the rejection of foreign occupation, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Mohammed Gergash said in a statement at the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit in Tehran.

“Based on this, and in emphasis of cementing the historic relations and good neighbour policy, the UAE calls on Iran to respond to its calls to find a peaceful and just solution to the issue of the UAE’s islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb which are currently occupied by the Islamic Republic of Iran either through bilateral negotiations or by referring the case to the International Court of Justice,” Gergash added.

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U.S. Arms Sales Make Up Most of Global Market

Source: The New York Times (read full story)

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These Gulf states do not share a border with Iran, and their arms purchases focused on expensive warplanes and complex missile defense systems.

The report was prepared by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, a division of the Library of Congress. The annual study, written by Richard F. Grimmett and Paul K. Kerr and delivered to Congress on Friday, is considered the most detailed collection of unclassified arms sales data available to the public.

The agreements with Saudi Arabia included the purchase of 84 advanced F-15 fighters, a variety of ammunition, missiles and logistics support, and upgrades of 70 of the F-15 fighters in the current fleet.

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US sends aircraft carrier back to Gulf to face Iran

Source: Kuwait Times (read full story)

The US Navy is cutting short home leave for the crew of one of its aircraft carriers and sending them back to the Middle East next week to counter any threat from Iran, according to the official Navy News Service. Defence Secretary Leon Panetta told sailors aboard the USS Stennis in their home port of Seattle on Wednesday they were needed back in the Middle East soon, after approving calls from the US Central Command for Stennis to return to the region. “Obviously, Iran is one of those threats,” the US military news service quoted Panetta as saying during a sendoff event at a military base on the US West Coast. “Secondly, it is the turmoil in Syria,” he said. “We’re obviously following that closely as well.”

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Saudi King’s efforts to unite Ummah applauded

Source: Arab News (read full story)

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King Abdullah has presented an effective solution to end the division and disruption in the Islamic world. “In his speech at the Islamic summit, King Abdullah warned against sedition, which has been the main reason for blood-shedding in the Islamic world. He said King Abdullah’s speech presented a roadmap for Muslim unity. He hoped the Muslim Ummah would accelerate its efforts to implement the king’s proposal.

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‘Issues with Kuwait will be finalized before year end

Source: Kuwait Times (Read full story)

Baghdad seeks to end all pending issues with Kuwait before the end of this year in order to restore the bilateral relations to their level during the 1980’s, the Iraqi government said in a recent statement. “Iraqi will end all pending issues with Kuwait before the start of next year; at which point there will be no obligations,” the statement reads, adding that the troubled relations between Kuwait and Iraq following the 1990 invasion have become “a thing of the past.” “The bilateral relations will be back to normal if not better because Iraq expressed good intention towards Kuwait, which were highly welcomed by Kuwait in return,” the statement adds.

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