UN nuclear inspectors arrive in Iran
Tehran (AFP) May 05, 2014 -
A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency has arrived in Iran to visit two nuclear sites ahead of the next round of political talks with world powers next week.
After meeting officials from the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran on Monday the IAEA team will travel to Saghand uranium mine and the Ardakan yellow-cake production site, the official IRNA news agency said.
The f ...
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Japan delegation leaves for Beijing to mend ties with China
Tokyo (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
A delegation of senior Japanese lawmakers left for China Sunday to try to mend ties amid a territorial dispute which has prevented a leaders' summit.
The bipartisan delegation is led by Masahiko Komura, former foreign minister and vice president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. It departed from Tokyo's Haneda airport Sunday morning on a three-day visit to China, officials said.
T ...
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Europe's cybersecurity policy settings under attack
Brussels (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Even as Europe powered up its most ambitious ever cybersecurity exercise this month, doubts were being raised over whether the continent's patchwork of online police was right for the job.
The exercise, called Cyber Europe 2014, is the largest and most complex ever enacted, involving 200 organisations and 400 cybersecurity professionals from both the European Union and beyond.
Yet some ...
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Pakistani security official killed by Afghan firing: army
Islamabad (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
A Pakistani security official was killed Sunday by firing from Afghanistan in the mountainous border tribal region of Bajaur, military officials said.
The military said in a statement the incident happened at 11:45. It was unclear whether the firing came from Afghan forces or from Pakistani or Afghan militants hiding across the border.
"We don't have more information yet. We can only con ...
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The Vietnamese teenager who captured a French general
Bac Ninh, Vietnam (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
One of Vietnam's last surviving veterans of the battle of Dien Bien Phu recounts with pride the day in May 1954 when, aged just 19, he captured the commander of the French colonial forces.
Hoang Dang Vinh's display of military prowess earned him the supreme honour of meeting revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh - "Uncle Ho" - the future founding president of modern Vietnam.
Sixty years ago ...
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Iraq violence kills over 30 people in 24 hours
Baghdad (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Violence in Iraq, including shelling in a militant-held city and an attack targeting Shiite pilgrims, has killed more than 30 people in 24 hours, officials said Sunday.
The bloodshed comes as officials count ballots from the April 30 general election, the first since US troops withdrew in late 2011, and amid a protracted surge in nationwide unrest that has sparked fears of a return to the se ...
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Iraq faces criticism on press freedoms
Baghdad (AFP) May 03, 2014 -
From unsolved murders of journalists to lawsuits against commentators, rights groups and diplomats say Iraq's press freedom record falls dramatically short of international standards.
Reporters, photographers and videojournalists face threats and pressures from both militants and the security forces, as well as mundane everyday restrictions.
In a statement marking Saturday's World Press ...
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Thousands rally in Taipei to counter anti-government protests
Taipei (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Thousands of Taiwanese calling for peace and the rule of law rallied in Taipei Sunday to counter a recent series of demonstrations that turned violent and led to clashes with police.
Police estimated that about 1,500 people from the ruling Kuomintang party and their supporters rallied in the downtown area, ending up with a march to police headquarters.
Demonstrators voiced gratitude to p ...
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French rout in Vietnam 60 years ago a watershed in colonial history
Paris (AFP) May 05, 2014 -
Sixty years ago, French troops were crushed by Vietnamese fighters in a landmark battle that led to the country's independence, dented Paris's prestige and fuelled independence movements in other colonies.
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu, which ended on May 7, 1954 after nearly two months of relentless fighting in a valley where French soldiers were encircled and roundly defeated was also a mile ...
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Guerrilla warfare to golf: Vietnam army's evolves
Hanoi (AFP) May 05, 2014 -
From ragtag volunteers with home-made shotguns to stealth frigates, telecoms conglomerates and golf courses - the Vietnam People's Army has transformed since its victory over the French six decades ago.
"We had nothing: some homemade rifles and explosives, some anti-tank bombs so rudimentary they killed the soldier who detonated them," said military historian Major General Vu Quang Dao.
...
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AFSPC cuts ribbon for new network operations center
Peterson AFB CO (SPX) May 05, 2014 -
Gen. William Shelton, Air Force Space Command commander, officially opened the new 561st Network Operations Squadron's renovated operations center April 28 here. As part of the larger Air Force Information Network, the 561st NOS is one of three squadrons of its type in the Air Force, all belonging to AFSPC's 24th Air Force.
The ribbon cutting ceremony included a full showing of the $4.5 mi ...
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DISA Awards Northrop Grumman contract for Joint Command and Control System
McLeav VA (SPX) May 05, 2014 -
Northrop Grumman has been awarded $53 million to continue modernizing and sustaining the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) command and control (C2) system used to plan, execute and manage joint and multinational military operations. The award is an option exercised on the Global Command and Control System-Joint (GCCS-J) contract first announced in March 2013.
The contract extension for the ...
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Shelling kills 11 in Iraq's Fallujah: doctor
Baghdad (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Shelling in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, held by anti-government fighters for more than four months, has killed 11 people in less than 24 hours, a doctor said on Sunday.
It was not immediately clear who was behind the shelling in various areas in the south of city, just a short drive to the west of Baghdad.
The bombardment began on Saturday night and continued into Sunday, Doctor Ahmed Sh ...
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Testing facility paves way for more radio connections to MUOS satellites
Sunnyvale CA (SPX) May 05, 2014 -
The number of end users connecting to the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) will grow as radio terminal providers begin using a testing facility that simulates the satellite network.
A team from Harris recently used the lab to connect the AN/PRC-117G Falcon III radio to MUOS systems developed by Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT]. It's one of several terminals that are well under wa ...
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Costa Rica warns Russia is arming Nicaragua
San Jose, Costa Rica (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Costa Rica's top diplomat voiced alarm Sunday that Nicaragua is boosting its military ties to Russia, in his view to the point of dependency.
"Russia is facilitating the arming of Nicaragua - ships - and they have spoken about buying jets and other weapons. I fear problems are in store," Foreign Minister Enrique Castillo told La Nacion daily.
The two Central American nations have borde ...
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France scrambles military plane after jetliner loses radio contact
Bordeaux (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
France scrambled a fighter aircraft Sunday after a jetliner slightly veered from its course and lost radio contact with the ground over western France, military officials said.
The Washington-bound United Airlines Boeing had taken off in Rome, the air force information service SIRPA said.
Airline officials declined to confirm or deny the incident when contacted by AFP.
The Rafale fig ...
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Kurds say Iraq presidency their 'right'
Arbil, Iraq (AFP) May 04, 2014 -
Iraqi Kurds have a "right" to the federal presidency, the country's autonomous Kurdish region said on Sunday, signalling the start of public jockeying for positions following parliamentary polls.
President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, has held the position since 2006, but his term is at an end, leaving the question of who will succeed him in doubt.
In recent years, a de facto agreement has em ...
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Blood and gunfire in Ukraine army attack on rebel checkpoint
Near Slavyansk, Ukraine (AFP) May 03, 2014 -
Blood flowing from a bullet wound, the grey-haired man lies in the middle of the roadblock waving weakly for help as shots ring out nearby and thick black smoke from burning tyres curls into the sky.
"I've called an ambulance. They have to come, they have to come," a man screams, ducking for cover behind a concrete breezeblock.
A hundred metres (yards) away, a column of Ukrainian army a ...
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NKorean arms freighter passes through Panama Canal
Panama City (AFP) May 03, 2014 -
The North Korean freighter Chong Chon Gang exited the Panama Canal on its way home Saturday, more than nine months after it was seized with an undeclared cargo of Cuban arms.
"The Chong Chon Gang passed through the Panama Canal early this morning bound for Pyongyang with 10,200 tons of sugar," the lawyer for its crew, Julio Berrios told AFP.
Panama Canal administrator Jorge Quijano confi ...
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US-Philippines launch war games after Obama pledge
Manila (AFP) May 05, 2014 -
Thousands of American and Philippine troops launched large annual exercises on Monday after US President Barack Obama vowed "ironclad" backing for its Asian ally, locked in a tense maritime row with China.
Filipino Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said the 10-day drills were necessary to deal with the challenge of "aggressive" neighbours intent on "changing the status quo".
He did n ...
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