Saturday, January 02, 2010

01/02/10

* Saudi FM says Israel is acting like a 'spoiled child' The Saudi foreign minister on Saturday criticized Israel's settlement construction and said the country acts like a "spoiled child".

* Obama blames al-Qaeda for Christmas Day jet 'bomb' US President Barack Obama has for the first time publicly accused an offshoot of al-Qaeda over the alleged Christmas Day bomb plot to blow up a US plane.

* PA: 11 million Palestinians around the world At the end of the decade there are 10.9 million Palestinians in the world, over half of them living in the Diaspora.

* Mousavi 'ready to die' for reform in Iran Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi has said he is not afraid to die for the cause of reform.

* Deputy FM Ayalon: Iran regime may be replaced this year Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon on Saturday said he believes that after the sanctions the international community will impose against Iran over its nuclear program.

* Karzai Choices for Afghan Cabinet Mostly Rejected In a clear signal to President Hamid Karzai that he cannot count on Parliament for support.

* 29 MKs Challenge Construction Ban in Letter to PM Nearly 30 members of Knesset sent a joint letter to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud) this week challenging the government's current ban on Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria.

* Profile: Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula Led by a former aide to Osama Bin Laden, the group has vowed to attack oil facilities, foreigners and security forces.

* Top US general stresses importance of Iraq vote Upcoming elections in March that will determine who will lead Iraq as American forces go home are of "enormous importance" to the country's future.

* Muslim World: Iran - The end is not nigh The ongoing demonstrations in Iran are testimony to the continued strength and resilience of Iranian civil society.