2/17/16

* China 'has deployed missiles in South China Sea' - Taiwan  China has deployed surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island in the South China Sea, Taiwan says. 

* Report: Russia will send first S-300 missile system to Iran on Thursday  Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan is visiting Moscow this week. 

* '5 horrible years': Libya marks 5th anniversary of Western-backed uprising to oust Gaddafi  Libya's Western-backed popular uprising officially began on February 17, 2011, resulting in the toppling of long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi. 

* Nasrallah threatens to bomb chemical facility, kill thousands of Israelis  Head of Lebanese terror group says strike on Haifa amonia storage facility would have impact similar to nuclear attack. 

* Exclusive: Radioactive material stolen in Iraq raises security fears  Iraq is searching for "highly dangerous" radioactive material stolen last year, according to an environment ministry document and seven security, environmental and provincial officials who fear it could be used as a weapon if acquired by Islamic State. 

* RAF jets sent to intercept Russian bombers heading to UK  RAF Typhoons have been scrambled to intercept two Russian bombers heading towards UK airspace, the Ministry of Defence has said. 

* Iran snubs Doha proposal, won't freeze on oil output level  OPEC members travel to the Islamic Republic to convince it to freeze oil output, but find disappointment. 

* Palestinian Leaders: Who Are They Fooling?  It is a puzzle: are the leaders of the Palestinian Authority (PA) playing dumb, or do they believe their own ridiculous rhetoric? 

* EU leaders haggle over key UK issues in final push for deal  EU leaders are preparing for a final push in the negotiations on the UK's renegotiation of its EU membership as fine tuning on cutting benefits for EU workers and eurozone governance remain the main sticking points. 

* Observers: Russia Prolonging Conflict in Ukraine  Moscow hopes to preserve gains, win relief from sanctions.