Breffni O'Rourke

Also by Breffni O'Rourke

• January 14, 2008

  IAEA Says Iran Will Settle Outstanding Nuclear Issues In One Month

  Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have reached an agreement to settle all outstanding matters relating to Iran's nuclear program in four weeks' time.

• November 23, 2007

  Nobel Laureate's Peace Plea

  Shirin Ebadi wants her compatriots to join a national peace campaign to avert what the Nobel Peace Prize laureate sees as the "serious" threat of war with the United States over Iran's nuclear program.

• November 19, 2007

  Iran: As One Door Closes In Nuclear Dispute, Others Open

  Russia is planning nuclear fuel shipments to Iran's Bushehr power plant, in spite of Western concerns (Fars) November 19, 2007 (RFE /RL) -- The international row over Iran's nuclear program is growing increasingly complex as new ideas appear about how to resolve the crisis, while those wishing to impose harsher sanctions on Iran face new setbacks.

• November 15, 2007

  Ahmadinejad And The Emir

  Iran's old territorial claim; suspicions over Tehran's nuclear program; the Bahrain-based U.S. Fifth Fleet. The leaders of Iran and Bahrain will have much to talk about when Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad visits the Gulf island state this week.

• November 14, 2007

  Ahmadinejad's Threat To Iranian 'Traitors' Points To Widening Rift

  Iran's hard-line president has issued a threat to "traitors" in the establishment who dare to criticize his provocative nuclear policy. His remarks, coupled with news today that a former senior nuclear negotiator has been charged on spying-related allegations, highlights a major rift within Iran's ruling elite.

• November 07, 2007

  Filmmaker Held After Stumbling Upon Mass Grave

  Mehrnoushe Solouki went to Iran to shoot a documentary about burial rites of religious minorities. But when she stumbled upon a mass grave of regime opponents, Solouki was thrown in prison. Now, with her case due in court, she's battling to get out of Iran.

• November 02, 2007

  Dissidents Debate Merits Of U.S. Democracy Aid

  Has "tainted" U.S. aid to Iranian democratic dissidents triggered a brutal backlash against them by Tehran's clerical regime? A debate on that question is heating up, both inside and outside Iran. And some leading dissidents have staked out diametrically opposed positions.

• October 19, 2007

  International Unions Condemn Treatment Of Jailed Activist

  Trade unionists from around the world are calling on the Iranian authorities to release jailed union activist Mansur Osanlu, who is being held in Tehran's notorious Evin prison and in deteriorating health.

• August 28, 2007

  Central Asia/Iran: Massive Afghan Opium Production Hits Neighbors

  Afghan farmers harvest opium poppies in Kandahar Province (AFP) August 28, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that the latest opium poppy crop in Afghanistan will yield an amazing 8,200 tons of opium -- an increase of some 2,000 tons on the previous crop.

• August 20, 2007

  New Turkish Parliament To Vote On Presidency

  August 20, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- The new Turkish parliament, elected last month, is due today to hold a first round of voting for a new Turkish president.

• August 14, 2007

  Turkey: Ruling Party To Resubmit Gul's Name For President

  August 14, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Turkey's Islamic-rooted ruling party, the Justice and Development Party (AK), appears willing to confront the country's secular elite on the question of the state presidency.

• August 07, 2007

  China: Human-Rights Pressure Increases As Olympic Countdown Begins

  China's official Olympic logo, to which protesters added "Free Tibet 2008" (Courtesy Photo) August 7, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- There is exactly one year to go before the start of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, and international rights groups are marking the occasion with calls for the Chinese authorities to live up to their promises to improve human rights.

• August 02, 2007

  Sunni Bloc Quits Government In Snub To Al-Maliki

  Iraq's largest Sunni Arab political bloc is quitting the cabinet, accusing the Shi'a-led government of failing to address its list of concerns.

• July 30, 2007

  Iraqi Soccer Win Powerful Boost For Unity

  July 30, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- For the first time ever, Iraq has won soccer's Asian Cup, triggering scenes of jubilation around the war-torn country and among Iraqi communities abroad.

• July 26, 2007

  Libya: France Overlooks Tripoli's Past 'Rogue' Status In Nuclear Aid Offer

  Sarkozy said his visit was meant to help Libya "rejoin the international community” (file photo) (official site) July 26, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy's visit to Tripoli on July 25 produced a number of economic agreements. One of the most unusual is a memorandum of understanding on the construction of a water-desalination plant powered by nuclear energy.

• July 23, 2007

  Ruling Party Could Be Emboldened By New Mandate

  The Islamic-oriented Justice and Development party's election win suggests the public is happy with its successful economic program and pro-European stance.

• July 19, 2007

  Turkish-Iranian Gas Deal Marks New Stage

  Turkey's agreement with Iran to transport some 30 billion cubic meters of Iranian and Turkmen natural gas westward to Europe has prompted criticism in the United States.

• June 27, 2007

  For First Time, More People In Cities Than In Countryside

  The UN's Population Fund predicts that urban dwellers will outnmuber the world's rural population by next year.

• June 21, 2007

  Couple Convicted In Swiss Internet-Terrorism Trial

  June 21, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Switzerland's first Internet-terrorism trial has ended with a federal court in the southern Swiss city of Bellinzona convicting a Muslim man and a woman for running Internet websites supporting terrorism.

• June 20, 2007

  International Refugee Day Marked

  The plight of Afghans and Iraqis are two important areas of concern as World Refugee Day is marked.

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