Melanie: জুলাই 2013

সোমবার, ২২ জুলাই, ২০১৩

EU declares Hezbollah's military wing terror group

BRUSSELS (AP) ? The European Union placed the military wing of Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite militant group and political party, on its terror list Monday in a major policy change toward the Middle East.

The EU's 28 foreign ministers reached the decision unanimously at their monthly meeting, swiftly swaying the last nations that had expressed opposition by committing to continued political dialogue with Beirut.

The action came after prolonged diplomatic pressure from the United States, the Netherlands and Israel, which consider Hezbollah a terrorist organization.

"The EU is sending a strong message to Hezbollah that it cannot operate with impunity, and that there are consequences for its actions," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement.

Britain also had pushed for the EU action, citing a terrorist attack in Bulgaria's Black Sea resort of Burgas last year that killed five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian. Hezbollah's military wing was accused of involvement, an allegation it denied.

In March a criminal court in Cyprus found a Hezbollah member guilty of helping to plan attacks on Israelis on the Mediterranean island.

Both Bulgaria and Cyprus are EU members.

"The EU has sent a clear message that it stands united against terrorism," said British Foreign Secretary William Hague. "It shows that no organization can carry out terrorist acts on European soil."

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle emphasized European unity. "If you attack one of our European countries, you get an answer from all of us."

The blacklisting entails asset freezes and paves the way for possible travel bans on members of Hezbollah's military wing. The ministers hope it will also curtail fundraising.

But implementation promises to be complicated since officials will have to unravel the links between the different wings within Hezbollah's organizational network and see who could be targeted for belonging to the military wing.

Diplomats late Monday were working on pinpointing the entities and organizations that make up the military wing. Because of this legal uncertainty it was unclear how many assets could be involved, and how many individuals could eventually be targeted.

Hezbollah, a highly secretive organization, does not talk about its business outside Lebanon.

Analysts and officials close to the group say it is not believed to have significant assets in Europe and that any it did have were probably withdrawn before Monday's decision.

The Iranian-backed group plays a pivotal role in Lebanese politics, dominating the government since 2011. It has since sent its members to bolster Syria's President Bashar Assad forces in their assault on rebel-held areas.

The EU vote triggered concerns in Lebanon that the decision would affect the bloc's funding for the country, but French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said economic aid would be unaffected.

Lebanon's outgoing prime minister, Najib Mikati, expressed disappointment in the bloc's action, saying: "We wish that the EU countries had conducted a more careful reading of the facts."

Even before Monday's decision, aid groups complained that European governments have been reluctant to donate funds to help Lebanon cope with a massive flow of refugees from Syria's civil war because of Hezbollah's dominance in Lebanon's government.

Timor Goksel, a Beirut-based political analyst, called the EU action "a public relations move," but said it could affect Hezbollah in Lebanon by providing "much ammunition to its foes."

Walid Sukariyeh, a pro-Hezbollah legislator who belongs to the group's bloc, said the European decision came as a result of American pressure.

"Europe tried to have an independent stance away from America's diction, but I believe by this stance it has abandoned its independence and the independence of its policy," he said.

Kerry said the EU move would "have a significant impact on Hezbollah's ability to operate freely in Europe by enabling European law enforcement agencies to crack down on Hezbollah's fundraising, logistical activity, and terrorist plotting on European soil."

Israel also welcomed the European decision. It fought a bitter monthlong war with Hezbollah in 2006, and has accused Hezbollah of carrying out attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets around the world. Hezbollah has denied involvement in some and not commented on others.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked the EU ministers for its action, even though he insisted that "as far as Israel is concerned, Hezbollah is one organization without distinctions between its wings."

Westerwelle said the evidence from the attack in Bulgaria was enough of an impetus for the blacklisting.

Several EU nations have pointed to Hezbollah's involvement in Syria as further reason for the move.

As Hezbollah's hand in the Syrian conflict has become public, Lebanon has seen a spike in Sunni-Shiite tensions that has sparked gunbattles in several cities around the country. Many Lebanese Sunnis support the overwhelmingly Sunni uprising against Assad in Syria, while Shiites generally back Hezbollah and the regime in Damascus.

The EU only made its decision after it became clear that political channels would remain open with all players in Lebanon.

"Designation will do nothing to affect the EU's and the UK's strong relationship with, and support for, Lebanon," Hague said.

___

Associated Press writers Barbara Surk, Zeina Karam and Bassem Mroue contributed from Beirut and Ian Deitch and Aron Heller from Jerusalem.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/eu-declares-hezbollahs-military-wing-terror-group-101437820.html

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Japan's ruling bloc wins upper house elections

By MALCOLM FOSTER
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition won a comfortable majority in the upper house of parliament in elections Sunday, giving it control of both chambers and a mandate to press ahead with difficult economic reforms.

The win is an endorsement of the Liberal Democratic Party's "Abenomics" program, which has helped spark a tentative economic recovery in Japan. It's also a vindication for Abe, who lost upper house elections in 2007 during his previous stint as prime minister.

"We've won the public's support for decisive and stable politics so that we can pursue our economic policies, and we will make sure to live up to the expectations," Abe told public broadcaster NHK after he was projected to win based on exit polls and early results. Official results weren't expected until early Monday.

The victory also offers the hawkish Abe more leeway to advance his conservative policy goals, including revising the country's pacifist constitution and bolstering Japan's military, which could further strain ties with key neighbors China and South Korea, who are embroiled in territorial disputes with Japan.

Controlling both houses of parliament has been an elusive goal for Japanese governments in recent years. With a divided parliament, it has been hard to pass legislation, and voters fed up with the gridlock and high leadership turnover appeared willing to opt for the perceived safety of the LDP, which has ruled Japan for most of the post-World War II era.

Abe said voters supported the LDP to press ahead on his party's economic policies, and said it would be the government's top priority.

"Now that we got rid of the twisted parliament, the LDP is going to face a test of whether we can push forward the economic policies so that the people can really feel the effect on their lives," Abe told NHK.

Japan's stagnant economy is showing signs of perking up, helped by the aggressive monetary and fiscal stimuli that Abe has implemented since he took office in late December. Stocks have surged, business confidence is improving and the weaker yen has put less pressure on vital exporters.

"I want them to carry on doing their best as the economy seems to be picking up," Naohisa Hayashi, a 35-year-old man who runs his own business, said after casting his ballot at a downtown Tokyo polling station.

But long-term growth will depend on sweeping changes to boost competitiveness and help cope with Japan's rapidly graying population and soaring national debt. Such reforms, long overdue, are bound to prove difficult even with control of both chambers of parliament.

Abe also faces a decision this fall on whether to follow through on raising the sales tax next April from 5 percent to 8 percent, a move needed to shore up Japan's public finances, but one that many worry will derail the recovery.

Based on exit polls and early results, NHK predicted that the LDP and its coalition partner, New Komeito, won a combined 74 seats, giving them a total of 133 seats in the upper house, more than the 122 needed for a majority.

The LDP was projected to have won 64 seats, which together with the 50 it held before the elections would give it 114, short of an outright majority.

The main opposition Democratic Party of Japan, which fell from power in December elections, was projected to lose nearly 30 seats.

Voter turnout was low, suggesting a lack of public enthusiasm. According to Kyodo News agency, 52 percent of eligible voters cast ballots, the third-lowest turnout since the end of World War II.

The Liberal Democrats' "Recover Japan" platform calls a strong economy, strategic diplomacy and unshakable national security under the Japan-U.S. alliance, which allows for 50,000 American troops to be stationed in Japan.

The party also favors revising the country's pacifist constitution, drafted by the United States after World War II, to give Japan's military a larger role - a message that alarms the Chinese government but resonates with some Japanese voters troubled by territorial disputes with China and South Korea and widespread distrust of an increasingly assertive Beijing.

Abe has upset both neighbors by saying he hopes to revise a 1995 apology by Japan for its wartime aggression and questioning the extent to which Korean, Chinese and other Asian women were forced to provide sex for Japanese soldiers before and during World War II.

Revising the constitution would require two-thirds approval by both houses of parliament and a national referendum. Polls show the public is less interested in such matters than in reviving the economy and rebuilding areas of northeastern Japan devastated by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

In his interview with NHK on Sunday night, Abe said he would not rush the debate on constitutional revision and seeks to "expand and deepen" discussion in order to gain public support over time. He said there was still some homework to do, including finalizing details of a national referendum.

Abe also hinted at possibly cooperating with the new Restoration Party, co-led by outspoken Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto, in trying to reach the two-thirds majority. Hashimoto stirred up controversy in May when he said that Japan's wartime system of using Asian women in battlefront brothels was necessary at the time.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the LDP would try to make progress on constitutional revision because it's the party's long-cherished goal.

"We have sought to revise the constitution in order to have one of our own. We have finally come to a point where a revision is a realistic option. We would definitely want to deepen a discussion," Suga told broadcaster NTV.

___

Associated Press writers Elaine Kurtenbach, Mari Yamaguchi and Kaori Hitomi contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.wtvm.com/story/22894039/media-japan-ruling-bloc-wins-upper-house-election

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শনিবার, ১৩ জুলাই, ২০১৩

Obama Awards Tony Kushner Medal Of Arts & Humanities - On Top ...

Tony Kushner was among those receiving the 2012 National Medal of Arts and Humanities on Wednesday from President Barack Obama in an East Room ceremony.

?The work that we honor today, the lifetime achievement of these artists and these scholars, reminds us that the human imagination is still the most powerful tool that we have as a people,? Obama told those attending the ceremony. ?That's why we celebrate their creativity and the fundamental optimism, the notion that if they work that hard somebody will actually pay attention. That's why we have to remain committed to the dreamers and the creators and innovators who fuel that progress and help us light the way ahead, because our children, our grandchildren deserve to grow up in a country where their dreams know no bounds and their ambitions extend as far as their talents and hard work can take them. And it's important that they have examples ? people who?ve carved out a path for them.?

The 56-year-old Kushner co-authored the screenplay for the 2005 film Munich and wrote last year's Lincoln. But he is best known for his 1993 play Angels In America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes.

Obama hugged Kushner as he arrived to receive his medal.

Others honored included musician Herb Albert and filmmaker George Lucas.

Source: http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=15798&MediaType=1&Category=22

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শুক্রবার, ১২ জুলাই, ২০১৩

Nanoparticles, 'pH phoresis' could improve cancer drug delivery

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Researchers have developed a concept to potentially improve delivery of drugs for cancer treatment using nanoparticles that concentrate and expand in the presence of higher acidity found in tumor cells.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/K4jMXblFWwA/130710114434.htm

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