TEHRAN, July 3, 2006 (AFP) – Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has unveiled plans for a major privatisation of state industries except companies in the crucial oil sector, press reports said Monday.
The government plans to sell off 80 percent of its stake in a range of state-run industrial companies — from banking to media, transport to minerals — under an order issued by Khamenei.
Stop Fundamentalism – In a special report by James Kirkup, The Scotsmen reported that the British Intelligence Service, MI6 has warned that Iran could direct terrorist attacks on British interests, if talks over its nuclear program fail.
The Scotsman quoting an annual report by Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) of both houses of British Parliament who were given access to the confidential work of Britain’s intelligence agencies.
Stop Fundamentalism – Azzaman daily reported Monday July 3 that agents of Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security are fomenting unrest in Iraq’s southern city of Basra.
Iraqi counter-intelligence sources said fighters were being trained in Lebanon under MOIS supervision and sent via the Iranian border to infiltrate Basra.
MUNICH, July 2, 2006 (AFP) – Factfile on Portugal who play France in the World Cup semi-finals here on Wednesday:-
AMMAN, July 3, 2006 (AFP) – US ally Jordan is insisting that deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s eldest daughter remains under its protection, despite calls from the US-backed authorities in Baghdad for her extradition.
Jordanian Prime Minister Maaruf Bakhit stressed that no formal extradition request had yet been received from Iraq following national security advisor Muwaffaq al-Rubaie’s identification Sunday of Raghdad Saddam Hussein as his country’s 16th most wanted fugitive.
LONDON, July 3, 2006 (AFP) – The price of oil reached almost 74 dollars per barrel in London trade on Monday, closing in on a historic high owing to supply concerns, dealers said.
Brent North Sea crude for August delivery climbed 56 cents to 73.82 dollars per barrel in electronic trading after touching 73.99 earlier Monday.
Stop Fundamentalism – Saturday July 1, thousands rallied in support of National Council of Resistance of Iran, an Iranian dissident organization based in France, to call for a democratic change in Iran rather than an Iraqi style war to stop Iranian regime’s efforts to acquire nuclear weapons and spread violence and terror throughout the world.
"The solution to the nuclear crisis and to avert a war is democratic change in Iran," Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the NCRI told a crowd of 30,000 in Le Bourget exhibition hall north of Paris.
The NCRI is the main Iranian opposition group that has vowed to over through the Iranian theocratic regime.
UNITED NATIONS, June 29, 2006 (AFP) – Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Thursday rejected calls from major powers to give a speedy answer to proposals to end the crisis over Iran’s nuclear program.
GAZA CITY, June 30, 2006 (AFP) – Israel launched air raids in the Gaza Strip overnight in retaliation at the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier, setting the Palestinian interior ministry ablaze, witnesses and security sources said early Friday.
MOSCOW, June 30, 2006 (AFP) – A meeting of G8 foreign ministers this week showed that the United States is ready to mute its criticism of Moscow on questions of democracy in exchange for Russian support on the Iranian nuclear issue, a leading broadsheet said Friday.
