US and its allies are pushing Syria into civil war by backing the armed opposition, the newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party writes. The article insists Beijing must stick to opposing any attempt to intervene or regime change in Damascus. ­”If Western countries continue to fully support Syria’s opposition, then in the end a large-scale civil war will erupt and there will... 

According to a 2009 Wikileaks cable, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano asserted that "he was solidly in the US court on every key strategic decision, from high-level personnel appointments to the handling of Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program." The UN nuclear agency is expected to publish a report “harsher” than its November edition on Iran next month, possibly triggering a military... 

A plane being unloaded at Rafiq Hariri International Airport in the Lebanese capital city, Beirut. Lebanon’s security officials say a suspicious cargo containing huge amounts of US dollars, guns, special passports and credit cards have been seized upon arrival in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, from the US and Brazil. The items, packed in a number of chests and delivered via airmail, were discovered... 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel Despite Beijing’s outright refusal to join the EU and US-sponsored unilateral sanctions on Iran’s oil industry, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has arranged a visit to China to convince the country to reduce Iranian oil import. A German government source told a news briefing on Tuesday that “It is in German interests that China does not raise its imports... 

Iranian Troops Depending on how soon military contractors can get to work on a massive US Navy “mother ship,” a colossal sea vessel could be stationed outside of Iran as early as this May. At a Department of Defense briefing at the Pentagon this weekend, authorities confirmed that the USS Ponce, a massive marine carrier currently docked off the Atlantic coast of Virginia, will undergo work to be... 

New Western sanctions seek to prevent other countries from importing Iran's crude oil. India has agreed to pay the price of crude oil it imports from Iran in gold, which makes it the first country to drop the US dollar for purchasing the Iranian oil. According to a report published by DEBKAfile news website, unnamed sources have stressed that China is also expected to follow suit. India and China... 

Iranian Navy warships take part in maneuvers during the "Velayat-90" navy exercises in the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran. Tensions in the Gulf could reach a breaking point as a senior Iranian official said Iran would “definitely” close the Strait of Hormuz if an EU oil embargo disrupted the export of crude oil, the semi-official Fars news agency reports. The announcement came in response... 

A disturbing report prepared by the Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth (IPE) in Moscow that is circulating in the Kremlin today warns that the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the Chiapas region of Mexico yesterday is a ‘potential precursor’ to a ‘megaquake’ of at least 7.5-8.3 expected to hit the US-Mexican Pacific coastline within the next fortnight (+/- 7 days). According to... 

India's Ambassador to the UN Hardeep Singh Puri The permanent representatives of China and India to the United Nations say the US-led sanctions on Iranian oil sector are neither logical nor economically viable. Chinese Ambassador to the UN, Li Baodong said that US officials should reconsider their move on sanctioning Iran’s oil sector since these requests are irrational and contrary to other... 

USS Abraham Lincoln and its battle group is on its way to the Persian Gulf as the US builds up military presence around Iran. The US and Israel cancel a joint military drill, which was originally scheduled to be held in spring, in what seems to be a sign of deepening rifts between the age-old allies. On January 5, Israeli military announced that Tel Aviv is gearing up for a major missile defense exercise,... 

The United States is sponsoring the construction of facilities in Georgia on the threshold of a military conflict in Iran, a member of Georgian opposition movement Public Assembly, Elizbar Javelidze has stated. According to the academician, that explains why President Mikhail Saakashvili is roaming the republic opening new hospitals in its regions. “These are 20-bed hospitals…It’s an American... 

An “urgent” follow-up report from General Director Vladimir Popovkin of the Russian Federal Space Agency (ROSCOSMOS) to Prime Minister Putin on the failed Phobos-Grunt Mars space probe [photo 2nd right] mission circulating in the Kremlin today states that since his last report (which we reported on in our 26 December report US Warned Could Soon Face Russian Wrath From Space) the Americans who... 

The Bahrain-based US Fifth Fleet says it will not “tolerate” any disruption in the Strait of Hormuz after Iran announced its forces are capable of closing the route if necessary. “[The fleet] maintains a robust presence in the region to deter or counter destabilizing activities,” a spokesperson for the fleet said on Wednesday. “The free flow of goods and services through the... 

Pakistani soldiers carry the coffins of their comrades who were killed in a Saturday strike. Peshawar, November 27, 2011. The Pakistani army has rejected a US investigation that concluded mistakes on both sides led to US air strikes last month that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and severely damaged the already strained relationship between the two countries. The response indicates the report will do... 

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A Harvard professor of international affairs says the warmongering calls for a military strike on Iran follow a classic model of deception that involves fabricating a threat and downplaying the repercussions of an attack. “There is a simple and time-honored formula for making the case for war, especially preventive...