Monday, October 05, 2009 NEW YORK: The Obama administration says it is committed to diplomacy with Iran, but is reviewing the possibility of imposing enhanced sanctions. US officials stress they will not wait forever for Tehran to come clean about its nuclear ambitions.The White House says the latest round of multilateral talks on the Iranian nuclear dispute began well. Officials say they are now waiting to see if Iran follows through on the pledges made Thursday in Geneva.US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice says the onus is on Tehran to adhere to the commitments it has made."If it does not, time is short. We are not interested in talking for talking's sake," said Rice. "We are not interested in interminable negotiations. They have to demonstrate conclusively that their program is for peaceful purposes."During an appearance on the NBC television program Meet the Press, Rice declined to discuss specific deadlines.
BEIRUT: Thousands of people converged Saturday on central Beirut to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Lebanese former premier Rafiq Hariri.Waving Lebanese flags and carrying pictures of the slain leader, men, women and children gathered under sunny skies in Martyr's Square where members of the parliamentary majority were to address the crowd. The rally comes as final preparations are underway in The Hague for the launch of the international tribunal set up to bring Hariri's killers to justice. It also comes as the country prepares for legislative elections in June that will pit Western-backed political parties against a Hezbollah-led alliance backed by Syria and Iran.Hariri died in a massive car bombing on February 14, 2005 that also killed 22 others. The assassination was widely blamed on then Lebanese power-broker Syria, which has denied any involvement. The attack on the Beirut seafront was one of the worst acts of political violence to rock Lebanon since t...
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