Thursday, November 05, 2009 NEW YORK: Many of the Middle East's most intractable problems could be solved if Iran accepts a proposed resolution for its controversial nuclear program, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog agency said Wednesday. "Iran could be the door to a stable Middle East," International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Mohamed ElBaradei told a think tank in New York. "I think it's very clear if we succeed on that, it would open the way, finally, to a new era, when Iran and the US... can work together," ElBaradei said at the Council on Foreign Relations, listing Iraq and Afghanistan as two areas where Iran could play a hugely constructive role. He said there was "a unique opportunity. I see it (for) the first time..., a genuine desire on both sides to seriously engage." However, ElBaradei warned this optimistic scenario depended on Iran signing up to the proposed deal and on Western powers sticking to diplomatic dialogue. If Israel were to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities that would "turn the Middle East into a ball of fire," he cautioned. Israel and several Western nations suspect that Tehran aims to build a nuclear weapon. However, Iran says it seeks only civilian nuclear power.
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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