Palestinian rescue workers helped a wounded prisoner on Sunday in Gaza City after an Israeli missile attack at the main security compound and prison, the Saraya. (Majed Hamdan/Associated Press)

Israeli Troops Mass Along Border; Arab Anger Rises

New York Times, By TAGHREED EL-KHODARY and ISABEL KERSHNER Published: December 28, 2008 GAZA — Israeli troops and tanks massed along the Gaza border and the government said it had called up reserves for a possible ground operation, as the death toll increased to nearly 300 after Israeli aircraft pounded Gaza for a second day on Sunday.

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Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev listens to a question during an interview at the presidential residence in Gorki outside Moscow prior to the Russia-EU Summit, November 13, 2008. REUTERS/RIA Novosti/Kremlin/Astakhov Dmitry

Medvedev: ready to respond if U.S. ends missile plan

Thu Nov 13, 2008 2:36am EST

PARIS (Reuters) – Russia could cancel its deployment of missiles near the Polish border if U.S. President-elect Barack Obama scraps plans for a missile defense system in central Europe, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said.

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Cadets in historical uniforms take part in a military parade in the Red Square in Moscow, November 7, 2008. Moscow marked the anniversary of a historical parade in 1941 when Soviet soldiers marched through the Red Square to the front lines of World War II. REUTERS/Denis Sinyakov

Russia rejects U.S. missile proposals

Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:30am EST, By Guy Faulconbridge

MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Wednesday rejected U.S. proposals aimed at easing concerns over a missile defense system in Europe and said it would try again to resolve the row once Barack Obama is in the White House.

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Iraqi Christian woman carries a sack of humanitarian aid inside a Chaldean nunnery where many Christian families took refuge, in the village of Karaqoush, 28 kilometers (20 miles) east of Mosul, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008. An Iraqi official said Thursday that the number of Christian families fleeing violence in the northern city of Mosul since last week has reached over 8,300 people. Islamic extremists have frequently targeted Christians and other religious minorities since the 2003 U.S. invasion,

Iran condemns attacks on Christians in Iraq

Baghdad, Oct 16, IRNA Iran-Iraq-Embassy Iran’s Embassy in Baghdad on Thursday lammed in a statement the recent terrorist attacks on Iraqi Christians in the city of Mosul in northern Iraq.

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The Opium Poppy : Papaver Somniferum

The mystery of the missing opium

Mark Easton 8 Oct 08, 11:27 AM GMT It’s a mystery that has got British law enforcement officials and others across the planet scratching their heads. Put bluntly, enough heroin to supply the world’s demand for years has simply disappeared.

Tom Clancy’s EndWar Screenshot (courtesy TeamXbox dot com)

Russia ratchets up US tensions with arms sales to Iran and Venezuela

From Times (UK) Online September 18, 2008 Tony Halpin in Moscow — Russia snubbed its nose at the United States today by announcing plans to sell military equipment to both Iran and Venezuela.

A photographer walked among Humvees during a ceremony at the transfer of U.S. equipment to the Afghan Army this year on the outskirts of Kabul. (Musadeq Sadeq/The Associated Press)

U.S. pushing through dozens of foreign weapons deals

By Eric Lipton Published: September 14, 2008 WASHINGTON: The Bush administration is pushing through a broad array of foreign weapons deals as it seeks to re-arm Iraq and Afghanistan, contain North Korea and Iran, and solidify ties with onetime Russian allies.

In this 2007 AFP photo the presidents of Bolivia, Evo Morales and Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad exchange folders after signing an understanding agreement in La Paz, Bolivia. At Ahmadinejad’s stopover in Bolivia, he pledged $1 billion in Iranian aid and development to the poverty stricken country. Photo: AFP/Aizar Raldes

Tehran, Sept 1, IRNA Bolivia-Iran-President President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here on Tuesday that the two nations of Iran and Bolivia are moving in a clear and bright direction towards a better future and they will stand by each other in all situations.