dog meat taken off china menus for olympics from kprc: Patrons at some restaurants in Beijing won't be able to order any canine cuisine during next month's Olympics. Dog meat has been struck from the menus of officially designated Olympic restaurants, and Beijing tourism officials are telling other outlets to discourage consumers from ordering dishes made from dogs, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Friday.
iran discovers billion-barrel oil field from afp: Iran says it has discovered a new oil field containing more than one billion barrels of crude. Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said the oil field held 1.1 billion barrels of sweet crude oil, of which 233 million coudl be recovered, the Shana news agency reported.
mediterranean union wants to rid m of wmd from ap: The leaders of 43 nations from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa have launched a Union for the Mediterranean, a brainchild of French President Nicolas Sarkozy that aims to improve cooperation in the region with practical projects that parallel efforts toward Mideast peace.
many uk troops 'feel like quitting' says mod survey from bbc: Almost half of UK military personnel are ready to leave the forces, a Ministry of Defence survey suggests. Some 47% of Army and Royal Navy respondents and 44% of those in the RAF said they regularly felt like quitting. Among the concerns raised by the 9,000 servicemen and women surveyed were the frequency of tours, levels of pay and the quality of equipment and housing. The Ministry of Defence said the survey revealed “areas of concern” but that conditions were being improved.
uk intel chief in coma after collapse from guardian: The cabinet's most senior intelligence adviser was in a coma last night five days after being found unconscious at his London home, according to Whitehall officials. Alex Allan, described by his colleagues as an extremely fit man and keen on sports, was rushed to hospital on Monday after he was discovered unconscious at his home where he has lived alone since the death of his Australian wife last year. "He is seriously ill and undergoing tests to try and find out what is in his system," an official said yesterday. Officials dismissed as "nonsense" suggestions that he might have been poisoned.
russia starts large-scale naval exercise in the pacific from ria novosti: Over 20 combat and auxiliary ships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet started on Tuesday a large-scale naval exercise in the Sea of Japan, which includes live firing drills, a fleet spokesman said... According to the exercise scenario, the Russian naval task force and shore-based naval aircraft are tasked with the search and destruction of an ‘aggressor force’ attempting to establish a beachhead on the Russian coast. The ships will conduct a series of live firing drills against ground, surface, and air targets.
pentagon doubts israeli intel over iran's nuke program from telegraph: American commanders worry that Israel will feel compelled to act within the next 12 months with no guarantee that they can do more than slow Iran's development of a weapon capable of destroying the Jewish state. Gaps in the intelligence on the precise location and vulnerabilities of Iran's facilities emerged during recent talks between Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Israeli generals, according to an official familiar with the discussions who has briefed Iran experts in Washington and London.
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