Dollar a 'worthless piece of paper,' Iran's president says
Associated Press Nov 18, 07 9:52 PM CST
(Newser)
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Calling it a "small and worthless piece of paper,” Iran’s president today urged OPEC's members to drop the depreciating US dollar as its official currency. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blamed President Bush for the dollar’s decline and its adverse effects. The comments highlight mounting tension among OPEC members, the AP reports.
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But call to make OPEC 'geopolitical agent' rejected by Saudis
BBC Nov 17, 07 6:48 PM CST
(Newser)
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Crude oil prices could hit $150-$200 a barrel if Bush is “mad enough” to strike Iran, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warned today at the OPEC summit. “The basis of all aggression is oil,” said Chavez, arguing that OPEC should set itself up as “an active geopolitical agent.” Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah countered, saying “Oil shouldn’t be a tool for conflict, [but for] development.”
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19-year-old woman earns 200 lashes and
6 months in prison
BBC Nov 16, 07 7:36 PM CST
(Newser)
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A Saudi woman who was gang-raped by 14 men has been sentenced to 200 lashes and 6 months in prison, the BBC reports. Her original crime was being in the car with a man unrelated to her, but her punishment was doubled and prison time added when she appealed the original sentence. Judges said she tried to use the media to influence them; her lawyer says the sentence violates both Sharia law and international conventions.
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Saudi oil minister blames speculators, says $60 is more like it
Wall Street Journal Nov 14, 07 7:37 AM CST
(Newser)
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After gushing toward $100 a barrel, oil traded as low as $90.13 yesterday, closing at $91.17. Analysts said the downward pressure could continue as demand for oil slows and OPEC increases production, reports the Wall Street Journal. Saudi Arabia's oil minister, meanwhile, told the Globe and Mail that prices have been jacked up by speculation and should be near $60.
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Billionaire Saudi prince plans to transform world's largest jet
into flying palace
CNN Nov 13, 07 10:10 AM CST
(Newser)
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A billionaire Saudi prince plans to convert one of the world's largest passenger planes into a flying palace. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is the first purchaser of the luxury version of the double-decker Airbus A380, price tag $320 million-plus. And that's before he tricks it out with amenities that may include private bedrooms, dining rooms, conference rooms, a screening room, and a gym with a Jacuzzi, CNN reports from the Dubai Air Show.
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King Abdullah travels to the Vatican on his European tour
BBC Nov 6, 07 9:00 AM CST
(Newser)
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Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah visited with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican today—the first official meeting of any pope with a reigning Saudi monarch. The visit comes as relations are improving between the Vatican and the Muslim world, the BBC reports. Still, the pontiff was expected to press Abdullah on allowing Christians in Saudi Arabia to worship more freely.
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No bombings if they'd been consulted in a 'credible manner'
CNN Nov 2, 07 6:55 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Saudi Arabia’s Prince Bandar bin Sultan claims the 9/11 attacks could have been prevented if the US had consulted the kingdom in a "credible" way. The claim mirrored remarks earlier in the week by King Abdullah that the Saudis could have helped the British stop the September 2005 train bombings in London, too. Bandar, who was ambassador to the US for 21 years, is now Abdullah's national security adviser.
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King Abdullah
sweeps into London
with 23 advisers
and 400 aides
BBC Oct 31, 07 9:52 AM CDT
(Newser)
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In the first visit of a Saudi king to the UK in 20 years, King Abdullah was treated to a Buckingham Palace banquet last night. His host, Queen Elizabeth, said Britain and Saudi Arabia must fight together against "terrorists who threaten the way of life of our citizens." Abdullah urged British Muslims to be "honest and upright Muslims and worthy British citizens," the BBC reports.
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Stigma prevents many women from seeking treatment for the disease
Associated Press Oct 24, 07 2:38 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Laura Bush today swept into a country where breast cancer is such a taboo that it is often not prevented, treated, or publicly admitted—a high-profile woman trumpeting a pink-ribbon message where 70% of cases aren't reported until late stages. Though excellent care exists, many ignore "that disease" for fears ranging from dealing with male doctors to no one wanting to marry a patient's daughter.
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Zoellick calls for fast funds and alternative energy sources
Reuters Oct 22, 07 8:25 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Robert Zoellick has outlined a new strategy for the World Bank, including giving the private sector a bigger role in development, speeding aid to countries coming out of conflict, and promoting green energy alternatives, Reuters reports. The new president has been quick to reposition the global bank's mission following the turmoil over former president Paul Wolfowitz's resignation under duress.
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Alan Quasha makes a strange Dem bedfellow
Nation Oct 21, 07 8:09 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Hillary Clinton has another backer as mysterious as the now-discredited Norman Hsu—this one a businessman who goes way back with George W. Bush. The Nation examines Clinton's ties to Alan Quasha, the Harken Energy magnate who bailed out the younger Bush’s oil company in 1986. Quasha now has an odd, under-the-radar connection to the Clinton campaign.
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Rice hopes Mideast talks will include
Arab neighbors
Washington Post Sep 24, 07 6:02 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The US will issue invitations to this fall's Mideast peace conference to Saudi Arabia, Syria and other Arab nations that don't have diplomatic ties to Israel, the Washington Post reports. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice suggested Sunday that attendance would bring with it "certain responsibilities" such as avoiding violence and recognizing the existence of both Palestine and Israel.
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Neither Islamic law nor country's constitution forbids female drivers
BBC Sep 18, 07 1:13 PM CDT
(Newser)
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A group of Saudi women is trying to regain a “stolen right”: driving. The group will deliver a petition to King Abdullah this week demanding the right to get behind the wheel. But prospects for lifting the world's only ban on female drivers are cloudy, the BBC reports, because of concerns about women mixing freely with men.
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