QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I see this as a moment of great promise and great progress for the continent.”
President Barack Obama, opening a trip to sub-Saharan Africa in Senegal Article, this page
Brazil protesters repelled near stadium
FORTALEZA, Brazil - About 5,000 anti-government protesters battled police Thursday near a stadium that is set to host a semifinal match of the Confederations Cup football tournament.
The protesters were marching peacefully but clashed with police as they neared the outer limits of a security zone about 1 mile from the stadium in Fortaleza, where Spain was set to play Italy in the warm-up tournament to the 2014 World Cup.
It was the latest of the nationwide protests that have hit Brazil since June 17. Demonstrators are angered about perceived corruption and poor public services despite a heavy tax burden. Protesters also are denouncing the billions of dollars spent to host the World Cup and the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro - money they say should be going toward better hospitals, schools, transportation projects and schools.
Acrid tear gas still drifted in the air around Ferreira as police and clusters of protesters battled. Authorities were firing tear gas and rubber bullets to scatter the crowd, while protesters responded with slingshots, fireworks and rocks. At one point, a several protesters broke through the outer police barrier and made a dash for the stadium, but they were pushed pack by police.
In Brasilia, President Dilma Rousseff met with union leaders and legislators as the government continued to scramble to meet protesters’ demands on anti-corruption measures and improved public services.
U.S. military aid welcome, Iraqi says
BAGHDAD - Iraq is open to greater American military cooperation as U.S. commanders explore ways to boost security assistance to the country, a top Iraqi official said Thursday as a fresh wave of bombings claimed 16 lives.
The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, has recommended that U.S. military commanders look for ways to help improve the military capabilities of Iraq and Lebanon, which both face the risk of spillover from the civil war in neighboring Syria.
The last American combat troops left Iraq in December 2011, ending a nearly nine-year war that cost nearly 4,500 American and more than 100,000 Iraqi lives.
Ali al-Moussawi, the media adviser for Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, said Baghdad would welcome increased arms sales and faster weapons deliveries along with U.S.
training teams to help it confront rising regional instability and terrorist threats.
Iran’s ayatollah: Nuclear solution ‘easy’
TEHRAN, Iran - Iran’s supreme leader said a solution to the nuclear impasse with the West would be “easy” if the United States and its allies are serious about seeking a deal, Iranian media reported Thursday.
The remarks by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are his first on the nuclear issue since the presidential election earlier this month of Hasan Rouhani, who supports direct talks with Washington. It suggests Khamenei also could endorse bolder diplomacy by Tehran if talks resume with world powers.
Several newspapers, including the hard-line Jomhouri Eslami, quoted Khamenei as saying “the solution to Iran’s nuclear case is an easy and smooth job” if Western powers want to strike a deal.
“The opposition front against Iran does not want the nuclear issue to be solved,” Khamenei told a group of judiciary officials Wednesday.
Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, singled out the U.S. for what he called “new excuses” to block possible headway on negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program.
The West suspects Iran seeks a nuclear weapon, which Tehran denies, saying its nuclear activities are for peaceful purposes such as power generation and medical isotopes.
Israel bank chief critical of peace push
JERUSALEM - The outgoing governor of Israel’s central bank took a parting shot at the Israeli leadership Thursday, saying the country hasn’t done enough to push for peace with the Palestinians.
Stanley Fischer, an internationally respected economist, has been a loyal partner to a series of Israeli governments during his eight-year tenure. In an interview to Army Radio, Fischer said Israel should push to strengthen Palestinian leaders to help create an independent Palestinian state.
His comments came as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was expected in Jerusalem later Thursday to meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, his fifth visit in recent months to try to jump-start peace negotiations that have stalled for nearly five years, in large part over disagreements on Israeli settlement construction.
The Palestinians have demanded all settlement building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem end before renewing talks, while Israel wants no preconditions to negotiations.
The Palestinians claim the West Bank and east Jerusalem, areas captured by Israel in 1967, as part of their future state.
Front Section, Pages 6 on 06/28/2013