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PARIS-French President Jacques Chirac suggested Monday that the international community renounce referring Iran to the U.N. Security Council during nuclear talks-and that Iran, in return, suspend uranium enrichment. "I don't believe in a solution without dialogue," Chirac said on Europe-1 radio, suggesting that the international community suspend the threat of U.N. sanctions in exchange for Iran's suspension of enrichment during negotiations. "I am not pessimistic," Chirac said. "I think that Iran is a great nation, an old culture, an old civilization, and that we can find solutions through dialogue." He suggested that, firstly an agenda for talks be set forth...

FEDERAL police commissioner Mick Keelty has urged people to back off Muslims, insisting Islamic Australia is not to blame for terrorism. In a revealing interview with The Weekend Australian, Mr Keelty said racial profiling was self-defeating because it risked alienating mainstream Muslims while ignoring the real danger of homegrown non-Muslim terror. "I remind people that the firstperson who was convicted of a terrorist offence in Australia was a person with the unlikely name of Jack Roche," the police chief said. And Mr Keelty said he did not like the phrase "the war on terror", because it did not apply in...

•Paroled TWA Hijacker Returns to Lebanon WASHINGTON — One of the most infamous terrorists of the 1980s has rejoined Hezbollah following his release from a German prison and deportation to his native Lebanon in December 2005, a senior Bush administration official told FOX News.

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice signaled Monday that a temporary suspension of Iran's nuclear programs might be enough to pave the way for the first direct negotiations involving the United States and Iran in more than a quarter-century. Speaking to reporters as she flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Rice said Iran needs to suspend uranium enrichment activities before talks can begin, but she did not rule out something less than a permanent suspension. In talks over the weekend between Iranian and European officials, the chief Iranian negotiator offered a two-month freeze at the start of the talks. "The...

With realignment apparently dead and any diplomatic process with the Palestinians stagnant, some voices inside the EU are calling for the three preconditions to talks with Hamas to be "revisited," The Jerusalem Post has learned. These voices, according to European officials, are not advocating dropping the three conditions - ending terrorism, accepting previous agreements and recognizing Israel - but rather staggering them so an opening is created for talks with the Palestinian Authority. EU begins paying aid to Palestinians "No one is questioning the need for the three conditions," a senior European diplomatic source said. "But maybe if you cannot...

The Pakistani military will no longer operate in the area where Osama bin Laden and other top al Qaeda operatives are believed to be hiding, according to terms of what the Pakistan government calls a "peace deal," signed today with militant tribal groups allied to the Taliban and al Qaeda. It is a stunning setback for U.S. efforts to root out al Qaeda and Taliban strongholds. The agreement, signed in the North Waziristan district of Pakistan's volatile tribal belt, calls for the military to return to its barracks and for the insurgents to stop launching attacks on Pakistani troops.

Osama bin Laden, America's most wanted man, will not face capture in Pakistan if he agrees to lead a "peaceful life," Pakistani officials tell ABC News. The surprising announcement comes as Pakistani army officials announced they were pulling their troops out of the North Waziristan region as part of a "peace deal" with the Taliban. If he is in Pakistan, bin Laden "would not be taken into custody," Major General Shaukat Sultan Khan told ABC News in a telephone interview, "as long as one is being like a peaceful citizen." Bin Laden is believed to be hiding somewhere in the...

The European Union's foreign policy chief and Iran's senior nuclear negotiator tentatively agreed to meet Wednesday in a last-ditch attempt to bridge differences over Tehran's atomic program, U.N. and European officials said. With the Vienna meeting seen as the last chance for Iran to avoid sanctions, U.N. Secretary- General Kofi Annan threw his weight behind a negotiated solution, saying Monday that confrontation with the Security Council "will not be in Iran's favor or that of the region." The officials, who agreed to share confidential information about the meeting with The Associated Press only if their names weren't used, stressed that...

4 September 2006 BERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel has underlined there can be "no military option" for dealing with Iran's nuclear programme, a spokesman said Monday. "The door for negotiations remains open," said chief German government spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm. Wilhelm added: "The chancellor has expressed the view that there is no military option." US President George W. Bush has repeatedly said he does not rule out any option for dealing with Iran's nuclear programme, which is widely believed to be aimed at building nuclear weapons. Iran rejects this and says its uranium enrichment is for peaceful purposes. Tehran refused...

THE Italian Foreign Minister said today that Iran's desire to develop nuclear energy is "legitimate" provided the goal of the program was for "peaceful purposes"."If Iran is looking to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, it is not only legitimate, but can also clear the way for cooperation" with other countries, said Massimo D'Alema.He stressed that Iran's nuclear program must be peaceful."We must work so that Iran does not build a nuclear weapon," he said.The comments by Italy's top diplomat came one day before a deadline set by the UN Security Council for Iran to halt its uranium enrichment...

SO, what now? Iran has defied the UN order to stop its most controversial nuclear work. It looks as if there will be a fudge by the European Union, dragging the US along behind. At yesterday's deadline, which was supposed to be the climax of this long-running standoff, Europeans blinked first. Germany and Italy, in particular, have taken the view that more talks would be preferable to sanctions, even at the cost of blurring the force of the UN Security Council demand. That has played into the hands of Russia and China, who never much wanted sanctions. It has left...

Two bombs in two crowded trains. Neither bomb, though, exploded. It would have been one of the most lethal terrorist attacks since Sept. 11, 2001. And it was planned not for Britain, not for Indonesia, not for the U.S., but for Germany, of all places. Suddenly the threat to the people there seems very real. German authorities say two people placed suitcase bombs on regional trains that departed from Cologne's main station on July 31. One suspect, a Lebanese student enrolled in a prep program at Kiel University in northern Germany, has been arrested. Police are searching for the other...

When Israel began its counterattack on Hezbollah one month ago, the Bush administration backed the Israeli plan to destroy the militia and its arsenal of rockets, resisting efforts by France and other allies to call for a cease-fire. But as the assault wore on and it became evident that Hezbollah was a far more fearsome and skilled adversary than Israel had first thought — and as Lebanese civilian casualties mounted — American policy moved more urgently toward seeking an immediate political solution. That shift, recounted by senior administration officials, led to one of the most dramatic bouts of diplomacy that...

MOSCOW (AFP) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said that the standoff over Iran's nuclear program could not be resolved through use of force, news agencies reported. ADVERTISEMENT "I am convinced that there can be no resolution of the problem through use of force," the agencies quoted Lavrov as saying on Wednesday. "Practically all European countries are in solidarity with Russia" in this regard, Lavrov said. He cautioned against drawing conclusions too quickly following the announcement Tuesday by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that the Islamic republic had successfully enriched uranium itself for use as nuclear fuel. The main goal...

"It is extremely important to point out that the aim behind these cartoons was not to attack the Prophet at all or devalue him, but as an opening to dialogue on freedom of expression," Sunday's apology said. "We did not realize at the time how sensitive this issue was for Muslims in Denmark or millions of Muslims around the world." The adverts included a previously published statement from the Danish embassy in Riyadh declaring respect for Islam. The apology was dated February 5, but an advertising spokesman at al-Riyadh said it might have taken time for the papers, which are...

VIENNA, Austria France accused Iran on Thursday of seeking nuclear weapons in Europe's bluntest criticism to date of Tehran's uranium enrichment plans, while Russia urged its erstwhile ally to re-impose an indefinite freeze on enrichment.

A major American attack on Iran's nuclear sites would kill up to 10,000 people and lead to war in the Middle East, a report says today. Hundreds of scientists and technicians would be targets in the opening salvos as the attacks focused on eliminating further nuclear development, the Oxford Research Group says in Iran: Consequences of a War. The research coincides with reports that strategists at the Pentagon are drawing up plans for "a last resort" strike if diplomacy fails. Plans for an assault have taken on "greater urgency" in recent months, The Sunday Telegraph said. Tacticians at central command...

EU commissioner urges European press code on religionBy David Rennie in Brussels(Filed: 09/02/2006)Plans for a European press charter committing the media to "prudence" when reporting on Islam and other religions, were unveiled yesterday. <script>document.write('<a href="http://ads.telegraph.co.uk/event.ng/Type%3dclick%26FlightID%3d12277%26AdID%3d14448%26TargetID%3d2697%26Segments%3d183,217,381,406,419,475,491,532,539,736,737,928,950,964,998,1040,1057,1063,1088,1242,1278,1418,1419,1428,1532,1552,1578,1582,1649,1652,1673,1695,1700,1703,1704,1714,1728,1748,1754,1756,1773,1774,1780%26Targets%3d154,3121,3146,2697,3142,3171,2700,3266,2611,3113,2945,2950,3141,3169,3196,3238,3261,3274,2858,2865,2919,3028,2936%26Values%3d25,30,50,62,75,85,100,110,150,155,196,197,198,1275,1282,1393,1444,1462,1503,1899,2096,2098,2248,2262,2336,2423,2500,2542,2564,2619,2626,2629,2630,2631,2632,2650,2664,2666,2667,2682,2860,3116%26RawValues%3d%26Redirect%3dhttp:%252f%252fclk.atdmt.com/MDG/go/tlgrpbpu0050000011mdg/direct/01/bzzawjw,bbRzWRebghNzN/" target="_blank"><img src="http://view.atdmt.com/MDG/view/tlgrpbpu0050000011mdg/direct/01/bzzawjw,bbRzWRebghNzN/" width="200" height="200" border="0" alt=""></a><br>');</script> Franco Frattini, the European Union commissioner for justice, freedom and security, revealed the idea for a code of conduct in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. Mr Frattini, a former Italian foreign minister, said the EU faced the "very real problem" of trying to reconcile "two fundamental freedoms, the freedom of expression and the freedom of religion".Millions of...

Iran’s Leader, Ahmadinejad, Calls on Nations to “Remove Israel” 16:49 Feb 12, '06 / 14 Shevat 5766 By Scott Shiloh At a rally in Teheran, commemorating the 27th anniversary of the revolution that created the Islamic republic, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterated his call for Israel’s destruction. "We ask the West to remove what they created sixty years ago, and if they do not listen to our recommendations, then the Palestinian nation and other nations will eventually do this for them," Ahmadinejad said. "Remove Israel before it is too late and save yourself from the fury of regional nations," proclaimed...

  The United Nations and European Union have reached agreement to issue a joint statement condemning cartoon "insults to Islam" that were first published in a Danish newspaper and have been widely reprinted recently, resulting in a rash of violence throughout the Muslim world. According to a report in WAM, the United Arab Emirates news agency, the agreement is the work of Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary general of the Organization of Islamic Conference. The agreement, according to Ihsanoglu, will mean a formal rebuke by the U.N. and EU of the Danish paper Jyllands-Posten for publishing the offensive cartoons. The statement, he...