Free Republic

CONCORD, N.H. — Gov. Chris Sununu on Friday vetoed three bills that advocates said would have added “commonsense” protections for Granite Staters against gun violence but opponents said would have done nothing to stop mass shootings and would have infringed on the constitutional rights of citizens. Sununu vetoed House 109, which closes the so-called gun show loophole and requires background checks for virtually all commercial firearms sales or transfers; House Bill 514, which requires a three-day waiting period before the purchase and delivery of a firearm; and House Bill 564, which prohibits carrying a firearm on school property. “New Hampshire...

CNN is reporting that the United States and North Korea have  been holding secret, direct talks in preparation for a summit meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un.CIA Director Mike Pompeo and a team of officials have been meeting with their North Korean counterparts to come up with a location for the meeting. Although the North Korean regime has not publicly declared its invitation by Kim Jong Un to meet with Trump, which was conveyed last month by a South Korean envoy, several officials say North Korea has since acknowledged Trump's acceptance, and Pyongyang has reaffirmed Kim is willing...

Congress will be so disappointed: A comprehensive nuclear agreement between Iran and the West will not lead to a larger rapprochement between Tehran and Washington, according to one senior Iranian official. Iran and the US “can behave in a way that they do not use their energy against each other,” Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, told the Financial Times on Monday in his first interview with international press. “Everything will depend on the honesty of the Americans in the nuclear talks,” he said. “We will not die if there is no agreement, and we will not...

According to a senior diplomatic source in Jerusalem, the chances of a deal being reached on Iran’s nuclear program between it and world powers before the November 24 deadline are slim—but US President Barack Obama is liable to flex on several points, including the deadline. “When there’s a will on the part of both leaders everything is possible, but Israel needs to stand guard so that a bad deal won’t be made,” the source told Walla!, warning against a deal that will leave the Islamic regime with thousands of centrifuges and breakout capability to quickly create a nuclear bomb. The...

The US has been secretly holding talks with Hamas for months Buzzfeed reported Thursday, despite its official stance that it would (not?) negotiate with the terrorist organization. “Our administration needed to hear from them that this unity government would move toward democratic elections, and toward a more peaceful resolution with the entire region,” a US official stated to the “social news” site, on condition of anonymity. “It was important to have that line of communication.” US officials have publicly denied the charges, however, leading to confusion over the report’s veracity. …

The White house has officially denied having held secret talks with Iran over a possible attack by Israel. White House spokesperson Jay Carney said the claim, made in an article published in the Hebrew-language newspaper Yediot Aharonot, was not true. “The report is false and completely incorrect,” said Carney. “And we don't talk about hypotheticals,” he added. In the report, the newspaper had claimed the White House sent a secret message to Tehran through two unidentified European intermediaries, saying the U.S. would not get involved if Israel decided to attack Iran's nuclear plants. .....

President Shimon Peres held a clandestine meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas recently in London, Maariv reported Friday. According to the report, the two continue to exchange telephone calls and messages, and their close associates have held discussions as well. Peres took the official position of refusing to respond to “rumors.” However, a close associate of the president quoted in the report expressed upset that the Peres-Abbas connection would be revealed. “President Peres is the last Israeli who continues to enjoy a direct channel to the Palestinians, and it is highly unfortunate that this channel will be sealed due...

Representative of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council have been engaged in secret talks with special US and British emissaries in two European cities at least since Sunday, October 23, 2005, Rooz has learned. These talks began in Switzerland and continued in Sweden on Monday. The contents of the talks are said to be to resolve “outstanding bilateral” issues. In Switzerland, the talks with Britain were held by Javad Vaidi, a senior National Security Council member who is in charge of Iran’s nuclear dossier. Vaidi is reported to have entered Switzerland as an undercover non-diplomatic agent at a time when Iran...

JERUSALEM - Israel had secret contacts with Syria several months ago — well before recent Syrian overtures — but they broke down after word of the meetings leaked out, Israel's foreign minister said Sunday. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (news - web sites) said he was ready to open negotiations if Syria "stops helping terror." The secret meetings appeared part of an effort to restart peace talks between Israel and one of its most intractable enemies. Earlier talks broke down in 2000. Syrian President Bashar Assad called last month for a resumption of official talks, but Israel leaders are split over...