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US stocks climb on robust auto sales Posted: 04 Sep 2013 04:33 PM PDT NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks jumped on Wednesday after surging US auto sales pointed to robustness in the manufacturing sector. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 96.91 points (0.65 percent) to 14,930.87. The broad-based S&P 500 added 13.31 points (0.81 percent) at 1,653.08, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index increased 36.43 points (1.01 percent) to 3,649.04. Investors were cheered by August double-digit auto sales gains from GM, Toyota, Ford and Chrysler. "We're seeing some strength in the manufacturing sector," said Alan Skrainka, chief investment officer for Cornerstone Wealth Management. A positive regional economies survey from the Federal Reserve described US economic growth as still "modest to moderate" since July. The report showed consumer spending and manufacturing has risen in most of the 12 regions in the US and said job creation was steady or improving. The market gains also came despite continued edginess in the markets over the prospects of a US military strike on Syria. On Wednesday, President Obama reiterated the need for a global response on Syria as a US Senate panel approved a resolution authorising US military intervention. Ford advanced 3.5 percent after reporting its best retail sales month since August 2006. Total sales increased 12 percent from August 2012. General Motors surged 5.0 percent after retail sales jumped 22 percent year-on-year, notching the best performance since September 2008. Technology giant Apple gained 2.1 percent after it set September 10 for an event that is expected to be the unveiling of its new iPhone line, which could include a range of colours and a low-priced version. According to reports Apple also plans a media event in China on September 11. Pipeline and energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan fell 6.0 percent after Jefferies initiated coverage with a "hold" recommendation. Jefferies expressed concern that high capital spending for maintenance could crimp dividend payouts. LinkedIn shed 2.9 percent after announcing it planned a public offering of about $1 billion worth of shares. The funds will go to general corporate purposes and international expansion. Discount retailer Dollar General gained 4.7 percent after earnings bested expectations by three cents per share at 77 cents. Same-store sales growth reached 5.1 percent in the quarter. -- AFP

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Officials press lawmakers to approve Syria strike; Obama invokes Congress's ... - Washington Post Posted: 04 Sep 2013 08:40 AM PDT Top administration officials pressed their case Wednesday for congressional approval of a U.S. military strike on Syria, as lawmakers readied a more limited authorization than originally proposed and President Obama said the credibility of Congress and the international community is also at stake. After classified, closed-doors hearings Wednesday morning on Capitol Hill, members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee were scheduled to debate a new draft of a resolution on the use of force in Syria in response to a reported chemical weapons attack last month that killed more than 1,400 people. The resolution would permit up to 90 days of military action against the Syrian government and bar the deployment of U.S. combat troops in Syria, while permitting the deployment of a small rescue mission in the event of an emergency, according to a copy of the resolution obtained late Tuesday from Senate aides. The White House also would be required within 30 days of enactment of the resolution to send lawmakers a plan for a diplomatic solution to end the violence in Syria. In a news conference in Stockholm, the first leg of a trip that will take him to Russia for a Group of 20 summit, Obama made the case for a U.S. strike on Syria "limited in time and in scope" to degrade the military capabilities of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and deter him from resorting to chemical weapons again in his 2 1/2-year war with rebels. "I didn't set a red line," Obama said in response to a question. "The world set a red line" when it declared chemical weapons "abhorrent" and passed a treaty forbidding them. "Congress set a red line when it ratified that treaty." Obama added: "My credibility is not on the line. The international community's credibility is on the line. And America and Congress's credibility is on the line because we give lip service to the notion that these international norms are important." Appearing before reporters with Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, Obama said: "I do think that we have to act. Because if we don't, we are effectively saying that even though we may condemn it and issue resolutions and so forth and so on, somebody who is not shamed by resolutions can continue to act with impunity. And those international norms begin to erode. And other despots and authoritarian regimes can . . . say, that's something we can get away with. And that then calls into question other international norms and laws of war, and whether those are going to be enforced." Asked by a Swedish reporter about "the moral force of nonviolence" and the dilemma of being a Nobel Peace Prize laureate while preparing to attack Syria, Obama reiterated that he was "certainly unworthy" of the prize compared to previous recipients and asked "what are our responsibilities" in confronting a world "full of violence and occasional evil." He argued that when 1,400 innocent civilians, including 400 children, are gassed to death in a war that has already claimed tens of thousands of lives, "the moral thing to do is not to stand by and do nothing."

Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown - Philly.com Posted: 04 Sep 2013 07:25 AM PDT Last updated: Wednesday, September 4, 2013, 9:40 AM Rosh Hashanah, known as the Jewish New Year, begins tonight, marking the start of Judaism's most sacred period. Although it is known as a New Year celebration, Rosh Hashanah should not to be confused with the frivolity of the secular styled celebration marked each year on Jan. 1.  Rather, Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the 10-day period known as the Days of Awe that ends on Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement.  Together, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are known as High Holy Days. Jews view the time as one of reflection and as a period to make amends. Rosh Hashanah literally means "head of the year" and is celebrated on the first day of Tishrei - the seventh month in the Hebrew calendar.  It can fall anywhere from September to October.  The holiday starts at sundown today (7:24 p.m.) and will mark the 5,774 year in the Jewish calendar.  Yom Kippur falls on Sept. 14. The celebration is based on a passage in Leviticus, which calls for it to be marked by the blasts of horns.  As a result, a shofar, or ram's horn, is traditionally sounded in synagogue on Rosh Hashanah. Work is prohibited on the holiday.

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KL shares higher in early trade Posted: 03 Sep 2013 07:22 PM PDT Share prices on Bursa Malaysia extended yesterday's gains to trade higher in the early session Wednesday on continued buying support, dealers said. At 9.10am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) edged up 0.26 of a point to 1,724.47, after opening 1.34 points better at 1,725.55. HwangDBS Vickers Research said the local bourse may lose momentum today after struggling to build on its recovery pace recently. "On the chart, the benchmark index could move with a downward bias and test the immediate support line of 1,720 ahead," it said in a research note. Meanwhile, Wall Street was marginally up last night. Major US stock indices rose between 0.2 and 0.6 per cent as investors cheered on better economic vibes and ignored possible military fallout from the ongoing political conflicts in Syria, it said. On the scoreboard, the Finance Index fell 4.14 points to 16,154.61, but the Plantation Index added 2.47 points to 8,163.4 and the Industrial Index rose 8.88 points to 2,897.71. The FBM Emas Index gained three points to 11,958.9, the FBM100 Index rose 2.68 points to 11,720.76, the FBM 70 Index went up 6.75 points to 13,582.03 and the FBM Ace was 15.06 points better at 4,922.23. Gainers led losers 94 to 72, while 121 counters were unchanged, 1,278 untraded and 13 were suspended. Turnover stood at 93.68 million shares worth RM35.88 million. Among actives, China Stationery and The Media Shoppe earned half a sen each to 24 sen and 10 sen, respectively, DPS Resources added two sen to 20.5 sen while Pelikan Int.Corp lost one sen to 49 sen. Of the heavyweights, Maybank declined three sen to RM9.99, Sime Darby gained four sen to RM9.44 while Axiata and CIMB were flat at RM6.75 and RM7.19, respectively.-- Bernama

Ringgit traded weaker against US dollar Posted: 03 Sep 2013 07:24 PM PDT The ringgit was traded weaker against the US dollar in the early session today on lack of buying interest which saw the local currency trading towards 3.30 level, currency dealers said. At 9.20am, the ringgit was quoted at 3.3040/3070 to a US dollar from yesterday's close at 3.2850/2880. They said the ringgit's performance was in line with the Indonesian rupiah and Indian rupee which are currently on a volatile period affected by the slowdown in global trade. Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mostly lower against all other major currencies at close. The local unit was lower against the Singapore dollar at 2.5847/5886 from 2.5720/5762 yesterday and was little changed against the Japanese yen at 3.3176/3213 against 3.3108/3155 Tuesday. Against the British pound, the local currency weakened at 5.1414/1473 from 5.1154/1211 yesterday and fell against the euro to 4.3500/3547 from 4.3270/3313 on Tuesday.-- Bernama

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Boehner says he will back Obama's call for military action in Syria - Washington Post Posted: 03 Sep 2013 08:48 AM PDT The Republican and Democratic leaders of the House expressed strong support Tuesday for a U.S. military strike against Syria, offering crucial congressional backing for President Obama's request for authorization to use force to respond to what they and the administration say was a devastation chemical weapons attack last month. Speaking to reporters after a White House meeting with Obama and other top congressional leaders, House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said, "I'm going to support the president's call for action; I believe my colleagues should support this call for action." House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also expressed support for a strike against the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, saying he had acted far outside the norms of civilized behavior by launching an Aug. 21 chemical weapons attack that killed more than 1,400 people, including hundreds of children, on the outskirts of Damascus. "The United States for our entire history has stood up for democracy and freedom around the world," Boehner said after the White House meeting. "These weapons have to be responded to. Only the United States has the capacity and the capability to stop Assad or warn others around the world that this type of behavior will not be tolerated. I appreciate the president reaching out to me and my colleagues in Congress over the past few weeks." House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said he also intends "to vote to provide the president of the United States the option to use military force in Syria." Boehner spoke after Obama said at the start of the meeting that he was "confident" he could assuage the concerns of congressional leaders about a U.S. military strike. He also expressed willingness to revise a resolution authorizing the use of force as long as his goals are met. Opening the meeting with top lawmakers of both parties from the House and Senate, Obama said his plan to launch airstrikes against Assad's forces "fits into a broader strategy" of strengthening the Syrian opposition and ultimately driving Assad from power. Seated at a table in the Cabinet Room between Boehner and Pelosi, Obama stressed that the military plan developed by the Pentagon is "proportional, it is limited, it does not involve boots on the ground." He added: "This is not Iraq, and this is not Afghanistan." The proposed strike "gives us the ability to degrade Assad's capabilities when it comes to chemical weapons" now and in the future, he said. "At the same time, we have a broader strategy that will allow us to upgrade the capabilities of the opposition, allow Syria ultimately to free itself" from the death and destruction of its gruesome civil war, Obama said. Obama made the remarks as his administration stepped up a campaign to secure congressional backing for a military strike against Syria. Pelosi told reporters after the meeting: "I believe the American people need to hear more about the intelligence that supports this action. And that is the responsibility for this chemical weapons use is clearly at the feet of Assad." She said the attack went beyond civilized human behavior, "and we must respond."

Syria crisis has created 2 million refugees, UN says - CBS News Posted: 03 Sep 2013 08:04 AM PDT GENEVA The civil war in Syria has forced over 2 million people out of the country and over 4 million others are displaced within its borders, making Syria the nation with the largest number of people torn from their homes right now, U.N. officials said Tuesday. If the conflict continues 3.5 million Syrian refugees are expected by the end of the year, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said. "At this particular moment it's the highest number of displaced people anywhere in the world," he told reporters in Geneva. "Syria has become the great tragedy of this century — a disgraceful humanitarian calamity with suffering and displacement unparalleled in recent history." Almost 5,000 citizens a day on average are flowing out of Syria — a country of some 23 million people — many of them with little more than the clothes they are wearing, Guterres said. The number of refugees has surged by 1.8 million in just 12 months — up from almost 231,000 a year ago. "What is appalling is that the first million fled Syria during two years. The second million fled Syria in (the past) six months," he said of the impact of the civil war, which began as a rebellion against President Bashar Assad's regime in March 2011. "We have now almost one-third of the Syria population that has been displaced, and half in need of assistance." 16 Photos Syrian refugees with a double-curse More than 97 per cent of Syria's refugees are hosted by countries in the immediate surrounding region, which is impacting their infrastructures, economies and societies and making them in need of urgent outside help, Guterres said. "So there are no words to express the dimension of this tragedy," he said. "The only solace is the humanity shown by the neighboring countries in welcoming and saving the lives of so many refugees." As of the end of August, the agency counted 716,000 refugees in Lebanon, 515,000 in Jordan, 460,000 in Turkey, 168,000 in Iraq and 110,000 in Egypt. It said "Even after they have crossed a border to safety, they are traumatized, depressed and in need of a reason for hope," he said. The threats to refugee children are rising, the agencies say, including child labor, early marriage and the potential for sexual exploitation and trafficking. More than 3,500 children in Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq have crossed Syria's borders unaccompanied or separated from their families, according to the U.N. figures. Play Video Desperate measures: Syrian refugees sell daughters into marriage In May, CBS News correspondent Clarissa Ward traveled to a refugee camp in Jordan where Syrian parents were selling their daughters into marriage with wealthy Arab men in a desperate bid to survive. Ministers from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey were planning to meet with Guterres on Wednesday in Geneva in an effort to gain greater international support. "If the situation continues to deteriorate at this rate," said the U.N. special envoy for refugees, actress Angelina Jolie, "the number of refugees will only grow, and some neighboring countries could be brought to the point of collapse."

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KL shares recover on fresh bying interest Posted: 02 Sep 2013 07:02 PM PDT Share prices on Bursa Malaysia rebounded in the early session Tuesday on fresh buying interest after falling 10 points at yesterday's closed, dealers said. At 9.10am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) edged up 1.06 points to 1,718.62, after opening 0.79 of a point better at 1,718.35. HwangDBS Vickers Research said the local sentiment was lifted by better economic data in China and Europe as well as easing geopolitical tension in Syria. "The stronger external backdrop could push the benchmark FBM KLCI on the local bourse to overcome its support-turned-resistance level of 1,720 ahead," it said in a research note. While Wall Street was closed for a holiday Monday, HwangDBS said the September futures contracts for key US equity indices were up with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index trading above their respective spot rates this morning. On the scoreboard, the Finance Index eased 0.65 of a point to 16,092.6, the Plantation Index lost 23.62 points to 8,141.14 and the Industrial Index shed 0.46 of a point at 2,890.01. The FBM Emas Index rose 8.51 points to 11,904.11, the FBM100 Index added 7.89 points to 11,668.52 and the FBM 70 Index gained 12.02 points to 13,470.04. Gainer led losers 94 to 67, while 100 counters were unchanged, 1,306 untraded and 13 were suspended. Turnover stood at 41.44 million shares worth RM23.08 million. Among actives, Digistar Corp perked up two sen to 30 sen, China Stationery and Sersol earned half-a-sen each to 21.5 sen and 79 sen, respectively, while Metronic Global was flat at 10.5 sen. Of the heavyweights, Maybank and CIMB rose one sen each to RM10 and RM7.19, respectively, Axiata went up six sen to RM6.72 and Sime Darby was four sen higher at RM9.45.-- Bernama

Ringgit opens higher against US dollar Posted: 02 Sep 2013 07:06 PM PDT The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar in early morning session today driven by active buying interest amid positive economic data from China, dealers said. At 9.20am, the ringgit was quoted at 3.2610/2640 to the US dollar against yesterday's close of 3.2725/2755. In a report, China Logistics Information Center said that Chinese Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 51 last month from 50.3 in July. "The news pressured down the greenback but boost riskier currencies including the ringgit," a dealer said. Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mixed against all other major currencies. The local unit was little changed against the Singapore dollar at 2.5635/5666 compared with 2.5689/5720 on Monday but was stronger against the Japanese yen at 3.2754/2794 against 3.2949/2983 yesterday. Against the British pound, the local currency strengthened to 5.0705/0762 from 5.0972/0026 yesterday and also appreciated against the euro to 4.3006/3049 from 4.3243/3292 previously.-- Bernama

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White House pressing Congress hard on Syria resolution - USA TODAY Posted: 02 Sep 2013 08:58 AM PDT Paul Singer and Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY 11:59 a.m. EDT September 2, 2013 President Obama walks back to the Oval Office after he made a statement about Syria in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington on Aug. 31.(Photo: Charles Dharapak, AP) Story Highlights McCain and Graham head to White House to meet Obama House Democrats also being briefed Monday First Senate hearing on Syria resolution will be Tuesday The Labor Day holiday is a full work day at the White House as the administration presses its case with Congress for approval of a resolution authorizing military strikes on Syria. President Obama has invited Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., to the White House Monday to discuss his Saturday request for Congress to vote on military strikes. McCain and Graham are critical to getting the resolution passed through the Senate, and they have jointly expressed concerns that a military strike should be part of a broader strategy in Syria, not simply a random strike to punish the regime. In addition, his national security team will conduct an unclassified call for House Democrats, according to a senior administration official, who could not be identified because officials were not authorized to discuss White House deliberations. National Security Adviser Susan Rice, Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, are slated to conduct the briefing. The White House is anticipating a majority of House Democrats will be on the call. Obama said Saturday that he believes the United States should strike Syria in response to evidence showing that the Syrian regime used chemical weapons against opposition factions in the country, killing more than 1,400 people. Kerry said Sunday the administration has more proof Syrian troops used the nerve agent sarin in the Aug. 21 attack. Administration officials briefed members of Congress in the Capitol Sunday, but lawmakers in both parties have expressed some skepticism about the resolution proposed by the White House. Top Democrats said they believe the resolution will have to be narrowed to ensure that no American soldiers are sent into Syria. On Tuesday, at the White House, Obama will meet with chairs and ranking members from key national security committees. This includes: Senate Armed Services Committee, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, House Foreign Affairs Committee, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, House Armed Services Committee. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will also be holding a hearing on the issue Tuesday where Hagel and Kerry are expected to testify. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., on Monday released this statement: "To earn my vote of support for limited military intervention, President Obama must present a clear plan focused on effective humanitarian intervention or our national security interests. "Tens of thousands have been killed by the Assad regime in this brutal conflict — relatively few by chemical weapons. A military response that places an arbitrary focus on such weapons will do little to protect civilians and sends a deeply misguided signal that totalitarian regimes should only use conventional weapons to carry out mass murder." The White House argues that action is about more than just retribution for the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons, it is also necessary to impress upon Iran and other Syrian allies that use of such weapons will not go unpunished.

Child shot in head in Brownsville, Brooklyn - New York Daily News Posted: 02 Sep 2013 07:36 AM PDT One-year-old Antiq Hennis was shot in the head a block from the family home in Riverdale Ave. A 1-year-old Brooklyn boy was killed by a bullet that had his father's name on it, police sources said. Antiq Hennis was nestled in his stroller Sunday night, just inches from his parents, when the shot pierced his head just a block from the family's Riverdale Ave. home, cops and witnesses said. The child's father Anthony Hennis — the intended target, according to law enforcement sources and family members — was unharmed but distraught after the bullets started flying at Bristol St. near Livonia Ave. in Brownsville at 7:20 p.m. "He was screaming 'My baby got shot.' He was going crazy," said Gina Gamboa, 22, who saw the dad seconds after Antiq was mortally wounded. "The baby was breathing, but his eyes were closed. It's crazy. They just will start shooting." At least four shots rang out. The tragic tot was the only person hit. Little Antiq was rushed to Brookdale University Hospital with a bullet hole in the left side of his head, cops said. RELATED: MAYHEM ACROSS FOUR BOROUGHS EARLY SUNDAY He died at the hospital shortly before 9 p.m. "He just started walking. He was vibrant. He was full of life," said the baby's great-uncle, Chris Dobson. "I can't believe it." The relative said that Antiq's parents, who hail from Trinidad, celebrated their son's first birthday in May. He said it was the father, who has a record of more than 20 arrests, who was in the gunman's crosshairs. "They shot at him and ended up shooting the baby," Dobson said. Detectives believe the shooting was payback for an earlier dispute, according to sources. Another source said the dad dashed away from the stroller to draw the gunfire from his son. RELATED: GUNMAN SHOOTS DAD IN FRONT OF 9-YEAR-OLD BOY Bishop Willie Billips, a local anti-violence activist, was with the parents as they made the gut-wrenching official identification of their lifeless child. "I'm furious about what I've just seen. I'm outraged," Billips said. "A 1-year-old baby lying on the bed? It's horrible." There was little solace he could offer to the family, Billips added. "What do you say? It brought me to tears. To see young parents suffer — for what?" No arrests had been made as of late Sunday, police said. But a source in the Brownsville community said the shooter's street name has been given to cops. RELATED: TWO TEENS SHOT OUTSIDE BROWNSVILLE'S HOWARD HOUSES Antiq is the 16th victim under the age of 16 to be shot on city streets since mid-May, and he is the second child to die, according to a Daily News review. The boy's grieving parents were hunkered down in their home late Sunday. "The family is shocked and devastated," Councilman Charles Barron said after comforting the bereft couple. "The child didn't even get a chance to start his life, and now it's over." A woman identifying herself as Antiq's godmother left the hospital shaken after the boy died. "I saw him, I saw him in there, oh my goodness, oh my God, oh my Lord," she wailed. "He was just a baby." With Kerry Burke, Chelsia Rose Marcius and Rocco Parascandola On a mobile device? Click here to watch the video.

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Mixed Reaction Follows Obama's New Approach on Syria Strike - New York Times Posted: 01 Sep 2013 09:07 AM PDT By ANNE BARNARD and GERRY MULLANY Published: September 1, 2013 BEIRUT, Lebanon — President Obama's decision to seek Congressional approval for a military strike in response to a chemical weapons attack in Syria drew a range of reactions from Syrians on Sunday, with rebel leaders expressing disappointment and goverment leaders questioning Mr. Obama's leadership. Syria's government on Sunday mocked Mr. Obama's decision, saying it was a sign of weakness. A state-run newspaper, Al Thawra, called it "the start of the historic American retreat," and said Mr. Obama had hesitated because of a "sense of implicit defeat and the disappearance of his allies," along with fears that an intervention could become "an open war." Syria's deputy foreign minister, Faisal Mekdad, told reporters in Damascus that "it is clear there was a sense of hesitation and disappointment in what was said by President Barack Obama yesterday. And it is also clear there was a sense of confusion, as well." Many Syrian opposition leaders expressed disappointment about the move, and called on Congress to approve a military strike. The leaders said any intervention should be accompanied by more arms for the rebels. "Dictatorships like Iran and North Korea are watching closely to see how the free world responds to the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people," the opposition coalition said in a statement issued in Istanbul. Still, some rebel leaders were angry. A member of Syria's opposition National Coalition, Samir Nachar, called Mr. Obama a "weak president who cannot make the right decision when it comes to such an urgent crisis." "We were expecting things to be quicker," Mr. Nachar told reporters, "that a strike would be imminent." In the wider Arab world, still deeply divided over President Bashar al-Assad of Syria and the uprising against him, the concern over his government's indiscriminate use of force coincided with antipathy about American intervention. The Al-Azhar University in Cairo, considered Sunni Islam's highest authority, said on Sunday that it opposed an American strike on Syria, calling such intervention "an aggression against the Arab and Islamic nation" that would endanger peace and security in the region. But the institution said it supported "the right of the Syrian people to decide their destiny and their government for themselves in all freedom and transparency," and condemned "recourse to chemical weapons, whoever it was that used them." The Arab League was scheduled to meet and was expected to condemn Mr. Assad; Washington is hoping for at least one Arab ally to join a coalition to strike him and for a stronger statement of support from the body, which expelled Syria earlier in the uprising but has stopped short of backing American action or blaming Mr. Assad for any chemical weapons use. For others, Mr. Obama's decision raised questions about whether the United States had diminished its leadership role in foreign affairs, with commentators in Israel fearing a weakening of American resolve in confronting hostile powers. The Israel newspaper Haaretz carried an analysis on Sunday by Amos Harel, a military analyst, saying that Mr. Obama's postponement of a military strike against Syria suggested that he would be less likely to confront Iran on its nuclear program going forward, and that in the Arab world, he would now be "seen as weak, hesitant and vacillating." "The Obama administration's conduct gives us insight into the strategic challenge posed by Iran's nuclear program," the analysis said. "From an Israeli point of view, the conclusion is far from encouraging. The theory that the U.S. will come to Israel's aid at the last minute, and attack Iran to lift the nuclear threat, seems less and less likely. "It's no wonder that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is becoming increasingly persuaded that no one will come to his aid if Iran suddenly announces that it is beginning to enrich uranium to 90 percent," it said. 1 2 Next Page » Anne Barnard reported from Beirut, Lebanon, and Gerry Mullany from Hong Kong. Jane Perlez contributed reporting from Beijing.

Nelson Mandela goes home - BBC News Posted: 01 Sep 2013 09:11 AM PDT 1 September 2013 Last updated at 10:42 ET Article written by Andrew Harding Africa correspondent More from Andrew Follow Andrew on Twitter   When patients are discharged from hospital, it normally implies that they are on the mend. That is clearly not the case with Nelson Mandela. Today's news that the 95-year-old is back at his suburban home in Johannesburg after almost three months in hospital in Pretoria does suggest that his doctors concluded that he is currently strong enough to survive the journey. That's not a decision that would have been taken lightly. But the statement from South Africa's presidency was very clear: Mr Mandela's "condition remains critical and is at times unstable." In other words, he is simply swapping a hospital intensive care ward for a new intensive care unit specially constructed for him at his home. The impetus to bring him back to Johannesburg has almost certainly come from Mr Mandela's close relatives, who - like many families in a similar situation - would prefer to care for him over the long term in the comfort and privacy of a home rather than making a daily trek to Pretoria. Increasingly sanguine There was no great sense of drama or excitement outside his house in the upmarket suburb of Houghton today. Few members of the public came to pay their respects, and only a smallish crowd of journalists stood in the sunshine across the road. South Africa continues to follow Mr Mandela's health battles with keen interest, and many people today told me they were relieved or encouraged that his doctors had agreed to allow him home. But after so many months of uncertainty and alarm, people seem increasingly sanguine about Mr Mandela's prospects and rather than fuelling more anxious speculation, they talk, above all, of the desire that he should be comfortable.

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