Kerry visits Oman for arms deal, talks on Syria, Mideast
Tue, 21 May 2013 09:46:51 -0400
By Arshad Mohammed MUSCAT (Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry flew to Oman on Tuesday for Raytheon Co's signing of an estimated $2.1 billion arms deal and to consult on Syria and Iran, U.S. officials said. Oman is expected to sign a letter of intent to purchase a ground-based air defence system that would help protect against cruise missile, drone or fighter aircraft attacks, a senior U.S. State Department official told reporters aboard Kerry's plane. Part of the sale has been previously disclosed. In October 2011, the U.S. Defense Department notified Congress of a proposed $1. ...

UK's Cameron committed to ruling in coalition until 2015: spokesman
Tue, 21 May 2013 08:34:47 -0400
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron is committed to governing as part of a two-party coalition until the next national election in 2015, his spokesman said on Tuesday, days after Cameron raised the prospect of the alliance breaking apart. Cameron has ruled with the Liberal Democrats, his junior coalition partner, since 2010, but the two have taken increasingly different positions on issues such as Britain's role in Europe and Cameron on Sunday for the first time raised the possibility that the coalition might not last until 2015. ...

Syria, Israel exchange fire on Golan Heights
Tue, 21 May 2013 12:08:53 -0400
By Dominic Evans BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria said its troops destroyed an Israeli vehicle that crossed into its territory from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Tuesday and warned that any attempt to violate its sovereignty would meet "immediate and firm retaliation". Israel said the incident took place on its side of the Golan ceasefire line, that the vehicle was damaged but not destroyed, none of its soldiers were hurt and they returned fire. ...

Russia says kills senior Islamist insurgent
Tue, 21 May 2013 10:01:13 -0400
By Alissa de Carbonnel MOSCOW (Reuters) - The right-hand man of Russia's most wanted insurgent was killed by security forces on Tuesday, officials said, as Moscow tries to contain militancy in its Caucasus region before it hosts the Winter Olympics near there next February. Dzhamaleil Mutaliyev, a senior figure in a group fighting to establish an Islamist state, was killed along with another militant in a shootout in the town of Nazran in Ingushetia, a spokesman for local investigators said. ...

Peace debate exposes deep rifts in Israeli government
Tue, 21 May 2013 11:03:56 -0400
By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's coalition government presented a divided front on Palestinian statehood on Tuesday as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry prepared a new mission to revive long-defunct peace talks. Appearing before a parliamentary committee, Israeli chief peace negotiator Tzipi Livni outlined a vision she said she shared with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of an end to the decades-old conflict with the Palestinians. ...

Iran agency says it heard Rafsanjani and Mashaie barred from vote
Tue, 21 May 2013 11:35:38 -0400
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency said on Tuesday that it had heard that the Guardian Council, which is vetting candidates for next month's presidential election, had barred former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and a leading ally of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from running. If true, the exclusion of Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, a former chief of staff to Ahmadinejad detested by the clerical establishment, would leave the presidential race dominated by hardline conservatives close to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. ...

Hey, Congress: It's comprehensive immigration reform or nothing
Tue, 21 May 2013 11:45:43 -0400
Some members of Congress argue that the comprehensive immigration reform bill before the Senate is too long and that it needs to be broken up and considered piecemeal. But a piecemeal approach flies in the face of the long history of failed stand-alone immigration bills. This Congress needs comprehensive reform to save itself from itself.

Americans should remember: Politicizing the IRS is a bipartisan tradition
Tue, 21 May 2013 11:03:05 -0400
Does the Internal Revenue Service scandal conjure “unpleasant echoes” of Richard Nixon?

Oklahoma tornadoes: how you can help
Tue, 21 May 2013 11:02:27 -0400
A number of relief organizations are responding to the disaster in Moore, Okla., where a devastating tornado destroyed hundreds of homes Monday, hit at least two elementary schools hard, and killed at least 24 people. The general public can help with recovery efforts through these organizations, which already are helping families and supporting the first responders.

What tornado-hit cities like Moore have learned
Tue, 21 May 2013 10:24:12 -0400
Since 1998, the Oklahoma city of Moore has experienced four tornadoes. Monday’s storm, which packed winds of as much as 200 miles per hour, perhaps brought the worst devastation, leaving more than 50 dead, including schoolchildren, and a need for healing from its grief and loss.