Mainstream News

Assad ally said to defect, Putin chides U.S. on Syria

"President Bashar al-Assad's former defense minister has fled Syria, opposition figures said on Wednesday, noting that General Ali Habib was the most senior of Assad's Alawite sect to defect. Habib had been under house arrest since resigning in protest at Assad's crackdown on demonstrators in 2011 but had managed to reach the Turkish border late on Tuesday with Western help, Kamal al-Labwani of the Syrian National Coalition told Reuters. Putin again questioned Western evidence. And he accused U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry outright of 'lying' when, in urging Congress to approve strikes on Syria, Kerry played down the role of al Qaeda in the rebel forces." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAssad ally said to defect, Putin chides U.S. on Syria

N.Y. Times scraps AIPAC from Syria story

"A reference to the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC was mysteriously cut from a New York Times article published online Monday and in print Tuesday. The first version, published online Monday, quotes an anonymous administration official calling AIPAC the '800-pound gorilla in the room.' The original article, which is still available on The Boston Globe's site, had two paragraphs worth of quotes from officials about the powerful lobbying group's position in the Syria debate. The newer version makes no reference to AIPAC and does not include an editor's note explaining any change." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingN.Y. Times scraps AIPAC from Syria story

Sheldon Adelson Becomes Obama Ally as Jewish Groups Back Syria Strike

"Lobbying on Syria has inspired coalitions of the unlikely, aligning President Barack Obama with Sheldon Adelson, the Republican billionaire who spent about $70 million trying to defeat him last year, in the push for a military response to the use of chemical weapons. The support Obama is getting from pro-Israel groups in the U.S. is important because of their history of political influence. The pro-Israel community contributed $14.5 million to federal campaigns for the 2012 elections, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. That’s more than the $11.1 million in donations by the defense aerospace industry, one of the biggest and most consistent political contributors." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSheldon Adelson Becomes Obama Ally as Jewish Groups Back Syria Strike

Kerry’s cosy dinner with Syria’s ‘Hitler’ at Damascus restaurant

"An astonishing photograph of John Kerry having a cozy and intimate dinner with Bashar al-Assad has emerged at the moment the U.S Secretary of State is making the case to bomb the Syrian dictator's country and remove him from power. Kerry, who compared Assad to Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussein yesterday, is pictured around a small table with his wife Teresa Heinz and the Assads in 2009. Assad and Kerry, then a Massachusetts senator, lean in towards each other and appear deep in conversation as their spouses look on. A waiter is pictured at their side with a tray of green drinks, believed to be lemon and crushed mint." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingKerry’s cosy dinner with Syria’s ‘Hitler’ at Damascus restaurant

U.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

"Wagering against the yen has emerged as the hottest trade on Wall Street over the past three months. George Soros, who made a fortune shorting the British pound in the 1990s, has scored gains of almost $1 billion on the trade since November, according to people with knowledge of the firm's positions. Others reaping big trading profits by riding the yen down include David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital, Daniel Loeb's Third Point LLC and Kyle Bass's Hayman Capital Management LP, investors say. The growing trade has itself helped pressure the yen, which has slid almost 20% in about four months. That, in turn, is helping fuel what could become a world-wide currency war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

U.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

"Wagering against the yen has emerged as the hottest trade on Wall Street over the past three months. George Soros, who made a fortune shorting the British pound in the 1990s, has scored gains of almost $1 billion on the trade since November, according to people with knowledge of the firm's positions. Others reaping big trading profits by riding the yen down include David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital, Daniel Loeb's Third Point LLC and Kyle Bass's Hayman Capital Management LP, investors say. The growing trade has itself helped pressure the yen, which has slid almost 20% in about four months. That, in turn, is helping fuel what could become a world-wide currency war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

U.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

"Wagering against the yen has emerged as the hottest trade on Wall Street over the past three months. George Soros, who made a fortune shorting the British pound in the 1990s, has scored gains of almost $1 billion on the trade since November, according to people with knowledge of the firm's positions. Others reaping big trading profits by riding the yen down include David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital, Daniel Loeb's Third Point LLC and Kyle Bass's Hayman Capital Management LP, investors say. The growing trade has itself helped pressure the yen, which has slid almost 20% in about four months. That, in turn, is helping fuel what could become a world-wide currency war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

U.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

"Wagering against the yen has emerged as the hottest trade on Wall Street over the past three months. George Soros, who made a fortune shorting the British pound in the 1990s, has scored gains of almost $1 billion on the trade since November, according to people with knowledge of the firm's positions. Others reaping big trading profits by riding the yen down include David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital, Daniel Loeb's Third Point LLC and Kyle Bass's Hayman Capital Management LP, investors say. The growing trade has itself helped pressure the yen, which has slid almost 20% in about four months. That, in turn, is helping fuel what could become a world-wide currency war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Funds Score Big by Betting Against Yen

India pushes ‘shock and awe’ currency plan to save BRICS

"India is pushing for joint 'shock-and-awe' intervention by key developing states to halt capital flight and shore up currencies, in a move that risks backfiring and triggering a vicious spiral. 'It is going to happen in a matter of days rather than weeks, Brazil and India can start the move,' said Dipak Dasgupta, a top Indian official. Mr Dasgputa told Reuters that China, Brazil, India, Turkey, Russia and South Africa have all been squeezed as the US Federal Reserve prepares to tighten monetary policy. Joint action would give emerging markets greater firepower, allowing them to deploy their combined $8.7 trillion (£5.6 trillion) of reserves and crush 'speculators', rather than being picked off one by one." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIndia pushes ‘shock and awe’ currency plan to save BRICS

India pushes ‘shock and awe’ currency plan to save BRICS

"India is pushing for joint 'shock-and-awe' intervention by key developing states to halt capital flight and shore up currencies, in a move that risks backfiring and triggering a vicious spiral. 'It is going to happen in a matter of days rather than weeks, Brazil and India can start the move,' said Dipak Dasgupta, a top Indian official. Mr Dasgputa told Reuters that China, Brazil, India, Turkey, Russia and South Africa have all been squeezed as the US Federal Reserve prepares to tighten monetary policy. Joint action would give emerging markets greater firepower, allowing them to deploy their combined $8.7 trillion (£5.6 trillion) of reserves and crush 'speculators', rather than being picked off one by one." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIndia pushes ‘shock and awe’ currency plan to save BRICS