Palestine rejects Russia, EU, UN and US led initiative

While Israel backs it wholeheartedly:

The acting Palestinian Authority (PA) chief has rejected a proposal by the Middle East Quartet that calls for unconditional talks with Israel, calling it unacceptable. On Saturday, Mahmoud Abbas ruled out unconditional negotiations with Tel Aviv, arguing that the Quartet’s most recent statement failed to demand a halt to Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, the Press Association reported.

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‘My husband returned from trips abroad with bags of cash’

Graft scandal hit ex-Sarkozy aide’s wife reveals :

The wife of a former close aide of French President Nicolas Sarkozy repeated claims Saturday that her husband, charged in a damaging graft scandal, had returned from trips abroad with bags of cash. In media interviews Princess Helene of Yugoslavia, estranged wife of Thierry Gaubert, also linked him with Nicolas Bazire, the best man at Sarkozy’s wedding, and Ziad Takieddine, the alleged middleman in an arms deal with Pakistan.

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Navy driving China’s military expansion

To become a world military power:

China’s navy is playing an important role in the country’s drive to become a world military power, with the recent trials of its first aircraft carrier underlining the scale of Beijing’s naval ambitions.

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