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Scientists Warn of Rising Oceans From Polar Melt

A large section of the mighty West Antarctica ice sheet has begun falling apart and its continued melting now appears to be unstoppable, two groups of scientists reported on Monday. If the findings hold up, they suggest that the melting could destabilize neighboring parts of the ice sheet and a rise in sea level of 10 feet or more may be unavoidable in coming centuries. Global warming caused by the human-driven release of greenhouse gases has helped to destabilize the ice sheet, though other factors may also be involved, the scientists said. The rise of the sea is likely to continue to be relatively slow for the rest of the 21st century, the scientists added, but in the more distant future it may accelerate markedly, potentially throwing society into crisis. “This is really happening,” Thomas P. Wagner, who runs NASA’s programs on polar ice and helped oversee some of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Nuclear Talks Will Confront Iran’s Future Capability to Enrich Uranium

As Iran and six world powers meet this week in Vienna to begin drafting language to resolve their nuclear standoff, negotiators say they are finally confronting a crucial sticking point to a permanent agreement — the size and shape of the nuclear fuel production capability that Iran will be permitted to retain. It is a subject that, at least in public, the Obama administration steps around, acutely aware that Israel and members of Congress who are highly suspicious of the negotiations will say that Iran must be kept years from being able to develop a weapon, and that opponents of the deal in Tehran will argue that no restraints at all should be imposed. Both the Iranians and the Western powers have said their talks so far have been productive, with little of the drama, the ultimatums and the entrenched positions that have marked previous efforts. But […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Car bomb attacks kill 23 people in Baghdad

A wave of car bombings in mainly Shiite areas of Baghdad killed 23 people on Tuesday, officials said, the latest in a surge in violence that has been the most serious challenge to the government’s efforts to achieve stability across Iraq. The attacks came as Iraqi Shiites were celebrating the birthday of Imam Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad and Shiite Islam’s most sacred martyr. In the Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City, a car bomb went off in the morning hours, killing four people and wounding six, police officials said. Another car bomb elsewhere in Sadr City exploded near a cluster of homes, killing two people and wounding seven. Associated Press Television footage from one of the Sadr City attacks showed a thick cloud of smoke rising from the blast area where several cars were on fire. A short while later, a car […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Libya Oil Output May Double as Western Protests End

Libya’s daily oil output may double to 500,000 barrels today after protesters agreed to reopen pipelines carrying crude from fields in the country’s western region, according to officials. The valves at the Sharara field have reopened and oil will reach the Zawiya refinery within a few hours, Mansour Abdullah, an official at the refinery, said late yesterday. Earlier, National Oil Corp. spokesman Mohamed Elharari had said by phone from Tripoli that the Elephant, Hamada and Wafa fields, as well as Sharara, were due to resume production last night or this morning “and progressively increase output.” The protesters agreed to stop blocking oil shipments after the authorities started preparations to hold elections for a new parliament, Elharari said. Spokesmen for the protesters couldn’t immediately be reached by phone for comment. Repsol SA-operated Sharara and Eni SpA-operated Elephant are the largest fields in western Libya, with daily capacities of about 340,000 […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Several Core Elements of Agreement Have Emerged

Several core elements of agreement between Iran and the West have emerged in recent weeks, heightening optimism that a comprehensive deal can be reached by the July 20 deadline, according to U.S., Iranian and European officials involved in the diplomacy. Still significant differences remain that could scuttle a deal or force negotiators to extend talks, officials said. "People are less pessimistic than they have been in the past—certainly," one European official said. "There are certain areas where some kind of consensus" is emerging. "But in certain areas, there is still a huge gulf." One of the key areas of agreement is the future of an Iranian plan to convert its heavy-water reactor in the city of Arak to produce significantly less weapons-grade plutonium, according to various officials. Iran also has begun to more substantively address evidence presented in parallel talks with the U.N’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Militants storm barracks, kill 20 troops in Iraq

Militants in Iraq launched an audacious attack on a military barracks in a remote area in the country’s north and killed 20 troops overnight, including some who had been bound and shot at close range, authorities said Sunday as other attacks killed 14. The killings at the military barracks in the village of Ayn al-Jahish outside of Mosul mirrored two previous assaults earlier this year in the area targeting security forces. It also represents the latest blow to the government’s efforts to achieve stability in restive Sunni-dominated areas. Gunmen staged the assault late Saturday night, two police officers said, shooting some at short range while others died fighting the insurgents when they stormed the barracks. A medical official, who confirmed the causality number, said 11 troops had their hands tied behind their backs and suffered close-range gunshots to the head. The slain troops are in charge […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ongoing fighting in Iraq's Anbar hits businesses

Fighting in Iraq’s western Anbar province, now in its fifth month, appears to have bogged down, with government forces unable to drive out Islamic militants who took over one of the area’s main cities. But the impact is being felt much further, with the repercussions rippling through the country’s economy to hit consumers and businesses. The large, desert province is a major crossroads. The main highways linking Baghdad and other parts of Iraq to Syria and Jordan run through it. So fighting has not only dislodged thousands of residents from their homes and forced shutdowns of their businesses. It has also disrupted shipping, inflating prices of goods in Baghdad and elsewhere. Fears of the road have gotten so bad Iraq has had to stop shipments of oil to Jordan. Anwar Salah, co-owner of al-Baqiee travel agency in Baghdad, said his company used to run more than […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ongoing fighting in Iraq’s Anbar hits businesses

Fighting in Iraq’s western Anbar province, now in its fifth month, appears to have bogged down, with government forces unable to drive out Islamic militants who took over one of the area’s main cities. But the impact is being felt much further, with the repercussions rippling through the country’s economy to hit consumers and businesses. The large, desert province is a major crossroads. The main highways linking Baghdad and other parts of Iraq to Syria and Jordan run through it. So fighting has not only dislodged thousands of residents from their homes and forced shutdowns of their businesses. It has also disrupted shipping, inflating prices of goods in Baghdad and elsewhere. Fears of the road have gotten so bad Iraq has had to stop shipments of oil to Jordan. Anwar Salah, co-owner of al-Baqiee travel agency in Baghdad, said his company used to run more than […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Nigeria: Missing U.S.$20 Billion – FG Appoint PriceWaterhouseCoopers to Audit NNPC

Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, announced on Thursday that the accounting firm – PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has been appointed to carry out the audit exercise on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) over the alledge missing $20 billion. She spoke during a debate at the 24the edition of the World Economic Forum for Africa with theme: "Forging inclusive growth, creating jobs." Okonjo-Iweala said the exercise would be carried out within 16 weeks under the supervision of the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation. The suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, had blown the whistle on a missing $20 billion, which he claimed was not remitted to the federation account by the NNPC. Following the controversy generated by the revelation, Okonjo-Iweala said the forensic audit would help unravel all mystery surrounding the missing fund. "On the issue of holding government to account, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Rig Off Vietnam Crowns Push to Develop Energy Reserves Without Foreign Partners

China spent years working with or buying companies that had mastered deep-water technology, honing skills it is now deploying on its own in disputed waters near Vietnam. China also spent heavily on developing its own sophisticated offshore equipment, of which the rig at the heart of the China-Vietnam standoff is a crown jewel, illustrating how the country can now largely go it alone—developing oil or gas reserves far underwater without relying heavily on foreign partners. The fact that it no longer needs foreign assistance raises the specter of future maritime conflict with not just Vietnam, but also Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines, all of which claim sovereignty over parts of the waters that China also claims. Chinese ships clashed with Vietnam’s coast guard over the rig Wednesday, the same day a crew of Chinese fishermen were detained by the Philippines near the disputed Spratly Islands. Philippine authorities on […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple