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U.S. Expands Sanctions on Iran to Press Nuclear Case

The United States on Wednesday tightened sanctions on Iran to further choke off its oil income, saying it was necessary to increase pressure on Tehran over its suspected nuclear weapons program.

It also set sanctions against Iranian media organizations and Tehran's Cyber Police for what it called human rights abuses for censorship.

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U.S. Scales back to One Carrier in Gulf

The U.S. military will maintain only one aircraft carrier in the Gulf instead of two due to potential deep budget cuts that could kick in next month, Pentagon officials said Wednesday.

For several years, the United States has kept two carriers deployed in the Gulf due to tensions with Iran, but uncertainty surrounding the Pentagon's budget forced the decision, officials said.

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Report: U.S. Wants Turkey to Extradite Bin Laden Son-in-Law

The United States has asked Turkey to extradite Osama bin Laden's son-in-law Sulaiman Abu Ghaith after his detention in Ankara last week, a Turkish newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Abu Gaith, the former spokesman of the al-Qaida terror network, was seized last week at a luxury hotel in Ankara after a tip-off from CIA, and is being held there by police, the Hurriyet newspaper said.

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Russia Hopes to See 'Serious Progress' at Iran Nuclear Talks

Russia said on Wednesday it hoped to see "serious progress" at this month's talks in Kazakhstan between world powers and Iran over Tehran's disputed nuclear program.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the two sides had made no progress since the last round of top-level negotiations were held in Moscow at the end of June 2012.

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Experts: Post-Assad Syria Poses New, Unknown Dangers for Israel

The possible downfall of Syrian President Bashar Assad could open new and dangerous fronts for Israel, even if it weakens Hizbullah, experts say.

While nobody can predict when or how Assad's regime could crumble, such a scenario "would dramatically affect Israel," a senior Israeli security official speaking on condition of anonymity told Agence France Presse.

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London Says World Powers to Bring New Offer to Iran Talks

Britain said Tuesday that world powers would make an "updated and credible" offer when talks resume with Iran on its disputed nuclear program this month.

Foreign Secretary William Hague welcomed an announcement made earlier Tuesday that a deadlock over the date and venue of the negotiations had been resolved and they had agreed to meet in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on February 26.

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U.N. Calls on Iran to Stop Arresting Journalists

U.N. human rights experts on Tuesday urged Iran to stop arresting journalists after a wave of detentions they said was a "flagrant" violation of international law, even as Tehran announced a new round of arrests.

"The recent wave of arrests of journalists solely for carrying out their professional activities is a flagrant violation of Iran's obligations under international human rights law," four U.N. experts said in a joint press release.

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Egypt Top Cleric Tells Ahmadinejad not to Interfere in Gulf

Egypt's top cleric told visiting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday not to interfere in the affairs of Bahrain or other Gulf states, and to uphold the rights of his country's Sunni minority.

Ahmed al-Tayyeb, the grand imam of Cairo's al-Azhar, Sunni Islam's highest seat of learning, also denounced what he described as the "spread of Shiism in Sunni lands".

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Peres: Iran 'Danger' Threatens Israel's Existence

Israeli President Shimon Peres said on Tuesday that the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran was growing under the "terrifying dictatorship" ruling the Islamic republic.

"The Iranian danger has grown," Peres said at the opening of the newly-elected Israeli parliament. "It threatens our existence, the independence of the Arab states, the peace of the whole world."

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U.N. Experts Call on Iran to Stop Arresting Journalists

U.N. human rights experts on Tuesday urged Iran to stop arresting journalists after a wave of detentions that it said was a "flagrant" violation of international law.

"The recent wave of arrests of journalists solely for carrying out their professional activities is a flagrant violation of Iran's obligations under international human rights law," four U.N. experts said in a joint press release.

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