The United States is building an array of secret new drone bases to conduct strikes against al-Qaida targets in Somalia and Yemen, according to the Washington Post.

One of the new installations is being set up in Ethiopia, a close U.S. ally in the fight against the Islamist Shebab that controls much of Somalia, while another is being established in the Seychelles, the Post reported late Tuesday.

Texas Governor Rick Perry slammed President Barack Obama's "appeasement" of Palestinians as dangerous and naive on Tuesday, in his first major foreign policy address since emerging as the top Republican White House hopeful.

Seizing on the diplomatic conflagration over U.N. recognition of Palestinian statehood, Perry blasted Obama for not being strong enough in his support of Israel and allowing the Palestinian bid to proceed.

U.S. President Barack Obama hailed a "new chapter" for Libya Tuesday as the victorious rebels' red, black and green flag was hoisted at the United Nations ahead of its annual General Assembly.

Fugitive strongman Moammar Gadhafi issued an audio message dismissing the new government as a "charade" that would not outlive the NATO air and naval support that brought it to power.

The United States on Monday called for restraint in Yemen where activists and medics said at least 53 anti-regime protesters have been killed in two days of violence.

The U.S. embassy said Washington hoped for a peaceful transition of power in Sanaa and hoped a Gulf Cooperation Council initiative would be signed within a week to transfer power from President Ali Abdullah Saleh to his deputy.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton here on Monday urged Turkey to defuse tension and repair strategic ties with Israel as Washington values them both as allies, U.S. officials said.

Washington has expressed mounting concern about the bitter row between Turkey and Israel over a May 2010 Israeli commando raid on an aid flotilla heading to the Gaza Strip that left nine Turks dead.

Turkey's energy minister said Monday Ankara would consider a proposal from the United States to build a nuclear power plant in the country's north.

"If a proposal comes from the United States, we could evaluate it but so far, no concrete proposal has been made to us," Energy Minister Taner Yildiz told reporters.

The United States supports "the right" of Cyprus to explore for energy, a senior U.S. official said Monday after U.S.-Turkish talks amid a dispute between Turkey and Cyprus over such exploration.

The official also told reporters on condition of anonymity that the dispute should "not interfere" with talks aimed at resolving the political issues over the divided island of Cyprus.

The United States took a renewed swipe at Iran Monday, telling the annual gathering of the U.N. atomic agency Tehran was creeping "still closer" to producing nuclear weapons-grade uranium.

"Iran has continued to engage in a longstanding pattern of denial, deceit and evasion," U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu told the 151-nation International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) general conference in Vienna.

Washington has reportedly asked for explanations from Bkirki on Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s controversial statements on Hizbullah’s arms and Syria.

Ad-Diyar daily said Monday that al-Rahi’s stances would hinder meetings between him and top U.S. officials, including President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

A World War II-era fighter plane flown by a veteran Hollywood stunt pilot plunged into the edge of the grandstands Friday during a popular air racing show in the U.S. state of Nevada, killing three people, injuring more than 50 spectators and creating a horrific scene strewn with smoking debris.

The plane, flown by 74-year-old Jimmy Leeward, spiraled out of control without warning and appeared to disintegrate upon impact in Reno. Bloodied bodies were spread across the area as people tended to the victims and ambulances rushed to the scene.