Iran’s president blamed the United States and Israel for the explosion that destroyed the Askariya mosque dome. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blamed the United States and Israel on Thursday for the destruction of a Shiite shrine’s golden dome in Iraq, saying it was the work of “defeated Zionists and occupiers.” Speaking to a crowd of [...]

Terrorists set off an explosion that destroyed the dome of the Askariya mosque, a major Iraqi Shiite shrine. A large explosion destroyed the golden dome of one of Iraq’s most famous Shiite shrines Wednesday, sending protesters pouring into the streets. The third major attack against Shiites in as many days threatened to inflame sectarian passions [...]

Francis Fukuyama, most famous for his wildly incorrect prediction that no ideology would ever again threaten Western democratic capitalism after the Cold War, argues in lengthy piece for the New York Times Sunday Magazine that neo-conservatism is dead. As we approach the third anniversary of the onset of the Iraq war, it seems very unlikely [...]

Iran’s Hamshahri newspaper is holding a contest for twelve cartoons denying the Holocaust as a protest on the Mohammad cartoons published by the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten and subsquently reprinted around the world. IRAN’S largest selling newspaper announced today it was holding a contest on cartoons of the Holocaust in response to the publishing in European [...]

Iran’s economy minister, Davoud Danesh-Jafari threatened to raise world oil prices if the West follows through on threats to sanction his country for non-compliance with IAEA nuclear inspection regimes. Iran stepped up its defiance of international pressure over its nuclear programme yesterday by warning of soaring oil prices if it is subjected to economic sanctions. [...]

World Tribune is reporting that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon died at 1 p.m. Israeli time [6 a.m. EST]. Note: They seem to be alone in reporting this. Scroll down for updates. As of 1243 EST, the best guess is that Sharon is alive but in a coma. Ariel Sharon dies Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, [...]

UPI International Editor Claude Salhani offers his insights into the foreign policy question of the week, “

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, recently appointed president of Iran in a stolen election, invoked Ayatollah Khomeini in a speech calling for the destruction of Israel. Iran’s New President Says Israel ‘Must Be Wiped Off the Map’ (NYT) Iran’s new president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, told a group of students at an anti-Israel event on Wednesday that Israel “must be [...]