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Press TV talks with Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of CODEPINK in Washington, regarding the United States\' drone strikes in several Muslim countries including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and Somalia.

Pakistan continues to face the blow back of its decision to side with the United States in its so-called war on terror. A new study shows that a 40 percent increase in terrorist attacks was witnessed in the country after new government took charge in May this year. The report prepared by the Conflict Monitoring Center reveals that September was the deadliest month as 215 violent incidents were reported. In those attacks as many as 284 people were killed and over 500 injured. Pro-Taliban militants have stepped up attacks following a unanimous resolution passed by the country\'s main stream religious and political parties last month to hold talks with them. The report also says that in the first nine months of 2013, more than 800 violent incidents were recorded in different parts of the country leaving over 2000 people dead and many more injured. Majority of the public here in Pakistan believe that the country is facing increased number of terrorist attacks due to its alliance with the US. Official figures indicate that as many as 50,000 Pakistanis including thousands of security personnel have lost their lives in violent incidents since 9/11 attacks. The current Pakistani government is pushing for a peace deal with the pro-Taliban militants. But many critics here believe that it will be a huge challenge for the administration in Islamabad to achieve that objective if militants continue their attacks.

Iran\'s envoy to the United Nations has criticized the use of sanctions against developing countries for what he calls political gain. Gholam-hossein Dehghani said such sanctions constitute a clear violation of international law and the U-N Charter. Dehghani dismissed claims that the sanctions are QUOTE smart, saying the punitive measures mainly target ordinary people. Iran\'s envoy to the UN reiterated Tehran\'s opposition to sanctions, which he called outdated and ineffective, against any nation.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki- moon condemns a recent terrorist attack on Iranian border guards. Ban also extended his condolences to the families of the victims and the Iranian people and government. The attack which took place in southeastern Iran near the border with Pakistan last Friday left over a dozen border guards dead. The assailants had infiltrated into Iran from Pakistan and fled to the other side of the border following the attack. A group calling itself Jaish-ul-Adl has claimed responsibility.

Islamabad will review its cooperation with the United States as a result of a recent drone strike that has killed Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud. This was announced by the country\'s interior minister, who described the attack as \'murder of peace.\'

Islamabad will review its cooperation with the United States as a result of a recent drone strike that has killed Pakistani pro-Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud. This was announced by the country\'s interior minister, who described the attack as \'murder of peace.\' Kamran Yousaf has the details in this report.

A group of Afghan lawmakers oppose a possible security pact with the United States. They say the deal is against the interests of Afghan people and will cause more bloodshed. Washington is pressing Kabul to sign a security pact that allows US troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond 20-14. But the two sides are still at loggerheads over several issues. Meanwhile, Afghan protesters have rallied in the eastern Kunar province to show their anger at US night-time raids and drone strikes. Protesters say the attacks only target civilians. A foreign ministry spokesman has also voiced Kabul\'s opposition to the strikes.

The Leader of Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Islamic Revolution says the United States has lost its political and military power and turned into a country grappling with its biggest economic and financial problems. He was addressing a group of school and university students on the occasion of Student Day in Iran. Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the U-S is suffering from political problems and divisions which led to the recent shutdown of the federal government. The Leader noted that Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s current economic hardships pale in comparison with those of the US administration. Ayatollah Khamenei said US officials made projections some 11 years ago about having 14-thousand billion dollars in extra revenues by 2011 or 2012, and that now, in practice, they are suffering from a huge 17-thousand billion dollar deficit. Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Leader said that this alone shows America\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s true economic situation and the inaccuracy of their official calculations. Ayatollah Khamenei also made mention of deep divisions among Washington\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s allies, saying that the U-S has failed to convince even its closest partners like France or Britain to back its decision on launching a strike against Syria.

A group of Afghan lawmakers oppose a possible security pact with the United States. They say the deal is against the interests of Afghan people and will cause more bloodshed. Washington is pressing Kabul to sign a security pact that allows US troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond 2014. But the two sides are still at loggerheads over several issues. Meanwhile, Afghan protesters have rallied in the eastern Kunar province to show their anger at US night-time raids and drone strikes. Protesters say the attacks only target civilians. A foreign ministry spokesman has also voiced Kabul\\\'s opposition to the strikes.

The United Nations General Assembly has met to discuss and vote on a resolution calling for the abolition of Nuclear Weapons. The resolution had the support of the Non-Alligned Movement, and had been put forward by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports that around one thousand families have fled from a battle in central Syria to the Lebanese border town of Arsal. The UNHCR says the families were forced to walk more than 30 kilometers to reach safety. The refugees have reportedly fled from the strategic al-Qalamoun area in the north-east of Damascus. The Syrian army is fighting militants there to cut supply lines to insurgent-held areas near Damascus. Activists say fighting has intensified in the mountainous region. Lebanese officials say around 1-point-4 million Syrians have taken refuge in their country so far.

Press TV has conducted an interview with Leah Bolger, former president of Veterans for Peace, about Afghanistan rejecting a key provision of a security pact with the United States that would allow US forces to stay in the country beyond 2014.

Under the Geneva deal between Iran and five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany, the western countries have agreed to ease sanctions on Iran in response to Tehran\'s confidence-building move to continue its nuclear energy program at a lower level, but there are different accounts of the exact timing of the partial sanctions removal.

Under the Geneva deal between Iran and five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany, the western countries have agreed to ease sanctions on Iran in response to Tehran\'s confidence-building move to continue its nuclear energy program at a lower level. But, there are different accounts of the exact timing of the partial sanctions removal. The U-S says Iran will see up to seven-billion-dollars worth of its frozen assets un-blocked. Out of this amount, Washington is expected to un-freeze some four-point-two billion dollars in oil revenue frozen in foreign banks. But, some remaining 40 billion dollars of Iran\'s oil export money will remain frozen. This is the amount Iran obtained through selling its oil under U-S and E-U sanctions imposed in early 20-12. Iran could also access another four-hundred-million dollars for educational purposes, such as the transfer of university tuition fees. France\'s Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius says this could happen in December. But British Foreign Secretary William Hague, as well as the spokesman for E-U\'s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, say they expect the sanctions easing to be completed in January.

he United Nations Security Council has held a meeting to discuss the destruction of Syria\'s chemical weapons. The meeting comes as the world\'s chemical weapons watchdog prepares to ship Syria\'s chemical arms stockpile out of the country at the beginning of 2014.

The United Nations has criticized Israel for destroying 30 Palestinian properties in the Occupied West Bank. UN Humanitarian Coordinator James Rawly says the demolitions have resulted in the displacement of 41 people, including 24 children. Rawly says some of the families have been displaced for the second time in less than two weeks. Rights groups say the demolitions are aimed at grabbing more land for Israel\\\'s settlements and military projects in the occupied Palestinian Territories. Israel has built thousands of settler units in the occupied territories despite international condemnation. The settlements are considered illegal under international law.

Thousands of people have been evacuated from flood-damaged homes in northern Gaza. The United Nations and Gazan officials are talking of a humanitarian crisis. The flooding, caused by days of torrential rains, has been so severe that many homes could only be accessed by rowing boat. The Gaza Health Ministry says one person has been killed and score of others injured as flood waters damaged poorly-built homes in the coastal territory. The government also says schools and other centers have turned into temporary shelters for thousands of homeless Palestinians. The deadly deluge has added to the woes of Palestinians in the coastal enclave, which continues to suffer from electricity cuts, a sewage crisis, and drinking water shortages-- all under a crippling Israeli blockade.

The United States has insisted that Afghan President Hamid Karzai must sign a bilateral security deal on the future of US troops in the war-torn country as soon as possible.

The United Nations says that between 400 and 500 bodies have been taken to hospitals in the South Sudan capital Juba after clashes between rival army factions. The chief of UN peacekeeping forces says that about 800 people were also injured in battles between troops loyal to President Salva Kiir and an opposition leader who allegedly tried to stage a coup. The fighting began on Sunday after the president accused troops loyal to his arch-rival, ex-vice president Riek Machar, of attempting to seize power. Machar was sacked from the government in July. About 15000 people have sought refuge in UN compounds around Juba since the fighting started on Sunday.

As the Syrian army makes more advances against foreign-backed terrorist groups, the United States and its Western allies are seeking to establish closer ties with the al-Qaeda-linked groups in order to shift the balance of power in favor of the insurgents. Now the US says it is ready to hold talks with an al-Qaeda-linked group called the Islamic Front. What are the motives behind this policy shift?

China has warned the United States to be cautious in its words and actions with regard to territorial disputes involving China and its neighbors. The Chinese Foreign Ministry warning comes amid a diplomatic wrangle over Beijing\\\'s newly announced air defense zone in the East China Sea. Before this, Washington had warned Beijing against imposing an air defense zone over both the South China Sea and East China Sea. US State Secretary John Kerry said recently that Washington would help its regional allies in protecting their territorial waters. China and its neighbors lay similar claims to parts of the strategic and resource-rich seas. The development comes days after Chinese fighter jets chased the US and Japanese military aircraft inside China\\\'s newly declared Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea. Chinese defense authorities say they have sent more fighter jets to the zone. The Chinese air force described the mission as a defensive measure in line with international law. China says foreign aircraft passing through the airspace, including passenger planes, will have to identify themselves to Chinese authorities. The zone includes the skies over islands at the heart of a territorial dispute between Japan and China. China is also locked in territorial rows with the Philippines over wide swathes of the South China Sea and has said it might set up a similar zone there. Senior Chinese officials have repeatedly called on Washington not to take sides over the issue.

Ten international human rights groups have written to the United Nations about the torture of journalists in Bahrain. The letter, signed by the Media Legal Defense Initiative and the International Federation for Human Rights, among others, has been sent to U-N special rapporteurs Frank La Rue and Juan Méndez. The rights groups have called for an investigation into the arrest, detention, and torture of Mohamed Hassan, Hussain Hubail, and Qassim Zain al-Deen. All three journalists were arrested in August and face trial on charges related to their reporting on the anti-regime demonstrations. Thousands of people, including rights activists and journalists, have been detained and tortured since the uprising began in Bahrain in 2011. Over the past three years, Manama\\\'s heavy-handed crackdown, which is being backed by Saudi forces, has killed scores of people.

The United Nations Security Council has expressed concern over the humanitarian crisis and the deteriorating security situation in South Sudan amid a fierce political battle. The UN said an attack by armed men on its compound in Jonglei state left two Indian peacekeepers dead on Thursday. The targets of the attack were said to be members of President Salva Kiir\\\'s tribe who had sought refuge in the UN compound. The violence began on Sunday in the capital Juba following a failed coup and has since spread rapidly across the country. The president has accused former vice president Riek Machar of attempting to seize power by force. At least 500 people are believed to have died since Sunday in the fighting between the army and Machar\\\'s supporters. The oil-rich country has been struggling to achieve stable government since it seceded from Sudan in 2011, with Western support.

The United States is said to be backing away from a December 31 deadline for signing the controversial security deal with Afghanistan. American and Afghan officials say the Obama administration is going to wait in order to strike the deal that will allow it to keep its troops in Afghanistan beyond the 2014 withdrawal deadline. The decision, however, is being viewed as an embarrassing turn following weeks of threats by US officials that a complete withdrawal is possible if President Hamid Karzai refuses to sign the pact. The Afghan president came under additional pressure after NATO chief urged him to sign the deal with the US or there will be no agreement with the military alliance either. Karzai has warned that he will not allow continued foreign presence if it means more bombs and civilian killings.

The United Nations is warning that it\\\'ll investigate reports of crimes against humanity in South Sudan. The warning comes after eyewitnesses unveiled a wave of brutal ethnic killings. UN chief Ban Ki-moon says all those responsible for the killings will face the consequences. He has asked the Security Council to nearly double the size of the UN mission in South Sudan. Since nearly a week ago, the country has been hit by deadly fighting between government forces and rebels loyal to former vice president, Riek Machar. According to official estimates, 500 people have lost their lives in the week long conflict. But independent sources believe the real figure to be higher.

Press TV has conducted an interview with Mark Glenn, co-founder of Crescent and Cross Solidarity Movement, about the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) saying one out of five people living in Lebanon are refugees who have fled the nearly three-year-long conflict in neighboring Syria.

Iran and the representative for United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have teamed up to prevent the flow of narcotics in Iran from mainly neighboring Afghanistan and also Pakistan. Thursday the UNODC rep met with Iran\\\'s Interior Minister to discuss ways of preventing narcotics trafficking. Trafficking continues to be a major costly and deadly issue for Iran as its over 1900 kilometer border with Afghanistan and Pakistan has frequently been used as the main smuggling routes of drugs to narcotics to the world.

A federal judge in the United States has ruled that the spying activities of the government on the country\\\'s citizens are legal. New York District Judge William Pauley made the ruling in response to a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union against the National Security Agency. Judge Pauley says the NSA\\\'s phone tapping activities are valuable tools to counter what he called threats of terrorism. He also said the mass collection of phone data increases the agency\\\'s capabilities to protect US citizens. The comments come just a week after another federal judge ruled that the surveillance was unconstitutional. Washington DC federal judge Richard Leon said the phone-tapping program violates the Constitution\\\'s ban on unreasonable search.