Clinton cancels trip to Middle East over health problem December 11, 2012 - 09:05 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has canceled her trip to Morocco this week for a meeting on the future of Syria's opposition because of a stomach virus, the State Department said on Monday, Dec 10, according to Reuters. Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns will travel to the meeting in her place. "Since she's still under the weather, we'll be staying put this week instead of heading to North Africa and the Middle East as originally planned," State Department spokesman Philippe Reines said in a statement. "In her place, Deputy Secretary Burns will travel to Marrakech for the Friends of the Syrian People meeting. We will let you know when she shakes this bug and resumes a public schedule," he said. Clinton had been due to join foreign ministers from allied nations in Morocco to discuss the 20-month old Syria crisis as rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad push forward on the battlefield and move to unify the political opposition. The so-called Friends of Syria group is expected to focus on new moves to strengthen and legitimize the recently formed Syrian opposition coalition. Clinton had planned to continue from Morocco to Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. Partner news  Top stories Among its provisions are bans on child marriage and the traditional practice of selling and buying women to settle disputes. Jorge Rafael Videla, an austere former army commander, led Argentina during the bloodiest days of its Dirty War dictatorship. According to the United Nations, April was Iraq's bloodiest month for almost five years, with 712 people killed. Reports suggest the rebel fighters may have tried to blow up the walls of the prison, which holds some 4,000 inmates.   Partner news |  Latest news Armenia, Artsakh discuss parliamentary cooperation  Bako Sahakyan met with some members of the Armenian National Assembly’s standing commission on foreign relations.Samsung launches $800,000 contest for Galaxy S4 app developers The company said apps in the contest will be judged on categories such as uniqueness, commercial potential, and design.Access to internet in Iran being increasingly stifled Iranian authorities had also banned Google’s email service for a week last year but reopened access after complaints from officials.Oil prices fall after U.S. stocks blazed to new record levels Prices surged last week after a better-than-expected reading on U.S. consumer confidence boosted hopes for stronger energy demand. |
