Iran, Saudi Arabia | featured news

A "pervasively polluted" culture at HSBC Holdings Plc allowed the bank to act as financier to clients seeking to route shadowy funds from the world's most dangerous and secretive corners, including Mexico, Iran,the Cayman Islands, Saudi Arabia and Syria, according to a scathing U.S. Senate report issued on Monday.

Democratic and Republican government officials warned this morning that a United Nations summit in December will lead to a virtual takeover of the Internet if proposals from China, Russia, Iran, and Saudi Arabia are adopted.

The United States is pressing Saudi Arabia to boost oil output to fill a likely supply gap arising from sanctions on Iran, Gulf oil officials said, adding that an increase in production is unlikely to be needed before July.

Saudia Arabia would move quickly to acquire nuclear weapons if Iran successfully tests an atomic bomb, according to a report. Citing an unidentified Saudi Arabian source, the Times newspaper in the U.K. (which operates behind a paywall) said that the kingdom would seek to buy ready-made warheads and also begin its own program to enrich weapons-grade uranium.

Vice President Biden says the "entire world" should unite against Iran for its alleged plot to kill the Saudi envoy to the U.S.

The United States plans to sell up to $60 billion worth of military aircraft to Saudi Arabia, the State Department announced on Wednesday in a move designed to shore up a region overshadowed by Iran.

Saudi Arabia urged Iran on Saturday to allow a daughter of Osama bin Laden, who fled house arrest and sought refuge in the Saudi embassy in Tehran, to leave the country if she wishes.

President Barack Obama arrived in Saudi Arabia for talks with King Abdullah on Wednesday on the eve of a much-anticipated speech in Cairo intended to repair America's damaged image with the Islamic world.