* ‘To Hell with the Ceasefire’ if Israel Doesn’t Let Up, Hamas Says Moderate Hamas official Ahmed Yousef, the adviser on foreign affairs to de-facto Gaza prime minister and Hamas leader Ismail Haniya, has told the Middle East Times that Hamas’ patience with Israel is wearing thin.

* Iran vows no nuclear concessions Iran will not “retreat one iota” in its nuclear activities, its president says, in his first reaction to a new call for Tehran to end uranium enrichment.

* Kurdish defiance likely to delay Iraqi elections The Iraqi Parliament approved legislation to govern provincial elections, but Kurdish lawmakers boycotted the session.

* Chavez calls for Russia alliance Hugo Chavez has called for a strategic alliance with Russia to protect Venezuela from the US.

* Military strike not an option on Iran, EU ministers say European Union foreign ministers on Tuesday (22 July) called for further diplomacy in dealing with concerns over Iran’s nuclear program.

* Sudan president defiant in Darfur Sudan’s president has said he is “not worried” by International Criminal Court (ICC) accusations against him, during a rare visit to Darfur.

* US general warns Russia on nuclear bombers in Cuba Russia would cross “a red line for the United States of America” if it were to base nuclear capable bombers in Cuba.

* Manned spaceship design unveiled The first official image of a Russian-European manned spacecraft has been unveiled.

* Livni calls for national unity gov’t Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni called on Tuesday night for the establishment of a national unity government.

* Gay bishop Robinson ‘should quit’ The Archbishop of Sudan, Daniel Deng, has called for gay American bishop Gene Robinson to resign and go back to being “a normal Christian”.