The Daily Tension for Mon. 8 May, Morning Edition

TENSION NEWSMAKERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

IRAN NUCLEAR CRISIS
Iran writes Bush letter to ease tension
TEHRAN (Reuters) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written to President Bush in an unprecedented attempt to ease mounting tensions between Tehran and the West, an Iranian official said on Monday.

Iran's Leader Writes to President Bush
ISTANBUL, May 8 (www.washingtonpost.com) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written a letter to President Bush, a spokesman for Iran's hard-line government said Monday. The letter proposed "new solutions for getting out of international problems and the current fragile situation in the world," government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham told a news conference in Tehran, but he declined to elaborate on the contents.

Oil prices recede on easing Iran tension
LONDON (AFP) -- World oil prices slid on news that Iran was seeking to resolve tensions with its arch-enemy the United States, and ahead of a key meeting of world powers over the country's nuclear energy programme.

Iran tries to rally support among neighbours as tension over nuke program grows
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- Iran’s top nuclear negotiator arrived in Turkey on Monday as part of Iranian efforts to try to rally support among the country’s neighbors as tensions with the United States grow over the country’s nuclear program.

ECOMONY
Gold hits 25-yr peak on dollar, platinum sets record
LONDON (Reuters) -- Gold scaled a new 25-year high on Monday, supported by a weak dollar and active buying by Japanese investors returning after a holiday, while platinum set a fresh record on bullish sentiment.

IRAQ CONFLICT
Bombs Kill U.S. Soldier and 7 Iraqis
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Bombs killed a U.S. soldier and seven Iraqis on Monday as politicians haggled over key posts in the new Cabinet, officials said. Another American died the day before in northern Iraq, according to a U.S. statement.

IRAQ BRITS UNDER FIRE AS TENSION BOILS OVER
(www.dailyrecord.co.uk) -- BRITISH troops in Basra could be facing a bloody uprising, intelligence sources claimed yesterday.

MIDDLE EAST
Hamas, Fatah rival factions battle in Gaza, 3 dead
GAZA (Reuters) -- Three gunmen were killed on Monday when fighting erupted in the Gaza Strip between Fatah forces backing President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas loyalists, in the most serious Palestinian internal strife since Hamas came to power. The street battles in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis broke out after Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas failed to resolve security disputes in talks at the weekend.

INTERNATIONAL
Australian academics blacklisted from Indonesia
ELEANOR HALL (www.abc.net.au) -- The tension in the relationship between the Indonesian and Australian Governments over the Indonesian province of Papua has just been ratcheted up a notch.

China ordains bishop with Vatican approval, eases tension
Beijing (news.monstersandcritics.com) -- China's state Catholic Church moved closer to reconciliation with the Vatican Sunday following a dispute over the ordination of two bishops without Rome's consent.

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