Briefly World

US dictatorship remark angers Iran

TEHRAN: Iran hit back at the US on Tuesday for saying the Islamic state was moving toward a military dictatorship,accusing Washington of pursuing wrong policies in West Asia. They themselves are involved in a sort of military dictatorship, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said,according to ISNA news agency. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday the US believes Irans Revolutionary Guards are driving the country toward military dictatorship. On Tuesday,Clinton said that if Iran gets a nuclear weapon it could trigger a nuclear arms race in West Asia.

Hamas: UK scribe to be held for 15 days

GAZA CITY: Hamas officials said Monday they have detained a British freelance journalist for up to 15 days,an unprecedented step against a foreigner since the Islamic militants seized Gaza in 2007. Documentary filmmaker Paul Martin was detained Sunday at a Gaza military tribunal where he was to testify on behalf of a local man accused of collaborating with Israel,said Hamas Interior Ministry spokesman Ehab Ghussein. He had just begun to speak when the prosecutor ordered the police to arrest him,saying the Briton was wanted in the case,according to the attorney for the Gaza man accused of collaborating.