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  • Hardliners fail to sweep Iran vote

    Candidates allied to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, have failed to score a resounding victory over moderate forces in twin Iranian elections, according to initial results. Voting for the Assembly of Experts, the body that chooses the supreme leader, and the Tehran city council concluded on Saturday.Centrist cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.. More

  • Earthquakes rock Sumatra

    Seven people have died and more than 100 are reported injured after three separate quakes hit the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The quakes of moderate magnitude struck within a space of five hours on Monday morning, hitting several areas that are still rebuilding after the devastating Asian tsunami almost exactly two years ago.The first quake with.. More

  • Hamas & Fatah ‘agree deal’

    Armed Palestinian groups including Hamas and Fatah agreed on a ceasefire late on Sunday to end the ongoing unrest, Al Jazeera said. Nour Odeh, correspondent in Gaza, said the ceasefire pact stipulates, among other things, an end to all confrontation and withdrawal of guns and fighters from the street. The pact calls for an end to incitement through.. More

  • Moussa briefs Saudi king on Lebanon

    Amr Moussa, the Arab League secretary-general, called on Saudi Arabia's king to intervene to help Lebanon's deepening political crisis, officials said. Moussa visited Riyadh on Sunday to hold talks with Saudi officials including King Abdullah. Al Jazeera quoted Moussa as saying that he would return to Beirut on Tuesday to resume mediation. Moussa.. More

  • Democrat backs Iraq troop increase

    The senate's top Democrat politician has offered qualified support for a plan to increase US forces in Iraq, saying it would be acceptable as part of a broader strategy to bring combat forces home by 2008. Harry Reid, senator for Nevada and the incoming senate majority leader, said on Sunday that he would be open only to a short-term increase. Reid,.. More

  • Aid workers kidnapped in Baghdad

    Gunmen have staged a mass kidnapping at the Iraqi office of the Red Crescent humanitarian agency in Baghdad. The assailants captured dozens of employees but left the women behind, an aid official told AP news agency. The gunmen are believed to have been wearing police or military uniforms and arrived in a number of pick-up trucks. It is the latest.. More

  • Blair on surprise visit to Iraq

    UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has arrived in Baghdad on a surprise visit. He is holding talks with Iraq's prime minister and president as part of a tour of the Middle East. He has also been to Turkey and to Egypt for talks with President Hosni Mubarak. Mr Blair said earlier that the region faced a "critical moment of decision". Resolving the.. More

  • US welcomes Palestinian poll call

    The US administration has hailed a call by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas for fresh elections, expressing hope it could help end violence in the region. Mr Abbas's call for presidential and parliamentary polls to be held at the "earliest opportunity" was also welcomed by Britain and Spain. However the Islamic group Hamas, which won the latest.. More

  • Pakistani wedding fire kills 22

    At least 22 women and children, including the bride, have died after a fire broke out in a tent at a wedding party in eastern Pakistan, police said. At least 30 people were injured in the accident in Jhok Utra, 120km (75 miles) west of Multan, when a wall collapsed after the blaze triggered a stampede. An electrical short-circuit is thought to.. More

  • Blair on surprise visit to Iraq

    UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has arrived in Baghdad on a surprise visit. He is holding talks with Iraq's prime minister and president as part of a tour of the Middle East. He has also been to Turkey and to Egypt for talks with President Hosni Mubarak. Mr Blair said earlier that the region faced a "critical moment of decision". Resolving the.. More

  • Palestinian killed in Gaza fighting

    One man has been killed and several others injured after supporters of the ruling Hamas clashed in the Gaza Strip with members of the presidential guard loyal to Mahmud Abbas, the Fatah-backed president. A security official said Hamas members tried to storm a southern Gaza training camp for the presidential guard, triggering off a gun battle. The.. More

  • Yemen brokers deal for Somalia

    A leader of Somalia's Islamic Courts militia and the influential parliament speaker said on Saturday that they had agreed at talks in Yemen to turn to dialogue between the Islamists and the government to resolve differences. "The Islamic Courts are committed to dialogue with the interim federal Somali government as a way of resolving differences ..... More

  • Siniora seeks Moscow's help

    Fouad Siniora, the Lebanese prime minister, has arrived in Russia to meet Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, and Arab ambassadors to Moscow. They will discuss relations between Syria and Lebanon ahead of the Syrian president's visit next week. Upon his arrival, Siniora said Russia could be an influential mediator: "Syria contributed to the withdrawal.. More

  • Fighters kidnap three in Nigeria

    Armed men have kidnapped three Nigerians at a Royal Dutch Shell oil complex, and attacked a flow station, forcing the oil giant to halt all of its oil production in Nigeria. The attackers kidnapped a soldier, an office worker and a chef who worked at the logistic base that houses staff Oporoma, in the southern state of Bayelsa on Friday. At least.. More

  • Palestinian factional feud worsens

    A senior Hamas official has accused the Palestinian president and leader of Fatah of starting a war after his security forces opened fire on a Hamas rally in the West Bank and firefights broke out in Gaza.At least 32 Hamas supporters in Ramallah were wounded by gunfire from Mahmoud Abbas's forces on Friday, hospital officials said.Several were in a.. More