Sectarian violence threatens Algeria’s desert
ALGIERS- Weeks of violence between two rival communities have swept Algeria's desert city of Ghardaia, inflamed by the destruction of a historic Berber shrine, with analysts warning of sectarian conflict engulfing the fragile region.For more than a month, the city of 90,000 inhabitants has witnessed clashes between the Chaamba community...‘Unknown persons’ kidnap son of Benghazi security chief
BENGHAZI - The son of the Libyan army's Special Forces commander in Benghazi was kidnapped in the eastern city on Thursday, Jan. 30, military sources said.Ali Abu Khamada, son of commander Wanis Abu Khamada, was "kidnapped by unknown persons near Gar Younes university," a special forces officer said, asking not to be named.He gave no...Regional strife endangers historic Arab treasures
In August 2013, looters stole or damaged 1,060 of 1,089 objects housed at Egypt’s Mallawi Museum in Minia, killing a security guard. The following month 400 artifacts were recovered. However, the Arab Spring hasn’t always been bad for the heritage of Egypt and the Arab world. During the 2011 Egyptian uprising, looters broke into...Erdogan discusses shift in Syria policy in visit to Iran
GENEVA - Opposing sides in Syria's civil war stood together in silence to honor victims of the three year conflict on Thursday, Jan. 30, but the week-old peace talks were still stuck on the question of how to proceed with just one day left before they head home.The United States said on Thursday it was concerned that Syria was falling...
Shared moments of silence, but little progress at Geneva 2 talks
January 30th, 20140 GENEVA - Opposing sides in Syria's civil war stood together in silence to honor victims of the three year conflict on Thursday, Jan. 30, but the week-old peace talks were still stuck on the question of how to proceed with just one day left before they head home.The United States said on Thursday it was concerned that Syria was falling...Yemen extends Hadi’s presidency by one year, approves federal state
SANAA — Political factions in Yemen extended Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's presidency by one more year and approved a new federal system for the country at a national reconciliation conference that ended on Tuesday, Jan. 21, officials said.Hadi, who became head of state in 2012 for a two-year term under a Gulf power transfer deal that saw...Amnesty International blasts Egypt for ‘unprecedented’ state violence
CAIRO — Egypt has seen state violence on an "unprecedented scale" since the army deposed Islamist President Mohamed Morsi last July following mass protests against his rule, Amnesty International said in a report on Thursday.Interim Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, responded by saying...
Remembering Haret Hreik’s victims: Loss, tears and perseverance
January 24th, 20140 BEIRUT — On January 2, after a car bomb exploded in the Haret Hreik neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburbs killing five people, Maria Jawhari, an 18-year-old resident of the area, posted on her Facebook page: “This is the third bombing I escaped from, I don’t know if I’ll die in the fourth.”More than two weeks later, her...
UN envoy meets Syria parties to salvage talks after bitter start
January 24th, 20140 GENEVA — A UN envoy met members of Syria's opposition in Geneva on Thursday, Jan. 23, as efforts began to salvage peace talks by focusing on local ceasefires and prisoner swaps rather than a political deal.The first day of talks on Wednesday was dominated by fierce rhetoric from President Bashar al-Assad's government and its foes....Iraq hangs 11 convicted of terrorism
BAGHDAD — Iraq hanged 11 people convicted of terrorist offenses on Thursday, Jan. 23, the justice ministry said, pursuing what a U.N. official has criticised as a "conveyor-belt of executions."All those executed were Iraqi nationals, justice ministry spokesman Haider al-Saadi said in a text message to Reuters, bringing the total number...Israel approves 381 more settler homes in West Bank
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — In the latest blow to the Middle East peace process, Israel has approved plans to build another 381 settler homes in the West Bank. The move brings the total number of planned units announced since the start of the year to 2,530."The Israeli Civil Administration, which falls under the Defense Ministry, has...Iran’s Rohani: Free elections best solution for Syria
DAVOS, Switzerland — Iranian President Hassan Rohani said Thursday that fair elections would be the best way of ending Syria's civil war."The best solution is to organize free and fair elections inside Syria," Rohani told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "No outside party or power should decide for the Syrian people and...Thirteen charged in New York for ID theft from fuel pumps
New York City — Thirteen people were indicted for swiping credit card and ATM information from gas pumps in Texas, Georgia and South Carolina, and using the data to steal more than $2 million using ATMS and banks in New York, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. announced on Tuesday, January 21.Members of the alleged identity...Bahrain crown prince meets opposition leader
MANAMA - Bahrain’s monarchy has met with the opposition leader in an effort to put an end to the mass demonstrations that have shaken the country for nearly three years.Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa held talks with the main opposition chief Sheikh Ali Salman for the first time since demonstrations began in...Netanyahu meets King Abdullah II in Amman
AMMAN - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu laid down demands for security arrangements between a future Palestinian state and Jordan, in a rare visit Thursday, Jan. 16, to Amman.Netanyahu was in Jordan for unannounced talks with King Abdullah II on the U.S.-brokered Middle East peace process.The visit follows U.S. Secretary of......
Militants kill 10 soldiers in central Yemen
SANAA - Al-Qaeda militants killed 10 Yemeni soldiers in three simultaneous attacks Thursday, Jan. 16, on army positions in the central province of Bayda, a military official said.Eight extremists were also killed in the assaults, which prompted further clashes with the army, a local official said."Al-Qaeda assailants carried out...Iraq violence kills 75 in one day
BAGHDAD - Bomb attacks and shootings killed at least 75 people in Iraq on Wednesday, Jan. 15, police and hospital sources said, making it one of the bloodiest days in months.In the deadliest incident, a bomb blew up in a funeral tent where mourners were marking the death two days ago of a Sunni Muslim pro-government militiaman, police......
Egyptian voters back constitution, opening way to Sisi presidential run
CAIRO - Egyptians overwhelmingly approved a new constitution by referendum, state media reported on Thursday, a widely expected outcome that nudges army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ever closer to a bid for the presidency.The vote advances a transition plan the military-backed government unveiled after deposing Islamist president...Suicide bomb kills 5, injures dozens in northeast Lebanon
BEIRUT- Nusra Front in Lebanon claimed responsibility on Thursday, Jan. 16, for a deadly blast in northeast Lebanon that killed five and wounded 42, saying the attack was in retaliation to Hizbullah’s involvement in Syria. Lebanese security forces inspect the scene of a car bomb that went off in Hermel, near the border with Syria.The...Syrian army advance as rebel infighting rages
DAMASCUS - The Syrian government has retaken territory around the northern city of Aleppo, the military said on Tuesday, Jan. 14, after two weeks of rebel infighting that has weakened the insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad.The military advances will give the Syrian government delegation greater leverage at the negotiating...Gaza loses an underground lifeline
GAZA CITY — The border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip used to buzz with activity until a few months back as traders brought in an array of Egyptian goods – from food supplies to raw material – through hundreds of tunnels.But these underground structures, located 40 km from here, between Rafah in Gaza and Sinai in Egypt,......
Trial in Hariri murder startsProsecutor: Assassination meant to spread panic in Lebanon
THE HAGUE — The huge explosion that killed former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri and 21 others in 2005 was an act of terror meant to spread panic throughout the country, a prosecutor said at the start of a trial of four men charged with planning the attack.The four members of Hizbullah are accused of murder, terrorism and...Breaking down Egypt’s new constitution
The army-backed constitution was approved overwhelmingly by voters in a referendum that took place on Tuesday and Wednesday. Here is an overview of the main elements of the new constitution, which experts say deepened the influence of the military, police and judiciary:Freedoms and rightsPolitical parties cannot be formed on the......
Hundreds voice anger over torching of decades-old library in Lebanon
TRIPOLI — Hundreds of Lebanese took to the streets of the northern city of Tripoli on Saturday, Jan. 4, to protest the torching of a decades-old library owned by a Greek Orthodox priest.The demonstrators held up banners that read "Tripoli, peaceful town" and "This is contrary to the values of the Prophet Mohammad."Assailants set alight...
How people in Muslim countries prefer women to dress in public
January 10th, 20140 An important issue in the Muslim world is how women should dress in public. A recent survey from the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research conducted in seven Muslim-majority countries (Tunisia, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey), finds that most people prefer that a woman completely cover her......