International
Stinging setback in regional elections for Sarkozy’s party
PARIS - The French president's Nicolas Sarkozy right has suffered a stinging setback Sunday in the first round of regional elections over the opposition of Socialist and Green, set to win the election largely in the second round next Sunday.
Egypt: an Israeli and a migrant arrested at the border
CAIRO - Egyptian police have arrested an Israeli man posing as a journalist who tried to cross the border between Egypt and Israel along with a Ghanaian migrant, said on Monday an official from Egyptian security services....
The credibility of the Catholic Church seriously shaken
BERLIN - A German Catholic political leader said Monday that the credibility of the Catholic Church was "seriously undermined" by the pedophilia cases in Germany, asking the Pope and the Church more honesty....
A son of Bin Laden calls on Tehran to release his family
WASHINGTON - A son of Osama bin Laden called on Tehran to release several members of his family, who he believes are under house arrest in Iran, according to a letter released Sunday. ...
Cyclone in Fiji: thousands of evacuees
SUVA - A powerful cyclone hit on Monday north of Fiji damaging many houses and crops and causing the evacuation of thousands of people into shelters, said the Office of Disaster Management. ...
AIPAC calls Obama to ease tension with Israel
WASHINGTON - The recent statements of the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama on the links between the United States and Israel constitute a "serious concern", said Sunday the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). ...
Egypt / Weather: Ports closed and traffic slowed on the Suez Canal
Ismailia (Egypt) - Four ports on the Egyptian Red Sea were closed Sunday and traffic on the Suez Canal was at a historic low because of high winds and sandstorms, channel authorities said....
Taliban claimed suicide bombings in Kandahar, 35 dead
KANDAHAR (Afghanistan) - Taliban claimed responsibility for a series of suicide attacks that have bloodied Saturday Kandahar, one of their strongholds in southern Afghanistan, killing 35 people and wounding 57 according to a new record, the most deadly since the beginning of the year....
Powerful 6.6 earthquake east of the large Japanese island of Honshu
TOKYO - An earthquake of magnitude 6.6, according to the U.S. Geological Survey USGS, occurred Sunday around 5:00 a.m. (08:00 GMT) east of the large Japanese island of Honshu, but no tsunami warning has been triggered....
Indonesia: Earthquake of magnitude 7.0 off the Moluccas
JAKARTA - A strong earthquake of magnitude 7.0 occurred Sunday off the Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia, but no tsunami warning was triggered, seismologists have said....
Tropical Storm in Madagascar: 14 dead, 37,891 affected
ANTANANARIVO - At least fourteen people were killed and over 37,800 are affected after the passage of severe tropical storm «Hubert» that hit Madagascar this week, according to a provisional report issued Saturday by the Malagasy authorities. ...
Egypt: 24 injured in clashes between Muslims and Christians
CAIRO - Twenty-four people were injured in clashes between Christians and Muslims in the province of Mersa Matrouh in northern Egypt, said Saturday an official security services. ...
Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb claimed an attack in western Niger
WASHINGTON - Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has claimed an attack Friday against a military outpost in western Niger, which killed at least eight people Monday, said U.S. center monitoring Islamist websites SITE. ...
France: posters of the extreme right against Islam prohibited
MARSEILLE (France) - French Justice on Friday ordered the removal of election posters against Islam of the extreme right National Front, deemed "anti-Muslim" by associations and which have led to a protest from the Algerian government. ...
Clinton accuses Netanyahu of undermining relations with Washington
WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn his "profoundly negative" attitude towards Washington, using harsh words against the main ally of the United States in the Middle East. ...
Suicide bombings against civilians are a great sin and suicide bombers are apostates The
Pakistani theologian, Sheikh Mohammed Tahar El-Qadiri, president of the movement "Minhdj al Qur'an" (the Qur’an path), issued late last week a Fetwa banning suicide operations targeting civilians. He said suicide bombers are the worst enemies of Islam, their fate is hell. ...
Pakistan: 39 killed in twin bombings in Lahore
LAHORE (Pakistan) - At least 39 people were killed Friday in the double suicide bombing that targeted a military convoy in Lahore, the largest city in eastern Pakistan, a police official said on Pakistan Television....
Al-Jazeera and Al Arabiya communications equipment seized in Yemen
SANAA - Yemeni authorities have announced in a statement they had seized transmission equipment of Arab satellite channels of continuous information Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya when anti-government demonstrations in the south are amplifying....
Greece: 4.6 magnitude earthquake off the south-west Peloponnese
ATHENS - A quake with a magnitude of 4.6 was recorded Friday morning at sea off Cape Malea, to the southwestern tip of the Peloponnese, without causing damage, said the Geodynamic Institute of the Observatory of Athens....
France/ regional: Sarkozy’s party clearly outstripped
PARIS- the right’s lists supporting President Nicolas Sarkozy should be clearly forestalled in regional elections next two Sundays in France, confirmed the latest polls published Friday....
Death of Imam Tantawi, the highest authority in Sunni Islam
CAIRO - Sheikh Mohamed Sayed Tantawi, grand imam of Al-Azhar (Egypt), the highest authority in Sunni Islam, died Wednesday in Saudi Arabia of a heart attack, said the official news agency MENA....
Niamey confirmed the deaths of 5 soldiers in an attack on a military post
Niamey - Niger's government on Tuesday confirmed the deaths of five soldiers and three "assailants" in a "violent attack" on Monday against a military outpost in western Niger, on the Malian border....
Saudi: Turkish Prime Minister awarded for "services rendered to Islam"
RIYADH - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has awarded Tuesday Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan one of the most prestigious decorations in the kingdom for "services rendered to Islam"....
Mali: release of two Al-Qaeda hostages, a Spaniard and an Italian
BAMAKO - A Spaniard and an Italian woman, held hostage by North African branch of Al-Qaeda in northern Mali were released Wednesday and were en route to Burkina Faso, but three Europeans, two Spaniards and an Italian-remained in the hands of terrorists. ...
Afghanistan: Iranian President Ahmadinejad in Kabul
KABUL - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Kabul Wednesday to meet his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai, told AFP the Afghan presidency....
Morocco: At least ten dead following torrential rains.
RABAT - At least ten people died Tuesday in different regions of Morocco following diluiviennes rains that have caused these days of floods and landslides, according to the authorities....
USA: approves the export of internet services to Iran, Sudan, Cuba
WASHINGTON - The United States eased trade sanctions they impose on Iran, Sudan and Cuba to permit the export of certain communication services online and promote free expression in those countries, says an official press release published Monday....
Al-Qaida suspected in attack against a military post in Niger
NIAMEY - Al Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) is suspected of being behind the attack against a military outpost in western Niger, the Malian border, which killed at least five Nigerian soldiers, said Tuesday a security source....
Greece: 4.3 magnitude earthquake off the island of Evia
ATHENS - A quake with a magnitude of 4.3 on the Richter scale was recorded Tuesday morning at sea between the islands of Evia and Skopelos, north of Athens without causing damage, said the Geodynamic Institute of Athens Observatory....
Yemen / South: President Saleh called separatists to dialogue
SANAA- Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has engaged in a violent diatribe against the separatist southerners, while calling for dialogue in a speech published Tuesday....
African Harraga
SHEGERAB (Sudan) - They are young, intelligent and have all the life in front of them, but thousands are fleeing the military regime in Eritrea to seek refuge in eastern Sudan, the first stage of their great illegal migration to Europe, Israel or ... Khartoum....
Several soldiers killed in an attack in western Niger
Niamey (Niger)- Several Nigerian soldiers were killed in a surprise attack against a military outpost in western Niger, near the border with Mali, said on Monday anonymous security sources. ...
Mali: Gao Mayor denies any attempted of kidnapping of journalists
BAMAKO - The mayor of Gao in northern Mali, on Monday denied that the sudden departure last week of two Spanish journalists have been caused by a threat of kidnapping by Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), who detains three Spaniards in this region. ...
At least 500 killed in violence in central Nigeria
LAGOS - At least 500 people have been killed in ethnic violence Sunday near Jos in central Nigeria, told AFP on Monday an adviser to the Governor of Plateau State, of which Jos is the capital....
Pakistan: 11 killed in attack in Lahore
LAHORE (Pakistan) - At least 11 people were killed Monday and over 60 wounded in suicide car bomb that devastated a building of anti-terrorist police in Lahore in eastern Pakistan, said a senior of the administration....
Iraq elections: Maliki dominates among Shiites, Allawi among Sunnis
BAGHDAD - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki dominates in the Shi’ite regions and his rival Iyad Allawi among Sunnis following the parliamentary elections Sunday, according to results obtained Monday by AFP from local officials....
Violent earthquake in eastern Turkey: 57 dead
ANKARA - An earthquake measuring 6 on the Richter scale occurred early Monday in eastern Turkey, said the seismological observatory in Istanbul-based Kandilli. ...
USA: Muslim women protest against sex segregation in the mosque
WASHINGTON - A handful of Muslim women risked arrest Sunday by trying to pray in the main hall used by men at the Islamic Center of Washington, the great mosque in the U.S. capital in the embassy district, noted AFP....
Iraq: 38 dead and 110 injured in election violence
BAGHDAD - Thirty-eight people were killed and 110 wounded in violence that has bloodied Sunday parliamentary elections in Iraq, according to revised figures provided by a source at the Interior Ministry....