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Opposition MPs branding the amendments a “constitutional putsch”

Egypt’s largest opposition group has strongly condemned government moves to hold a controversial referendum just days after its approval by parliament.The Muslim Brotherhood group says the tight schedule is designed to prevent effective campaigning by those opposed to the proposed constitutional changes.
The vote will be held on Monday, [...]

Somalia was third-worst last year for minority rights, says MRG

Somalia has overtaken Iraq as the world’s most dangerous country for minority groups, a study has found.Sudan, Afghanistan and Burma followed in the global survey by the Minority Rights Group International (MRG).
It alleges the US ignored abuses of minorities in countries supporting the US “war on [...]

Mr Fayyad says he has met US consul-general Jacob Walles

Palestinian finance minister Salam Fayyad says he has met the US consul general in Jerusalem, Jacob Walles, in the West Bank town of Ramallah. Mr Fayyad is a political independent included in the Hamas-led government.
Correspondents say the meeting is the first between a US official and [...]

The chief justice has a reputation for independence

A number of judges have resigned in Pakistan in continuing protests over the suspension of the chief justice of the Supreme Court.Lawyers have staged more street protests but there have been no repetitions of their recent bloody confrontations with the police.
President Pervez Musharraf suspended Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on [...]

Abd Kadhem had plans to open a diving school

Abd Kadhem has been working as a police diver on the Tigris River in Baghdad for 30 years. He is 50 years old.
Diving is a humanitarian job. We save people’s lives and we remove any strange things that we find floating in the river.
Sometimes we can’t [...]

At least 14 people have been killed after several car and roadside bombs exploded in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, police say.More than 30 people were reported hurt in the blasts, one of which was said to have occurred near two mosques.
The oil-rich, predominately Kurdish city lies about 290km (180 miles) north of the [...]

Shiite pilgrims commemorate the anniversary of Prophet Mohammed’s death in A.D. 632, in the holy city of Najaf, 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, March 18, 2007. (AP Photo/Alaa al-Marjani)

Chemical Blasts Sicken Hundreds in Iraq
7 U.S. Troops Die in Iraq Violence
Lawyers vs. Police: Pakistan Protest Boils Over

Pakistani Protests Turn Ugly
[...]

A convoy carrying the director of the United Nations refugee agency was fired on as it returned to Gaza City on Friday, but there were no casualties, according to security sources and witnesses.
“Eleven bullets hit his armoured car. We don’t know who did it yet. We are investigating,” a security source said.
The attack on the convoy happened as [...]

Somalia has seen an upsurge of violence in recent months

Seven people have died in Somalia in a suspected bombing attack on the outskirts of the capital, Mogadishu.A BBC correspondent says four children were killed in the blast in Afgoye town, where people were seeking safety after escaping the war-torn capital.
Police suspect a bomb may have [...]

Car bombs are constantly used in Iraq

At least four people have been killed in a bomb attack outside a factory south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.The bomb went off in Iskandariya, a centre of the anti-US insurgency. The number of wounded is not confirmed.
It is thought the bomb was planted in a car which exploded [...]