BAGHDAD (Reuters) — A US military helicopter crashed northeast of Baghdad on Saturday, killing all 13 military personnel on board, but US officials gave no immediate details on the cause.

RAMALLAH — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was due to meet exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mishaal in Damascus last night amid hopes that the months-long negotiations over a unity government might finally be nearing resolution.

CAIRO — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a deal with Arab leaders this week: Washington will show an interest in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Arabs will say they support the new US strategy for Iraq.

MOGADISHU (AP) — Somalia’s fledgling government received a boost Saturday when the last major warlord turned over his weapons and militia, but it faced a renewed threat from Islamists, who took credit for a string of attacks and promised to continue fighting until the government agrees to talks.

BEIRUT (AFP) — The Lebanese opposition called Saturday for a one-day general strike, stepping up a protest campaign to bring down the Western-backed government that has paralysed the nation’s leadership for weeks.

CAIRO (AFP) — An Egyptian woman died from bird flu overnight, bringing to 11 the number of people in the country to have succumbed to the disease, the heath ministry said Saturday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — US contingency planning for military action against Iran’s nuclear programme goes beyond limited strikes and would effectively unleash a war against the country, a former US intelligence analyst said on Friday.

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TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Parliament Speaker Gholam Ali Haddad Adel said that the Iranian nation and government will stand up to foreign threats with solidarity.

TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Two earthquakes measuring 4.4 and 4 on the Richter scale jolted Haft-gol and Bagh Malek in Iran’s southwestern province of Khuzestan.