Islamic-World

Ahead of general elections on Sunday, the leader of Turkey’s hardline nationalists flung a hangman’s noose from a podium to make a point during a political rally: the prime minister is soft on terrorism and should hang the imprisoned leader of Kurdish rebels.

More than 50 people were killed and 20 injured in Sudan’s worst floods in living memory which have partially or completely destroyed 18,000 homes, the head of civil defence said on Thursday.

At least six children were reported killed in mortar attacks close to where scores of dignitaries were holding a long-awaited peace conference in the Somali capital Thursday.

A TOP PLO body gave its approval Thursday to President Mahmoud Abbas to call new presidential and legislative elections, a high-stakes gamble meant to sideline Hamas, but also bound to set off new confrontations with the Islamists and cement the West Bank-Gaza divide.

Main Egyptian stock indexes rose on Thursday as shares in technology and communications firm Raya surged following an offer by Orascom Telecom to buy all issued shares in the firm, traders said.

Egypt opened shelters on Thursday to house hundreds of Palestinians stranded at the closed border with the Gaza Strip for fear that some could resort to sleeping on the streets, an Egyptian official said.

Chief of General Intelligence Omar Suleiman visited America this week to discuss a range of strategic issues with US administration officials, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and CIA Director Michael Hayden.

Intense debate followed a bishop’s controversial announcement about the exact number of Coptic Christians in Egypt. Bishop Basenti of the diocese of Helwan and Massara told a seminar on citizenship that the Copt population was “between 10 million and 15 million”.

Sexual harassment, and even rape, continue to be viewed by society as personal dilemmas rather than criminal acts, writes Reem Leila. Eleven-year-old Hend Mohamed became a mother after being raped by 21-year-old Mohamed Sami, a tuk-tuk driver.

An Egyptian trade delegation is to arrive next Saturday in Sana’a headed by Board Chairman of the gyptian Supplies Authority Saeed al-Hanafi.