Middle Orient News

A convoy of US vehicles from Kuwait arrives Monday in Basra, 550km south of Baghdad. The first additional US troops, who will take part in a major new security plan in Baghdad, arrived in Baghdad, General George Casey, the US commander in Iraq, said (Reuters photo by Atef Hassan)

BAGHDAD (AP) — The US ambassador and top American commander in Iraq are set to leave their jobs with the country’s security arguably no better than when they arrived, and they cautioned Monday against expecting significant success in quelling the violence soon.

BAGHDAD — For Abu Mina, a ceramic artist and professor, Baghdad is one big jail — too dangerous for him to live with his wife and daughters, too dangerous for him to meet his students openly, too dangerous to work in his studio.

AMMAN (JT) — King Abdullah on Sunday urged the US to “actively” push for reviving Palestinian-Israeli peace talks, leading to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, a Royal Court statement said.

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. Bush’s top diplomat tried to assure Palestinians on Sunday she has heard their demands for a stronger US hand to guide peace efforts with Israel. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, however, offered no new plans and gave few clues to how she views recent initiatives proposed by …

DAMASCUS (AP) — Syria’s president promised to do what he can to ease tensions in neighbouring Iraq on Sunday during a landmark visit here by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, just days after the US president accused Syria of backing Iraq’s insurgency.

CAIRO — Moderate Arab governments planned to tell visiting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that they will help Washington stabilise Iraq if the US in turn takes more active steps to revive a broad peace initiative between Israel and its Arab neighbours, Arab officials and media said Sunday.

CAIRO (AP) — Reconciliation and national unity in Iraq are necessary for the success of US President George W. Bush’s new strategy for the war-torn country, Egypt and Saudi Arabia warned.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Washington would hold Iraq’s Prime Minister Nouri Maliki to his promises to reduce sectarian violence and that it was now time to see results.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President George W. Bush on Saturday challenged lawmakers sceptical of his new Iraq plan to propose their own strategy for stopping the violence in Baghdad.