Middle Orient

BAGHDAD — A disreputable crew of unshaven men wearing police uniforms pounces on a businessman before the horrified eyes of his wife as he leaves his home in an upscale Baghdad neighbourhood.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Senior Palestinian officials said militant groups in the Israel at midnight Saturday, if Israel launches no new raids into Gaza. But two main guerrilla groups denied that any agreement had been reached.

BEIRUT, Lebanon – With fears of a humanitarian crisis growing, Israel opened up its blockade of Lebanon’s ports to allow the first shiploads of aid to arrive, and tens of thousands of Lebanese fled north to escape Israeli army incursions.

ON THE ISRAEL-LEBANON BORDER – Israeli tanks and hundreds of troops moved in and out of Lebanon on Saturday, taking over a village and battling Hezbollah militants by land, sea and air as part of a limited ground campaign.

Israel has called up 3,000 reservists as it prepares for a possible full-scale ground invasion of southern Lebanon

At the duty-free zone on the Syria-Lebanon border, the Dunkin’ Donuts is deserted. No donuts, no muffins, no coffee — not even a single employee.

BAGHDAD — Hundreds of radical Shiite Muslims, some wielding assault rifles and rocket launchers, marched Friday in support of the Hezbollah movement and its leader,

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Eight people were killed, including two foreign soldiers, in a two-pronged suicide attack in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Saturday, police and a coalition spokesman said.

Five civilians were also wounded in the attack, police said. The attack began at 10:45 a.m. when gunmen opened fire on police in the market, police said.

Israeli jets knocked out TV and phone masts in the east and north of Lebanon, while ground troops carried out operations in two southern villages.