Middle Orient

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Hamas has won a measure of the international recognition it sought by indirectly negotiating a truce with Israel but faces a challenge keeping other Palestinian militant factions in line in the Gaza Strip.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq said on Wednesday it was committed to meeting a deadline for a long-term security pact with the United States, as Washington confirmed it dropped a demand concerning the divisive issue of immunity for private contractors.

AMARA, Iraq (Reuters) – Iraqi security forces launched a crackdown on Shi’ite militias in the southern city of Amara on Thursday, the commander of the operation said.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A powerful car bomb exploded in a crowded market area of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing 51 people and wounding 75, in the deadliest attack in the Iraqi capital in months. Police said the bomb was placed in a pickup truck parked next to minibus taxis near the …

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq’s parliament will relocate just outside Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone compound in September for the first time since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, a sign security is improving, the first deputy speaker said on Tuesday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The U.S. military said it killed four al Qaeda militants in a raid in the northern city of Mosul on Tuesday, but Iraqi police said the three brothers and their father shot in the operation were not insurgents.

ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey’s top court will hold its first hearings in early July in a case aimed at outlawing the ruling AK Party for Islamist activities, a court source said on Tuesday. A state prosecutor will give evidence to support his bid to close the governing party on July …

GAZA (Reuters) – An Egyptian-brokered cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip that could ease a crippling Israeli blockade of the coastal territory will begin Thursday, Egypt and Hamas said.

BEIRUT (Reuters) – A Lebanese political leader allied to Hezbollah indicated on Tuesday a prisoner swap deal between the militant Islamic group and Israel may be close.

(Reuters) – A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is to begin on Thursday in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian and Egyptian officials said. Following are some key facts about the Hamas-controlled territory. WHERE IS GAZA? * The Gaza Strip is a sliver of towns, villages and farmland at the southeast end …