Middle Orient

 TEHRAN (FNA)- Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Bolat Nurgaliyev on Thursday welcomed Iran’s bid for membership in the Organization.

 TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseini on Friday dismissed the recent claims by US President George W Bush against Iran as “unjustified”.

 TEHRAN (FNA)- As part of its vigorous cultural diplomacy in neighboring countries that share its language, Iran is driving plans for a Persian-language satellite network to broadcast in Afghanistan and Tajikistan in an effort to increase solidarity among the three nations.

 TEHRAN (FNA)- The head of Russian Railways (RZD) will meet with officials in Tehran on Saturday to discuss plans for the electrification of parts of Iran’s rail system, the company announced.

 TEHRAN (FNA)- The European Parliament President, Hans-Gert Pottering, praised Iran’s crucial and undeniable position in the region and the world.

GAZA (Reuters) – Hamas wants this weekend’s Arab summit to back a Yemen-sponsored reconciliation agreement between the group and its Palestinian rival Fatah, a pro-Hamas Web site quoted the group’s leader as saying on Friday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi oil exports returned to normal in Basra on Friday after a bomb attack a day earlier, but heavy fighting throughout the region has sparked unease about the security of the southern oilfields and pipelines.

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil eased to near $107 a barrel on Friday as crude flows though Iraq’s pipeline system were restored after disruption by a bomb attack a day earlier.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – At least 120 “enemy” fighters have been killed in a four-day-old Iraqi military operation against Shi’ite militias in the southern oil hub of Basra, a senior Iraqi commander said on Friday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi security forces found 37 badly decomposed bodies in a mass grave north of Baghdad and some showed signs of torture, the U.S. military said on Friday.