Middle Orient

One month into the new academic year and education at the sprawling University of Baghdad is as near to normal as it has been for years – the grisly killings of two professors and two students aside.

An Iraqi taxi driver was shot dead by a private security guard hired to protect US convoys driving through Baghdad, Iraqi officials said Monday.

Turkish women protest on Monday against Israel in Istanbul as Israeli President Shimon Peres was in Ankara to address parliament today. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who arrived in Ankara on Monday, is also due to address the assembly.

Israeli President Shimon Peres pledged Monday that his country would work for a tangible result at an upcoming US-sponsored Middle East peace conference, saying that the Jewish state is ready to make peace with the Palestinians.

Gunfire killed at least seven people and wounded 80 on Monday at a Fateh memorial rally for Yasser Arafat attended by more than 200,000 supporters of the defeated faction in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Lebanon’s Western-backed ruling coalition on Monday accused the pro-Syrian opposition party Hizbollah of obstructing initiatives to resolve a crisis over the looming presidential election.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi here on Tuesday reiterated that his country would continue nuclear activities with full transparency.

Lebanon’s Hizbollah on Sunday called on incumbent President Emile Lahoud to take action if rival political leaders are unable to agree on a consensus president in next week’s election.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday it was likely that Syria would be invited to an upcoming Middle East peace conference in the United States.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday hailed a “historic opportunity” for peace as his people marked the third anniversary of the death of his iconic predecessor Yasser Arafat.