Middle Orient

Lebanon’s prime minister has issued a new warning to Islamist militants holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp, after a day of intense fighting with troops.

CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt has asked rival Palestinian factions for written proposals on how to stop internal fighting in the Gaza Strip, to be discussed in Cairo in July, a source close to Hamas said.

Cairo vehemently objects to stationing international forces along its border with the Gaza Strip, an idea recently floated in Jerusalem, the head of the Egyptian security team in the Gaza Strip said on Saturday.

At least 19 people have been killed, including three soldiers, after the fiercest fighting in two weeks at the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon. The Lebanese army advanced its troops on Friday and carried out intense shelling against Fatah al-Islam fighters within the camp.

On Friday, June 1, the first video of BBC reporter Alan Johnston was released, since he was kidnapped 80 days ago. Palestinian government and his family made pleas for his immediate release. “First of all, my captors have treated me very well,” said a pale Johnston, wearing a red sweatshirt …

Two Palestinian boys have been shot dead by Israeli troops in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources say.

TRIPOLI, Lebanon – Advancing under a blanket of artillery and tank fire, Lebanese troops overran positions held by al-Qaida-inspired militants at a Palestinian refugee camp on Friday, reportedly killing 18 people.

Syria says it will refuse to cooperate with a new U.N.-backed tribunal for suspects in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

AL-EIN AL-SOKHNA, Egypt, May 31 (CEIS): Chinese and Egyptian officials yesterday laid foundation stone for a joint project to manufacture oil drills, which is the first land oil rigs plant in the Middle East region.

 The warm smile, anecdotal stories and freshly-squeezed lemonade almost make me miss the fact that I have just been told I am more dangerous than Iran’s nuclear program.