Middle Orient

ERBIL — A Christian shopkeeper who walks with a limp, Adison Brikha fled Baghdad after he was beaten in his shop. He made it to Erbil, in relatively peaceful Iraqi Kurdistan — but now he’s begging for work.

DAMASCUS (Agencies) — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday his negotiations with Hamas leader Khaled Mishaal had been “fruitful” and that talks to form a unity government would continue.

BAGHDAD (AFP) — At least 25 US troops were killed across Iraq in one of the deadliest days for the American forces since the invasion began, as the military said Sunday 3,200 new troops had arrived to quell Baghdad violence.

WASHINGTON (AFP) —  US Democrats forged ahead Sunday with plans to introduce a resolution in Congress condemning President George W. Bush’s decision to send more troops to Iraq, where the US toll rose sharply.

SUSIYA — The turnout is good. Four coach loads of people have come from all over Israel. There are two from Jerusalem, one from Tel Aviv and one from Herzliya. On a sunny January mid-morning, the maybe 200 people walking across the arid hills in the southern West Bank, with …

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — A US military helicopter crashed northeast of Baghdad on Saturday, killing all 13 military personnel on board, but US officials gave no immediate details on the cause.

RAMALLAH — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was due to meet exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mishaal in Damascus last night amid hopes that the months-long negotiations over a unity government might finally be nearing resolution.

CAIRO — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a deal with Arab leaders this week: Washington will show an interest in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Arabs will say they support the new US strategy for Iraq.

BEIRUT (AFP) — The Lebanese opposition called Saturday for a one-day general strike, stepping up a protest campaign to bring down the Western-backed government that has paralysed the nation’s leadership for weeks.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — US contingency planning for military action against Iran’s nuclear programme goes beyond limited strikes and would effectively unleash a war against the country, a former US intelligence analyst said on Friday.