Middle Orient

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. Bush’s top diplomat tried to assure Palestinians on Sunday she has heard their demands for a stronger US hand to guide peace efforts with Israel. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, however, offered no new plans and gave few clues to how she views recent initiatives proposed by …

DAMASCUS (AP) — Syria’s president promised to do what he can to ease tensions in neighbouring Iraq on Sunday during a landmark visit here by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, just days after the US president accused Syria of backing Iraq’s insurgency.

CAIRO — Moderate Arab governments planned to tell visiting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that they will help Washington stabilise Iraq if the US in turn takes more active steps to revive a broad peace initiative between Israel and its Arab neighbours, Arab officials and media said Sunday.

CAIRO (AP) — Reconciliation and national unity in Iraq are necessary for the success of US President George W. Bush’s new strategy for the war-torn country, Egypt and Saudi Arabia warned.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Washington would hold Iraq’s Prime Minister Nouri Maliki to his promises to reduce sectarian violence and that it was now time to see results.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President George W. Bush on Saturday challenged lawmakers sceptical of his new Iraq plan to propose their own strategy for stopping the violence in Baghdad.

RAMALLAH (AP) — Significant progress has been made in secret coalition talks between the supreme Hamas leader and envoys of moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, officials from both sides said Saturday, signalling a sudden shift in atmosphere after several weeks of deadly internal fighting.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — Iraqi Vice President Tariq Hashemi said his fellow Sunni Arabs account for the majority of the thousands of Iraqis killed last year and are the victims of ethnic “cleansing” by gunmen driving them from Baghdad.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Democrats and some moderate Republicans on Thursday hammered President George W. Bush’s plan to send more US troops to Iraq, leaving the White House increasingly isolated in its decision to deepen American involvement in the unpopular war.

CAIRO (Reuters) — US President George W. Bush’s plan to send 21,500 more troops will fail to bring peace to Iraq and could aggravate a conflict in which tens of thousands of people have already died, Arab analysts said on Thursday.