AMARA, Iraq (Reuters) – Supporters of anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr accused Iraqi security forces on Friday of heavy-handed action in a crackdown in the southern city of Amara, calling it a “clear provocation”.

BERLIN (Reuters) – A German court on Thursday sentenced an Iraqi man to three years in jail for distributing messages by al Qaeda leaders on the Internet.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Hamas has won a measure of the international recognition it sought by indirectly negotiating a truce with Israel but faces a challenge keeping other Palestinian militant factions in line in the Gaza Strip.