NAHR BARED (AFP) — Lebanon laid terror charges against Al Qaeda inspired gunmen Wednesday as sporadic gunbattles flared between the Islamists and the army on the 18th day of a deadly standoff.

TEHRAN (AFP) — Cyclone Gonu, the worst tropical storm to hit the Gulf in decades, made landfall in Iran on Wednesday afternoon, packing winds of 200 kilometres an hour and   forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of people, officials said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States and Israel said after high-level talks here Wednesday that the time might not be ripe for the Jewish state to resume peace talks with arch-rival Syria.