Lebanon linked a bomb attack that killed six UN peacekeepers in the south of the country to a deadly standoff between Al Qaeda-inspired gunmen and the army in the north where two more soldiers were shot dead on Monday.

A suicide bomber killed six Iraqi tribal leaders opposed to Al Qaeda when he blew himself up at a busy Baghdad hotel, in one of four attacks on Monday that killed 50 people in all, police said.

King Abdullah on Monday called for launching a “real” Mideast peace process and an end to Palestinian-Israeli violence, following Hamas’ takeover of the Gaza Strip.