RAMALLAH (AP) — Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas wants to postpone parliamentary elections until November, hoping to recapture some of the popular support his ruling Fateh movement has lost, a spokesman for the Hamas group said Wednesday. Two Palestinian officials close to Abbas, who is in the US for talks with …

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — Around 1,000 US and Iraqi troops swept through the western town of Haditha on Wednesday, searching homes and seizing suspects in an anti-insurgent raid that follows a surge in militant attacks. The US military said Marines, sailors and Iraqi soldiers were all involved in the operation, dubbed …

CAIRO (AP) — Plainclothes government agents beat protesters Wednesday, then watched as supporters of President Hosni Mubarak punched other demonstrators, in scattered violence that cast a pall over a referendum the 24-year ruler has called a crucial step towards democracy. Women protesters in particular seemed to be targeted for beatings …