SAMARRA — The heavy wooden doors of the Golden Mosque open on to an ethereal hall clad in thousands of intricately arranged blue and silver tiles decorated with flowing Arabic script.

SOUTHERN SHUNEH (AP) — The bloodshed in Gaza threatens to keep badly needed economic aid from the Palestinians who already suffer from rising unemployment and a lack of basic services, a UN official aiding Palestinians warned Saturday.

SOUTHERN SHUNEH (AP) — Iran plans to lecture the United States during an upcoming meeting in Baghdad on what it said were mistakes that Washington made in its war on Iraq, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Saturday.

BASRA (Reuters) — Britain’s Tony Blair, on his last visit to Iraq as prime minister, said on Saturday he had no regrets about his part in the US-led invasion that removed Saddam Hussein.

GAZA CITY (AFP) — Rival Palestinian factions clinched a new ceasefire deal on Saturday to end a week of violence that has left more than 50 dead as Israel continued to pound targets across Gaza, killing one Palestinian.

DEAD SEA — King Abdullah on Saturday opened the Lower Middle-Income Countries Summit (G-11), calling for a partnership with the   G-8 most industrialised nations and assistance to reduce the debt of developing states.

The US House of Representatives has adopted a measure aimed at weaving closer US and zionist regime’s defenses against ballistic missiles of the type that could be fired by Iran. The measure, part of a 4 billion defense spending bill passed on Thursday, would redirect 5m in defense department funds …

Ali Bekhan: What is the condition of Muslims in Assam? Can you tell us the crimes of  terrorists groups (ULFA and terrorist groups of BJP, VHP, RSS, AGP, AJYCP ) on Assamese Muslims?  

A bomb exploded during Friday prayers today, at the historic mosque of Makkah Masjid in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad, killing at least five people and injuring 35 others in the third major bombing of a Muslim place of worship in India over the past 12 months.

European Union leaders have met the Russian president with Poland describing relations between the sides as in “crisis”. Vladimir Putin held talks with Jose Manuel Barroso, European Commission president, and Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany which holds the rotating EU presidency, near Samara in southern Russia but little was …