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Peres ousted as Israeli Labour Party chief

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (Reuters) — Shimon Peres was ousted as Israel’s Labour Party leader on Thursday by a trade union chief who vowed to quit Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s ruling coalition and usher in early elections. After a leadership contest that shook up Israel’s political landscape, Amir Peretz, 53, said he …

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Suicide bombers kill 37 in Iraq

BAGHDAD (AFP) — Suicide bombers struck a restaurant and an army recruiting station in Iraq on Thursday, killing 37 people, with the bloodiest attack claimed by the Al Qaeda group led by militant Abu Mussab Zarqawi. The Internet claim came shortly after the group said it was behind the triple …

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‘Almost impossible to prevent’

PARIS — Despite Jordan’s experience in foiling sophisticated terror plots, experts said on Thursday that no amount of preparation could have prevented the kind of suicide attacks that have struck the country. The country’s secret services have broken up a string of Al Qaeda-linked plots in the past, including one …

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Ahmadinejad braces for clash over oil minister

TEHRAN (AFP) — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will bid Wednesday to push his nomination for oil minister through parliament, hoping the chamber will back away from vetoing his candidate for a second time. Lawmakers speculated on Tuesday that Ahmadinejad could even withdraw the nomination of controversial unknown Seyed Sadegh Mahsooli …

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Iran rebuffs EU call to freeze nuclear activities

TEHRAN (Reuters) — Iran rebuked the European Union on Tuesday for calling on it to freeze nuclear fuel activities, insisting it had a clear right to develop a full civilian nuclear energy programme. “The EU’s statement was surprising. We suggest the Europeans change their behaviour toward Iran,” Foreign Ministry spokesman …

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Arab reformists trapped between regimes, US

MANAMA — Arab activists meeting in Bahrain on Tuesday to press for democratic change find themselves caught between battling “dictator” regimes and US-led initiatives for reform, which are suspected of serving US interests. While some activists at a Manama conference insisted that Arab democratic movements are too weak to implement …

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