DUBAI (Reuters) – A top Hamas official said on Tuesday his group was ready to accept a Yemeni initiative for reconciliation with the rival Fatah, but did not say if that means it accepts to relinquish its grip over the Gaza strip.

GAZA (Reuters) – Israeli forces fired a missile at a group of Islamic Jihad militants in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, wounding four, the Palestinian militant faction said.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – President-elect Dmitry Medvedev urged experts outside the Kremlin to stimulate public debate about Russia’s economic and social challenges.