TEHRAN (FNA) The results of the visit to the region by US President George Bush manifested themselves in no time, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said during a phone conversation with a Hamas official in the wake of a massacre of Palestinians by the Israeli regime in Gaza.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Afghan government has banned “The Kite Runner” film from theaters and DVD shops, an official said Wednesday, though Afghan shop owners with stalls at U.S. military bases are still selling the movie there.

WASHINGTON — In an unusual public criticism, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said he believes NATO forces currently deployed in southern Afghanistan do not know how to combat a guerrilla insurgency, a deficiency that could be contributing to the rising violence in the fight against the Taliban.