BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s prime minister reached out to Sunni Arabs at a national reconciliation conference on Saturday, urging Saddam Hussein-era officers to join the new army and urging a review of the ban against members of the former dictator’s ruling party.

DUBAI (AP) — Hand-selected voters went to the polls on Saturday to pick members of an government advisory panel in this oil-rich Gulf country’s first-ever elections. About 60 per cent of the 1,677 citizens chosen to vote in the capital

TEHRAN (Reuters) — Iran said on Saturday turnout was high in elections for local councils and a powerful clerical body, with some initial reports suggesting allies of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad might not have won resounding backing.