POLITICS: A Bridge Over Troubled Waters

Key political figures from the West and the Muslim world, as well as the outgoing U.N. chief Kofi Annan, urged the international community Monday to seriously examine ways to promote greater dialogue among civilisations and cultures.

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: A People Under Siege

Five years after the terrorist attacks of Sep. 11, 2001, "Islamophobia" - intensified by the war in Iraq and government actions - has left millions of Muslims here and in other Western countries fearful of harassment, discrimination and questionable prosecutions, and confused about their place in society.

IRAQ: It’s Either Occupation or Education

Two in three children in Iraq have simply stopped going to school, according to a government report.

POLITICS-US: Reporter Summoned to Testify Against War Resister

The U.S. military subpoenaed an independent journalist Thursday, demanding she testify as a witness for the prosecution of First Lt. Ehren Watada, the first commissioned officer to be court-marshaled for refusing to serve in Iraq.

POLITICS-US: Losing Arab Allies’ Hearts and Minds

Attitudes towards the United States reached new lows through most of the Arab world over the past year, according to the findings of a major new survey of five Arab countries released here Thursday by Zogby International and the Arab American Institute (AAI).

IRAQ: U.S. Troops Raid Hospital Again

Iraqi doctors and medical staff are outraged over yet another U.S. military raid at Fallujah General Hospital.

POLITICS-US: Public Ever More Pessimistic on Iraq War

The findings of a spate of polls taken since last week's release of the Iraq Study Group's (ISG) recommendations for U.S. policy show a sharp drop in public confidence both in President George W. Bush's handling of the war and in the chances that the U.S. will prevail there.

POLITICS: U.S. Weighed Sunni Offer to “Clean Up” Militias

U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad negotiated with Sunni armed groups for several weeks earlier this year on an agreement that would have supported Sunni forces in attacking pro-Iranian Shiite militias, according to accounts given by commanders of armed Sunni resistance organisations.

IRAQ: Abduction of Women on the Rise

Women face increased risk of abduction by militias and criminal gangs as lawlessness takes over the country.

IRAQ: Cornered Military Takes to Desperate Tactics

People living in areas where resistance to U.S.-led occupation is mounting are facing increased levels of collective punishment from the occupation forces, residents say.

POLITICS-US: Public Found Likely to Support Baker Report

With the administration of President George W. Bush under mounting pressure to alter U.S. strategy in Iraq and the Middle East, a new public opinion survey quietly released this week found strong popular support for pursuing new diplomatic avenues as proposed by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group (ISG).

IRAQ: Kurds Reject U.S. Study Group’s Report

In a strongly worded statement, the president of Iraq's northern Kurdistan region rejected in its entirety the report by the Iraq Study Group, and threatened that Kurds would opt for secession from Iraq should Washington try to implement some of the key recommendations of the report regarding Kirkuk, federalism and the constitution.

POLITICS-US: ISG Report Faces Uncertain Future

One day after its official release, the package of 79 recommendations on U.S. Iraq and Middle East policy released Wednesday by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group (ISG) faced a very uncertain future.

IRAQ: Widows Become the Silent Tragedy

Hundreds of thousands of widows are becoming the silent tragedy of a country sliding deeper into chaos by the day.

POLITICS-US: Baker Group Urges Major Policy Overhaul

Calling the situation in Iraq "grave and deteriorating," the bipartisan Iraq Study Group (ISG) Wednesday urged a major overhaul of U.S. policies both in Iraq and the larger Middle East.

IRAQ: Professionals Made a Particular Target

The call from his mother changed Dr. Harb Zakko's life. "Someone has been calling me to open the door, saying he has something for you," his mother said.

POLITICS-US: Neo-Cons Move to Preempt Baker Report

To have read the neo-conservative press here over the past month, one would think that former Secretary of State James Baker poses the biggest threat to the United States and Israel since Saddam Hussein.

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: U.S. Unlikely to Sentence Soldiers to Death in Wartime

The final month of 2006 will be one to remember because of the first two - of perhaps many - U.S. army servicemen will face charges that can carry the death penalty for crimes committed in Iraq.

IRAQ: It’s Hard Being a Woman

Once one of the best countries for women's rights in the Middle East, Iraq has now become a place where women fear for their lives in an increasingly fundamentalist environment.

IRAQ: Shias Too Lose Faith in Iraqi Govt

The noisy demonstration that greeted Iraqi Prime Minister Noori al-Maliki on his visit to Sadr City last week was more than just a protest. It meant that the leader of a Shia-dominated government was being rejected by an angry and influential group of Shias.

POLITICS-US: Bush Seems Determined to Stay the Course

Despite a growing and virtually universal consensus both here and abroad that the United States must engage Syria and Iran if it hopes to stabilise Iraq, U.S. President George W. Bush appears determined to ignore Baghdad's two key neighbours as long as possible.