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Small Turnout, Brief Clashes in Egypt Anti-Morsi Demos

Several hundred protesters rallied on Friday in Cairo against President Mohammed Morsi, a much smaller turn out than hoped for by activists bent on challenging the country's first Islamist president.

In Cairo's Tahrir Square, where hundreds of thousands rallied to overthrow president Hosni Mubarak early last year, several dozen of Morsi's opponents briefly clashed with his supporters before withdrawing, witnesses said.

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2 Dead, 9 Hurt in Shooting near NY's Empire State Building

A recently laid-off store worker shot a former colleague to death Friday morning outside New York's iconic Empire State Building before being killed by police, police said. Nine others were hit by gunfire in the confrontation, but police said all were expected to survive.

The shooting set off chaos in the heart of Manhattan at the height of the summer travel season and just after the morning rush hour. Police on their regular anti-terrorism duties in the highly touristed area rushed to the scene.

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Algeria Arrests Two for Desecration of Christian Graves

Two young men have been arrested after seven graves were desecrated in a Christian cemetery of Rouiba, eastern Algeria, the country's media reported on Thursday.

The two youths, aged 19 and 26, appeared in court "for desecration of graves and put in custody," a police source was quoted as saying in the media. No other details were provided.

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U.N.: S. Sudan Troops Kill, Rape, Torture Civilians

South Sudanese soldiers have killed, raped and tortured civilians in the troubled eastern state of Jonglei, threatening to derail already fragile peace efforts there, the United Nations warned Friday.

"The majority of the victims are women, and in some cases children," the U.N. peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said in a statement, calling for "immediate action to safeguard recent gains in the peace process".

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Observatory: August Already Bloodiest Month in Syria Revolt

August is already the deadliest single month of the Syria conflict with over 4,000 people killed, a watchdog said Friday, amid increasing macabre reports of dozens of bodies found bound and shot in the head.

At least 3,000 civilians and rebels have been killed in just over three weeks, in addition to 918 soldiers and 38 deserters, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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Gaza Prime Minister Plans Cabinet Reshuffle

The Gaza Strip's Hamas government said on Friday that prime minister Ismail Haniya was planning cabinet reshuffle which he would ask parliament to endorse.

"The prime minister has ended consultation on a reshuffle, which is expected to be presented soon to the legislative council for a vote of confidence," Haniya's office said in a statement.

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Four Dead in Iraq Attacks on Shiites

Attacks on Shiites in Baghdad and north of the capital killed four people on Friday, after the conclusion of the Eid festival and as al-Qaida claimed a series of attacks earlier in the summer.

In the deadliest attack, two explosions struck the predominantly Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City in north Baghdad at around 12:30 pm (0930 GMT) as worshippers were gathering for prayers on the Muslim day of rest.

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Norway Hails Breivik Jail Verdict

Relieved survivors of Anders Behring Breivik's massacres took to Twitter Friday to express their delight moments after he was sentenced to 21 years in prison for killing 77 people last year.

"YEEEEEEESSSSSSSS!!!", said Emma Martinovic, while Viljar Hansse, who took one of Breivik's bullets to the head on Utoeya Island, tweeted: "Finished. Period."

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China Returns Refugees to Myanmar War Zone

China has pushed thousands of refugees from Myanmar's Kachin minority back across the border into a province wracked by fighting between government troops and ethnic guerillas, the rebels said Friday.

Around 2,000 Kachin refugees have returned from China's Yunnan province this week and languish in camps near the border between the two nations, La Nan of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) told Agence France Presse, adding more were expected to cross.

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German Model Claims Pregnant By Berlusconi

A German starlet known as "Queen Bee" for her organizing role at Silvio Berlusconi's raunchy parties said in an interview on Friday that she is pregnant by the former Italian prime minister.

Asked by investigative daily Il Fatto Quotidiano about the rumor that Berlusconi could be the father of her baby, 38-year-old television actress Sabina Began answered: "It's simple, I only went to bed with him."

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