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Morsi-Appointed Chief Prosecutor Retracts Resignation

Egypt's chief public prosecutor on Thursday retracted his resignation, days after offering to step down following protests by prosecutors and judges against his appointment by President Mohammed Morsi.

Talaat Ibrahim Abdallah, who offered his resignation earlier this week, asked to be allowed to remain on in his position, the official MENA news agency reported.

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Head of Iraq's Largest Christian Group Resigns

Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, the head of Iraq's largest Christian group, resigned on Wednesday, the Vatican said, announcing that a synod has been convoked for January to elect a successor for a community faced with religious persecution.

Delly, a simple man of faith who campaigned for peace between Muslims and the country's Christian minorities, had been Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church since 2003 and resigned because he had reached the compulsory retirement age of 85.

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Retrial for Cops Jailed in Death Linked to Egypt Uprising

A court in Egypt on Thursday ordered a retrial of two policemen jailed for beating a young man to death in a shocking case that helped spark the country's revolution in early 2011.

The Court of Cassation overturned seven-year prison sentences handed to officers Mahmoud Salah Mahmoud and Awad Esmail Suleiman in October 2011 for the beating death of 28-year-old Khaled Saeed in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria in June the previous year.

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Palestinians Say Israel 'to be Accountable' for Settlements

Israel will be "held accountable" for its settlement building, a senior Palestinian official said Thursday after Israel pushed forward plans for more than 5,000 new settler homes.

"The settlers and the government of Israel should know they will be held accountable," Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesman for president Mahmoud Abbas, told Agence France Presse shortly after Israel reportedly okayed initial plans for a new settlement city in the southern West Bank.

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HRW Says Israeli Attacks on Media 'Violated Laws of War'

Israeli attacks on journalists and media facilities in the Gaza Strip during an eight-day flare up last month "violated the laws of war," Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

But Israel rejected the findings, saying the military had adhered to international law during the conflict.

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NGO: Nephews of Syria Vice President Arrested

Two nephews of Syrian Vice President Faruq al-Sharaa have been arrested along with five of their friends over their support for democratic change, a monitoring group said on Thursday.

"University professor Zaydun Zohbi, 38, and his brother Suhaib, who are nephews of Faruq al-Sharaa, and five of their friends, activists in favor of peaceful change in Syria, were arrested at a cafe on December 15 by members of the military intelligence," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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Thousands of Palestinians Return to Damascus Refugee Camp

Thousands of Palestinians returned on Thursday to a refugee camp in Damascus that has become a battle ground, as U.N. investigators warned of an openly sectarian conflict that threatens whole communities.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin denied propping up President Bashar Assad and stressed that Moscow was only seeking to avert a perpetual civil war in its long-time ally.

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French President Recognizes 'Brutal' Rule of Algeria

French President Francois Hollande on Thursday acknowledged France's "brutal" colonial rule over the Algerian people, without having to apologize, as he sought to launch a new era in ties on a two-day visit.

"Over 132 years, Algeria was subjected to a profoundly unjust and brutal system," Hollande told the Algerian parliament on the final day of a landmark visit to the North African country, to applause from MPs.

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U.N. Inquiry: Syrian Conflict Has Become 'Overtly Sectarian'

Violence in the Syria conflict has become openly sectarian and threatens whole communities, U.N. investigators reported Thursday following a visit to the region.

"As battles between government forces and anti-government armed groups approach the end of their second year, the conflict has become overtly sectarian in nature," the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on Syria said in a report.

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Ailing Iraq President in Germany for Treatment

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a key figure who has long sought to bridge political and sectarian divides in his war-scarred country, arrived in Germany on Thursday for treatment after he suffered a stroke.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Talabani, 79, was in the country for medical care.

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