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Man Killed Planting Bomb in Yemen Polling Booth

A man was killed Tuesday when a bomb exploded as he was planting it in a polling booth in Yemen's southern city of Aden, a security official said, a week ahead of referendum-like presidential elections.

"An unknown man trying to plant an explosive device in a polling booth in the neighborhood of Crater... was killed when it exploded," the official said, requesting anonymity.

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India Vows to Find Person behind Israel Attack as Diplomat has Surgery

Indian investigators were searching Tuesday for the motorcycle assailant who attached a bomb to an Israeli diplomatic car in the heart of New Delhi, an attack the Jewish state blamed on Iran or its proxies, including Hizbullah.

Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters investigators were working on the assumption it was a terror attack carried out by a "very well-trained person."

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Gunmen 'Storm' Home of Bahrain Envoy in Syria

Gunmen "stormed" the home of Bahrain's charge d'affaires in Damascus and stole property, prompting the kingdom to urge Syria to protect its envoys, Bahrain state news agency BNA reported Tuesday.

The unknown gunmen entered the residence of Salah Abdulrahman al-Ahmad at dawn on Monday "and stole some of his personal possessions," BNA quoted the Gulf kingdom's foreign ministry as saying in a statement.

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France Warns against Outside Military Action in Syria

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe warned Monday that any foreign military action in Syria would only aggravate the situation after the Arab League proposed sending in U.N.-Arab peacekeepers.

"We think that today any external intervention of a military nature would only worsen the situation, all the more given that there will not be a decision by the Security Council, which is the only body able to authorize military intervention," Juppe said in the southwestern city of Bordeaux.

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Israeli Court Rejects Palestinian Hunger Striker's Appeal

An Israeli military court on Monday rejected an appeal by a Palestinian prisoner who has been on hunger strike for more than eight weeks over his detention without charge, his lawyer Jawad Bulus said.

"The judge at the military appeals court rejected the appeal and approved the administrative detention order," Bulus told Agence France Presse, saying that his client Khader Adnan was still refusing food after 58 days.

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Sources to Naharnet: Saudi Troops to Spearhead Proposed Syria Peacekeeping Force

Saudi Arabia will be the first country to contribute troops should a joint U.N.-Arab peacekeeping force proposed by the Arab League see light, journalistic sources in the kingdom said, following the sharp toned remarks voiced by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal during the League’s meeting on Sunday.

“The Royal Saudi Land Forces will be at the forefront of participants in the peacekeeping mission in Syria should the decision taken by the Arab foreign ministers during their meeting in Cairo yesterday be approved,” journalistic sources in Saudi Arabia told Naharnet.

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London Rules Out Western Troops for Syria, Berlin Hails Arab League Role

Britain on Monday said Western nations were unlikely to join a U.N.-Arab peacekeeping force proposed by the Arab League to end the violence in Syria, as Germany welcomed the Arab League's "important" role and Italy backed the Arab suggestion.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague called for urgent talks on the League’s, but said Western nations were unlikely to join the force.

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Syrian Opposition Group Rejects Qaida Interference

A Syrian opposition group on Monday rejected any interference by al-Qaida in the unrest-hit country after the extremist network's leader voiced support for their uprising in an Internet video.

In a video titled "Onwards, Lions of Syria", al-Qaida's Ayman al-Zawahiri criticized the Syrian regime for crimes against its citizens, and praised those rising up against the government, according to SITE Intelligence Group.

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Attacks Target Israeli Diplomats in India, Georgia, Netanyahu Blames Iran

Israeli diplomats were targeted by bomb attacks in Delhi and Tbilisi on Monday, officials said, with two people injured in the Indian capital when an embassy car exploded in a ball of fire.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pointed the finger at Israel's regional arch-foe Iran.

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Syria Rejects Interference in its Affairs, Says Determined to 'Restore Security'

Syria is determined to "restore security" regardless of the latest Arab League initiatives to end bloodshed, a government official said, in a report Monday by SANA state news agency.

"This decision will not prevent the Syrian government from fulfilling its responsibilities in protecting its citizens and restoring security and stability," the unnamed official was quoted as saying.

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