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Syria Welcomes Turkey Vow Not to Allow Attacks

Syria's government on Wednesday welcomed a pledge by Turkey not to let its territory be used as a springboard for any attacks against its neighbors.

"We welcome any Turkish statement aiming to preserve good neighborly relations with Syria," foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Maqdisi told a news conference broadcast live on state television.

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Arab League Chief due in Baghdad for Syria Talks

Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi is due in Baghdad on Thursday to discuss the regional bloc's sanctions against Syria, which Iraq refuses to enforce, a foreign ministry official told Agence France Presse.

"He will hold talks with (foreign minister) Hoshyar Zebari, particularly on Syria," the official said.

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Former Israeli President Katsav Enters Prison for Rape

Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav entered a minimum security prison on Wednesday to start serving a seven-year sentence for rape, but not before defiantly accusing the state of Israel of "executing" an innocent man.

The day was a bittersweet one in Israeli history, at once shameful because the holder of such a lofty office was going behind bars for such a heinous crime, but at the same time a moment of honor because it proved that in Israel, even a president is equal before the law.

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Clinton Says Post-Assad Syria Must Protect Minorities, Women

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stressed the need for a post-Assad Syria to protect the rights of minorities, ethnic groups and women as she met in Switzerland on Tuesday with Syrian opposition leaders.

Clinton made the points as she met for the first time with members of the Syrian National Council (SNC), which formed in October amid efforts to oust President Bashar al-Assad who is leading a deadly crackdown on protests.

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U.S., France Return Ambassadors to Damascus

The United States and France said Tuesday that they were sending their ambassadors back to Syria to champion protesters facing a deadly crackdown, after pulling the envoys out due to security fears.

The two countries said U.S. Ambassador Robert Ford and French Ambassador Eric Chevallier would aim to support the people of Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad's nine-month crackdown is said to have killed more than 4,000 people.

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Algeria Parliament Keeps Ban on Islamic Salvation Front

Algeria's national assembly on Tuesday voted to maintain a two-decade ban on the country's main religious party as lawmakers debated proposals for a new electoral law.

A month after Islamists swept to victory in neighboring Tunisia, the vote will ensure that the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) party, which came out on top Algeria's 1991 elections, will continue to be locked out of power.

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Syria Says 'Terrorist Infiltration' from Turkey Foiled

Syria foiled an operation by "terrorists" to infiltrate the country from neighboring Turkey, the official news agency SANA reported on Tuesday.

"Border guards last (Monday) night thwarted an attempted infiltration by armed terrorist groups from Turkey" in the Ain Bayda sector of Idlib province of northwest Syria, it said.

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Emir of Kuwait Dissolves National Assembly

Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah on Tuesday issued a decree dissolving the Gulf state parliament, state television reported, citing a "threat to supreme national interests."

"An emiri decree has been issued to dissolve the national assembly," the television said.

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Millions Flood Iraq Shrine City for Ashura Rituals

Millions flooded Iraq's shrine city Karbala on Tuesday for Ashura rituals on Shiite Islam's most important day, amid tight security after bomb attacks targeting pilgrims killed 28 people.

Throngs of pilgrims walked the streets beating their chests or flaying their backs with chains, ritually mourning the death of Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, who was killed by armies of the caliph Yazid near Karbala in 680 AD.

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ElBaradei Takes on Egypt's Islamists

Egyptian presidential candidate Mohamed elBaradei has accused Islamist parties which won a majority in elections last week of relying on slogans which he said would be laid bare if they gained power.

The Islamists picked up two-thirds of votes cast for parties in the election last Monday and Tuesday in a third of Egypt's districts, with a new hardline Salafi party winning almost a quarter.

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