Mideast Conflict

LONDON (AFP) - Prime Minister Gordon Brown and King Abdullah II of Jordan called on Israel Tuesday to halt settlement activity on Palestinian land, a spokesman said after talks in London. Full Story »

BRASILIA (AFP) - Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Tuesday hosted a visit by Israeli counterpart Shimon Peres, as preparations were also being made to receive Iran's leader in two weeks' time. Full Story »

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Voter registration for a Palestinian election failed to get under way as scheduled Tuesday, adding to signs that President Mahmoud Abbas might be bluffing about a make-or-break vote in January. Full Story »

BEIRUT (AFP) - Lebanon's new unity government held its first meeting on Tuesday at the presidential palace, making clear from the start that it would steer clear of the thorny issue of Hezbollah's weapons. Full Story »

PARIS - France's President Nicolas Sarkozy urged Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday to stay in power to keep hopes for Mideast peace alive. Full Story »

The Obama Administration's initial efforts to broker Israeli-Palestinian peace have hit a wall, highlighting tactical flaws Full Story »

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AFP) - Establishing the borders of a Palestinian state could resolve the dispute over settlements and allow peace talks to resume, senior Fatah official Mohammed Dahlan said on Tuesday. Full Story »

GAZA (Reuters) - The Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Gaza's Islamist Hamas rulers of detaining dozens of its members on Tuesday to stop them marking the 5th anniversary of the death of Yasser Arafat. Full Story »

GAZA CITY (AFP) - The Islamist Hamas movement ruling Gaza has banned all public commemoration of Yasser Arafat's death this year, officials with the rival secular Fatah group said on Tuesday. Full Story »

JERUSALEM - The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has significantly expanded its ability to strike deep into Israel with rockets that can now reach the Jewish state's largest cities, and now possesses tens of thousands of projectiles, Israel's army chief said Tuesday. Full Story »

PARIS (AFP) - President Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday urged Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas not to abandon peace efforts, as the French leader prepared for talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Full Story »

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Maryland (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded an unusually low-key U.S. visit on Tuesday voicing confidence that his White House talks had helped secure Israel and promote peace efforts. Full Story »

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AFP) - President Mahmud Abbas could quit, leading to a potential collapse of the Palestinian Authority, if US efforts to relaunch Middle East peace talks stay deadlocked, aides said on Tuesday. Full Story »

BEIRUT (AFP) - The Lebanese press on Tuesday welcomed Prime Minister Saad Hariri's new unity government but doubted he would be able to tackle the deep rifts between his camp and the rival Hezbollah-led opposition. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday called for an immediate resumption of peace talks with Palestinians and pledged more steps to improve economic conditions in Palestinian areas. Full Story »

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri formed a new unity government on Monday that includes two ministers from Syrian- and Iranian-backed Hezbollah. Full Story »

JERUSALEM - The chief Palestinian negotiator on Monday warned Israel that if it does not take peacemaking seriously, it will find itself dealing with the militant Hamas instead of moderates like him. Full Story »

BEIRUT - Lebanon's prime minister formed a Cabinet Monday that includes the militant group Hezbollah and its allies, ending a political deadlock that left the deeply divided nation without a government for months and threatened to ignite violence. Full Story »