BEIRUT (AP) — Supporters of slain former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri cheered and wept — and some even danced in the streets — late Wednesday to celebrate the UN Security Council approval of the international tribunal to prosecute suspects in his killing.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Hundreds of Iraqi and US troops cordoned off sections of Baghdad’s Sadr City slum Wednesday and conducted raids in an apparent effort to find five British citizens who Iraqi officials believed were abducted by the Shiite Mehdi Army.

GAZA CITY (AFP) — Two Hamas fighters were killed in an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday as the government vowed to keep up attacks on activists to try to stamp out persistent rocket fire.

Ansar Al-Sunnah Take Down More American Humvees; Attack Peshmerga Forces

Tension is rising on Turkey’s border with Iraq amid speculation Ankara may be about to launch an incursion to tackle Kurdish rebels.

Consolidation is the catchphrase in the Russian energy industry. The government is aggressively taking back centralized control over the entire sector, and has already completed the reintegration of one-time powerhouses such as Yukos and Sibneft into state structures. The pace of this centralization is about to quicken as power struggles …

Contrary to claims that the war is over, the reality suggests otherwise. Last night in their search for an invisible enemy the Russian occupation military once again shelled the Shalinsky district village of Serzhen-Yurt, PW reported.

KABUL, Afghanistan – Five Americans and two other soldiers died when a Chinook helicopter was apparently shot down Wednesday evening in Afghanistan‘s most volatile province, a U.S. military official said. The Taliban claimed responsibility.NATO‘s International Security Assistance Force said other troops rushing to the scene were ambushed and had to …

AFP – New attacks in Afghanistan left six policemen and guards dead Wednesday while the US-led coalition said soldiers had killed six Taliban, although a local insisted they were civilians.

AP – Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces clashed with Taliban militants Wednesday in eastern Afghanistan, leaving six suspected insurgents dead and one wounded, the coalition said.