Middle East Today: Killing Off an "Independent" Egyptian News Site

See also Syria Today: The Debate Over Chemical Weapons
Saturday's Syria Today: A Chemical Weapons "Game-Changer"?

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Egypt: Mubarak Appeal for Release Rejected

The Criminal court has rejected former President Hosni Mubarak's second appeal for his release from prison, during the investigation of charges of illicit gain from his position.

The court ordered Mubarak to remain in detention for 15 days while the charges are investigated.

Libya: Gunmen Surround Foreign Ministry

A military official says about 200 armed men are surounding the Foreign Ministry building in Tripoli, demanding the ministry reform and hire former fighters who helped overthrow the Qaddafi regime.

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Egypt (and Beyond) Live: Mubarak Retrial Opens

See also Syria Live: "We Are Stronger Than Those Who Would Divide Us"
Friday's Israel (and Beyond) Live: A Quiet "Freeze" on Settlement Expansion?

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1925 GMT: Palestine. West Bank Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has submitted his resignation to President Mahmud Abba, despite US efforts for him to stay on.

"Fayyad met Abbas for half an hour in the president's headquarters in Ramallah in the West Bank and officially handed him his written resignation," a Palestinian official said.

Abbas tasked Fayyad with the role of caretaker for the current government until a new Prime Minister is appointed, another official said.

Late Friday, US Secretary of State John Kerry telephoned Abbas to press him to find common ground with his prime minister over economic policies, Palestinian officials said.

A senior Palestinian official said Fayyad had had his letter of resignation prepared since 23 March but put off submitting it because of a visit to Israel and Palestine by US President Barack Obama and Abbas's overseas trips.

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Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live: Israeli Jets Strike Gaza for 1st Time Since November

See also Egypt Video Discussion: The Political and Economic Struggles
Syria Live Coverage: A Snapshot of the Cost of War in Aleppo
Tuesday's Bahrain (and Beyond) Live: An Agenda for a National Dialogue?

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1705 GMT: Egypt. Defying the judiciary, President Morsi has said Public Prosecutor Talaat Abdallah will remain in his position.

A Presidential spokesperson said a challenge to the court ruling ordering Abdallah's dismissal and the return of former Public Prosecutor Abdel Maguid Mahmoud is still being considered.

Last week, the Cairo Court of Appeals reinstated Mahmoud to his post, annulling a decree by Morsi replacing him with Talaat Abdallah.

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Lebanon (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Prime Minister Resigns --- What Next?

See also Syria Live Coverage: Fighting in Aleppo and near Damascus
Friday's Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Obama Concludes Trip with Netanyahu Meeting

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Najib Mikati1825 GMT: Turkey and Palestine. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has announced that he may travel to Gaza and the West Bank in April.

The statement follows Friday's reconciliation between Ankara and West Jerusalem, with Israel’s apology for the killing of nine Turkish citizens on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla in May 2010.

“I may eventually visit Gaza and the West Bank in April. This visit would take place in the context of a general effort to contribute to the resolution process [of the Palestinian issue],” Erdoğan told reporters.

1755 GMT: Bahrain. Security forces have fired tear gas to prevent protesters from reaching the house of Nabeel Rajab, the imprisoned head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights.

Riot police clashed with hundreds of people marching for Rajab, sentenced to two years in prison on charges of backing “illegal” protests.

Authorities also set up roadblocks to keep cars from reaching the house.

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Syria 1st-Hand: The Gazans Who Fight with the Insurgency (al-Ghoul)

Rally in northern Gaza for the Syrian opposition, January 2013

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On leaving the house of the Salafist leader, who insisted on remaining anonymous, I was able to get an interview with the families of two Salafists who had participated in the battle in Syria, and who were declared dead by al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra on the Internet.

When I reached the house of the deceased Muhammad Qunayta, his brother refused to talk to me, despite having earlier confirmed the meeting.

However, the women poured their hearts out to me, expressing their sorrow for the sudden and tragic death of their son.

The sister of the deceased said, “Before he traveled, he was watching several videos from Syria and bitterly crying for the souls of children, women and wounded people. Then, he told us he was going to Turkey for trade purposes. We found out later that he went to Syria to carry out a martyrdom there.” She added that her brother’s conscience pushed him to fight in Syria. In his last days, he used to repeat, “My conscience cannot rest with all this injustice in Syria.”

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Bahrain (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Authorities Release Body of Man Killed by Police...After 12 Days

The moment that Bahraini police hit Mahmood AlJazeeri in the head with a tear gas canister --- he later died from the injury

See also Kuwait Feature: Youth Take Up Battle Against Bureaucracy
Syria Live Coverage: Insurgents Capture City of al-Raqqa
Monday's UAE (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 94 Activists Go on Trial

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2105 GMT: Egypt. Clashes broke out in Cairo today during a funeral march for activist Mohamed El-Shifae, with police firing tear gas.

El-Shifae was killed on 29 January after participating in protests. His family spent a month searching for him before they found his body in a morgue; officials had previously denied that the activist was there.

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Israel (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 1st Rocket Fired from Gaza Since November's War

Syria Live Coverage: Insurgent Attacks in Damascus
Monday's Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Israel Looks for Calm after Death of Palestinian Detainee

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2111 GMT: Saudi Arabia. Claimed footage from a sit-in protest by women and children of political detainees, burning the picture of the Minister of Interior:

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Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The 2nd Anniversary of Mubarak's Fall

11 February 2011: The crowd in Cairo's Tahrir Square reacts to news of Hosni Mubarak's resignation

See also Syria Live Coverage: Fighting Escalates Near Damascus
Sunday's Tunisia (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Prime Minister Threatens Resignation if New Cabinet Not Accepted

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2030 GMT: Egypt. Clashes continue at the Presidential Palace --- Sherine Tadros of Al Jazeera English tweets:

Police firing tear gas at protesters #presidentialPalace #Egypt twitter.com/SherineT/statu…

— Sherine Tadros (@SherineT) February 11, 2013

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Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Head of Military "Conflict Could Lead to Collapse of State"

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1605 GMT: Palestine. Voters will be registered in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip from next month, paving the way for elections aimed at reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah.

Hamas had barred the Palestinian Central Election Commission from Gaza, accusing the body of bias in favor of the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority which rules the West Bank.

Following Egyptian-brokered talks, the two factions agreed to registration as the first step towards national Parliamentary and Presidential polls leading to a unity government.

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Palestine Feature: Getting Rich From Gaza's Tunnels (Shaban)

Although it is illegal, tunnel trade has helped to ease the effects of the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip by providing hundreds of basic goods, such as infant formula, school supplies, and construction materials. However, it has also produced negative effects and behaviors, which will take Palestinian society many years and tremendous efforts to address.

One direct result of tunnel trade is the formation of a new class of wealthy individuals who were able to accumulate massive fortunes in a short period of time. Numerous reports have claimed more than 1,000 new millionaires. The emergence of this class has caused fundamental changes in the forms of economic activity in the Gaza Strip, and changed the system of values ​​that govern society.

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