The world decides to give Sudan more breathing space even as Khartoum cracks down on opposition forces, writes Gamal Nkrumah

Israel plans to ask Washington to accept a huge West Bank land grab in return for a Gaza withdrawal, reports Khalid Amayreh from the West Bank

Arab states are no longer fighting amongst themselves, they are just taking separate roads. Dina Ezzat reports on a week of high-level inter-Arab meetings

The Bush administration's bid to bring the Iraqi resistance to heel before the US presidential elections are destined to failure, writes Hassan Hamid from Baghdad

Abbas Kadhim argues that the Iraqi interim government has no tools to deal with either external or internal challenges

A yearlong clash between the ruling NDP and opposition parties over political reform may come to a head when both sides hold major meetings next week. Gamal Essam El-Din reports

A mosaic of political groups has launched an ambitious "popular campaign for change" ahead of the 2005 presidential elections. Is it realistic, wonders Amira Howeidy

A highly controversial fatwa calling for resistance attacks against all Americans in Iraq -- including civilians -- has sparked a heated debate among Islamic scholars and Arab pundits. Gihan Shahine investigates

At various bus stops around Cairo this week, drivers and passengers protested higher fares. Yasmine El-Rashidi reports

International controversy over the Syrian military presence in Lebanon seems no nearer resolution, writes Mohalhel Fakih from Beirut

The tradition of co-existence between the Muslim Brothers and the Jordanian regime seems close to breaking point, writes Sana Abdallah from Amman

Frozen in time and space, unable to leave their houses, the people of Palestine will be celebrating the Jewish New Year by suffering even greater oppression than usual. Anne Gwynne writes from Nablus about the horrors of "lockdown"

Three years after the 9/11 atrocity, many Americans feel the time has come to move on -- except, that is, for the Bush administration, Khaled Dawoud writes from Washington

The Beslan tragedy has prompted widespread public outcry over the Russian authorities' incompetence, writes Shohdy Naguib from Moscow

Attempting to reverse the effects of nearly a decade of economic slumber, the government is moving ahead with liberalisation on all fronts, writes Wael Gamal

Last week's sudden decision to drastically reduce import duties on cars is promising to revive the market. Yasmine El-Rashidi reports

Mona Abaza reflects on the social and architectural consequences of the victory of consumerism

Karam Gaber's gold medal in Athens was the seventh in Egyptian Olympic history. Mohamed El-Sayed reviews the big ones