Plans for an election are impractical at best, argues Khaled Amayreh in the West Bank

Despite Arab government denials, Muslim officials on the ground confirm Jewish extremists are escalating plans to destroy Al-Aqsa Mosque, writes Khaled Amayreh in occupied Jerusalem

In Gaza, Abbas declaring elections in January is seen as a manoeuvre to force Hamas to sign the Egyptian reconciliation plan, writes Saleh Al-Naami

Twin bomb attacks caused chaos in Baghdad this week and underlined Iraq's still-fragile security, writes Salah Hemeid

After the Baluchistan attacks, Iran faces two options -- heightened confrontation or accommodation, argues Mohamed Said Idris

Israel's decision to continue its intelligence operations in Lebanon is a serious violation of UN Resolution 1701, Omayma Abdel-Latif writes in Beirut

For the past four years Syria has been begging for a partnership with the EU. Now the EU agrees, Syria says it'll think about it, Bassel Oudat reports from Damascus

Zein Al-Abidine bin Ali, the president of Tunisia, has been elected to a fifth term in office with 90 per cent of the vote in a contest described by Human Rights Watch as having taken place in "an atmosphere of repression"...

Conflict is a dangerous game for business in southern Sudan, surmises Gamal Nkrumah