His captors put out cigarettes on Haitham Amro's body. His thighs were a carpet of bruises, green, yellow and blue, and his back striped by lashes. The angle of the wounds on his wrists indicated he had been suspended above the ground by handcuffs for some time before his corpse was brought, on his fourth day in custody, to the hospital where they recognized it immediately, Amro having worked there for years as a nurse. But to the ...

To understand Barack Obama's Afghanistan decision, it's instructive to go back to one history-shifting sentence, uttered by his predecessor more than eight years ago. It was Sept. 20, 2001. The nation was in agony, and George W. Bush stood before a joint session of Congress, telling Americans where to direct their rage. "Americans are asking, 'Who attacked our country?'" Bush declared early in his remarks. "The evidence we have gathered all points to a collection of loosely ...

The Israeli government has ruled out setting up an independent investigative body that would interview Israeli military personnel about allegations that the military committed war crimes during its offensive against Hamas earlier this year.

Israeli President Shimon Peres rejected a United Nations report on his country's incursion into Gaza as "one-sided" and "unfair" in an interview with CNN. The U.N. Council for Human Rights last week approved the report, which accuses both Israel and the Palestinian movement Hamas of "actions amounting to war crimes, possibly crimes against humanity" during the three-week offensive which ended in January. Peres insisted that Israel had a right to defend itself, and said the United Nations was in danger ...

Israel released 19 Palestinian women prisoners Friday in exchange for a recent proof-of-life videotape of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, Israeli officials said. The Palestinians were taken from Ofer detention camp outside Jerusalem. Eighteen were released to the West Bank; the 19th to Gaza. The former prisoners were brought to the area in a procession of vans, military jeeps and Red Cross vans. The deal was brokered indirectly by Egypt and Germany. A German mediator handed over the ...

A radical Muslim sheikh called Friday for the creation of an Islamic emirate in Gaza, sparking clashes with Hamas forces that left 21 people dead and injured at least 121 others. Hamas forces blew up the home of Sheikh Abu al-Nour al-Maqdessi, leader of the radical group Jund Ansar Allah, or Soldiers of the Partisans of God, Hamas sources said. Al-Maqdessi, also known as Abdel Latif Musa, was among the 21 dead, a hospital spokesman told CNN. The ongoing clashes ...

A radical Muslim sheikh called Friday for the creation of an Islamic Emirate in Gaza, sparking clashes with Hamas forces that have left at least six people dead, Hamas sources told CNN. The clashes are the latest between Gaza's Hamas rulers, who have said they are moderate Muslims pledged to the Palestinian cause, and more radical Islamic groups. The gunfight erupted near the mosque in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where the cleric delivered his sermon, the sources said. ...

Seven suicide bombers dressed as women targeted Afghan police officers about 60 miles from the capital on Tuesday, a police commander said. Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan, the uncle of the groom, did not attend the wedding, according to witnesses. The cause of the explosion, which occurred at 11:10 p.m. in Khan Younis, was not known. Dahlan is the Palestinian Authority's national security adviser. Details of Tuesday's explosion were not immediately clear. Dahlan's associates in recent years have been targeted ...

A large explosion late Tuesday at a wedding party for relatives of a Fatah leader injured at least 50 people in Gaza, Palestinian medical sources said. Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan, the uncle of the groom, did not attend the wedding, according to witnesses. The cause of the explosion, which occurred at 11:10 p.m. in Khan Younis, was not known. Dahlan is the Palestinian Authority's national security adviser. Details of Tuesday's explosion were not immediately clear. Dahlan's associates in recent ...

Israeli troops killed hundreds of unarmed civilian adults and children, broke laws and committed war crimes during their winter offensive in Gaza, Amnesty International said in a scathing report released Thursday. The human rights group also pointed a finger at Hamas and other Palestinian militant organizations in its 117-page report. Hamas and other Palestinian groups committed war crimes by firing hundreds of rockets into southern Israel, killing three Israeli civilians, injuring scores and driving thousands from their homes, according to ...