Israel’s Ultra-Orthodox Jews Clash with Secular Courts

Israel’s domestic culture war between religious communities and the secular courts took to the streets on Thursday as tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazi Jews paralyzed the streets of Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv suburb of Bnei Brak in a protest march. The target of their outrage was the imprisonment of 43 couples for refusing to allow their daughters to attend a religious school where they would have to mix with the daughters of religious Mizrahi Jews .

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A Family Gathers to Say Farewell to Ted Kennedy

Simon Sousa, shell shocked and bleary eyed, stood on a grassy corner near the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port. He clutched a 8″x10″ framed and signed photo of himself with Senator Ted Kennedy, a memento from when Kennedy had helped his Brazilian house cleaner get a green card two years ago.

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Pre-election violence kills 7 in Afghan capital

The Afghan capital, Kabul, came under attack Tuesday, two days before national elections. The violence included a rocket attack that damaged the presidential palace and a deadly suicide strike. The suicide bombing targeted a coalition military convoy on Jalalabad Road, a major thoroughfare in Kabul.

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Deputy leader killed as Nigerian military raids Islamic sect

Nigeria’s military has claimed it raided the compound of a fundamentalist Islamic sect and killed one of its top leaders, as the battle intensified between government troops and Islamist forces in the country’s north Thursday. At least 400 rebels, civilians and troops have died since the fighting began Sunday, triggered by the arrest of some members of the sect, known as Boko Haram.

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New York Times reporter escapes Taliban

A New York Times reporter who was held by the Taliban for seven months has escaped, the newspaper reported Saturday. David Rohde told his wife, Kristen Mulvihill, that he and a local reporter, Tahir Ludin, climbed over the wall of a compound late Friday where they were being held in the North Waziristan region of Pakistan.

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