Early Iraq results: PM battling secular challenger
BAGHDAD (AP) — First results from Iraq's parliamentary election showed the prime minister and his secular rival locked in an extremely tight contest Thursday amid fraud allegations by rival parties and a chaotic, unpredictable vote count.
The partial tallies came from only five of Iraq's 18 provinces. However, Iraqi officials who have seen results from across the country said Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's coalition appeared to have a narrow edge, though not an outright majority.
That foreshadows tough and lengthy negotiations to build a government and choose a prime minister.
The partial results, posted on TV screens in Baghdad to crowds of reporters, were the first in an election that will determine who governs the country as U.S. troops go home — and whether Iraqis can put behind them deep sectarian tensions that once brought their nation to the brink of civil war.
Haiti: Kidnappers release 2 European aid workers
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Kidnappers have freed two Swiss women snatched off the streets of Haiti's capital and held for five days, officials said Thursda.
» Full StoryGreece hit by strikes, clashes over austerity plan
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Clashes between riot police and rock-throwing, masked youths broke out during a demonstration in central Athens by tens of thousands of striking workers protesting austerity...
» Full StoryChinese zoo blamed for death of 11 Siberian tigers
BEIJING (AP) — Eleven rare Siberian tigers kept in small cages and fed only chicken bones have died of malnutrition at a cash-strapped zoo in China's frigid northeast, state media said Friday.
» Full StoryVatican criticizes condom machines in Rome school
ROME (AP) — The decision by a Rome high school to install condom vending machines has set off a storm in Italy, with the Catholic Church charging the move will encourage young people to have sex and...
» Full Story43 Somalis die in capital after 2 days of warfare
MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Heavy fighting between Somali insurgents and pro-government troops has killed at least 43 people over two days, as African Union peacekeepers used tanks to help the...
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