News stories by David Elkins, page 3

World Bank President Robert Zoellick on Wednesday pressed a Middle East and North Africa in the midst of the 'Arab Spring' to promote vibrant civil societies and urged international financial and development institutions to hold its client governments in the region more accountable, if sustainable growth rates and more integrated economies are to take hold.

United States officials reaffirmed their support for a peaceful transition of power in Yemen, but stopped short of publicly calling for President Ali Abdullah Saleh's immediate abdication as clashes between protesters and Yemeni security forces, which began in late January, violently escalate.

While a NATO-led coalition continues to enforce a no-fly zone in a Libya that seems to be on the brink of catastrophe, the Barack Obama administration has yet to formulate a set of guiding principles in dealing with ongoing protests throughout the region in countries like Bahrain.

As Egypt braces for Saturday's vote on constitutional amendments in its first referendum since the revolution, lawmakers here are seeking to address the North African country's economic situation in addition to immediate political developments, by introducing legislation that seeks to stimulate foreign direct investment (FDI).

Monday's arrival of 1,200 Saudi and 500 Emirati security forces with a mandate from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to support King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa's regime in Sunni- ruled, Shiite-majority Bahrain only stokes sectarian conflict and fuels the regional power politics between U.S.-Saudi hegemony and an increasingly influential Shiite-led Iran, analysts here argue.

Despite an ongoing dialogue between U.S. officials, human rights groups and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh regarding concerns over the use of lethal force to quell anti- government protests throughout the Persian Gulf state, the death toll continues to rise in Yemen's port city of Aden and in other locations.

A new report from the Global Detention Project (GDP) on Israel's immigration detention policies reveals the tough reality behind the feel-good story offered in the Academy Award-winning 'Strangers No More', an inspirational documentary about students from migrant families who attend the Bialik-Rogozin school in Tel Aviv.

A leading rights group here condemned actions taken by Bahraini security forces in suppressing peaceful protests in recent weeks, including the deaths of seven Bahraini citizens in the last fortnight, and called for a 'transparent and independent investigation into government initiated violence'.

The ability of the United States to broker a successful Palestinian-Israeli peace agreement will hinge on the future of Israeli-Egyptian relations, a panel of experts at the Palestinian Centre argued here Thursday.

As Libyan strongman Muammar Al-Gaddafi vowed to hang on to power, a close Congressional ally of U.S. President Barack Obama Tuesday called for an end to his regime.