EGYPT

A terrorist suspect at the center of an Italian trial over secret CIA rendition flights is seeking $10 million in compensation, saying he was tortured during interrogation in Egypt, his lawyer said on Wednesday.

The International Monetary Fund is evolving into a central clearing house that will help manage the global economy, the head of the IMF's policy-steering committee said Monday as nations debated the lender's future role.

Global finance chiefs made little headway on Sunday in overcoming long-standing disagreements over how much power rich nations should cede to major developing countries at the International Monetary Fund.

Israeli planes carried out strikes on tunnels used for smuggling along the Gaza-Egypt border and a building east of Gaza city on Saturday, causing damage but no casualties, security forces and the Israeli military said.

Repsol YPF's Bilbao Knutsen liquefied natural gas tanker is expected to arrive at the Canaport LNG terminal in New Brunswick from Trinidad on Oct. 5, according to AISLive ship tracker on Reuters.

Vodafone Egypt said on Tuesday it expected to add 100,000 mobile broadband customers in 2009, taking its total broadband client base to 160,000.

Most Palestinians who want a state of their own would like to achieve it through a peace deal with Israel but there is still substantial support for the Islamist Hamas group which favors resistance, according to a new opinion poll.

The United States and Israel ended another round of talks on Wednesday with no sign yet of a deal on a West Bank settlement freeze, but a U.S. envoy planned to meet again with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday.

Weather Investments, an Italian-based holding company that owns Egypt's Orascom Telecom, said on Monday holders of 744.6 million euros ($1.1 billion) worth of the firm's bonds had agreed to sell them back.

Most people around the world support significantly increasing government spending to counter the economic crisis, according to a 20-nation opinion poll released on Monday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday there were still gaps to bridge in talks with a visiting U.S. envoy seeking a settlement freeze and the revival of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

Massage is an ancient medical treatment. Once pushed out of favor by social mores and biotechnology, massage therapy is now regarded as a major healing force.

Vodafone Egypt has signed a new three-year contract to use Telecom Egypt's international gateway for its overseas traffic, the Ministry of Communications said in a statement.

The makers of an Egyptian film exploring the subjugation of women across the Middle East say they have won widespread praise as well as deeply personal criticism since the movie was released.

The market for initial public offerings (IPO) in the Gulf looks set to reopen as stock markets and the oil price recover, and bankers expect a few companies to test the waters when Ramadan ends.

Get away from the crowds with our pick of some underrated gems in Egypt's ancient valley Despite the recent closure of many tombs and temples on Egypt's West Bank, there are still dozens of sites to explore.

Egypt's Orascom Telecom on Tuesday posted second quarter net profit up 38 percent at $111.8 million, the lower end of forecasts, and said it saw only timid signals of economic recovery in its markets.

The long-distance joggler understands better than most that the race is not always to the swiftest.

Israeli aircraft bombed a tunnel under the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Tuesday, killing three Palestinians inside, medical workers said.

U.S. Apache Corp (APA) is to sign three oil and gas deals on Thursday worth $30 million for a total of 14 wells in three areas of Egypt's Western Desert, the Oil Ministry said in a statement.

U.S. President Barack Obama, said Tuesday he saw encouraging signs of a softening of Israel's resistance to his call for a freeze on settlement-building in the occupied West Bank.