BAGHDAD, June 17 (UPI) -- A decision by the party of Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr not to participate in provincial elections is a sign of its diminished influence, a rival lawmaker said.

JERUSALEM, June 17 (UPI) -- Three Israeli air strikes killed six people in Gaza Tuesday as word spread that an Israeli-Hamas cease-fire had been reached, officials said.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, June 9 (UPI) -- Hezbollah leaders reportedly told French President Nicolas Sarkozy the terrorist organization would consider a diplomatic answer to the Shaba Farms dispute.

BAGHDAD, April 17 (UPI) -- An official with the Sadrist Movement of Moqtada Sadr said Thursday the Mahdi Army won't turn its weapons over to the Iraqi government.

BASRA, Iraq, April 17 (UPI) -- Iranian and U.S. influence in Iraqi politics puts the October provincial elections at the forefront in determining regional geopolitical dynamics.

JERUSALEM, April 14 (UPI) -- Israel, with the help of Egypt, offered a limited cease-fire with Palestinians in Gaza, Palestinian sources said Monday.

WASHINGTON, April 7 (UPI) -- It's springtime in the Middle East once again, and that usually means that fighting season may breakout soon. Unless….

GAZA, March 23 (UPI) -- Jerusalem officials rejected claims Sunday Israel had presented a year-long peace deal for the Gaza Strip if Islamic Jihad and Hamas rebels end rocket attacks.

WASHINGTON, March 18 (UPI) -- Jordanian authorities have quietly released one of the ideological leaders of global terrorism, the alleged spiritual mentor of al-Qaida in Iraq's founder.