EGYPT

With 12,000 pro-democracy activists having been sent to military trial ever since the junta took the reins and an oppressive law that criminalizes strikes and protest marches put in place, Egyptians are wondering if this was the emancipating they had risked their lives to achieve.

Palestinian militants in Gaza renewed a rocket attack on Israel, firing seven missiles at the cities of Be'er Sheva and Sderot.

North Koreans in Libya are in a trapped in a diplomatic limbo. Their brethren in Tunisia and Egypt have also been prohibited from returning home.

Centamin Egypt Ltd. posted quarterly net profit almost three times the year-ago level, boosted by higher gold prices, and said it was on track to hit its revised 2011 gold production target.

Violence between Israel and Gaza militants flared anew Sunday after Egypt said it had brokered a truce to end attacks that have killed 10 Palestinian gunmen and an Israeli civilian in the past five days.

Africa's new scramble for oil is heading east, where the potential could be huge but the risks are far higher than in the well-established sector on the continent's west coast.

The leader of the Islamist party which won Tunisia's first free election appealed for calm in the town where the Arab Spring began, accusing forces linked to the ousted president of fanning violence there.

The Islamist Ennahda party was officially declared the winner of Tunisia's election Thursday, setting it up to form the first Islamist-led government in the wake of the Arab Spring uprisings.

The official death toll from the Van, Turkey earthquake last Sunday has risen to 500 people, but while rescue teams find more bodies and people whose homes were destroyed sleeping outside on snowy nights, the world has turned its attention to the relationship between Turkey and Israel.

A delegation from the Arab League, tasked with helping end the violence in Syria, met Wednesday with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to facilitate the ceasefire demanded by the Arab nations in a resolution last week.

Egypt released suspected Israeli spy Ilan Grapel on Thursday, as part of a prisoner exchange between the two counties.

Following these simple travel etiquette tips will not only make you less likely to stand out as a tourist, it will bring better service and more respect from locals.

He warned that the US and other western nations will likely face consequences for their support of Libyan rebels who toppled Gadhafi.

The report, compiled by Human Rights Watch, concluded that the military's violent intervention in the Oct. 8 demonstration compromised its ability to conduct an impartial investigation. The Supreme Council of Armed Forces has ruled Egypt effectively since former president Hosni Mubarak's fall, and whether it allows a separate probe will reflect its willingness to relinquish power.

Prices on Egypt's stock market must stabilise before same-day settlement resumes, the financial regulator said, shrugging off warnings from some traders that the delayed settlement imposed during February's popular uprising was deterring investors.

Maersk Drilling has struck a four-year $780 million deal with BP for a deepwater rig, and aims to increase its fleet by 6-8 rigs within five years.

Egypt's Citadel Capital plans to scale back investments outside its existing projects until the political and economic outlook becomes clearer, its chairman told Reuters.

An Egyptian court ruled on Tuesday that Egyptians living abroad should be allowed to vote at embassies in upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections, a judicial source said.

Ennahda has vowed it will not establish an Islamic state, but rather a secular, multi-party democracy.

Moderate Islamists claimed victory Monday in Tunisia's first democratic election, sending a message to other states in the region that long-sidelined Muslim parties are challenging for power after the Arab Spring.

The Arab Spring of pro-democracy uprisings features prominently -- both directly and more subtly -- in the selections at the third annual Doha Tribeca Film Festival, kicking off in the Qatari capital this week.