| US, in shift, bluntly urges Mubarak to reform now | |
| The United States bluntly urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Wednesday to make political reforms in the face of protesters demanding his ouster, marking a pivot in its stance towards a key Arab ally. |
| |
| Tunisia seeks arrest of ousted president, family | |
| Tunisia has asked Interpol to help find and arrest ousted president Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali and his family so they can be tried for theft and currency offences. |
| |
| Israel ups West Bank home demolitions in 2010 - NGO | |
| Israeli demolitions of Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank tripled in 2010, figures from an Israeli human rights group showed on Wednesday, with a leap in the number in the Jordan Valley. |
| |
| Heavy rains pelt Jeddah | |
| Torrential rainfall submerged streets and cut off electricity in parts of Saudi Arabia\'s second largest city Jeddah on Wednesday, raising fears of a repeat of floods in 2009 which killed more than 120 people. |
| |
| Syria tightens Internet ban after Tunis unrest - users | |
| Syrian authorities have banned programmes that allow access to Facebook Chat from cellphones, tightening already severe restrictions on the Internet in the wake of the unrest in Tunisia, users said on Wednesday. |
| |
| New Lebanon PM prepares to form gov’t; streets quiet | |
| Lebanon\'s new Hizbollah-backed premier-designate was readying Wednesday for talks on forming a government as rivals called for daily sit-ins against the mounting power of the Shiite party. |
| |
| AT A GLANCE | |
| Bahraini King Hamad suggested to Egypt\'s President Hosni Mubarak on Wednesday an Arab meeting to discuss the future of the Middle East, where shockwaves from Tunisia\'s uprising are spreading. |