* Syria faces US pressure to stop crackdown The US has renewed calls on Syria to halt its crackdown on anti-government protests.
* Eastern Europe new battleground in Mideast rift Warsaw and Prague might seem like unlikely battlegrounds in the Middle East conflict.
* Police Training to Stop Mass Invasion of Arab Protesters Police are conducting a large-scale training exercise in preparation for a possible massive Arab from Judea and Samaria in September.
* Syrian army pursues 'scorched earth' campaign Syrian armed forces continued a "scorched earth" campaign near the country's borders with Turkey and Iraq.
* New Egypt? 7,000 civilians jailed since Mubarak fell Egypt's military rulers told human rights advocates Monday that at least 7,000 civilians have been sentenced to prison.
* China rebukes US over South China Sea disputes China criticized the U.S. on Tuesday over a senator's call for multilateral negotiations to resolve festering territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
* Besieged Ghetto? Gaza Water Park Opens Influenced by Arab and leftist propaganda, the world sees Gaza as a ghetto under siege by the cruel Israeli army.
* Antiquities Robbers Caught Red Handed The Unit for the Prevention of Antiquities Theft in the Antiquities Authority has staged a successful operation in which Arab antiquities robbers were caught red-handed while digging at an archaeological site.
* Hamas nominates Haniyeh to head government Several days after Fatah nominated Salam Fayyad to head the new Palestinian government, Hamas announced it was pushing for Ismail Haniyeh's appointment.
* Poland seeks new status in EU arena Poland hopes that its upcoming EU presidency will complete its transformation from a prickly newcomer to an established member of the EU elite.