04/04/13

* 'The moment of explosion is near': North Korean madman's new warning as U.S. deploys battalion expert in nuclear and chemical warfare after rogue state moves its missiles to the coast The United States has deployed a battalion to fight chemical and biological attacks on the Korean peninsula.

* Iran, world powers set to meet for nuclear talks Iran and world powers trying to curb Iran's nuclear progress are coming to the negotiating table this week.

* Egyptian forces capture arms ship off Sinai Egyptian security forces detained a fishing vessel reportedly smuggling arms off the southern coast of the Sinai Peninsula.

* Syrian guerrilla fighters 'sent to Iran for training' The Syrian government is sending members of its irregular militias for guerrilla combat training at a secret base in Iran.

* Amid Pyongyang bluster, missile launch feared Missile and launch components have been moved to the east coast of North Korea in the "last few days."

* Lights go out in Jordan from Amman to Dead Sea After midnight on one of Jordan's busiest highways, only the beaming headlights of vehicles driving between the capital Amman and the Dead Sea pierce the gloom.

* 'End Muslim Women's Provocations on Temple Mount' Temple Mount activists are seeking police action on recent anti-Jewish protests by Muslim women on the Temple Mount.

* Washington focuses on plight of Mideast's minorities In the wake of the upheavals of the Arab Spring, US leaders are showing a growing interest in the condition and difficulties faced by the Middle East's religious minorities.

* Israel hopes world doesn't fall for Iran nuclear ploy Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has ordered that his nation's nuclear program slow down a bit.

* Ancient site unearthed in Iraqi home of Abraham British archaeologists said Thursday they have unearthed a sprawling complex near the ancient city of Ur in southern Iraq, home of the biblical Abraham.