The rebels began taking towns earlier this month, saying they wanted to renegotiate past peace deals with the government of this desperately poor African nation.
Protesters block road to Jordan, Syria
FALLUJAH — Thousands of protesters demonstrated Sunday in Iraq’s western Sunni heartland following the arrest of bodyguards assigned to the finance minister, briefly blocking the main highway linking Baghdad with neighboring Jordan and Syria.
The dispute threatens to exacerbate tensions with Iraq’s Sunnis, who accuse Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of targeting and marginalizing them.
The sectarian conflicts have largely paralyzed the government and have often turned violent.
On Friday, Iraq’s Shiite-led government said it arrested 10 of Finance Minister Rafia al-Issawi’s bodyguards on terrorism-related charges.
The government said it carried out the arrests according to the law and opposes any efforts to sow sectarian discontent.
SOMALIA
Troops rescue hostages on hijacked ship
NAIROBI, Kenya — Forces from Somalia’s semiautonomous Puntland region raided a hijacked ship and safely rescued 22 hostages who had been held captive for nearly three years, authorities said Sunday.
A statement from the Puntland government said their forces captured the Panama-flagged MV Iceberg 1, which was docked near the Gara’ad coastal village in Mudung region.
The rescued crew members include eight Yemenis, five Indians, two Pakistanis, four Ghanaians, two Sudanese and a Philippine, Puntland Ports and Anti-piracy Minister Saeed Mohamed Rage told the Associated Press.
The ship was hijacked March 29, 2010.
Nearly 120 seafarers are still held by Somali pirates, though that number is down considerably from the height of the piracy crisis two years ago, when more than 600 hostages were held at once.
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