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World Briefs: Aug. 29
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Official suspected of militia ties arrested
BAGHDAD — A senior official in Nouri al-Maliki's government was in custody Thursday, suspected of ties to Iranian-backed Shiite militias and plotting a June bombing that killed 10 people, including four Americans, Iraqi authorities said.
The arrest of Ali al-Lami Wednesday by U.S. and Iraqi troops as he left a plane arriving from Lebanon reinforced suspicions about Tehran's influence within the Shiite-led Iraqi government and could open wider probes into Shiite networks.
Al-Lami heads a commission responsible for keeping Saddam Hussein loyalists out of government posts and has been the target of criticism from Sunni leaders who claim that the government wants to limit the overall Sunni voice in political and security issues.
THAILAND
Protesters push police from grounds
BANGKOK — Thai anti-government protesters occupying the grounds of the prime minister's office forced several hundred police officers off the compound early today and promised more action in their bid to oust the leader.
Police exercised restraint when demonstrators — some armed with golf clubs, batons and bamboo sticks — pushed up to 400 officers out of the grounds about 1 a.m.
Protesters celebrated by dancing to rock music, a sharp contrast to Wednesday when they threw up barricades.
LEBANON
Abbas says refugees have right to return
BEIRUT — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday rejected the idea that Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon might be forced to stay there permanently, saying they should have the right to return home.
About 400,000 refugees and their descendants live in a dozen refugee camps in Lebanon, which were set up for those who fled or were pushed out during fighting around Israel's creation in 1948.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the "right of return" is incompatible with creation of a Palestinian state.
— From wire reports
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