In Lawrence of Arabia, Omar Sharif is first seen in the distance, a speck in the swirling desert sand. As he draws closer, he emerges first as a black figure on a galloping camel, slowly transforming into a handsome, dark-eyed figure with a gap-tooth smile. It wasn’t unlike the Egyptian-born actor’s debut in Hollywood.

A US man has been convicted of conspiring to help al-Qaida and plotting to kill US soldiers in Iraq.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat today ordered an investigation into the shooting of a key critic of his unrelenting grip on power as Palestinian officials warned of dire consequences for law and order in their territory.

Israel’s Supreme Court today ordered the government to suspend work for one week on a section of the West Bank separation barrier around eight Palestinian villages north-west of Jerusalem, an attorney said.