Supporters of deposed president Mohammed Morsi remained defiant as Egypt’s military-backed government offered protection to those who ended their two sit-ins – widely seen as a first step towards dispersing the vigils on opposite sides of Cairo.

Iraq’s foreign minister today warned that a quick American military withdrawal from the country could lead to civil war and the collapse of the government, as pressure on the Bush administration for a pull-out grows.

LAST month saw the highest monthly death toll in Iraq since the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, an Iraqi government minister said yesterday.

A bomb exploded today in a crowd of day labourers in central Baghdad, killing eight people and wounding 28, police said.

A car bomb exploded in an outdoor market in eastern Baghdad today, killing at least eight people and wounding 31.