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After 25 hours of fighting, clashes have died down in the southern city of Sidon in Lebanon. At least 16 soldiers and 40 gunmen are dead. Radical Sunni Muslim Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir is on the run and possibly holed up in the Ain al Helweh Palestinian camp.

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, 33, is now the youngest monarch in the region.

The shift aligns the biggest Arab economy with its neighbors. King Abdullah ordered the change to begin this Friday.

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome emerged a year ago in Saudi Arabia, although the world didn't find out about it until September, when researchers said it was caused by a previously unknown virus that's in the same family as SARS.

Iran's newly elected president is signaling he might take a more pragmatic, moderate approach to nuclear negotiations with major world powers. But there's a lot of debate in Washington policy circles about what Hassan Rohani's election might mean for the U.S.

Jordan is hosting major military exercises known as Eager Lion 2013. More than 15,000 soldiers from 18 countries, including the U.S., will be participating. The war games kicked off as Syria's civil war rages next door.

It's Iran's first presidential election since the stunning vote in 2009. Back then, a surprisingly early declaration of victory for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sparked a wave of protests, followed by years of government repression.

The Obama administration has decided to send military aid to the rebels in Syria. The decision was announced after the administration said it had concluded, with high confidence, that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons on multiple occasions over the past few months.

The electric car company Better Place failed to build the dream it had designed. Its bankruptcy left tech-watchers worried about the stain on the country, which is proud of its image as a startup hotbed. But there may be a savior in the wings.

U.S. and European intelligence has determined that the Syrian government has used Sarin chemical weapons on multiple occasions in its fight to suppress rebels. With this determination, the White House says aid for the rebels — perhaps in the form of heavy weapons — will be forthcoming.