Dubai Al-Sharqiyah Television in Arabic - Independent, private news and entertainment channel focusing on Iraq, run by Sa'd al- Bazzaz, publisher of the Arabic-language daily Al-Zaman - at 1730 gmt on 13 February carries live a new episode of its "The Gist" Programme.

The following is a selection of headlines and quotes taken from the Iraqi press published on 17 Feb: Headlines Al-Sharq al-Awsat [Baghdad edition of London-based independent daily newspaper, Saudi-owned]: Militant group appeals to Sunnis: Do not leave your Baghdad ...

By Matt Kelley WASHINGTON -- The former head of the U.S.-led occupation in Iraq testified at a congressional hearing Tuesday that he and the Bush administration made mistakes, including inadequate planning.

U.S. President George Bush will meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in Jordan at the end of the month, the White House said. The meeting was announced Tuersday aboard Air Force One as Bush and his entourage traveled to Washington from Hawaii.

By Mark Mazzetti New York Times News Service WASHINGTON -- The CIA last fall repudiated the claim that there were prewar ties between Saddam Hussein's government and an operative of al-Qaida, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, according to a report issued on Friday by the Senate Intelligence Committee.