* Ahmadinejad: Zionist regime will be erased Mass rallies held throughout Iran in protest of ‘crimes against Gaza’s residents’, protestors burn Israeli, American flags. President: Israel knows its end is near.

* ‘Syria must cooperate within three months or be punished’ The chief US delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency warned Syria on Saturday that it had until March to begin showing signs of cooperation over its nuclear plan or the country would face punishment.

* UN chief: Israel, Palestinians setting stage for peace UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says Israeli, Palestinian negotiators ‘are setting the stage for peace’.

* Blair explains Catholicism move Tony Blair has been explaining his decision to delay converting to Roman Catholicism until after he had resigned as prime minister.

* Gates asks Mideast to help fight terror US Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Middle East nations Saturday to help fight the spread of violent extremism by funding and training Afghan security forces and reaching out more aggressively to the fledgling government in Iraq.

* China, Japan and South Korea focus on economy at summit The leaders of China, Japan and South Korea held their nations’ first three-way summit Saturday, in a meeting intended to overcome political animosities that instead focused on a joint Asian response to the global economic crisis.

* Africa: Another anti-terrorism front Thousands of miles from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, another side of America’s fight against terrorism is unfolding in this remote corner of West Africa.

* No Place to Hide from Global Recession The news that China’s exports fell for the first time in seven years, sliding by 2.2 percent in November, is the clearest sign that there are no places left to hide from what is becoming a global recession.

* View from Dubai: Time to Rediscover Islam’s Original Message This is perhaps the only spectacle of its kind on the planet; the sea of humanity constantly surging, swirling and revolving around a square majestic structure.

* Summit boosts EU security and defence The European Union’s security and defence policy and a deal dating back to 1999 in which the EU would be able to deploy 60,000 troops within 60 days won a renewed political endorsement on Friday(12 December) by EU leaders, who failed however to establish any deadlines or specific financial commitments.