* U.S., Iraqi experts developing plan to preserve Babylon, build local tourism industry The remains of what was once the greatest city in the world occupy a vast site on the bank of the Euphrates River.

* Russia Holds Major War Games In Caucasus Thousands of troops, backed by hundreds of tanks, artillery and other heavy weaponry, began rumbling through the North Caucasus on Monday.

* US soldiers leave Iraq’s cities US troops have withdrawn from towns and cities in Iraq, six years after the invasion, having formally handed over security duties to new Iraqi forces.

* Iraqi oil for sale in TV auction BP and China’s CNPC have won a contract in the televised auction for contracts to run oil and gas fields in Iraq.

* Pakistani militants abandon deal A wing of the Taliban based in a Pakistani tribal area bordering Afghanistan say they have scrapped a peace deal with the government.

* Obama’s ‘Outreach to Muslims’ Prompts Mass Koran Distribution The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), whose officials in the past have been convicted for being associated with Muslim terrorist groups, said it will announce at a news conference Tuesday that it is launching an “education campaign”.

* Iran confirms Ahmadinejad victory Iran’s top electoral body, the Guardian Council, has confirmed the victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the presidential election after a partial recount.

* Investment Houses: Israel the Land of Economic Promise Three international investment houses have issued a rosy forecast for the Israeli economy, which one firm says is at the beginning of a decade of constant growth following this year’s recession.

* German court gives conditional green light to new treaty Germany’s highest court on Tuesday ruled that the EU’s new treaty is compatible with German law, so long as the role of the national parliament in EU decision-making is strengthened.

* ‘Stop selling uranium ores to Iran’ President Shimon Peres met his Kazakhstani counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev on Tuesday morning and urged him to act to stop his country’s sale of uranium ores to Iran.