Egypt's prosecutor-general is looking into setting ousted president Hosni Mubarak free

Egypt's prosecutor-general will issue a decision on ex-president Hosni Mubarak's release within 48 hours, a judical source told Ahram Online
Wael Shebl – the first attorney-general of central Cairo's prosecution office – said prosecutors have begun calculating the period Mubarak spent in preventative detention in order to deduct it from an earlier prison sentence.

US regrets over Russia's withdrawal from students exchange program

The United States on Wednesday voiced "regret" over Russia's pulling out of a high-school- students exchange program, the latest setback in chilling bilateral relations.

"We regret the decision by the government of Russia to cancel Russia's participation in the Future Leaders Exchange or FLEX program," State Department spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki said at a daily news briefing.

The program brings high school students from former Soviet countries to the United States for one year, during which they live with American host families, attend high schools and experience community life.

Jubilant crowds welcome Palestinian prisoners. -Israel frees 26 men to Gaza and West Bank in second phase of deal linked to renewed peace talks.

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Israel has freed 26 Palestinian prisoners, the second of four batches released as part of a deal that set in motion the current Israeli-Palestinian talks.
Jubilant celebrations kicked off on Wednesday morning in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, where the prisoners are seen as heroes who fought for independence, and were received by their families and Palestinian leaders.
"We greet and welcome our brothers, and we confirm that they will return to their homes and nowhere else," Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, said in a speech to a roaring crowd in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

High Court rejects application against release of Palestinian prisoners...

The High Court rejected the application by the Almagor Terror Victims Association on Tuesday evening against the release of 26 Palestinian prisoners.

The prisoners are being released as part of a deal that was made in July to kick-start the peace negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

The High Court ruled that it did not have jurisdiction on the matter and that two prior applications that challenged the government's decision were similarly rejected.