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'Defanged' Saudi Religious Police Bring Relief, Foreboding

A veiled Saudi woman and an unrelated man jig and twirl on a busy street, stirring a furious debate about the waning influence of the once-feared religious police, notorious for enforcing sex segregation.

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Iran's Hijab Protests Cap Years of Evolution

A spate of unprecedented protests against Iran's mandatory headscarves for women have been tiny in number, but have still reignited a debate that has preoccupied the Islamic republic since its founding.

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Baghdad Mayor Has Ambitious Plans for Her City

The mayor of Baghdad wants to revive her war-torn city, fix its decrepit infrastructure and twin it with Paris -- another female-led metropolis.

Thikra Alwash, a 60-year-old civil engineer and only woman mayor of a Middle East capital, faces a mountainous task.

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Main Line-Up at Berlin Film Festival

The 68th Berlinale, Europe's first major film festival of the year, opens February 15 with 24 new movies from around the world screening in the main showcase.

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Berlin Filmfest to Spotlight #MeToo Moment

This month's Berlin film festival, Europe's first major cinema showcase in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein revelations, will shine a light on sexual misconduct in the industry, its director said Tuesday.

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Decriminalize Pot, Says German Police Union

A German police union on Monday called for the "complete decriminalization" of marijuana use in the country, saying current policy was neither "intelligent nor productive" for society.

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Pope Offers Peace Token in Meeting with Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Pope Francis on Monday while police enforced a protest ban in central Rome as feelings run high over Turkey's offensive against Kurdish militia inside Syria.

During the 50-minute audience, Pope Francis gave Erdogan a medallion embossed with an angel strangling a "demon of war" -- a symbol of peace and justice.

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Palestinian Triplets Named in Anti-Trump Jerusalem Protest

Palestinians have reacted to Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital with street protests, but one couple have come up with an idea of their own, in the naming of their triplets.

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Lebanon Museum Unveils Artifacts Looted during Civil War

Lebanon's national museum on Friday unveiled five ancient sculptures, including a Phoenician bull's head returned by the United States, that were looted during the civil war.

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Iran Arrests 29 Women as Headscarf Protests Intensify

Tehran police have arrested 29 women for appearing in public without a headscarf as protests against the dress code in force since the Islamic revolution of 1979 intensify, Iranian media reported Friday.

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