BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) - Iraq's National Museum re-opened to the public Monday, nearly six years after it was pillaged in the chaotic days following the fall of Saddam Hussein.

Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images. Iraqi National Museum director Amira Eidan (1st L) talks to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (2nd L) and other Iraqi officials during a tour at Iraq National Museum on February 23, 2009 in Baghdad, Iraq. The Museum was vandalized and looted during the chaos which followed the 2003 US-led invasion of the country.

Some 15,000 irreplaceable artifacts were looted in May 2003, of which only about 6,000 have been recovered.

Those items went on display in a special wing of the museum Monday.

The museum is a source of national pride, highlighting Iraq's role in history as the cradle of civilization. Some objects in the collection are thousands of years old.

Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images. The winged human-headed-bull.

Iraq aims to make the museum "the best in the world," Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said at the opening ceremony, adding that a huge international campaign is still needed to recover looted objects.

A number of countries in the region returned objects to Iraq last year, deeming the country safe enough to secure them.

-/AFP/Getty Images. A stolen Iraqi antiquity returned to the Iraqi National Museuam. It was recovered by Lebanese customs officials in Shtora in the Bekaa valley of eastern Lebanon on October 29, 2008. Around 32,000 artefacts were looted from 12,000 archaeological sites in Iraq during the chaos that followed the US-led invasion in 2003, and 15,000 items were also stolen from the Baghdad National Museum.

But concerns remains high that the country's hard-won stability is not irreversible and that the collection could be endangered if violence gets worse again. Reopening the museum is yet another test that will face the Iraqi security forces.

But most Iraqis are going to look at this move as something of a positive sign, CNN's Arwa Damon in Baghdad said.

Iraqi soldiers in December seized 228 apparently stolen antiquities and arrested seven members of a gang
Soldiers in Abi al-Khasib in southern Iraq's Basra province found 168 items and arrested five people in one raid and seized 60 more artifacts and detained two people in another, the official said.

The troops found sculptures, intricate gold jewelry, decorative silverware and ceramic bowls buried in gardens and under a stone slab in a kitchen.

In 2005, the FBI in the United States listed missing artifacts from the Iraqi National Museum among the "Top Ten Art Crimes" it sought to solve.

More than 800 looted artifacts were returned to the National Museum in November 2003. Then-Culture Minister Muhammad al-Jazaari expressed his happiness in recovering a 2300 B.C. copper Bassetki statue, a wood-clad-and-bronze brazier and about 820 other smaller objects from different periods that were stolen.

"This is a very good day in the history of the Iraqi museum," Mario Bondioli-Osio, a senior adviser to the Ministry of Culture, said at the time.

The ministry issued an amnesty for all citizens who returned looted archaeological artifacts.

Museum Director Donny George said in late 2003 that the amnesty was still open for the citizens to bring back all objects in their possession "because this is their heritage." George said citizens were bringing back antiquities daily.

"The heritage of the world and mankind's history has been recovered in Iraq, thanks to the efforts of the U.S. MPs and the Iraqi police," he said.

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MARWAN NAAMANI/AFP/Getty Images. A motorcyclists performs stunts during the opening ceremony of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi. More than 900 companies are taking part in the Middle East's biggest arms show that showcases over five days the latest technologies in weapons and defence systems from around the world.

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CAIRO, Egypt (CNN) - A bombing in one of the Egyptian capital's busy tourist districts killed a French tourist Sunday and wounded 23 other people, including 18 Europeans, Egyptian authorities reported.

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images. Egyptian investigators collect evidence from the site of a bomb blast in the tourist area of Khan al-Khalili in Cairo.

The French tourist killed was a 17-year-old girl. The blast wounded 17 other French nationals, one of whom was in critical condition Sunday evening, and one German, Health Ministry spokesman Abdel-Rahman Shaheen told state-run Nile TV.

Three Saudis and two Egyptians also were hurt, he said.

A man and a woman were arrested after the incident, security officials said. The nationalities of the arrestees were not disclosed.

The explosion occurred during the height of the evening rush at 6:30 p.m. in an area of coffee shops located near the Al Hussein Mosque, one of Cairo's largest, Interior Ministry press officer Hany Abdelatif said.

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images. Egyptian security personnel use a metal detector to search the area in the landmark Cairo bazaar of Khan al-Khalili.

The bomb was left under a stone chair, a ministry statement said. An undetonated bomb was found near the mosque, which sits close to an entrance of the Khan el-Khalili bazaar, a huge market and a tourist attraction, Abdelatif said.

Nile TV said President Hosni Mubarak was "closely monitoring the situation" and had ordered "full medical care for all those injured in the blast."

Egyptian medical officials said they expected several of the injured to be released from hospital treatment on Monday.

In Paris, the French government said its embassy in Cairo was prepared to offer aid to its citizens injured in the blast and offered its sympathies to the victims.

"My thoughts are with the families of and those close to the victims, so cruelly and unjustly stricken," Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said in a statement issued late Sunday.

Kouchner offered the "support and solidarity" of France to Egyptian authorities, "who we are certain will be able to shed light on this tragic event."

CNN's Housam Ahmed and Caroline Faraj contributed to this report.

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The Iraqi Ministry of Justice has renovated and reopened the previously named 'Abu Ghraib' prison and renamed it Baghdad Central Prison.

According to the Iraqi Ministry of Justice about 400 prisoners were transferred to the prison which can hold up to 3000 inmates.

The prison was established in 1970 and became synonymous with abuse under the U.S. occupation.

Photo by Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images

Photo by Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images

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JERUSALEM (CNN) - A woman was injured Saturday when a rocket landed in northern Israel, a spokesman for the Israeli police said.

The Israel Defense Forces fired artillery toward the source of the fire, an army spokesman said, but he could not say from where the rocket originated.

Officials said the rocket landed in the Western Galilee region of northwestern Israel, which borders Lebanon.

The Lebanese army said two rockets were fired from Lebanon toward Israel, but they failed to reach Israeli territory. According to the Lebanese army, the rockets landed east of Naqoura, a coastal town just north of the border with Israel.

The Israeli army fired artillery toward the village of Qlayleh, close to the port city of Tyre, according to the Lebanese army said. However, it is not known if the attack was in response to the rockets fired toward Israel.

The last time rockets were fired from Lebanon toward Israel was January 14, but they did not cause any casualties. The Israeli army retaliated against the source of the fire, according a statement issued by the Israeli army that day.

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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images. Iraqi children stand looking at the flamingo enclosure at the Zawraa Park and Zoo.

SABAH ARAR/AFP/Getty Images. A lion and lionesses enjoy Baghdad's sun as they rest inside their cage.

As security has steadily improved in Baghdad, the flamingos and lions at the Zawra Park and Zoo, the largest park in Baghdad, have been receiving more and more visitors.

The zoo, once the Middle East's largest with 450 animals, now has just 80 on display but that hasn't dissuaded Baghdadis. Attendance is reportedly up from 1 million in 2007 to 5 million in 2008.
Some of the animals, such as the big cats and other carnivores, were retrieved from the bizarre menageries maintained by Uday, the elder son of Saddam Hussein.

On Fridays and Saturdays, the Iraqi weekend, families and friends flock to the zoo and the surrounding park to enjoy the warm weather, friendly animals and boat rides in the large pond.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images. While the weather is relatively cool at 20 degrees centigrade, hundreds of families and youth turn up every Friday to the park to enjoy tours on boats in the large pond.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images. A goldfish decorated with paint in the colours of the Iraqi flag swims in an aquarium at the zoo.

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WASHINGTON (CNN) - Iranian scientists have reached "nuclear weapons breakout capability," according to a new report based on findings of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency.

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. A building housing the reactor at the Bushehr nuclear power plant in the Iranian port town of Bushehr.

The Institute for Science and International Security report concludes Iran does not yet have a nuclear weapon but does have enough low-enriched uranium for a single nuclear weapon.

The type of uranium the International Atomic Energy Agency report says Iran has would have to be further enriched to make it weapons-grade.

The institute drew its conclusions from an IAEA report dated February 19, 2009. An official in the IAEA confirmed the authenticity of the report for CNN, but didn't want to be named.

The IAEA report is posted on the Web site of ISIS, a Washington-based non-profit and non-partisan institution focused on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons.

SAMUEL KUBANI/AFP/Getty Images.

It also finds that while Iran has dramatically increased installation of centrifuges that can be used for enriching uranium - from 4,000 to 5,400 - its scientists aren't using the new units yet. They remain in "research and development mode."

In the IAEA report, the agency also says no substantive progress has been made in resolving issues about possible "military dimensions" to Iran's nuclear program.

Iran has consistently denied the weapons allegations, calling them "baseless" and "fabricated."

Iran says its nuclear program is necessary to provide civilian energy for the country, but other countries have voiced concern that its true purpose is to produce nuclear weapons.

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Moshe Milner/GPO via Getty Images. Benjamin Netanyahu has been chosen to form a ruling coalition

JERUSALEM (CNN) - Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu was chosen Friday to form Israel's next government, Israeli President Shimon Peres' office said.

The decision comes after Avigdor Lieberman, head of the right-wing Yisrael Beytenu party, said he would recommend Netanyahu for the post, but only if he promises to form a "broad-based" coalition government.

In last week's parliamentary elections, no single party won the minimum 61 seats needed to form a government. That means a government of two or more parties is virtually inevitable.

To become Israel's next prime minister, Netanyahu must form a coalition within six weeks or the process will start all over.

The ruling moderate Kadima Party won the most seats in the Knesset, Israel's parliament. But Kadima, led by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, received only one more seat than Netanyahu's conservative Likud Party.

The strong showing of other right-wing parties - including Yisrael Beytenu and the Orthodox Shas movement - could give Netanyahu a better chance of forming a coalition government.

Peres began consulting with party leaders Wednesday, and had seven days to decide which party leader would form the next government.

CNN's Michal Zippori contributed to this report.

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From Ben Wedeman
CNN

GAZA CITY, Gaza (CNN) - A U.S. congressional delegation visited Gaza Thursday, marking the first time that American lawmakers have entered the Hamas-controlled Palestinian territory in eight years, according to the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem.

MOHAMMED ABED/AFP/Getty Images.Sen. John Kerry, center, visits the American International School, destroyed by the Israeli attacks on Gaza.

The delegation included Reps. Brian Baird, D-Washington, and Keith Ellison, D-Minnesota, who is the first Muslim to serve in the U.S. Congress.

Sen. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, also visited Gaza separately from the two congressmen, according to an official who was traveling with the senator.

None of the U.S. lawmakers visited representatives of Gaza's Hamas leadership. Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by the United States.

Baird said that the visit represents a change in the United States' attitude and approach to Gaza, under newly elected President Barack Obama.

The destruction from Israel's recent military operation in Gaza was beyond description, Ellison said. The two men visited the United Nations headquarters in Gaza City, and toured homes that had been destroyed in Israel's three-week military campaign.

MOHAMMED ABED/AFP/Getty Images. US Democratic Congressmen Keith Ellison (R) and Brian Baird (2nd R) listen to a Palestinian owner of a company that was destroyed during Israel's 22-day offensive during a visit to the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.

Kerry visited the site of the American school in northern Gaza, which was destroyed in the recent conflict, his representative said. He is later scheduled to visit U.N. headquarters in Gaza City.

He also visited the southern Israeli town of Sderot, a frequent target of rocket attacks launched by militants in Gaza.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images.Kerry visited the Israeli town of Sderot.

Israel launched its military operation in Gaza on December 27 to halt those rocket attacks.

Baird and Ellison say they plan to visit Sderot on Friday.

Americans have been prohibited from traveling to Gaza since 2003, when a U.S. diplomatic convoy was hit by a roadside bomb. There were two exceptions to that ban, when State Department personnel visited the Palestinian territory twice in 2005.

No U.S. officials have visited Gaza since Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007, effectively splitting the Palestinian government.

A day before heading to Gaza, the U.S. delegation visited Palestinian leaders in Ramallah, West Bank.

On the same day of the delegation's visit, Israeli aircraft bombed six tunnels along the Egypt-Gaza border in response to several rocket and mortar strikes on southern Israel, the Israeli military said.

The airstrikes caused explosions in some of the tunnels along the Rafah border crossing, the Israel Defense Forces said. Palestinian security sources confirmed the Israeli airstrike in Rafah.

There were no initial reports of casualties.

Israel accuses Gaza's Hamas leadership of using the tunnels to smuggle weapons into the Palestinian territory.

But Palestinians say the tunnels are necessary to get basic food supplies that are not available in Gaza because of Israel's closure of its border crossings and seaports.
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CNN Jerusalem Bureau Chief Kevin Flower contributed to this report.

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BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) - The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at then-President George W. Bush told a judge Thursday that he was protesting against the U.S. "occupation" of Iraq.

TV reporter Muntadhar al-Zaidi, shown in a file photo, appeared in court to loud applause and cheers.

1 of 3 Muntadhar al-Zaidi's hour-long appearance at the Central Criminal Court of Iraq was his first public appearance since his arrest two months ago.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images. Head of the Defence team representing jailed journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, Dia al-Saadi speaks to the press.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images. Udai, the brother of jailed journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, is surrounded by the press as he leaves the Central Criminal Court in Baghdad.

Al-Zaidi told the judge that he had intended to humiliate Bush in the past. As Bush listed the gains made in Iraq during the mid-December news conference, al-Zaidi said, he was thinking about the millions of civilians who had been killed, widowed or displaced.

Many Iraqis call the presence of American troops in Iraq an occupation.

The trial will resume March 12 while the court asks the Cabinet to clarify whether Bush's visit was official or not.

Al-Zaidi is charged with "assaulting a foreign head of state on an official visit to Iraq."

In December, al-Zaidi's defense team filed an appeal requesting the charge be changed from "assaulting" to "insulting."

According to the Iraqi penal code, anyone who assaults a foreign head of state is punished by "imprisonment for a term of years," with the court deciding the sentence.

Lawyer Dhiyaa al-Saadi told CNN in December that his client could face 15 years in jail if convicted.

On the other hand, insulting a foreign head of state is punishable by a two-year prison sentence and a fine.

Dressed in an olive-green suit and black shoes, al-Zaidi entered the courthouse to loud applause and cheers.

Some family members and supporters, who were waiting outside, draped an Iraqi flag around his neck.

A woman in the crowd shouted, "You hero!"

As he left, the crowd pressed forward to get close to al-Zaidi, who waved as he was led away.

Earlier, lawyer al-Saadi told the al-Baghdadia television network that his client's "morale is high." Al-Baghdadia is the journalist's employer and has been calling for his release.

Al-Zaidi threw both of his shoes at Bush during a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad. Neither shoe hit the president, and other people in the room quickly knocked Al-Zaidi to the ground before security officials arrested him.

By tradition, throwing a shoe is the most insulting act in the Arab world.

His angry gesture touched a defiant nerve throughout the Arab and Muslim world. He is regarded by many people as a hero, and demonstrators have taken to the streets in the Arab world demanding that he be set free.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh contributed to this report.

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