Some 3, 000 U.S. troops man the al-Udeid air base in Qatar, just across the gulf from Iraq.

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As Mr Al Fayed learned when he sought British citizenship, and Man U's Irishmen did when they quarrelled with the club's manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, last winter, local acceptance does not come easy.

ECONOMIST: Football

When asked if his son met with the man charged with trying to blow up a U.S.-bound plane on Christmas day, al-Awlaki's father said it's not likely.

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Al-Sharaa headed meetings with the former U.N. and Arab League point man on Syria, Kofi Annan, and international officials visiting Syria.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Al-Sadr's threat was issued the same day that a man claiming to be the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq urged his fighters to launch an offensive against U.S. forces in the next few weeks.

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