moral
weight to the Arab plan.
An investigation panel in Iraq has backed accusations that the country's Sunni Vice-President Tariq al-Hashimi has been behind attacks on security officials and Shia pilgrims. The Shia Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sought his arrest in December,
triggering
a political crisis between Shia and Sunni political factions. Mr Hashimi has taken refuge in the autonomous Kurdish region. He denies all charges.
Moves are afoot in Germany to strip the President Christian Wulff of his
immunity
from prosecution. The prosecutor said there was an initial suspicion that Mr Wulff improperly accepted and granted benefits. He has denied any wrongdoing. With more details, here's Thomas Baecker.
Doubts about Mr Wulff's
probity
centre on his dealings with a film-producer friend. In 2006, the state of Lower Saxony guaranteed a loan of more than $5m for one of his friend's companies. It's alleged that in return Mr Wulff and his wife were invited on luxury holidays. The public prosecutor has now asked lawmakers in the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, to lift the president's immunity so a formal investigation can start. Mr Wulff has been hit by a series of scandals, among them benefiting from an improper arrangement for a personal loan and later trying to
bully
a newspaper editor not to run the story.
World News from the BBC
Figures released today have highlighted the