Iraq US troops and crack Iraqi soldiers surged into rubble-strewn districts in the heart of Fallujah, seizing one third of the city after hours of street fighting with rebels in the largest military onslaught since the war. Mideast Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat slipped closer to death, falling into what doctors described as a deeper coma before a delegation of top Palestinian figures came to visit his bedside at a French military hospital. Ivory Coast South African President Thabo Mbeki was to meet his Ivory Coast counterpart Laurent Gbagbo, hoping to ease tensions after a weekend of violence that has raised fears of a return to the conflict that has split the west African state for two years. Mideast The political mouthpiece of the settler movement was poised to resign from Ariel Sharon's coalition government after the Israeli prime minister refused to bow to demands to put his Gaza pullout plan to a national referendum. Iraq Insurgents took control of the centre of the flashpoint Iraqi city of Ramadi after 24 hours of clashes with US forces, an AFP correspondent said. Iran The United States is skeptical about the EU's efforts to cut a deal with Iran to get it to give up uranium enrichment that could be used to make nuclear weapons, a senior US official said here. Iran Iran is capable of mass-producing the Shahab-3, a ballistic missile capable of hitting Israel, Defence Minister Ali Shamkhani said. Pakistan US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage told Pakistani leaders that the Bush administration would work more closely with Islamabad during its second term in office, officials said. Germany Germany marks the 15th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with fond memories of that day's joyous celebrations but mounting frustration over the enduring divisions between East and West. Germany A train carrying highly radioactive nuclear waste reached a German dump at the end of a 600-kilometer (370-mile) odyssey from northern France clouded by the death of an environmentalist. Netherlands Thousands were expected to mourn at the funeral of controversial Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, allegedly killed by a suspected Islamic radical in an attack which has shocked traditionally tolerant Dutch society and fuelled ethnic tensions. Thailand A 60-year-old Buddhist was beheaded in troubled southern Thailand in revenge for the deaths of 87 Muslim protesters two weeks ago, most of them in army custody, police said.