An parliamentary panel in Iraq recommended that some 500 candidates should not be allowed to participate in a general election due in March, due to alleged past ties to the Baath party. Sectarian tensions resulted.

It was leaked that Abu Dhabi’s bailout of (Dubai) state-backed Dubai World was only half of the USD 10bn which was previously reported, as USD 5bn was a prior credit commitment. The announcement fueled fears about Dubai’s rescue.

Three people have died in an explosion at a petrol station in Damascus, capital of Syria. The Syrian interior minister ruled out a terrorist attack, and said the tyre of the bus exploded as it was being pumped. The bus was carrying Iranian pilgrims visiting the Sayyida Zeinab shrine for Shia Muslims.

Dubai World outlined its plans to restructure $26bn in debt, following last week’s request for a six-month delay on debt payments. The issue raised fears in the Gulf region and hit global stockmarkets. Abu Dhabi, Dubai’s Emirate neighbour, was reluctant to intervene immediately with a bail-out, and said to review situations on per-case basis.