A summary of the most market affecting world news reported over the weekend.
FALLUJAH, Iraq, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki urged residents in embattled Fallujah Monday to drive out al-Qaida-linked insurgents who have seized control.
Maliki called on the people to "expel the terrorists" so "their areas are not subjected to the danger of armed clashes," state television reported.
Iraqi forces were preparing to retake the city of more than 325,000 people while hundreds fled to escape shelling and air strikes by the government, observers said.
Mowaffak al-Rubaie, a former Iraqi national security adviser, has told the BBC that defending all of Iraq from attacks by al-Qaida-linked militants is impossible.
"This can happen and probably will happen in future because you can't put millions and millions and millions of Iraqis under arms and protect every street all over the country," Rubaie said. "These guys [the militants], they are highly motivated, they are very well-trained, they can do this because they are brainwashed, their understanding of Islam is highly selective. They are brutal. They are ruthless. They are after anarchy."
An adviser to the prime minister has told the BBC insurgents smuggled weapons into Fallujah from neighboring Syria, which is engulfed in a civil war.
Fighting also was reported in Ramadi, which like Fallujah is in Anbar province. Parts of Ramadi, the provincial capital, were controlled by militants.
The United States and Iran have offered military support, but not troops.
The Middle East News Agency reported fighting in Anbar province killed more than 200 people in three days.
TEL AVIV, Israel, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- African migrants rallied in front of foreign embassies in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, the second day of a three-day strike for recognition of asylum rights.
Outside of the U.S Embassy, a crowd estimated to number about 10,000, chanted, "We are refugees," the Jerusalem Post reported.
The migrants planned to deliver letters to the embassies to gain international support for their cause, Israel's Channel 2 reported.
"We don't want to live here for the rest of our lives. We want basic rights until we can return," an Eritrean identified as Dawit, a protest leader, told Channel 2 Monday.
The marchers were expected to stop at the embassies of the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Britain, Ethiopia, as well as offices of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, which on Sunday criticized Israel's detention policy, the Post said.
"I am particularly disquieted about the purpose of the ... 'open' residence facility in Holot which, in its current form and despite its designation as 'open', would appear to operate as a detention center from where there is no release. This means, in effect, indefinite detention," the U.N. unit's representative, Walpurga Englbrecht, said in a statement.
Tens of thousands of asylum-seekers marched through central Tel Aviv Sunday in the largest demonstration ever by the African migrant community in Israel, the Post reported.
African migrants have marched and rallied for two weeks in Tel Aviv to protest implementation of an amendment to the Anti-Infiltration Law and the Holot open detention facility in the south, where hundreds of people have been detained since it opened last month.
Israel's government says most of the 50,000-to-60,000 people are economic migrants, not refugees, who shouldn't be allowed to stay in Israel.
Interior Minister Gideon Saar repeated the government's position that most of the people weren't asylum-seekers, the Times of Israel reported.
"They are demanding collective recognition as refugees in order to plant roots in Israel," Saar said on Army Radio.
The government's case-by-case investigation of the requests is working, Saar said.
"We're seeing a sharp rise in the number of infiltrators who are leaving Israel," he said. "They understand that the government is serious, that we are serious."
DHAKA, Bangladesh, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department said it was disappointed in the elections in Bangladesh, saying they didn't seem to "credibly express" the will of the people.
"With more than half of the seats uncontested and most of the remainder offering only token opposition," the department said Monday in a release, "the results of the just-concluded elections do not appear to credibly express the will of the Bangladeshi people."
Low voter turnout and violence that claimed at least 18 lives marked Bangladesh's parliamentary poll as opposition parties demanded its cancellation.
The Bangladesh Daily Star reported the Sunday elections were the bloodiest since Bangladesh emerged as an independent democracy in 1971 after it broke off from Pakistan following a war in which tens of thousands died.
Ever since the date for the latest elections was announced, 18 parties, led by the main opposition Bangladesh National Party of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, had been calling for a neutral caretaker government to oversee the polls instead of the ruling Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheik Hasina. The prime minister decided to go ahead with the elections despite the opposition's boycott, resulting in the latest round of violence.
"We condemn in the strongest terms the violence from all quarters that continues to mark the prevailing political impasse," the State Department said. "Violence is not an acceptable element of the political process; we call on all to stop committing further violence."
The Daily Star said the ruling Awami League was declared the winner of 74 seats in the 147 of the 300 constituencies where polling was held Sunday. Candidates in another 153 seats had already been declared elected unopposed, giving the ruling party a comfortable two-thirds majority.
The Daily Star said the Awami League is free to form a new government any time.
The Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha news agency said the BNP-led opposition alliance called for a 48-hour countrywide strike and demanded cancellation of the Sunday elections.
Media outlets indicated only four foreign election observers and 30 foreign journalists observed the elections.
"While it remains to be seen what form the new government will take, United States commitment to supporting the people of Bangladesh remains undiminished," the State Department statement said. "To that end, we encourage the government of Bangladesh and opposition parties to engage in immediate dialogue to find a way to hold as soon as possible elections that are free, fair, peaceful and credible, reflecting the will of the Bangladeshi people."
ST. JOHN'S, Newfoundland, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- As power outages in Newfoundland entered a fifth day Monday, officials questioned Premier Kathy Dunderdale's decision not to label the situation a crisis.
Some 30,000 households and other Newfoundland Power customers were still without power early Monday, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
Authorities are looking into what caused blackouts Thursday, which were followed by more outages throughout the weekend due to a blizzard and fire at a substation that knocked out power to much of St. John's.
New Democratic Party Leader Lorraine Michael said she strongly disagreed with Premier Dunderdale's decision to call the situation in the province a serious challenge instead of a crisis.
"The people of the province believe there is a crisis," Michael said. "I wish the premier would start using the language of the experience of the people of the province. We have a crisis when we cannot meet peak moments during the year."
Opposition Leader Dwight Ball agreed with Michael.
"This is a crisis, there's no doubt about that," Ball told CBC News. "Any time that you have to take this kind of generation out of service in January, I would consider that a crisis."
Meanwhile, the province closed all public schools Monday and Tuesday, and said all government employees will be sent home at 5 p.m. to keep energy demands low.
JAKARTA, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- Nearly 22,000 people have fled communities around Indonesia's Mount Sinabung, which has erupted more than 100 times in the past two days, officials say.
The Geology Disaster Mitigation and Vulcanology Center said 115 eruptions had been recorded since activity began Saturday, the Antara news agency reported Monday.
Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency, called on people remaining in the area to remain alert. He said the status of the volcano, on the island of North Sumatra, had risen to the "cautious" level, causing residents within a three- to four-mile radius of Sinabung's southeast slope to evacuate.
Eruptions could be accompanied by the ejection of material within a three-mile radius of the volcano, he added.
Evacuees are being sheltered at 33 centers.
The volcanic activity comes during a period of intense rain in the region.
BANGKOK, Thailand, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Singapore Airlines said Sunday it was reducing is schedule of flights into Thailand as political turmoil continues.
The move may indicate a crack in Thailand's thriving tourism industry, which the Wall Street Journal said had thus far not experienced much impact from the ongoing street protests and uncertainty.
The Journal said Sunday that may be changing. Singapore Airlines said its temporary flight cancellations this winter were due to flagging demand, and a Thai hotel association predicted a 5.0% decline in occupancy for 2014.
Tourists told the newspaper the sometimes-violent street demonstrations by anti-government protesters were largely out of sight to them; however analysts have warned that could change if the activists shift their focus to disrupting traffic or shutting down Bangkok's airport.
The Thai Chamber of Commerce recently advised its member companies to build up inventories and stockpiles of vital supplies in the event the unrest disrupts logistics.
JERUSALEM, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said talks between the Israelis and Palestinians remained on track Sunday before jetting off to Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
Kerry planned to meet with the kings of the two Arab nations to discuss the negotiations, which he said were still focused on the thornier issues between the two parties.
"I can tell everybody all of the core issues are on the table," Kerry said. "The difficult issues of security, of territory, borders, the future of the refugee issue, the status ultimately of the city of Jerusalem, and the end of conflict and of claims. How you arrive at a fair resolution of all of these complicated issues is obviously at the core of what we are talking about."
Kerry had little progress to report at a news conference in Jerusalem prior to his departure, but insisted the negotiations were serious and remained focused on an eventual end to the long-running standoff.
"We are at the table today because of the determination to try to resolve this issue, and both of them have made the tough choices to stay at that table," said Kerry. "We are now at a point where the choices narrow down and the choices are obviously real and difficult."
Kerry adamantly refused to provide details about exactly what obstacles remained or where progress had been made. He said his visits to Jordan and Saudi Arabia would include briefings with the kings of the two Arab nations.
Kerry said the coming days would be devoted to detail work among Israeli, Palestinian and U.S. officials while he returned to the United States. "We will continue discussions at staff level for a period of time," he said. "But as our teams flesh out some of the concepts that are on the table, as necessary, I will return."
The United States was also closely watching planned talks in South Sudan, where political rivalry in the fledgling nation has degenerated into factional fighting between the government and forces loyal to the former vice president.
Kerry said the recently announced negotiations should be serious and should not be used as a stalling tactic by either side while they jostle for military advantage. "The United States will support those who seek peace, but we will deny support and we will work to apply international pressure to any elements that attempt to use force to seize power," he said. "That is not acceptable."
ANKARA, Turkey, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday an investigation into corruption in his government is a coup attempt by the judiciary.
"In this process, there has been a coup attempt by the judiciary in Turkey," Euronews quoted Erdogan as telling a group of journalists.
"There has been an attempt to seize the sovereignty from the people and transfer it to the judiciary."
The corruption investigation has weakened Erdogan, Euronews said. He also suggested that a way could be found to retry military officers convicted of plotting a coup, suggesting he feels he needs help from Turkey's powerful military, Today's Zaman reported.
Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said Friday no general amnesty would be granted the officers convicted of the coup attempt. Their supporters accused police and judges Thursday of fabricating evidence.
Erdogan's Freedom and Justice Party is moderately Islamist. This has put his government at odds with the military, which sees itself as the defender of the secular legacy of Kemal Ataturk, founder of the modern Turkish state.
TUNIS, Tunisia, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Politicians in Tunisia, where the Arab Spring had its beginnings in 2011, said they will finalize a new Constitution by the uprising's three-year anniversary.
Lawmakers in the nation's 216-member Parliament are working three sessions per day to debate and pass each article of the nation's long-awaited -- and much maligned -- first democratic governing document. The BBC said much skepticism exists among average Tunisians over the process and what the Constitution will actually do to address problems over security and corruption, but lawmakers were optimistic.
The moderate Islamist Ennahda party had been in control after the popular uprising ousted former dictator Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali Jan. 14, 2011. Political turmoil ensued when two popular secular political opponents were assassinated in 2013.
While Ennahda leaders condemned the killings, secular opposition leaders said Ennahda wasn't doing enough to tamp down militant Islamists in its ranks.
Ennahda leaders agreed to step down from power and give way to a caretaker government until a Constitution could be reached and new elections held.
It appears there is momentum toward finishing the process, with lawmakers optimistic they'll meet the self-imposed Jan. 14 deadline, the report said.
"I couldn't eat much this morning I was so stressed out. This is historic, I can't believe I am here," Mabrouka Mbarek, an assembly member for CPR, part of the interim governing coalition, told the BBC.