WORLD IN BRIEF

SOMALIA

Nearly 6,000 Killed in 2007 In Capital, Group Estimates

Violence in Somalia's war-ravaged capital has killed 5,960 civilians this year, a human rights group said Sunday.

Sudan Ali Ahmed, chairman of Somalia's Elman Human Rights, also said 7,980 people had been wounded and more than 700,000 displaced from their homes as the government has struggled to contain an Islamic insurgency.

An accurate tally is nearly impossible to come by in Mogadishu, one of the world's most violent and lawless cities. Government officials, who have accused Elman of exaggerating death tolls, were not immediately available for comment.

ISRAEL

Olmert: Deadline for Pact Depends on Palestinians

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that Israel is not bound by a December 2008 target for a peace agreement set at last week's U.S.-hosted Middle East summit, telling his cabinet that progress will depend on the Palestinians' ability to rein in militants.

The comments reflected Olmert's internal political weakness. Hard-liners have threatened to bring down his coalition government if he makes too many concessions in peace talks. Olmert spoke a day before Israel was set to release 429 Palestinian prisoners in a gesture to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

CUBA

Nomination Keeps Castro In Step to Remain in Office

In the first official indication that he could remain Cuba's unchallenged leader, Fidel Castro was formally nominated Sunday as a candidate for the communist island's National Assembly, a requirement for continuing as president.

It remained unclear whether the ailing Castro would seek the post, but the nomination keeps his candidacy in play, providing a rare bit of suspense in a Cuban presidential election, analysts said.

HONG KONG