Amman, Jordan  - Florence Kiplagat ended a 15-year drought for Kenya at the cross-country running world championships on Saturday while Ethiopia got another win in the men's race from Gebre-egziabher Gebremariam.

Kiplagat came from behind to beat compatriot Linet Masai, who had built what appeared a decisive advantage in the closing stages, by three seconds in the 8-kilometres race.

Amman - Arab stock markets advanced across the board this week, receiving momentum from US President Barack Obama's plans to spur the economy, gains scored by global bourses and rising oil prices, financial analysts said Friday.

However, they warned that the rally could be "short-lived" due to ambiguity surrounding the outcome of blueprints adopted by the world's leading economic powers to handle the economic downturn.

Amman  - International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo on Thursday said Sudanese President Omar al- Bashir's trips to neighbouring countries was "a sign of desperation."

"It seems to me that al-Bashir's trips are nothing more than a sign of desperation rather than a challenge to the ICC," Moreno- Ocampo said in a telephone interview with the Doha-based al-Jazeera satellite television channel.

Amman/Vatican - Pope Benedict XVI is to visit Jordan's largest mosque and meet with Islamic scholars during his four-day trip to the country starting May 8 at the invitation of King Abdullah II, the royal court announced Thursday.

During his visit to the mosque named after the late King Hussein Bin Talal, the pontiff will also meet with heads of the Jordanian universities and members of the diplomatic corps in Amman, the royal court statement said.

Amman - Arab stock markets reacted positively this week to good news out of Wall Street and other global markets as well as to rising oil prices, financial analysts said Friday.

However, they expected regional markets to plateau in the coming weeks as investors monitor the first quarter results and world developments.

Amman - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in Amman Friday for talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II on means of closing Arab ranks ahead of the regular Arab summit conference in Doha at the end of March.

The visit is the culmination of moves by the two countries to sidestep what appeared to be a cooling in the ties between Amman and Damascus that followed Jordan's failure to attend the Doha Arab summit, diplomats said.

This had been called by Qatar at the height of the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip in January to decide counter steps against the Jewish state.