11.   Their appeals were believed to have been largely responsible for the passage of the new amnesty.

12.   To go along with the new amnesty cutoff date, the deadline for filing amnesty applications will be extended from next Sunday to next May.

13.   Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said a new amnesty bill would be debated as soon as possible, the Hurriyet newspaper reported Thursday.

14.   A Turkish court has denied early release for the man who shot Pope John Paul II under a new amnesty for prisoners, a newspaper reported Wednesday.

15.   President Hafez Assad Thursday introduced a draft decree in parliament for a new amnesty, but it was not immediately clear whether it includes political prisoners.

16.   Some migrant worker advocates have opposed such changes and are seeking a new amnesty program instead.

17.   The commission has since been inundated with new amnesty applications.

18.   The commission since has been inundated with new amnesty applications.

19.   The government says there was an influx of workers after the amnesty period who thought they would be legalized under new amnesties.

20.   The European Union and other foreign mediators had also pressured for the new amnesty law.