ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — President Pervez Musharraf swore in a loyalist of slain ex-leader Benazir Bhutto as prime minister today, while two top U.S. envoys held talks with Pakistan's old and new leaders in what some viewed as an ill-timed visit.

Yousaf Raza Gilani, who will front a new government vowing to cut back the U.S.-backed president's powers, appealed for national unity to tackle the crises facing Pakistan, particularly economic problems.

The new government will include the party of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted when Musharraf first seized power in a military coup in 1999.

The coalition partners have vowed to shift power from the presidency to parliament and review Musharraf's counterterrorism policies. Many Pakistanis resent his support of Washington's aggressive campaign against al-Qaida and the Taliban, which are believed to operate in Pakistan's tribal and border regions.

BAGHDAD — Iraqi forces clashed with Shiite militias in the southern oil port of Basra today as a security plan to clamp down on violence between rival militia factions in the region began.With tensions rising, Muqtada al-Sadr's headquarters in Najaf ordered field commanders with his Mahdi Army militia to go on high alert and prepare "to strike the occupiers" and their Iraqi allies, a militia officer said.Al-Sadr has imposed a cease-fire on his militia fighters, a move that is one of the key factors in a steep drop in violence over the past several months.The cease-fire has come under severe strains in recent weeks as U.S. and Iraqi forces detained followers they accuse of belonging to breakaway factions from the movement.The U.S. military said today that five suspected militants were killed in Basra while attempting to place a roadside bomb.

CAIRO, Egypt — An American cargo ship under contract to the U.S. Navy opened fire on a small Egyptian boat while moving through the Suez Canal, the Navy said today. Egyptian authorities said at least one man was killed.The Global Patriot was heading in the direction of the Mediterranean after dark Monday when it was approached by several small boats, according to both Navy and Egyptian officials."The ship warned the small boats — via bridge to bridge radio and a series of warning steps — to turn away. One small boat continued to approach the motor vessel, which then repeatedly fired shots," said the statement from the U.S. Fifth Fleet.The U.S. Navy is very careful about the activities of small boats near war ships ever since the 2000 suicide attack by a motor boat on the USS Cole in Yemen killed 17 sailors.Small boats selling cigarettes and other products often swarm the civilian ships moving through the canal. These waterborne merchants know not to approach military vessels but the Global Patriot looked like a civilian ship, said the official.