A US raid in the predominantly Shia city of Kut in southern Iraq before dawn on Sunday has been denounced as a "crime" by the country's prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki.
The toD verdict: According to US officials the raid, which killed two civilians, was aimed at Shia insurgents and approved by the Iraqi government. However, the government slammed the operation as a violation of the security pact between the two countries, and hundreds of people protested against the action. The pact states that Iraqi consent must be gained for all military operations, and under it US soldiers are immune for prosecution except crimes committed off-duty. Iraqi officials have asked for those responsible to be handed over and dealt with in their courts. The Kut provincial police chief, Raed Shakir Jawdat, said he was unaware that the raid was to take place.
Elsewhere in Iraq, two suicide explosions on Friday killed at least 60 people and injured 125 in Baghdad. Bombings the day before resulted in 90 fatalities, the highest death toll that the country has seen in a single day this year. Friday's attack targeted worshippers and funeral-goers on their way to mosque.
The United Nations has denounced the renewed violence in Iraq, which could have adverse implications for US President Barack Obama's plans to withdraw troops from the country's cities by July this year, a policy which is directly linked to increased involvement in the war in Afghanistan.
War and peace in Pakistan
The Pakistani military began a campaign in Lower Dir on Sunday, in an attempt to combat Taliban forces in the regions surrounding the Swat Valley. Despite Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari's concessions in February to Taliban groups over the implementation of Sharia law in Swat, his government is determined that Taliban control will not spread outside its current boundaries. On the first day of the operation, government reports claimed that "scores" of militants had already been killed and, while these figures remain unconfirmed, independent witnesses report intense exchanges of gunfire in the area.
Head of US central command General David Petraeus has criticised the Pakistani government for its dealings with Taliban insurgents. However, Stephen M. Walt argues in Foreign Policy that the dangers more likely lies in an anti-American "inside job" rather than with Taliban militants. He criticises the unilateral drone attacks carried out by the US, the most recent of which killed five people in South Waziristan on Sunday.
Despite the launch of the new military operation, the peace deal inside the Swat Valley itself is supposedly still intact. A rally for peace which took place in northwestern Pakistan on Sunday attracted thousands of people, including important public and political figures.
Kurdish separatists attack Iranian police bases
Eleven Iranian police officers and 10 men, reportedly members of the Kurdish resistance group Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), were killed when violence broke out in the west of the country on Friday night. Official reports claim that fighting started at a police station in Ravansar town after it was invaded by PJAK rebels, a group which is associated with the Turkish Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), which has been involved in the violent struggle for Kurdish independence since 1984. The following day, another police base in Kordestan province was attacked by insurgents, resulting in the death of one police officer. Iran's western regions share a border with Iraq and house a large number of Iranian Kurds.
Last Thursday, an Iranian police officer was killed in an unrelated incident when he and a colleague crossed the Afghan border, despite warnings against doing so.
Ethnic violence kills hundreds in Sudan
Ethnic violence erupted in southern Sudan over the weekend between the Murle and Lou Nuer tribes, in what was thought to be a retaliatory action for Murle theft of cattle early in the year. The clashes broke out in Jonglei state, and at least 177 people had been killed by Sunday, with the expected final death toll set at over 300. The weekend's violence was the worst seen in the area since fighting in March killed over 450. The UN is set to travel to the region early this week to help pacify the situation and provide humanitarian support. The French oil giant Total has continued its operations in Sudan, Africa's sixth-largest oil producer, despite the unstable situation.
Protestors turn against Madagascar's new president
Protestors in Madagascar ignored a ban on demonstrations last Thursday to register their opposition to the new government, led by Andry Rajoelina, and their support for the ousted president Marc Ravalomanana. Public rallies were banned on Tuesday following the death of at least three people, including a police officer, the previous day at the hands of government troops. Thursday's protests, which saw the use of tear gas and warning shots to repel the crowds, resulted in around 36 casualties and at least four arrests. Ravalomanana, following his forced resignation in March when soldiers stormed his offices, has been forced into exile..
Sri Lankan government calls LTTE ceasefire proposal a "joke"
The Sri Lankan government categorically rejected the ceasefire proposal put in place by the rebel group the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Sunday. The LTTE offered a ceasefire in response to what they called "an unprecedented humanitarian crisis", however Mahinda Rajapaksa's government called it a "gimmick" and said that the conflict could only end when their opponents surrendered.
The LTTE have lost much ground in past months of fighting, and it has been suggested that the ceasefire proposal is just a way of stalling while they regroup. Representatives of the Sri Lankan army have reported continued Tamil fighting, and indeed the UN said that the mass exodus of civilians that would be expected if some kind of temporary peace had been implemented has not occurred. LTTE spokespeople claim that the Sri Lankan government is responsible for continued violence and that unilateral bombings have continued despite their efforts to secure a ceasefire. Independent access to the crisis zone is still forbidden, thus rendering the transmission of accurate information impossible. According to UN figures, around 6,500 refugees have died in the recent fighting.
