Crisis in Turkey
A memorandum issued over the weekend by the Turkish military has prompted words of caution and outrage inside Turkey. The memorandum, which threatened army intervention in defence of Turkish secularism, comes at a time of high tension in Turkey over the possibility of Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, a moderate Islamist, becoming the next president.
Turkish critics have lashed out against the "Jacobinism" of the hard-line secularists, stressed that "laicism" cannot be maintained at the expense of the rule of law, and lambasted the military for threatening a coup.
At the same time, hundreds of thousands of nationalist protesters took to the streets across Turkey over the weekend to protest against the "erosion" of the secular framework of the country, and the encroachment of religion under the ruling AK party.
Read more about the rise of Turkish neo-nationalism or "ulusalcilik" on T.oD.net.
Athens police station attacked
Suspected anarchist militants through a hand-grenade and fired numerous rounds of a semi-automatic weapon into a police station in Athens today. Such violence is on the rise in Greece, with a number of similar incidents in the past week.
On T.oD.net, George Kassimeris berates the Greek authorities for once again failing to assess and respond to the threat of political violence in the country.
Ancient resonance for Kofi
In Istanbul, where "east meets west", Kofi Annan regards the chiselled peace treaty of 1279 BC between the Hittites and the Egyptians and sees in it inspiration for forging a contemporary "alliance of civilisations".
A fresh intifada?
Hamas officials have warned Israeli and international officials that conditions in the occupied West Bank and Gaza are ripe for a fresh uprising. Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has been severely chastised by the findings of a full investigation into the conduct of last year's invasion of Lebanon.
Syria's fortified missile city
Israeli officials have accused Damascus of building a secret underground facility where Syria is busy manufacturing and storing missiles for possible use against Israel. Syrian officials have made overtures of peace in recent months that Tel Aviv continues to reject, citing Damascus' alleged ties to militant groups in Lebanon and the occupied territories.
Karzai meets Musharraf to patch up tattered rapport
Afghan and Pakistani presidents Hamid Karzai and Pervez Musharraf met in Ankara to publicly bury the hatchet under the supervision of Turkish president Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Karzai and Musharraf have engaged in a war of words in recent months, with Karzai accusing Islamabad of allowing the infiltration of Taliban militants into Afghanistan over its porous border, and with Musharraf suggesting that Kabul was "soft" on terror.
US officials claimed to have killed hundreds of Taliban fighters in western Afghanistan.
Thousands of Afghans marched in Herat to protest against the killing of civilians by US and Nato forces. The demonstration followed similar protests over the weekend in Jalalabad.
Peshawar blast
A suicide bomber struck a political rally in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing 28 people and narrowly missing Pakistan's interior minister.
Former Pakistani leader Benazir Bhutto accuses the government of colluding with the Islamists. Read more on T.oD.net.
To martyr or not to martyr?
Indian military officials claim to have killed four militants of the Islamist radical group Lakshar-e-Toiba in the disputed state of Kashmir.
Pakistani newspaper Dawn reports the same event as a "fake encounter", accusing Indian troops of "martyring" four Kashmiri youth.
Cabinet-level meetings imminent between Iran and US
Iran confirmed its attendance at a regional meeting on the security situation in Iraq, which US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice will also attend, to be held later this week in Egypt, allowing the possibility to arise of the first cabinet-level meeting between American and Iranian officials since 2004.
In a page out of Washington's book, Iran's top national security official Ali Larijani arrived in Baghdad on a previously unannounced visit.
Iraqi Kurds politicians are fighting against the implementation of a draft oil law that will cede control of numerous oilfields to a state-run company. The dispute threatens to fuel further divisions between the autonomous Kurdish region and the beleaguered central government.
Five jailed for fertiliser plot in UK
Five British men with alleged links to the 7/7 bombers and al-Qaida have been jailed for their involvement in a plot to set off a series of fertiliser-based bombings across the UK.
Shia accuse Yemen of genocide
Shia rebels and dissidents have accused the Yemeni army of waging a campaign of "genocide" against Shia communities in the north of the country. Fighting has escalated in recent months between the government and Shia rebels.
