IRAN: Iran's capital appears tense but calm Monday, with no reports of the large-scale demonstrations and street violence that have gripped the city since the disputed June 12 presidential election. Supporters of defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi are urging people to turn on their car headlights in the early eveningas a sign of protest and a show of solidarity. Iranian state radio reported Monday that at least 457 people were arrested Saturday -- a day marked by clashes between security forces and demonstrators that resulted in the deaths of at least 10 people. Tehran's police chief says those detained had provoked civil unrest.
PAKISTAN: Pakistani officials say fightingbetween security forces and Taliban militants intensified Monday in Pakistan's tribal regions, with at least 14 people killed. Authorities say militants began firing rockets at Pakistani military bases in North and South Waziristan late Sunday. No government casualties were reported. Pakistani security officials say the military responded with air strikes on militant targets in several villages in the tribal regions, killing 14 people. They say most of the dead were militants. Several women also were killed.
RUSSIA-CAUCASUS-UNREST: The head of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Ingushetia has been seriously wounded in a bomb attack on his convoy. Russian media say Ingush President Yunus Bek Yevkurov was traveling in a convoy when the roadside bomb went off Monday morning (at 0830 local time / 0430 UTC). He survived but three other people were killed, including his bodyguards. Several people were wounded.
He is the third senior Ingush official to be wounded or killed in a series of attacks in the past three weeks.
NOKOR-US: North Korea described itself Monday as a "proud nuclear power" and threatened to hit back at the United States if attacked. Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the ruling Korean Workers' Party, said it is "nonsense" to say the country threatens the U.S. and claimed it is Washington that threatens the North. In a television interview (with CBS News) scheduled to air Monday (on The Early Show), U.S. President Barack Obama said his administration and the U.S. military are "fully prepared for any contingencies" involving North Korea. He added that the international community is united against North Korea's provocative actions.
SOKOR-JAPAN: South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak will visit Japan next Sunday for talks with Prime Minister Taro Aso. Mr. Lee's office said Monday that during the one-day visit, the two leaders will exchange views on topics including North Korea's nuclear program. It said Mr. Lee will also discuss the state of South Korea-Japan relations and regional and international cooperation.
