Trade isolates the PKK

Iraqi President Jala Talabini hosted the first official meeting between Turkey and Iraqi Kurdish leaders last month. The Kurdistan Regional Government  (KRG) and Turkey are discussing how to strengthen bilateral trade agreements. Some analysts believe business may help diffuse unrest in the troubled area and promote regional economy and development.  

The toD verdict: Earlier this year, a Turkish offensive into northern Iraq sought with mixed results to pry loose Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) hideouts in the rugged border regions. The attack strained relations between Ankara and Erbil (the northern Iraqi Kurdish capital) to the limit, but didn't sever them. Since 2003, trade between Turkey and northern Iraq hovers around $8 billion. There are 300 Turkish companies doing business in northern Kurdistan. The KRG's cooperation with Turkey may signal a departure from its traditional tacit support and backing of the PKK. Indeed, the head of KRG's foreign relations department, Falah Mustafa, spouted the Ankara line. "We won't let Iraqi Kurdistan's land be used for attacks against Turkey," he said. "The PKK issue is an internal Turkish issue and has nothing to do with [Iraqi] Kurds."

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A car bomb has severely damaged the Danish Embassy in Pakistan's capital city, Islamabad. So far, reports indicate six casualties. No one has claimed responsibility but it is feared the bombing was in retaliation for the  reprint of controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohamed in February of this year. In 2005, the Danish newspaper, Jylland's Posten, published a series of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohamed that sparked global protests in early 2006.

UN Security Council tours Africa

Representatives of member states of the UN Security Council are on a ten-day Africa tour (1 June - 10 June) and are scheduled to visit Sudan, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, DRC, and Kenya. The members met yesterday in Djibouti to discuss Somalia. A plane carrying Somalia's interim President Abdulllah Yusaf to the meeting came under mortar fire. The president arrived unharmed.

Taliban leader in charge

Journalists, photographers, and camera crews gathered in the remote regions of northern Pakistan in May for a rare event. The usually reclusive Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud had called a press conference to denounce the United States.  Days before the conference, the Pakistani army withdrew its forces in and around South Waziristan - Mehsud's stronghold. Both American and Pakistani officials accuse Mehsud of masterminding Benazir Bhutto's assignation.  

Renewed peace efforts in Sudan

Richard Williamson, the UN Special Envoy for Sudan, is scheduled to meet with members of the National Congress of Omar al-Beshir, Sudan's president, and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM). Mr. Williamson is hoping to diffuse the crisis in the oil-rich region of Abyei, an area that borders the northern and southern regions of Sudan. Abyei received special status in a 2005 deal brokered between the warring parties which ended the 21-year civil war. Presently, Sudanese government forces control Abyei's main town with UN peacekeepers patrolling the streets.  

Religious attacks in Egypt

A dispute between Muslims and Coptic Christians outside of Cairo, Egypt has led to allegations of torture and beatings. To help diffuse the situation, three monks were released on Saturday.  Muslims are accusing the Christian sect of illegally expanding a monastery. One Muslim was reported killed in the melee and two Coptic Christian workers were shot.