PAKISTAN: Exchanges of fire between the Pakistani army and NATO forces

Two soldiers were wounded Tuesday in north-western Pakistan in the crossfire with NATO helicopters from Afghanistan, according to the Pakistani army has "strongly protested" against what it calls a "violation "of its airspace.

In Kabul, a Western officer acted under cover of anonymity, as helicopters, operating in Afghanistan had returned fire after being fired at from Pakistan.

Islamabad denounced the military frequently raids by international forces in the border tribal areas, the stronghold of Pakistani Taliban chief sanctuary in the world of Al Qaeda and Afghan Taliban rear base.

The incident occurred at dawn in the frontier tribal district of North Waziristan.

"Two helicopters violated Pakistani airspace (...) and our troops at a military post opened fire on them.In a firefight, two of our soldiers were injured, "says the Pakistani army in a statement.

"The Pakistani army has strongly protested" to the NATO force in Afghanistan (ISAF), concludes the text.

Earlier, without mention of Pakistani firing, military officials had assured him, on condition of anonymity, that "two helicopters had violated NATO airspace and bombed a military post, injuring two soldiers in the area Wacha Bibi ".

In Kabul, the NATO international force (Isaf) "has heard of a possible incident" at this point of the border. "We are investigating," he told AFP Lt. Col. John L.Dorrian, the public relations department of the force, composed by American soldiers for over two-thirds.

For his part, a Western military official in Kabul confirmed that both NATO aircraft that were operating on the Afghan side had responded to fire from Pakistan.

"Two helicopters were flying in the coverage area of ​​a forward base" international forces "that was taken under fire by fire from the Pakistani side," he told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"One of the devices has also suffered under fire from across the border, but did not return fire immediately.He did when he was again under fire, "the source said.

This latest incident comes as relations between the U.S. and Pakistan, its key ally in its "war against terrorism, have deteriorated after a squad of U.S. Special Forces helicopter from Afghanistan, had eliminated Osama bin Laden in a villa in Abbottabad, a city garrison two hours drive north of Islamabad.

North Waziristan is the stronghold of Pakistani Taliban allied with al-Qaeda and the main rear base for Taliban's Haqqani network, the bete noire of American troops and the Afghan government.

The Pakistani military often accuse NATO of violating his space, or bombardment from Afghanistan, especially when its troops pursuing Taliban who attacked them. It has happened in the past that these shots, intentionally or not, reach positions of the Pakistani army.

FOOTBALL: Opposed to the final Lille, PSG dream to keep "his" Coupe de France

AFP - The Cup of France offered Saturday at the Stade de France a gala final between the two teams most spectacular Ligue 1: Lille in contention for the double, and Paris St Germain, the defending champion and a true expert the test in search of a ninth trophy.

Before you plunge into the deep end of the championship and look to a possible third crown, Lille will want first to end a long drought and could even raise the Cup, 56 years after their fifth and final victory.

If Lille could have without the services of one of his masterpieces of the medium, Florent Balmont (thigh tear), he can always count on the young Belgian Hazard (20 years) and a true specialist in the Cup person Mickaël Landreau.

The guard, who lifted the trophy twice with Nantes (1999, 2000), has never lost a final and has even done by hand this week in L1 by stopping a penalty kick against the Greens. After releasing his first club in 8th-finals (1-1 ap, 3 tab 2), it could close the loop by crucifying PSG, where he played from 2006 to 2009.

With 8 trophies to their credit, the Parisians are in fact very far from the record of wins in the Coupe de France held by the enemy Marseille (10).

While the capital club is back to the forefront after several lackluster seasons, a new coronation at the Stade de France after he won in 2010 against Monaco (1-0 aet) Boost without doubt struggling with training Lyon return to the Champions League for the first time since 2004.

EGYPT: The detention of Hosni Mubarak extended

AFP - The Egyptian judiciary said Tuesday it has extended the detention of former President Hosni Mubarak for 15 days as part of the investigation into the suppression of anti-regime protests earlier this year.

The Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud "ordered the preventive detention of former President Hosni Mubarak for 15 days, beginning at the end of his current period of detention" May 12, said in a statement.

The spokesman for the Prosecutor's Office said a team of investigators visited the hospital Tuesday in Sharm el-Sheikh on the Red Sea, where Mr.Mubarak, for further interrogation.

A source at the prosecutor's office told AFP that he would announce in coming days if Mr. Mubarak will be tried or not.

He could be sentenced to up to hanging if convicted, had said in late April the Minister of Justice, Abdel Aziz al-Guindi.

The former president, 83 years, driven by 11 February a popular revolt that ended three decades of power, had been placed in custody April 13 for periods of 15 days, renewable.He is charged along with his two son Gamal and Alaa to the violent repression of the protest movement and is suspected of corruption.

Mr.Mubarak is being treated since April 12 at the international hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh resort in Sinai, after having a heart attack during interrogation.

He is asked about his responsibility in the deaths of protesters during the revolt (January 25 to February 11) and the controversial contracts for the sale of Egyptian gas to Israel which led to losses of several billion dollars for the country, according the prosecution.

According to one report, 846 civilians died in the protests that led to the departure Mubarak.A member of the commission of inquiry into the suppression indicated that the former president was complicit in the bloodshed.

Former Interior Minister Habib el-Adli is on trial for ordering the firing against demonstrators, after being sentenced to twelve years in prison Thursday for embezzlement.

More than two months after the fall of M.Mubarak, the pressure remains high in Egypt for the former president and his immediate family are brought to justice swiftly.

Justice had asked the Interior Ministry being transferred to Tora prison in the southern outskirts of Cairo, where his son already Alaa and Gamal, also detained for periods of 15 days, renewable, and former Ministers and senior officials of the regime.

But the department ruled that the prison hospital was not adequately equipped to cope with any rapid deterioration in his health.

On 10 April, Mr. Mubarak was out for the first time in its silence to be a victim of "defamation". In a speech sound, he denounced the "smear campaigns" against him and defended his "reputation" and his "integrity." He assured that neither he nor his wife Suzanne had any assets abroad and said he was ready to cooperate with the law.

BELARUS: President Lukashenko sees foreign forces behind the bombing of Minsk

At least 12 people were killed and more than a hundred injured Monday night in an attack on the subway in Minsk, in the center of the capital of Belarus, President Alexander Lukashenko does not exclude that the explosion could have been organized "from abroad".

"A terrorist attack occurred around 5:54 p.m. today at the station Oktyabrskaya" said Assistant Attorney General Andrei Chved, following an emergency meeting convened by Mr Lukashenko a few hours after the tragedy.

"I told you we would not let us live in peace," saidLukashenko was quoted by the Ria Novosti agency, during the meeting with senior officials of the country.

"I do not exclude that this 'gift' comes from abroad, but we must also look at us," added the President who instructed the authorities to do everything to solve this case.

"The head of the KGB, you are personally responsible for the investigation," he said, addressing the chief of security.

The initial balance of 11 dead was increased to 12 after the death of one of the wounded into the night, said Monday morning the KGB, saying that a total of 149 people needed medical treatment and 22 of them are in serious condition.

"The culprits must be found as soon as possible.Return the entire country, "said Mr Lukashenko, according to Ria Novosti.

The blast occurred at a gas station near the Belarusian presidency, said a witness told AFP.

Shortly after the explosion, black smoke coming out of the Oktyabrskaya metro station and passengers escaped from the underground, face bloodied, some with tattered clothes, witnesses said.

"There are many wounded, we are not able to give figures," said emergency medical services in the city.

Television images showed smoke-filled subway station, the wounded on the ground or leaning against the pillars, while others fled.

"People are evacuated from the station.The resort itself is very smoky. There are many wounded exits, "he told a correspondent of the newspaper online naviny.by Belarus, who was on site.

"People go out in blood the underpass leading to the subway, they have their hands and face covered in blood.Smoke coming from the underground, "he added.

Belarus, ruled with an iron fist by Alexander Lukashenko in power for 16 years, had not undergone major attack in recent years.

In July 2008, an artisanal craft had exploded in the center of Minsk on the feast of the independence of this former Soviet republic, making about fifty wounded, according to news reports.

The explosion occurred on Monday amid political tensions in Belarus, where many opponents were arrested in late December after the controversial re-election of Mr Lukashenko.

The re-election with over 80% of the votes of Mr.Lukashenko on December 19 had caused a major opposition demonstration in Minsk, denouncing massive fraud.

The rally was dispersed and manhandled by police and more than 600 people were arrested.

Twenty-two opponents are still in custody and five have fled abroad, including one of the presidential candidates, Ales Mikhalevitch, who received political asylum in the Czech Republic.

Dozens of opponents, including several presidential candidates, have been charged with "organizing mass disturbances" in the wake of these events and could face up to 15 years in prison.

The Belarusian government had estimated that the April 5 December demonstration against the reelection of Mr. Lukashenko was an attempted coup "plotted with representatives from abroad".

AFGHANISTAN: New deadly protests against the burning of the Koran

AFP - Four people were killed and 32 wounded Saturday in Kandahar (southern Afghanistan) during a demonstration against the recent book burning of a Quran in the U.S. in the aftermath of a deadly attack against the UN in north at a similar event, according to a doctor.

"Four bodies were brought to the hospital.Thirty-two people wounded by bullets or stones, were admitted to our hospital, "he told AFP Dr. Abdul QAYOUM Pukhla, doctor at Mirwais hospital in Kandahar.

The AFP correspondent in Kandahar had previously seen two bodies, worn by men who described themselves as protesters, but did not elaborate on the identity of the dead or the circumstances of their deaths.

The protesters, now several thousand, were divided into several groups around Kandahar, the largest city in southern Afghanistan and former capital of the Taliban regime, where heavy gunfire continued to be heard, "said correspondent AFP.

One group headed for the provincial governor's offices, the other that the local offices of the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). The two groups were blocked for an hour for the police, quite far from the complex, UNAM.

The police, massively deployed, now banned vehicles and pedestrians to circulate, including journalists.

From the roof of a building, he saw smoke rising from several parts of the city.

According to the AFP correspondent, a large crowd is coming from the suburbs (well, any) of the city, former capital of the Taliban regime, and attempts to head downtown.

In town, the protesters marched chanting "Death to America" ​​and "Death to (Hamid) Karzai," the Afghan president."They have insulted our Quran," shouted one of them.

An Afghan journalist was attacked by protesters, who hit him and broke his camera, according to the AFP correspondent.

"Around 9:00 (4:30 GMT) a peaceful demonstration against the burning of the Koran in the United States began.Destructive elements have infiltrated the crowd and tried to create violence, "he told AFP Zalmai Ayoubi, spokesman of provincial authorities.

"The situation is under control of the police," he said.

Seven employees of foreign UN, four Nepalese and three Europeans, were killed Friday in the attack on UN offices in Mazar-I-Sharif, the largest city in northern Afghanistan, during a demonstration against the recent public burning of the Koran by American fundamentalist pastor.

The attack was the deadliest against the UN in Afghanistan since the invasion of that country by an international coalition in late 2001 to overthrow the Taliban regime.

Five Afghan demonstrators were also killed, according to the governor of Balkh province, including Mazar-i-Sharif is the capital.

AFP - A "race against time" is bound to cool reactors at the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident in Japan, said Friday the chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Yukiya Amano.

"The cooling is extremely important, so I think it's a race against time," he said in Tokyo after meeting Japanese Prime Minister, Naoto Kan.

The accident at the plant "very serious", it is important that "the international community, including the IAEA," participated in efforts to secure the situation, "he said.

Mr.Amano said further that the IAEA would measure the level of radioactivity in Tokyo, probably on Friday evening, according to comments reported by the agency Jiji.

The level of injury increased by 4 to 5 on a scale of up to 7

The Nuclear Safety Agency Japanese statement Friday from April to May the level of the nuclear accident in Fukushima on the scale of nuclear and radiological events (INES), which runs until 7.

The importance of a problem occurring in a nuclear site is assessed using this scale, level 0 being no abnormality and level 7, the most important, a major accident like Chernobyl ( Ukraine) in 1986.

The increase in severity by the Japanese space agency's accident Fukushima at the same level as that at Three Mile Island (USA) in 1979.

The French Nuclear Safety Authority for its part considers that the accident Fukushima is the severity level 6.

He hopes to "help reassure the Japanese public" by making measurements distinct from those of the Japanese government.

GRAPHICS: The revolt in the Arab cause a spike in oil prices

The instability of the regimes in North Africa and the Middle East leading to higher oil prices with the global economy, still recovering from the financial crisis of 2008, is without.

In an attempt to limit the soaring prices, the chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke is mounted to the front on Tuesday. In a speech to U.S. lawmakers, he tried to reassure the markets by saying that high oil prices will probably lead to no significant inflation.Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, pledged to increase its crude production.

But that was not enough to counter rising oil prices, which have continued to rise in the markets. In two and a half months, the price of a barrel of crude has increased nearly $ 20.

Souces: db-markets.com; digitallook.com

17 décembre 2010 to 91.67 dollars (U.S.) - In a gesture of despair, the young unemployed Bouazizi Mohammed himself on fire in Tunisia, triggering a wave of protests against the ruling regime unprecedented in the country.The anger against the ruling regimes is rapidly spreading to neighboring countries.

14 janvier 2011 to 98.38 dollars (U.S.) - Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali fled the country.

25 janvier 2011 to 95.35 dollars (U.S.) - Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Tahrir Square, Cairo, call for the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak, in power for 30 years in Egypt.

11 février 2011 to 101.11 dollars (U.S.) - After two weeks of protest, the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down under pressure from the street.

17 février 2011 to 104.01 dollars (U.S.) - In Bahrain, riot police violently dispersed demonstrators camp who had moved to the center of the capital, Manama.The same day, police opened fire against protesters in Yemen and Libya.

23 février 2011 to 110.34 dollars (U.S.) - Libya's second city, Benghazi, fell to the opposition.

TUNISIA: Three killed in clashes in Tunis

AFP - Three people died in clashes Saturday between demonstrators and police in downtown Tunis, said the interior ministry in a statement.

The statement said "three people were killed among the twelve who have been injured in the clashes and were transferred to a hospital to be treated."The use of the term "person" suggests that this would be protesters.

"Several members of security forces were injured to varying degrees," the statement said without specifying their number.

On the other hand, the statement said, "more than 100 people were arrested on Saturday" and "88 other perpetrators of acts of vandalism were arrested the day", during the first clashes between police and protesters occurred Friday in the heart of Tunis.

The ministry attributed the violence against the police "to a group of agitators infiltrated the ranks of peaceful demonstrators who have used high school students as human shields to engage in acts of violence intended to spread fire terror among citizens and to the internal security forces. "

He calls "the population to be vigilant and urging parents to cooperate with security forces and to convince their children not participate in these events."

Previously, the ministry announced a ban on travel for pedestrians and cars on Avenue Habib Bourguiba in downtown Tunis, the scene of violent clashes, from 6:00 p.m. on Saturday until midnight Sunday, reported the TAP.

The central avenue was delivered Saturday to a pitched battle between police and demonstrators, the police dispersed several times by tear gas.

The case turns into boxing Break diplomatic relations between Paris and Mexico

REUTERS - The case Cassez turned Friday to a diplomatic incident between France and Mexico.

Michèle Alliot-Marie called it "unconscionable decision" the discharge, the day before by the Mexican justice system, the cassation of the French and said it would affect relations between France and Mexico.

Mexico responded with a statement defending the conditions under which it had been rendered.

Sentenced to 60 years in prison in March 2009 for complicity in abductions and kidnappings, it has always denied Cassez had appealed in cassation in August.The French woman is imprisoned in Mexico for over five years.

"I'm shocked," said Michele Alliot-Marie on France 2. "It was a decision that is an unfair decision."

"The conditions under which that decision was not worthy of a rule of law," said French Minister of Foreign Affairs, who was to receive in the morning, the Mexican ambassador to France. "Our fellow was found in conditions that are not acceptable. It is a denial of truth is a denial of justice.We will support it and we will support until the end, "she said.

"Obviously this will have consequences on relations between France and Mexico," said Michele Alliot-Marie before announcing she would not participate in events planned in the year of France in Mexico .

Mexico defends decision

The reaction in Mexico has been quick in the form of a statement made by the Mexican Embassy in France.

"Contrary to statements made by Minister of State and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the French Republic, Mme Michele Alliot-Marie, the seventh college in criminal court of the First Circuit has analyzed each of the arguments presented by the defense, which were unanimously rejected by judges, "reads the statement said.

"The Department (Mexican Foreign) respectfully suggest to the French Minister of State to analyze carefully the terms of the trial," it said.

"The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, respecting the decision of the Tribunal members, deeply regrets that the Minister Michele Alliot-Marie believes that relations between our countries can be affected by this issue strictly legal."

The head of French diplomacy said she would meet with lawyers Cassez to explore all legal options.

"Obviously we will not abandon it," she said.

The "amparo" - further appeal - is the last remedy in Mexico.The lawsuit was filed as the last chance for Florence Break, 36.

Since his arrest, the young woman has consistently maintained his innocence.

Arriving in Mexico in August 2003 for a vacation, Cassez had decided to move to Mexico where she became acquainted with Israel Vallarta, presented by the Mexican police as the leader of a gang of kidnappers. She became the girlfriend, but claims to have known nothing of his activities. The police acknowledged that his arrest had been staged for television and had no place December 9, 2005, as originally announced, but the day before - something that has occurred or the original trial or that on appeal.

EURO ZONE: France and Germany want a "pact of convergence" economic

AFP - German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy proposed on Friday a summit meeting of the euro area in March to prepare for the development of a "pact of convergence" Closer Economic European states.

"We will present the details of what we want to adopt in March during a summit of the eurozone (...) so that all observers around the world understand that all European economies is in the right direction with the interests of competitiveness, "saidSarkozy on the sidelines of an EU summit in Brussels.

"We asked (the President of the European Union Hermann) Van Rompuy to consult with other states in order to make a decision at the top end of March the European Union on the issue," said Ms. Merkel told reporters.

"That means we must first come to an agreement within the euro area," she said.

"We will explain this to our partners and we will have decisions to next March, first in a summit of the eurozone, the European Council and a" bringing together 27 countries across the EU, saidSarkozy.

"We want to strengthen Europe's competitiveness and its economy, we want to converge the various European economies," he said, "so it's a stronger integration of economic policy to serve a purpose: strengthen the competitiveness of our economies. "