The Taliban continued its brazen attack Monday on a Pakistan naval base.
The militants stormed the base in Karachi late Sunday, killing seven military men and destroying naval aircraft. More than 12 hours later, blasts could still be heard and military helicopters could be seen hovering over the base, where scores of commandos were deployed to battle the militants.
A Taliban spokesman said the attack was launched to avenge the death of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden who was killed in Pakistan earlier this month by U.S. special forces.
Police say 15 to 20 militants attacked the Mehran naval aviation station armed with guns and grenades. A raging fire and a cloud of smoke could be seen over the base soon after the attack began, and witnesses nearby heard gunfire and several explosions coming from inside.
Another spokesman said at least one maritime surveillance airplane had been destroyed. The plane had recently been given to Pakistan by the United States.
The number of casualties among the insurgents was not immediately clear.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has condemned the attack, calling it a "cowardly act of terror," and said it would not deter Pakistan's government or its people from fighting terrorism.
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U.S. President Barack Obama is in Ireland Monday to start a six-day, four-nation trip that will include high-level diplomacy about the revolts in the Middle East, discussions on global economic difficulties at a summit of the Group of 8 leading industrialized nations in France, and a celebration of his distant Irish roots.
The bloody unrest in Libya - and the U.S. role in the NATO bombardment of troops loyal to its leader, Moammar Gadhafi - is likely to be at the forefront of Obama's foreign policy talks with European leaders. But the president and his European counterparts are also expected to discuss the daunting challenges they face in trying to recover from the worldwide recession.
Over the course of the next several days, the American leader plans to meet individually with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, and collectively with other world leaders.
He meets with Irish President Mary McAleese and Prime Minister Enda Kenny in Dublin Monday morning. Tuesday Obama travels to Britain for a two-day state visit, with the U.S. president and first lady Michelle Obama staying at Buckingham Palace as guests of Queen Elizabeth. Then he heads to France for the Group of 8 summit, with a final stop in Poland and a meeting with Central European leaders.
But before the high-level talks begin, Obama plans to visit the Irish hamlet of Moneygall, a village of 296 people where his great-great-great grandfather on his mother's side Falmouth Kearney was born in 1830 and lived before immigrating to the U.S. 20 years later.
The White House hopes the trip will showcase the U.S. commitment to its European allies after a period in which Obama has been focused on the Middle East.
But thorny issues remain for the U.S. in relations with both its Western allies and Russia. As the U.S. fights a war in Afghanistan and winds down its long involvement in Iraq, it has attempted to limit its involvement in the Libyan conflict. But Britain and France have pressed for more American involvement as the conflict has continued for more than two months and Gadhafi and the rebels fighting him appear to be at a stalemate.
Obama's meeting with Medvedev could be contentious. Russia has opposed U.S. plans to build an anti-missile shield in Europe. The U.S. says the shield is necessary to guard against possible threats from Iran and other countries with nuclear programs. But Russia says it fears the U.S. will expand the shield and pose a threat to Russia's nuclear arsenal.
An accord reached through the Gulf Cooperation Council that would have paved the way for the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh fell through after he insisted opposition parties attend a public signing ceremony at the presidential palace.
It was another day of intense political drama in the Yemeni capital, and the day ended much as it had started - without an agreement for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down. The president and the opposition blamed each other for the impasse and diplomats were left with little to show for their efforts.
Saleh spoke on government TV to announce he would not sign the Gulf Cooperation Council plan, unless the opposition came to the presidential palace for a formal signing ceremony.
He says opposition leaders should come to the presidential palace for the ceremony, because he and they will be part of the interim government to be formed by the agreement. He is to preside over the interim government for 30 days before stepping down, and the vice president is to take over for the remaining 60 days.
The president also accused the opposition of running away from the agreement, insisting that it would bear the responsibility for any bloodshed that resulted from violence that might ensue.
He says that if the opposition wants to push the country towards a civil war, it must bear the responsibility for that, as well as the blood that will be spilled if the agreement falls through.
A top leader of the opposition Common Forum parties, Hassan Zeid, rejected Saleh's charge his group is responsible for the impasse. He insisted it is the head of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which is mediating, that decided when and where everyone should sign the agreement, and not up to the parties, themselves.
One opposition leader, Mohammed al Qahtan, told the French Press Agency the opposition would "not take part in any signing (ceremony) at the presidential palace." He also urged the U.S. and Saudi Arabia to exert pressure on Saleh to sign the agreement.
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Another drama occurred when supporters of Saleh blocked Western diplomats and the head of the Gulf Cooperation Council that were negotiating the agreement at the United Arab Emirates' embassy. The diplomats were later flown out by government helicopter.
Hundreds of other Saleh supporters blocked roads leading to the presidential palace, the airport, and the capital's Tahrir Square, scene of opposition demonstrations.
Opposition activists told Arab satellite channels they would continue their protest until the president steps down. Tens of thousands of protesters continue to camp out in public squares in towns and cities across the country, demanding Saleh's resignation.
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International nuclear experts have begun arriving in Japan to probe the causes of the Fukushima nuclear disaster and make recommendations to prevent future accidents.
Six experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in Japan Monday from the agency's headquarters in Vienna. They will be joined by another 14 experts from 12 countries for an investigation that will begin Tuesday and run through June 2.
The experts, led by British chief nuclear inspector Mike Weightman, will spend most of their time in Tokyo but are expected to visit the Fukushima nuclear plant, which has been leaking radiation since a March 11 tsunami knocked out its cooling systems and sparked the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.
The team will present its findings at a special ministerial meeting of IAEA member states in Vienna in late June.
Japan's NHK national television reported Monday that it has obtained a copy of an operating manual for one of the crippled reactors at the Fukushima plant which shows that technicians violated their own procedures in the crucial hours after the tsunami.
NHK said the technicians waited hours longer than they should have to begin venting steam as pressure built up in the containment vessel at the number one reactor. It said if the proper procedure had been followed, it might have been possible to avoid a hydrogen explosion which is the suspected cause of radiation leakage from that reactor.
Speaking on Sunday to the largest pro-Israel organization in the United States, President Barack Obama has addressed what he called questions raised about his remarks last week concerning the Israel-Palestinian peace process.
The president spoke in Washington to the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee amid continuing reverberations in Israel, the United States and globally from his address last week on the Middle East.
Mr. Obama said his remarks last Thursday enunciating the U.S. position on a starting point for reviving Israel-Palestinian negotiations constituted the "basic framework for negotiations that has long been the basis for discussions among the parties".
The president addressed what he called "misinterpretations" of his address at the State Department. "Since my position has been misrepresented several times, let me reaffirm what "1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps" means. By definition, it means that the parties themselves - Israelis and Palestinians - will negotiate a border that is different than the one that existed on June 4, 1967. That is what mutually agreed upon swaps means. It is a well known formula to all who have worked on this issue for a generation. It allows the parties themselves to account for the changes that have taken place over the last 44 years," he said.
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with Mr. Obama on Friday, angrily rejected the approach saying 1967 lines would make Israeli settlements "indefensible".
Mr. Netanyahu, who remains in Washington and will address the pro-Israel lobby group on Monday, has since sought to downplay what media reports describe as a worsened rift with Mr. Obama, saying Saturday that there will be differences among friends.
Saying he was not surprised that his public statement of these principles generated controversy, Mr. Obama said he discussed with Mr. Netanyahu "realities", including demographic changes, in the Middle East.
"What I did on Thursday was to say publicly what has long been acknowledged privately. I have done so because we cannot afford to wait another decade, or another two decades, or another three decades, to achieve peace. The world is moving too fast. The extraordinary challenges facing Israel will only grow. Delay will undermine Israel's security and the peace that the Israeli people deserve," he said.
The president again rejected Palestinian attempts to de-legitimize Israel. Palestinian leaders intend to seek U.N. General Assembly recognition of a Palestinian state in September.
Mr. Obama said the unity agreement between Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah poses "enormous obstacles" to peace and went on to demand that Hamas recognize Israel's right to exist. "No country can be expected to negotiate with a terrorist organization sworn to its destruction. And we will continue to demand that Hamas accept the basic responsibilities of peace, including recognizing Israel's right to exist, and rejecting violence, and adhering to all existing agreements," he said.
The president reiterated his view of the status quo in Israel-Palestinian peace efforts as "unsustainable". "The march to isolate Israel internationally, and the impulse of the Palestinians to abandon negotiations, will continue to gain momentum in the absence of a credible peace process and alternative. And for us to have leverage with the Palestinians, to have leverage with the Arab States, and with the international community, the basis for negotiations has to hold out the prospect of success," he said.
Fatah spokesman Saeb Erekat was quoted as saying talks with Israel could resume that would lead to a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, but said without Prime Minister Netanyahu's agreement to "turn over a new leaf" there would be no point talking about a peace process.
President Obama also underscored the "ironclad" U.S. commitment to Israel's security and maintaining Israel's qualitative military edge, noting U.S. aid for Israel's new "Iron Dome" anti-missile system that defends against Palestinian rocket attacks.
He also repeated U.S. determination to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, noting U.S. and United Nations sanctions, and said Iran continues to "support terrorism across the region" including providing weapons and funds to terrorist organizations."
Mr. Obama said the Middle East situation will be what he called "a topic of acute interest this week during his five day trip to Europe, which begins in Ireland and Britain, and moves to France for the G8 summit, followed by Poland.
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Sudan has rebuffed attempts by the United Nations Security Council to intervene in a territorial dispute that threatens to mar the birth of a new Southern Sudanese state. The council responded with a strong warning that nothing should come in the way of the South's independence in July.
The Security Council's two-day mission to Sudan got off to a bumpy start on Sunday when meetings with Foreign Minister Ali Karti and Vice President Ali Osman Taha were abruptly canceled. The meetings had been planned as the centerpiece of U.N. efforts to mediate the north-south dispute over control of the oil-producing Abyei region.
The Security Council had not planned to meet Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is under International Criminal Court indictment for war crimes in Darfur.
The council responded to the canceled meetings with a statement read to journalists by the current council president, French Ambassador Gerard Araud. "I should emphasize that it's very rare that the Security Council expresses itself this way, out of New York. The members of the Security Council are gravely concerned about the rapidly deteriorating situation in Abyei," he said.
Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin called the canceled meetings a missed chance to seek a diplomatic solution on a potentially explosive issue. "We regret that an important opportunity was missed for the Sudanese government to express its concerns to the international community through the members of the Security Council," he said.
As the Security Council's plane touched down Saturday night for the first leg of the visit, news was coming in that government forces had captured Abyei's main town after several hours of bombing and shelling. The town's 20,000 residents were reported to have fled as the troops moved in.
Sunday's Security Council statement condemned what it called "the escalatory military operations being conducted by the Sudanese Armed Forces," and it warned against any attempt to manipulate "events on the ground" for political gain.
Ambassador Churkin lamented that the situation in Abyei had forced cancelation of a scheduled Security Council visit to the disputed region. "As we were heading toward Khartoum we were confronted with a situation of aggravated tension in the Abyei area. In fact, we were supposed to go to the Abyei area, but that trip had to be canceled. Under those circumstances, we decided that the members of the Security Council needed to respond to the situation," he said.
Churkin emphasized the council's determination not to allow anything to stand in the way of the Southern Sudanese people's desire for a July 9 independence day. "I think there is a certain misunderstanding that something may happen which might derail the independence of Southern Sudan. This is not the case at all. Whatever happens, come July 9, the republic of Southern Sudan is going to become independent on that day," he said.
U.N. officials Sunday said the town of Abyei remains under control of government troops, although southern forces were reported massing in the area. U.N. Mission in Sudan Spokesman Hua Jiang said U.N. peacekeepers in the town were confined to their compound because of security concerns, but had observed looting and fires in the area.
A mid-level Sudanese official who did meet the Security Council ambassadors blamed the south for provoking the military action in Abyei by shooting at a U.N.-escorted government convoy last week. He suggested that the U.N. Mission in Sudan should, in his words, "pack their bags and wait for July 9", a reference to the date the peacekeeping operation's mandate expires.
The Security Council continues its Sudan mission on Monday with a visit to the southern capital, Juba. The schedule calls for a meeting with the South's president, Salva Kiir.
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The European Union has opened a diplomatic office in the Libyan rebels' eastern stronghold of Benghazi. The event comes amid a stepped-up NATO campaign against Libya's Gadhafi regime.
European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton was surrounded by a flock of rebel officials and reporters as she arrived in Benghazi to inaugurate the new EU office. She accepted a bouquet from a young girl wearing traditional dress and held talks with the head of the Libyan rebel National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil.
Ashton also made a few brief, public remarks.
"I am here today to explain and to be clear about not only the short-term support from the European Union, but about the breadth and the depth of our support."
Ashton said that support included help with border management and security reform, the economy, health, education and in building civil society.
"It is our intention to support not just now, but long into the future, as long as the people of this country would wish us to be there."
E.U. member France became the first country to internationally recognize the Libyan rebels. Italy, Qatar and Gambia have since followed. Some other nations, including the United States, have opened talks with the rebels, but stopped short of granting them full diplomatic recognition.
Ashton's visit to eastern Libya come as NATO stepped up its campaign against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and his supporters. Wire services report NATO warplanes bombed the port of Tripoli and Gadhafi's compound near the capital shortly before her arrival.
Ashton is the most senior foreign official to visit the rebel-held Libyan region. A number of E.U. countries have frozen diplomatic ties with the Gadhafi government, along with Libyan bank accounts and investments overseas.
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Afghan authorities say Taliban suicide bombers disguised as border policemen have attacked a local government office in eastern Afghanistan, killing seven Afghans.
Officials say the four Taliban fighters were armed with rifles and raided the traffic police building in Khost city before dawn Sunday, triggering a gun battle with Afghan security forces backed by coalition troops. Afghan soldiers initially surrounded the building and stormed it hours later as a fire burned inside.
Authorities say two of the attackers blew themselves up during the siege, while Afghan security personnel shot dead the other two. The Taliban fighters killed six Afghan security personnel and a gardener. Several people were wounded, including five Afghan policemen and one civilian.
Afghan troops also defused explosives found in a car near the government compound.
The Taliban raid is the latest in a series of recent brazen attacks by the militant group on Afghan government and security compounds. A Taliban suicide bomber slipped into Kabul's main military hospital on Saturday and blew himself up inside a cafeteria, killing six Afghan medical students and wounding more than 20 other people.
Meanwhile, a series of insurgent bomb attacks in other parts of Afghanistan beginning late Saturday killed at least six people.
One blast killed three Afghan policemen in the western province of Herat, while another killed two women who were riding on a tractor in the southern province of Zabul.
A third bomb explosion killed a NATO soldier in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday.
A fourth roadside bombing wounded at least two policemen in the southern city of Kandahar.
Afghan security forces are set to take increasing responsibility for security as coalition forces withdraw from the country in a process that starts in July, but is not due to be completed until 2014.
In another development, NATO says a combined Afghan and coalition force killed one insurgent and detained two others in a security operation in eastern Afghanistan's Ghazni province on Saturday.
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Leaders of Japan, China and South Korea concluded a two-day summit in Tokyo Sunday agreeing to cooperate on a number of regional issues, including nuclear safety and trade. The summit comes just over two months after a massive earthquake and tsunami devastated a large part of Japan.
The summit is the first time leaders of the three countries have met since the March disaster. And the meeting's host, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, promised to share with the two neighbors more details of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis that was triggered by the disaster.
China and South Korea previously criticized Japan for releasing thousands of tons of radioactive water into the Pacific without giving them prior warning. Kan expressed his regret for that failure during the meeting.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiaobao and South Korean President Lee Myung Bak began their Japan visit Saturday meeting survivors in the disaster region and paying respects to the 24,000 people killed or missing. The two countries were among the first to offer help to Japan immediately following the magnitude 9.0 earthquake.
On business matters, Kan told reporters the leaders agreed to accelerate preparations for a trilateral free trade agreement. He said an agreement will boost trade between the three countries and help Asia as a whole.
Despite their trade connections, historical issues, particularly Japan's colonization of much of Asia during the first half of the 20th century, remain sensitive.
The summit's final communique said the three countries would expand cultural exchanges and tourism to increase friendly ties. They will also promote the use of renewable energy, and cooperate more closely on maritime safety and search-and-rescue.
The leaders also discussed the security situation in northeast Asia. The three reaffirmed their interest in resuming the stalled six-party talks on North Korea's controversial nuclear program.
The three leaders held what Chinese Premier Wen called a "candid exchange of views" on North Korea. Wen reiterated the importance of continued dialogue to get the talks restarted.
Kan, Wen and Lee expressed concern over North Korea's claims of an uranium enrichment program and repeated their wish for denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.
At the sidelines of the summit, bilateral meetings were also held.
The Chinese premier briefed Japan on Kim Jong Il's recent visit to China and agreed to loosen food import restrictions that were imposed after the Fukushima nuclear accident.
They also began preparations for an official visit to China by Japanese Prime Minister Kan sometime later this year.
A meeting between Japan and South Korea advanced the return of more than 1,200 volumes of Korean historical documents held by Japan since it ended colonial rule of Korea in 1945. The two countries also discussed reconstruction efforts for the disaster-hit northeast of Japan.
The summit was the fourth annual meeting between the three. The fifth meeting will take place in China next year.
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A senior United Nations official says corruption across Asia is undermining efforts to fight poverty and reduce income disparities. In a wide ranging interview with VOA, Dr. Noeleen Heyzer, the UN's executive secretary for the Asia and Pacific Economic and Social Commission, said countries must invest in what she called social protection to ensure economic growth in Asia.
"You know the issue is governance. Because at the end of the day you need economic governance. You need better political governance because to be able to have systems that invest in the social foundations of your communities in order that people can have a better life. And obviously any forms of corruption acts against that."
The Asian Development Bank recently called for improvements in government accountability as "critical" in Asia to maintain social and political stability. It said rising corruption was evident in a "deterioration in the quality and credibility of national political and economic institutions."
A World Bank Institute report warned of a retreat in accountability and political stability in Asia between 2008 and 2009. In India, for example, the World Bank found only 40 percent of government funds allocated for poverty-related programs actually reached the poor. The remainder, the Bank said, was lost because of bad administration and corruption.
Dr. Heyzer warned that despite recent regional economic gains, widening income disparities needed to be addressed by governments through improved social protection programs.
"What we have seen is that in Asia you have high economic growth but you also have growing inequalities and disparities. And the only way to deal with that is to ensure inclusive growth, to invest in social protection in making sure that for the for the first time this continent can rethink itself and reinvest in itself in terms of taking on the social perspective and dimensions."
Economic analysts say the Asia Pacific region is an important driver of global growth. But Dr. Heyzer says Asia still faces several challenges to ensure the gains are widely shared.
"Closing the disparity gaps would be critical. How do you sustain growth, but at the same time how do you ensure that this growth is inclusive. We have economic recovery but this recovery is still fragile. There's going to be major concerns about inflation - there is still a major concern about asset bubbles, capital inflows, and it's critical to sustain that economic growth."
In a recently released economic survey UNESCAP forecast Asia Pacific developing economies to grow by more than seven percent for 2011, with China and India expanding at close to nine percent. But the report said inflation remains a concern, due to rising food and energy prices, with the poor especially vulnerable.
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U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in Ireland on Monday for the start of a six-day, four-nation tour of Europe. The president is expected to discuss economic issues with Irish leaders and explore his family's history in a small Irish town.
The state of the global economy will likely be a recurring topic for President Obama throughout the week, and especially in Ireland, which has been dealing with massive government debt. Several months ago, Ireland received emergency financial aid from the International Monetary Fund and the the European Union. Economic issues are expected to be discussed when the president meets with Irish President Mary McAleese and Prime Minister Enda Kenny.
Meanwhile, the United States is dealing with its own debt issues. The federal government is rapidly approaching its legal borrowing limit, and opposition Republicans in Congress say they will not raise the limit without large spending cuts.
But much of the president's visit to Ireland will be of a lighter nature. Mr. Obama and his family will visit a small town where some of his ancestors had lived. "I am expecting to go, not only to all the famous sites, but also to go to Moneygall, where my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather hails from," he said.
In 1850, Mr. Obama's great-great-great-grandfather set out for America from the town of Moneygall, which today is home to fewer than 300 people. And the president will likely meet some distant relatives during his brief visit.
Ireland's Ambassador to the United States, Michael Collins, explained Mr. Obama's Irish lineage in a recent talk to The Heritage Foundation research group in Washington. "A man called Falmouth Carney sailed to America at the age of 19 on a vessel called the S.S. Marmion. He was a shoemaker, and his great-great-great-grandson will be returning to Ireland next Monday as president of the United States. It is the story of improbable success, almost of Irish legend," he said.
White House officials say that overall, the president's Europe trip is intended to reaffirm America's "core alliances" with European nations. The United States collaborates closely with European allies on many of its international ventures.
From Ireland, President Obama will move on to Britain on Tuesday. There, he will speak to both houses of Parliament, meet with Prime Minister David Cameron and be honored by Queen Elizabeth at a state dinner.
Later in the week, Mr. Obama will attend the Group of Eight economic summit in the French resort city of Deauville. Security, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, is expected to be on the agenda. The president will meet separately with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, among other leaders.
Mr. Obama's final stop will be Poland, where he will attend a meeting of Central European leaders and visit several cultural sites.
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Aviation authorities in Iceland said Sunday that they have shut down the island's main airport and may have to close the island's other airports after the country's most active volcano began erupting Saturday.
However, scientists say the eruptions are unlikely to cause the same disruption to European air travel as another volcano that exploded last year.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office says the Grimsvotn volcano beneath island's largest glacier has been shooting plumes of smoke at least 11 kilometers into the air since Saturday.
The area surrounding the Vatnajokull glacier in southeastern Iceland is uninhabited.
Grimsvotn last erupted in 2004. Icelandic scientists say they expect the latest explosion to be relatively small. A team of experts was flying to the area to investigate.
The eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokul volcano in April 2010 produced an ash cloud that winds blew toward northern Europe, causing airports in the region to ground all planes for several days as a safety precaution. Millions of air travelers were stranded worldwide.
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Police in Malaysia say they have ended search and rescue operations after pulling 16 dead and nine survivors from the rubble of an orphanage that was hit by a landslide Saturday.
Authorities said Sunday they recovered the bodies of 15 boys, aged eight to 15, and one adult. Six boys and three adults were rescued and hospitalized.
The landslide occurred Saturday afternoon in the village of Hulu Langat, just south of the capital of Kuala Lumpur, after days of heavy rains.
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South Sudan says the northern army's seizure of the contested Abyei oil region is "illegal."
Southern Sudan's information minister, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, is calling for help from the international community. He said Sunday it is the responsibility of the United Nations Security Council to see that northern troops withdraw from the region.
The Khartoum government said Sunday the Abyei region is now under its control. The action has raised fears that a new north-south civil war will break out just as the south prepares to declare independence on July 9.
The two sides have not resolved disagreements about the future of Abyei.
Amin Hassan Omar, a minister of state for presidential affairs, said Sunday that northern forces are clearing the Abyei region of southern army troops.
North Sudan army tanks rolled through Abyei's main town, after a military offensive that scattered southern troops and sent residents fleeing for safety. Khartoum also issued a decree dissolving the town's administration.
The aid group Doctors Without Borders said nearly all of Abyei's population has fled the town since violence started escalating in recent days.
Both the United States and Britain have condemned the Sudanese government's seizure of Abyei.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has warned his government would not recognize south Sudan as an independent state it it did not give up claims on Abyei.
A U.N. Security Council delegation is in Khartoum Sunday for talks on the Abyei issue.
The armies of the north and south previously had agreed to conduct joint patrols in Abyei. But, fighting erupted in the region Thursday, when a northern army convoy accompanied by U.N. peacekeepers came under attack. Both armies accused each other of firing first.
The White House accused southern Sudanese forces of attacking the convoy and deplored the incident.
The Obama administration urged President Bashir and southern Sudanese President Salva Kiir to meet "immediately" and agree on a way to restore calm, uphold their peace agreement and recommit to a negotiated political settlement on Abyei's status.
A referendum on whether Abyei should be a part of the north or the south had been scheduled for last January, but did not take place because the two sides could not agree on who was eligible to vote.
South Sudan voted overwhelmingly to split from the north in a January referendum that was part of a 2005 peace agreement. That pact ended a 21-year north-south civil war in which the Abyei region was a key battleground.
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Israel's prime minister is downplaying his dispute with the U.S. president about the borders of a future Palestinian state.
Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday the rift with Barack Obama has been "blown way out of proportion."
Netanyahu has said Israel could not go back to the borders that it had before the 1967 Six-Day War, as proposed by Obama. The Israeli prime minister has said those lines would be "indefensible."
Netanyahu met Obama at the White House last week.
This week in Washington, the prime minister will speak to AIPAC, the powerful pro-Israel lobby.
Netanyahu will also address a joint meeting of Congress.
Meanwhile, Palestinians say they will move ahead with plans to seek U.N. recognition of a state in the West Bank.
On Thursday, Obama said talks leading to a Palestinian state should be based on Israel's pre-1967 war borders, with the sides making land swaps so both would have secure and recognized borders. Palestinians have embraced the U.S. president's remarks.
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U.S. President Barack Obama says if necessary, he would order another raid into Pakistan like the one that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.
In an interview with the BBC aired Sunday, Obama said the U.S. respects Pakistan's sovereignty but that his administration's job is to secure the United States. He said he would approve another attack in Pakistan if, in his words, "someone actively planning to kill our people or our allies' people" was found there.
A squad of elite U.S. forces flew into the Pakistani city of Abbottabad on May 2 and killed bin Laden in his walled compound. The attack has strained relations between Washington and Islamabad.
Obama, in the interview, also said he is prepared to open negotiations with the Taliban in an effort to end the fighting in Afghanistan. But he said Taliban leaders must first cut their ties with al-Qaida.
The president's interview with the BBC was conducted in advance of his visit to Britain. The president leaves later Sunday for a European tour that begins with a stop in Ireland. He will also visit France and Poland.
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Witnesses say helicopters in Yemen have airlifted the ambassadors of the U.S., Britain and Gulf Arab nations who were trapped inside a diplomatic mission surrounded by armed loyalists to Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
The loyalists surrounded the United Arab Emirates Embassy in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, on Sunday. They blocked roads and roamed the streets near the mission, where the ambassadors were discussing a Gulf region-brokered deal that would have Saleh transfer power within a month.
Yemen's president appears to be backing out again from signing the deal.
Hours before he was scheduled to sign the agreement Sunday, Saleh said he is not interested in signing a deal inked "behind closed doors."
Plans to sign the deal have already stalled twice because of objections by the Yemeni leader.
Yemen's opposition signed the pact Saturday with the understanding that the president would sign the agreement Sunday.
Hundreds of thousands of anti-Saleh protesters Sunday poured into Sana'a's central square, which has become the center of opposition protests.
The agreement offers Saleh immunity from prosecution if he transfers power to a deputy within 30 days of signing.
In a speech Saturday, the president denounced the U.S.-backed proposal as a "coup" and warned that his departure could allow al-Qaida to take over parts of Yemen.
The Yemeni leader has faced months of anti-government protests demanding he end his more than 30-year rule. His government has responded to the demonstrations with a bloody crackdown.
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Spanish citizens voted Sunday in local and regional elections forecast to produce huge losses for the ruling Socialists, as protesters disgruntled with high unemployment demonstrated nationwide.
Voting early Sunday, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero called for a large turnout among Spain's 34 million eligible voters.
Voters are deciding on city councils and other positions in 13 of Spain's 17 regional governments.
The local and regional elections are seen as a test of how much the ruling party's support has crumbled amid soaring unemployment and its handling of the country's financial crisis.
The opposition Popular Party is expected to make major gains ahead of general elections due by next March which could see the party return to power.
Spain's unemployment rate stands at 21.3 percent, the highest in the European Union. The jobless rate for people between the ages of 18 and 25 is even higher, at 45 percent.
Thousands of Spaniards have defied a government ban on demonstrations that took effect Saturday and continued protesting unemployment and the weak economy.
So far, police have not intervened to stop the nationwide demonstrations.
The mostly peaceful protests have been organized largely through social media such as Twitter by young activists who say they were inspired by the protests in Egypt and Tunisia. Those demonstrations brought down the governments in both countries.
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More than 107,000 people came to a horse racing track in the eastern U.S. state of Maryland Saturday to see the 136th running of the Preakness Stakes, and perhaps witness the making of a champion. The Preakness is the second of the three horse races making up what American's call the Triple Crown.
As a trumpet blasted the familiar clarion call of horse racing, fans of the sport watched to see if Animal Kingdom, winner of this year's Kentucky Derby, would capture the second leg of the sport's Triple Crown.
It is an uncommon achievement, occurring only 11 times since 1919. And it will not happen this year. Animal Kingdom could not catch Shackleford, a three-year-old chestnut colt who won the 136th running of the Preakness with a time of 1 minute, 56 and 47 one-hundredths seconds.
Shackleford's jockey, Jesus Castanon, says he knew his horse would win as he rounded the last stretch.
"When they asked me to pick it up, I can feel my horse get bigger and he went on and do his business and it's just emotional," said Castanon.
The winning colt was named after the Shackleford Islands, a retreat that features wild horses off the coast of North Carolina. But Shackleford proved anything but wild Saturday, determined to hold on to his lead in front of one of the largest audiences in Preakness history.
Jockey Castanon hails from Mexico, where he and his family owned racehorses in Mexico City. His father passed away last year, and Castanon was overflowing with emotion at the end of the race.
"When I passed the wire, he just came to me," he said. "I know he was up there watching me."
By coincidence, Mexico was this year's host country for the International Pavilion, a big tent located at the racetrack's finish line where diplomats and leaders of the horse industry can socialize.
Mexico's ambassador to the United States Arturo Sarukhan said he was proud that his country played such a big role in the race.
"I think it speaks volumes to the contributions that Mexican jockeys and Mexican workers and the backstretches of most of the racecourse in the United States play in this important industry," he said.
Festive crowds wearing suits, sundresses and ornate hats enjoyed a beautiful day at Pimlico. Race-goers experienced the Maryland track at its finest, eating the food, listening to the music, and most-importantly, admiring the horses.
Colt Animal Kingdom finished second, with Astrology a close third.
And when the last jewel of the Triple Crown - the Belmont Stakes - comes around in June, it will be any horse's race to win.
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