Syria is calling for refugees who fled to Turkey to escape its violent crackdown on anti-government protesters in Jisr al-Shughour to return home.
The Syrian government's official news agency Sana said that "calm and security" had been restored in the town and surrounding area. It said "all necessary needs" would be provided for the returning refugees, including medical aid and food.
The Turkish government says more than 8,000 Syrians crossed the border in recent days to sleep in makeshift tents as Syrian tanks swept through the northern towns.
Limited military operation
Meanwhile, Syrian troops advanced on Maarat al-Numan, 40 kilometers southeast of Jisr al-Shughour, for what authorities said was a "limited military operation."
Some witnesses said security forces were preventing residents from leaving Idlib province and shot at people who attempted to bypass military checkpoints. Rights activists said six residents were killed in Ariha, to the east of Jisr al-Shughour. About 1,300 civilians and 340 security forces have been killed since the protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government started in mid-March.
Turkey has rushed to open up new camps to house more Syrians. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Assad on Tuesday and urged him to "refrain from violence and end the unrest."
Refugee crisis
On Wednesday, Damascus dispatched an envoy, Hassan Turkmani, to Ankara to discuss the crisis with Erdogan.
Over the past few days, security forces have arrested hundreds of people following sweeps through Jisr al-Shughour and surrounding villages, after the government accused "armed groups" of killing 120 security personnel.
But residents and soldiers who have deserted said those killed were civilians and security forces who had mutinied, refusing to shoot protesters and joining anti-government demonstrators.
Refugees reaching Turkey said elite Syrian forces were combing villages and arresting men between the ages of 18 and 40. Others told of a scorched-earth campaign with men in black uniforms pouring gasoline on farmlands.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Iran of backing the Syrian assault on the demonstrators, comparing it to the brutal tactics that Iran used after the disputed 2009 re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
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In Washington, the Obama administration is vowing to soon give a full explanation and justification for the continued U.S. military involvement in the Libyan conflict.
White House officials said late Tuesday they are preparing to "address a whole host of issues" about the U.S. role in NATO's mission to support Libyan rebels as they attempt to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. The White House said its report would include a legal analysis showing it acted properly in complying with the country's 1973 law designed to curb presidential war-making authority.
The leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, John Boehner, sent a letter to President Barack Obama earlier Tuesday sharply criticizing the chief executive's actions in authorizing the U.S. role in Libya without seeking congressional authorization.
The 1973 War Powers Act calls for the president to notify congressional leaders within 48 hours of U.S. military actions. It also prohibits U.S. forces from being involved in military efforts for more than 60 days without congressional authorization, and includes an additional 30-day withdrawal period.
Boehner said that the 90 days expires on Sunday and that he wants an explanation by Friday.
Obama notified Congress in March of his decision to take military action in Libya, but did not seek congressional approval. The White House has regularly briefed congressional lawmakers about the U.S. role in Libya.
NATO is commanding the airstrikes against Gadhafi's troops and military installations. But the U.S. has had a key support role, including aerial refueling of warplanes, as well as provision of intelligence and surveillance for the operation.
Also Tuesday, Democratic Senator Carl Levin of Michigan told reporters a proposed Senate resolution authorizing limited U.S. involvement in Libya could be considered by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee later this week.
Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona said such a resolution should require the Obama administration to report to Congress on all aspects of the Libya mission.
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NATO has resumed airstrikes on the Libyan capital after a brief layoff, hitting several targets late Tuesday.
Witnesses say they heard loud explosions in the center of Tripoli and saw plumes of smoke.
Libyan state media say the bombings hit civilian sites, and there were reports of casualties.
The Libyan capital and its surrounding areas have been the target of regular NATO airstrikes since the alliance started its military operation in Libya in March. Libyan rebels are trying to advance on Tripoli, as the coalition carries out attacks on forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
In recent days, rebels have advanced from the port city of Misrata toward Tripoli, breaking a government siege. Several rebel units have pushed the front lines west from Misrata to the outskirts of Zlitan, a neighboring town held by Gadhafi's forces.
Also Tuesday, Libyan rebels said forces loyal to Gadhafi fired rockets at opposition fighters near the Tunisian border.
Libya fired rockets into Tunisia on May 17, and the Tunisian government threatened to report its neighbor to the U.N. Security Council for "enemy" actions. Libyan forces also have engaged in periodic short skirmishes with Tunisian troops after Libya's internal fighting spread across the border.
VOA's Susan Yackee speaks with David Mack, a former U.S. Ambassador and a scholar with the Middle East Institute, about the situation in Libya:
In other news, Libyan rebels scored a victory on the political front when Canada announced Tuesday it will recognize the Transitional National Council as the "legitimate representative" of the Libyan people.
Canada joins Germany, France, Italy, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in recognizing the opposition council. The Obama administration is supporting the rebel cause but has stopped short of recognition.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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Military officials in the Philippines say their navy has removed a number of marker posts from shoals and reefs in the South China Sea that are mutually claimed by the Philippines and China.
Officials said Wednesday the posts were removed in May, shortly before the government protested that China had offloaded building materials and erected the markers in areas claimed by the Philippines as its exclusive economic zone. China replied that it was acting lawfully in areas under its administration.
Dispute with Vietnam
China is embroiled in a similar dispute with Vietnam after Chinese vessels twice interfered with oil survey ships operating off Vietnam's coast.
The Philippines and Vietnam have both sought U.S. backing in the disputes, drawing a sharp rebuke from China.
US reassurance
Speaking Tuesday at an event attended by President Benigno Aquino, U.S. Ambassador Harry Thomas assured the Philippines of U.S. support "in all subjects" including the South China Sea and the Spratly Islands.
The remarks are likely to further anger China, which said Tuesday it is "firmly opposed" to foreign involvement in the regional disputes. it also warned other Asian nations to refrain from "irresponsible" comments on their competing maritime claims.
The comments appeared in the Liberation Army Daily, the newspaper of the Chinese military. They followed the introduction of a congressional resolution by two U.S. senators that accuses Beijing of using force in the disputes and calls for the U.S. military to "assert and defend freedom of navigation rights" in the South China Sea.
Furious response
China responded furiously last year after the United States joined several countries at a regional security summit in calling for a multilateral approach to resolving South China Sea disputes. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also declared a U.S. national interest in maintaining free navigation through the waterway.
China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia claim all or part of the Spratly Islands. China, Vietnam and Taiwan also claim the Paracels.
China says its claims date back for centuries.
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President Barack Obama is appealing to the warring sides in Sudan to cease fighting that threatens the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005 to end the country's 21-year civil war. The president used a recorded statement late Tuesday to speak directly to leaders in north and south Sudan about recent fighting.
President Obama took the unusual step of recording an audio message directed to the people of Sudan and its leaders, immediately after his return from a visit to the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.
The United Nations on Tuesday described what it called "huge suffering" among civilians from air strikes in Southern Kordofan on the border with South Sudan, by northern forces directed from Khartoum.
Northern Sudanese troops have battled militia forces in Southern Kordofan, last week seizing control of the Abyei region, on the north-south border. Negotiators for north and south Sudan have been meeting in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, trying to find a solution to that situation.
Statement by President Obama:
In his statement late Tuesday, President Obama said fighting must stop.
"There is no military solution," said President Obama. "The leaders of Sudan and South Sudan must live up to their responsibilities. The government of Sudan must prevent a further escalation of this crisis by ceasing its military actions immediately, including aerial bombardments, forced displacements and campaigns of intimidation."
The president's appeal for a ceasefire comes just a few weeks before the scheduled formal separation on July 9th of southern Sudan from the north. The south voted for independence in a referendum earlier this year under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
Mr. Obama said both sides must agree to end violence, allow free movement of aid workers and relief supplies and fulfill commitments under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and resolve differences peacefully.
Directing his remarks to Sudanese leaders, he warned of increasing isolation for those who do not fulfill obligations under the peace agreement.
"Today, I want to speak directly to Sudanese leaders," said Obama. "You must know that if you fulfill your obligations and choose peace, the U.S. will take the steps we have pledged towards normal relations. However, those who flout their international obligations will face more pressure and isolation and they will be held accountable for their actions."
That message underscored one Washington has been sending and amplifying, that the process of normalizing relations with Khartoum could be threatened if the north pursues a military solution to the disputes in Abyei and Southern Kordofan.
Normalization would include a key step sought by the government in the north, removal of Sudan from an official U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism.
In his statement, President Obama said negotiations underway in Ethiopia offer a path to peace. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was in Addis Ababa earlier this week and met with officials from the north and south.
Referring to the scheduled formal independence of South Sudan in three weeks, creating the world's newest nation, Mr. Obama said too much progress has been made to allow a collapse.
"The Sudanese people have come too far and sacrificed too much to see their dreams of a better future slip from their grasp," said President Obama. "Now is the time for Sudanese leaders to show the courage and vision that true leadership demands. Now is the time for Sudanese leaders, north and south, to choose peace."
Mr. Obama said that with its allies and partners, the U.S. is working to end the violence and protect innocent civilians in Sudan.
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Pakistan has arrested five Pakistanis who acted as informants for the U.S. intelligence agency ahead of the raid and killing of Osama bin Laden.
Western news agencies Wednesday confirmed a story in The New York Times that Pakistan's top military spy agency arrested the informants after the May 2 raid on bin Laden's hideout in the city of Abbotabad.
The detainees include a Pakistani army major who recorded the license plate numbers of cars visiting bin Laden's house. The fate of the detainees is not clear.
U.S. officials say the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Leon Panetta, raised the issue of the detained informants with military and intelligence officials in Pakistan during a visit to the country last week. A CIA spokeswoman told The New York Times the agency has a strong relationship with its Pakistani counterparts and works through issues when they arise.
U.S. media report the Central Intelligence Agency is building a secret air base in the Middle East to use for armed drone attacks on terrorists in Yemen.
The Associated Press, which first reported the construction plans, quotes unnamed U.S. officials who say the base, at an undisclosed location, could be operational by the end of the year.
Al-Qaida
The building of the base comes at a time the U.S. government is increasingly worried about Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.
The group has tried to carry out terrorist attacks on the United States and has taken control of large areas of Yemen during months of civil unrest and protests against Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Yemen's government has permitted some U.S. military operations in the country and is now allowing expanded strikes against al-Qaida targets.
Drone attacks
U.S. officials say the construction of the CIA air base suggests President Barack Obama's administration views armed drones as a key weapon against terrorist targets. Drone strikes are frequently carried out in Pakistan, although the United States does not publicly acknowledge them.
There have been frequent clashes in Yemen. On Wednesday the Associated Press quoted Yemeni security officials as saying that Islamic militants seized parts of the southern city of Houta in a surprise attack.
Anti-Saleh protests
For several months, there have been widespread protests against the 33-year reign of Saleh. The U.S. and Yemen's Gulf neighbors have tried to negotiate a deal for him to leave office, but he has refused. They now hope to insure that he does not return to his homeland from Saudi Arabia, where he is being treated for injuries from a bomb attack inside his presidential compound.
The U.S. government says the Yemen-based al-Qaida group is responsible for the attempted bombing of an airliner to the central U.S. city of Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009, as well as an effort to dispatch bomb-laden packages to the U.S. last year.
Some information for this report was provided by AP.
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Syrian forces are widening a crackdown on dissenters in a region near the Turkish border, while the number of Syrians crossing into Turkey to flee the unrest continues to swell.
Activists Tuesday said Syrian troops are pushing into the town of Maaret al-Numan.
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Over the past few days, security forces have swept through Jisr al-Shughour and nearby towns, after the government accused "armed groups" in Jisr al-Shughour of killing 120 security personnel.
Turkish officials say the number of Syrian refugees who have crossed into the country has topped 8,500. Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek Tuesday said nearly half of the refugees are children.
Also, Turkish news reports say Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan phoned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday and urged him to avoid violence and enact reforms.
On Monday, refugees reaching Turkey said Syrian forces were combing villages back home and arresting men between the ages of 18 and 40. Others told of a scorched-earth campaign with men in black uniforms pouring gasoline on farmlands.
The wave of arrests followed the assault on Jisr al-Shughour by troops backed by tanks and helicopter gunships. Residents say loyalist units led by President Assad's brother, Maher al-Assad, led Sunday's crackdown, which they say was sparked by a mutiny last week when some soldiers refused to shoot protesters and joined the anti-government side.
U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Tuesday it was clear that "Syria has taken a page out of Iran's playbook" by employing brutal tactics that Iran used after the disputed 2009 re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
He said the U.S. believes there is clear evidence that Iran is actively helping Syria as it clamps down on protesters.
Syria has banned most foreign journalists, making it difficult to verify accounts of events.
Rights groups say more than 1,300 people have been killed since President Assad launched a crackdown on anti-government dissent in March.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
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Iran has rejected allegations from Britain and the United States that it is helping Syria crack down on domestic opposition with advice, equipment, and training. Iran remains a key Syrian ally, with the two governments finding common ground on such issues as Israel, Lebanon and Iraq.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accuses Iran of supporting the Syrian government in what she calls its vicious assaults on peaceful protesters and military actions against its own cities.
The charge follows similar concerns from British authorities, including Foreign Secretary William Hague who said there is credible evidence of Tehran giving Syria aid to suppress dissent.
The Iranian foreign ministry denies any involvement in the Syrian crackdown, countering that it is other countries, in particular the United States and Israel, that are supporting what it calls "terrorist" actions in Syria.
Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast says the foreign criticism is part of a plot against the "line of resistance" against Israel. That anti-Israeli line informs much of Iran's response throughout the past months of political protests in the Arab world. Tehran has sided for the most part with the popular uprisings, but draws the line when it comes to Syria.
Mounzer Sleiman is the director of the Center for American and Arab Studies.
"Iran views the struggle in the Middle East in terms of two camps, the camp of resistance, whether it is from the Lebanese resistance, the Palestinian resistance and the popular support throughout the Muslim world and the Islamic world and officially for Syria and Iran as governments," Sleiman said.
But Sleiman says Syria has no need for material help from Iran, dismissing recent Western accusations as "nonsense."
"Of course, Iran would like Syria to be safe and to be stable and to continue the role it has been playing geo-strategically in the Arab world and to maintain the alliance with Iran, because Iran and Syria are the subject of isolation by Washington, by Israel, by the Europeans and by others," Sleiman said.
Despite the increasing pressure and isolation, both Iran and Syria got a boost this week when a new government emerged in Lebanon dominated by Hezbollah, the political and militant group backed by both.
But such victory comes at a price. Already the Syrian government's alliances have prompted Syrian protesters to burn the Iranian flag and pictures of Hezbollah leaders.
The Center for American Arab Studies' Sleiman says this is especially true among conservative Sunni Muslims in the minority Allawite-led country.
"They see the situation in terms of having the regime supporting Hezbollah or supporting the Palestinian resistance; they see it as something at the expense of Syrian internal domestic progress. And it seems they would like to portray what is happening in terms of sectarian views instead of having it as a nationalist view," Sleiman said.
The Syrian government has also tried to play up the sectarian angle, an apparent bid to undermine the political demands of the protesters. But it risks becoming true: the more brutal the crackdown grows, the more frequent are reports of a growing Sunni-Sh'ite divide.
Iran's other interest in Syria is also likely to foster discontent: Iraq, which is also riven by sectarian conflict. The chairman of the Gulf Research Center, Abdulaziz Sager, says Tehran relies heavily on Damascus to extend its influence over their common neighbor, and beyond.
"We have seen Syria paying a lot for the Iraq situation without winning any benefit on Iraq. The importance of the regime in Syria is acting by proxy on behalf of the Iranian policy in there, in the Levant in general, but also very specifically on Lebanon and Iraq. And, at the same time, in case in the future, Iran again decides to go into any confrontation by proxy with the Israelis like Hezbollah did in 2006, that is also a possibility we are going to see," Sager said.
In Sleiman's words, such costs do not outweigh the benefits of Syria holding on to its current course and current allies, no matter how strong the pressure from the West or even the United Nations.
"The regime has many centers of positive elements that support this strategic position, the geo-politic position. And that means to maintain alliances with the resistance in Lebanon, with Palestine and relations with Iran. So, I don't think the regime is going to abandon and accept this kind of pressure, especially if there is a control of the security situation internally," Sleiman said.
Sleiman notes that Syria weathered previous pressure from the West to change its behavior, during the Iraq war. Whether the current internal pressures are enough to tip the balance is what both the opposition and Syria's supporters are waiting to see..
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President Barack Obama on Tuesday visited the U.S. commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
"Buenas tardes!"
With a greeting of "Good afternoon" in Spanish, President Obama began his five-hour visit to Puerto Rico and offered support for next year's vote on the island's future.
Puerto Ricans will have the choice of becoming an independent nation, becoming America's 51st state or remaining a U.S. territory.
"And when the people of Puerto Rico make a clear decision, my administration will stand by you," said President Obama.
The president's visit to Puerto Rico fulfills a promise he made in his 2008 campaign.
Puerto Ricans cannot vote in U.S. general elections, but more Puerto Ricans live on the U.S. mainland than on the island. Many are in Florida and North Carolina, states the president will need to win in next year's election.
Mr. Obama is the first president to make an official visit to Puerto Rico since John F. Kennedy in 1961.
And he echoed some of the same concerns.
"In that same spirit, we have been trying to make sure that every family on the island can find work and make a living and provide for their children," said Obama. "That is why our economic plan and our health care reform included help for Puerto Rico."
The president's brief visit to the island included a meeting with the territory's governor and other political officials.
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The leader of the rebel Kurdish group PKK warns of a return to conflict in Turkey if the newly re-elected government does not meet the group's demands for Kurdish autonomy. Much of the focus in the election campaign was on the economy. The long-standing Kurdish issue could derail Turkey's political progress.
Guerrilla warfare
Training in the Qendil mountains on the border with Iraq: PKK rebels that Turkey, the U.S. and the EU consider terrorists. <!--IMAGE-->
VOA obtained this rare picture in eastern Turkey.
The Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK has waged a 27-year guerrilla war for independence against the Turkish state.
Their jailed leader, Abdullah Ocalan, has warned that unless the government starts negotiations by a June 15 deadline, the group will return to conflict.
The fighting has already cost more than 40,000 lives, many of them civilians. It is a burning issue that still dominates Turkish politics.
Cause for celebration
Following Sunday's election, pro-Kurdish parties are celebrating an increase in their number of MPs to 36 -- forcing the Kurdish issue up on the agenda.
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One newly elected MP is Sirri Sureyya Onder -- a popular filmmaker in Istanbul. "The government labels anyone who is part of the Kurdish freedom movement a terrorist. Personally, I am against killing and against war and I would like it to stop. Both sides should stop and find a peaceful solution," Onder said.
Onder says language is at the heart of the fight for autonomy. "What we want is education in our own language, mother-tongue education. If there is no education in our mother tongue there will be no assimilation," he added.
In Diyarbakir, the celebrations turned to violence between Kurdish demonstrators and police. It is a familiar, almost weekly scene in this restive eastern city.
The footage above was recorded earlier this year in Diyarbakir. Kurdish human rights campaigners accuse the authorities of abuses and of targeting legal activists. Identity
The Kurdish issue goes to the very heart of Turkish identity, says sociology professor Ferhat Kentel.
"Just imagine that all generations have learnt that 'We are Turks' from primary school. The socialization process is based on the homogenization of society from the rupture with the Ottoman Empire. So, Kurdish people showed that it didn't work and Kurdish people want to be as they are," said Kentel.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, victorious in Sunday's election, claims his ruling AK party has already met many of the Kurds' demands, and he says it will recognize the changes in a new constitution. "We will write a civilian, free constitution which braces all parties of the society together, everybody will find himself in this constitution -- east will find himself, west will find himself," he said.
Erdogan hopes those dovish sentiments will be enough to pacify the growing unrest among the Kurds.
With the Arab uprising now on Turkey's doorstep in Syria, Turkey's leadership needs no reminder of the dangers of a return to conflict.
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The imprisoned leader of the Kurdish rebel group the PKK set a June 15 deadline for Turkey's government to start negotiations to resolve Kurdish demands or face a return to conflict. Since the threat, made in April, Turkey's pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, the BDP, scored advances in last Sunday's general election, increasing its representation from 20 to 36 in the 550-seat assembly.
The success of the pro-Kurdish BDP in Sunday's elections comes as concerns are being expressed that Turkey is the verge of a return to conflict and civil unrest because of the unmet aspirations of its Kurdish minority. One of the newly elected deputies, Altan Tan, has a stark warning to the new government:
"We want a new constitution, we want an agreement with the government, which will give us our rights. If they don't solve this problem, they could not do anything. We will make Kurdistan like Egypt, like Yemen, like Syria. We don't want this," Tan said.
His warning follows the arrest over the last two years of nearly 2,000 party members, including 12 elected mayors, all accused of having links to the outlawed PKK, which has been fighting the Turkish state since 1984. The imprisoned leader of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, has warned that the rebels will end their cease-fire on Wednesday unless the government starts negotiations to meet their demands.
The escalating situation follows the collapse two years ago of government attempts to end the conflict, an effort known as the 'Kurdish opening."
"Until now Turkish politicians have put condition to negotiate -- stop the armed struggle. Kurds did. Nothing happened, with the exception of (the) short-lived Kurdish opening. As long as there is no political process, the armed struggle will probably continue," said political scientist Cengiz Aktar, from Istanbul's Bahcesehir University.
In his victory speech following the re-election of Turkey's ruling party, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan committed himself to a new constitution, which he said will be a politically inclusive process. But during the election campaign, in which he courted Turkish nationalist voters, he took a tough stance against Kurdish demands for education in Kurdish and greater autonomy. Mr. Erdogan even said he would have hanged PKK leader Ocalan if he had been in power when Ocalan was captured in 1999.
But if Mr. Erdogan is prepared to negotiate, he may find more willing partners than in the past among the newly-elected pro-Kurdish deputies. according to Sinan Ulgen of the Turkish research firm Edam:
"On the positive side, they have also included some representatives who have not been associated [with the] more radical line of the Kurdish movement. That might allow them to play a more constructive role on the Kurdish issue," Ulgen said.
But a political scientist at Istanbul University, Nuray Mert, questions whether any of Turkey's main parties are ready to address the Kurdish movement's warnings and calls to negotiate.
"Unfortunately, neither the governing parties nor parties in opposition, they refuse to take it seriously, and think if [they] recognize [the] seriousness of the problem, it will be a surrender to Kurdish demands," said Mert.
During his campaign, the prime minister said there was no longer a Kurdish problem, but rather the problem lay with the BDP inciting unrest. The BDP countered that they represented Turkey's last chance for a negotiated settlement, warning that the generation following them will be far more militant.
That threat is real, according to the deputy head of the ruling AK party in Diyarbakir, Mohammed Akar.
He says that if there is disappointment, the whole idea of integration will end. Separation and conflict will come to the fore. He says that if he can see this, the prime minister, the state should see it as well. Akar adds that "The danger that is lying ahead is a nightmare," Akar said.
Since the start of the PKK's armed struggle, more than 40,000 people have been killed. Observers warn that Turkey's new parliament may find the country at a crossroads - either peace or a return to conflict and civil strife.
Beijing said Tuesday it is "firmly opposed" to foreign involvement in the regional disputes. it also warned other Asian nations to refrain from "irresponsible" comments on their competing maritime claims.
The comments appeared in the Liberation Army Daily, the newspaper of the Chinese military. They followed the introduction of a congressional resolution by two U.S. senators that accuses Beijing of using force in the disputes and calls for the U.S. military to "assert and defend freedom of navigation rights" in the South China Sea.
China responded furiously last year after the United States joined several countries at a regional security summit in calling for a multilateral approach to resolving South China Sea disputes. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also declared a U.S. national interest in maintaining free navigation through the waterway.
China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia claim all or part of the Spratly Islands. China, Vietnam and Taiwan also claim the Paracels.
China says its claims date back for centuries.
China is also criticizing a U.S. senator's call for multilateral negotiations to resolve territorial disputes in the South China Sea, and says it would rather pursue one-on-one dialogue with rival claimants.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei Tuesday was asked for a reaction to legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate that condemns China's actions in the South China Sea and calls for a multilateral solution to the territorial dispute.
Hong accused what he referred to as "some countries" of hurting China's sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.
Hong accused critics, including some in the United States, of trying to expand and complicate the territorial dispute.
Nature of dispute
The Spratlys are the main disputed island group in the South China Sea. They are near key shipping lanes and are believed to sit on top of large oil deposits.
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China's claims over islands in the South China Sea overlap with those of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. The spokesman said China is trying to safeguard its own rights and interests. He added that China will not resort to threats or the use of force.
Hong says China hopes countries not related to the issue will respect the efforts of countries directly related to the issue to resolve the disputes through direct negotiations.
Although he did not mention the United States by name, he was responding to a question about the legislation that calls for the U.S. military to defend freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.
What sparked tension
The Chinese comments come amid increasingly heated exchanges between China and rival claimants the Philippines and Vietnam, which held a live-fire naval exercise on Monday.
The Chinese spokesman had a relatively mild response to the Vietnamese naval exercises. He said only that Beijing hopes relevant parties will do more to contribute to peace and stability in the region.
The United States is not directly involved in the territorial dispute in the South China Sea, but American officials say Washington has an interest in protecting freedom of navigation rights in the region. In Washington, the bipartisan U.S. Senate bill urges a peaceful and multilateral resolution to the South China Sea issue.
China has instead maintained that it would like to resolve the territorial dispute with each claimant, separately.
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After five months of political horse-trading, Lebanon finally has a government, cementing Hezbollah's political dominance over the tiny Mediterranean country. Analysts say the new government's fortunes and longevity could be tied to those of neighboring Syria, one of the group's main patrons, but its political ascendance is unlikely to cause any dramatic geopolitical shifts in the region. The new government's first key test could be how it responds to possible indictments from the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
The Shi'ite militant and political movement and its allies control 18 of 30 portfolios in the new cabinet, including key ministries such as Defense, Justice and Telecommunications.
Hezbollah has been a serious player on the Lebanese political scene for years, flexing its military muscle in a war with Israel in 2006 and challenging the pro-Western government during street battles in 2008.
In January, Hezbollah and its allies forced the collapse of Prime Minister Saad Hariri's government over the issue of the United Nations-backed tribunal which is investigating the death of Mr. Hariri's father, the former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. The elder Hariri and 22 others were killed in a massive truck bombing on the Beirut seafront in 2005. The tribunal is widely expected to issue indictments soon that could include Hezbollah members.
Paul Salem, the director of the Carnegie Endowment's Middle East Center in Beirut, says the announcement will be a big political event in Lebanon if Hezbollah or Syrian officials, or security personnel are indicted.
"That will be a firestorm in itself, which the country as well as the government would have to deal with," said Salem. "That would be a very explosive and unpredictable set of events."
Since Hezbollah and its allies toppled the previous government over the issue of the U.N. tribunal, analysts say it is unlikely the new government will authorize the continued payment of Lebanon's 49 percent share of the court's cost. They question whether there will be government pressure on the four Lebanese judges on the panel to quit. And there is also the issue of cooperation in handing over any possible indictees who reside in Lebanon.
Hezbollah-backed Prime Minister Najib Mikati has promised that Lebanon will respect its international commitments. However, out-going Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar, who is part of Saad Hariri's March 14 coalition, says he would be "very astonished" if the tribunal is included in the new cabinet's policy statement, which lays out its agenda.
"The Hariri government has resigned or has been forced to resign because of the Tribunal and it would be really something unbelievable that the Tribunal would be a part of the new government's commitments. I am sure it will not be," said Najjar.
But American University in Beirut political science professor Hillal Khashan argues that it probably will not matter who is in charge when the indictments are announced, because the end result will be the same.
"But there is a difference between announcing the indictments and acting upon them. Everybody knows that the Lebanese state is soft; everybody knows that the Lebanese government is incapable to take on Hezbollah, is incapable of apprehending Hezbollah members who are at-large," said Khashan. "So it does not really matter who is the prime minister: the behavior of Hezbollah vis-à-vis the government will be invariable."
Carnegie's Paul Salem says another concern the Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hezbollah has is the outcome of the three-month-old anti-government uprising in Syria, which could change the group's fortunes.
"This is a pro-Syrian government," he said. "If the regime in Syria survives and continues and regains its footing and influence, then this government will continue on. If within a few months, the government in Syria has been replaced or something dramatic happens, this government will probably be impacted by that."
Professor Khashan agrees that Hezbollah is worried about Syria and the regional climate in general, which is not moving in its favor as the Arab Spring turns to summer.
"Hezbollah at the moment prefers to be left alone," he said. "They are playing very low key. They are nervous about developments in Syria and they do not want to be conspicuous. It suits Hezbollah at the present juncture in regional and Lebanese affairs to be unnoticed."
That lower profile bodes well for Lebanon's southern neighbor Israel, with whom Hezbollah waged a month-long war in 2006. Analysts say that despite their history, neither side wants to engage in another conflict.
Beyond the region, the United States and Europe are watching closely to see what route the new government takes. The United States lists Hezbollah as a terrorist organization and its rise to power could lead the U.S. to reevaluate its military and economic aid to Lebanon, particularly if Beirut cuts its cooperation with the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
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Two senior officials in Pakistan's Sindh province, the police inspector general and the head of the paramilitary Rangers force, have been removed from their posts in response to the videotaped killing of an unarmed man in a park in the city of Karachi.
Pakistan's Supreme Court had demanded the removal of Sindh's two top security officials after a video was released showing paramilitary soldiers shooting 22-year old Sarfaraz Shah on June 8. What video showed
The video originally aired uncut on Pakistani TV showing an unarmed Shah being shot and falling down in the street bleeding to death and screaming. He eventually died during treatment at a Karachi hospital.
The video disturbed many in Pakistan because of its brutal nature and also called into question the actions of the paramilitary force.
Public outcry
Sindh's chief minister, Qaim Ali Shah, spoke Tuesday in reaction to the public outcry.
A free, fair and impartial investigation is under way, he said. The decision to remove the top Ranger and police officials has been taken to make sure that neither officers or politicians can influence the probe.
The incident comes as criticism over the security forces continues to grow in Pakistan.
Most recently, the May 2 U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad infuriated some Pakistanis who believed the country's security forces may have secretly aided the program.
Additional video
There is also another video circulating in Pakistan which shows the shooting deaths of five Russian nationals near the southwestern City of Quetta. Security forces claim they were suicide bombers, though there was no indication the would-be suicide bombers were armed.
Although the prevalence of camera phones and social media websites are raising the profile of these types of videos, political analyst Hassan Askari says there are those who may be using them for their own political gain.
Free media is playing an important role, he says. However, this would not have made such a major noise if the major political forces had not jumped in. So you have to combine the two. But since the political parties are active and they have a very clear agenda to somehow subdue the military, therefore the things are being kept alive.
Askari and others point out that it is not just the military's conduct that is under attack but also the widespread belief that the armed forces' relationship with the U.S. - while strained - is what is driving Pakistan's foreign policy.
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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she is concerned by Chinese aid and investment policies in Africa.
Trade was a centerpiece of Secretary Clinton's trip to Africa this week as she met with business leaders to discuss continuing duty-free access to U.S. markets under the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
So it is no surprise that everywhere she went - in Zambia, in Tanzania and in Ethiopia - Clinton was asked about the country that has overtaken the United States as Africa's top trading partner: China.
"China's presence in Africa reflects the reality that it has important and growing interests here on the continent including access to resources and markets as well as developing closer diplomatic ties. The United States does not see these Chinese interests as inherently incompatible with our own interests," she said.
Chinese-African trade rose more than 40 percent, last year, to nearly $127 billion. Much of that was centered on mineral and oil exports, as Beijing looks to fuel its massive economy.
Secretary Clinton says the Obama administration hopes that China will be successful in its economic efforts on behalf of the Chinese people and that it will assume a greater, and more responsible role in addressing challenges in Africa.
"We are, however, concerned that China's foreign assistance and investment practices in Africa have not always been consistent with generally accepted international norms of transparency and good governance. And, that it has not always utilized the talents of the African people in pursuing its business interests," he said.
Large Chinese construction projects in Africa often employ Chinese workers housed at the site. African trade unions have complained that those projects do not create jobs or job training for local workers.
Clinton says U.S. diplomats in Africa are reaching out to Chinese colleagues to explore potential areas of cooperation while assessing China's overall role in Africa.
"We want to work more closely with China and other countries to make sure that when we are engaged with Africa, we are doing it in a sustainable manner that will benefit the nations and people of Africa," she said.
Although Washington has been replaced as Africa's top trading partner, it is still Africa's largest aid donor. Clinton says U.S. investment and assistance programs in Africa are based on partnership, not patronage, unlike those who deal only with Africa's elites and often undermine good governance.
"It is easy to come in, take out natural resources, pay off leaders and leave. And, when you leave, you don't leave much behind for the people who are there. You don't improve the standard of living. You don't create a ladder of opportunity. We don't want to see a new colonialism in Africa," said Clinton.
An editorial in the state-run English-language China Daily newspaper, responding to Clinton's comments, says China has never colonized any nation in Africa. The editorial says, on the contrary, it is well known to African people and the world that China has helped Africa build many schools and hospitals.
The editorial says many African governments regard Chinese investment as an opportunity and welcome Beijing's consistent policy of noninterference in domestic affairs. It says the strategic partnership with Africa has nothing to do with neocolonialism and is instead based on principles of sincerity, friendship and mutual benefit on an equal footing.
The state-run newspaper says the African people are wise enough to be able to identify who are their true friends. It says, "They don't need lectures in this regard."
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A cloud of ash from an erupting volcano in southern Chile has - for a third day, Tuesday - disrupted air travel in South America, Australia and New Zealand, causing widespread delays. More than 60,000 passengers have been stranded.
While flights in some areas have resumed, including Melbourne, planes to and from New Zealand and Adelaide, Australia remain grounded Tuesday.
The volcano in the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle chain in Chile has been erupting for several days, putting South American air travel into chaos as it spews ash high into the atmosphere, spreading eastward around the globe until reaching Australia, New Zealand and beyond in the Pacific.
In addition to Argentina and Chile, flights have been disrupted in the South American countries of Brazil and Uruguay.
A flight carrying U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to Buenos Aires late Sunday was diverted to Cordoba in northern Argentina because of the ash, which can damage aircraft bodies and engines. Ban was forced to travel to Buenos Aires by bus overnight for a meeting with Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.
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As the tiger continues to face critical threats to its survival, yet another country is joining the global battle to save the big cat.
An estimated 300 to 500 Royal Bengal tigers roam the sprawling, 6,000-square-kilometer mangrove forest in the Sunderbans area of Bangladesh.
There are no studies, but conservationists fear that the Royal Bengal tigers' numbers are diminishing as they are targeted by poachers and struggle to find food in their shrinking habitat.
Now, authorities hope that a 300-member force being raised to police the dense, tropical swamps of Sunderbans in the huge delta on the Bay of Bengal will be able to deter wildlife smugglers.
Equipped with modern weapons and high speed patrol boats procured with the help of a $36 million World Bank loan, Bangladesh's new Wildlife Crime Control Unit will penetrate deep into the jungles to track threats from poachers.
Those threats are growing. In February, one man was arrested with three tiger skins and other parts - the largest haul in three decades.
Bangladesh's chief conservationist, Tapan Kumar Dey, says lack of training and equipment had hampered efforts to prevent poaching, but he hopes this will now change. He says besides policing the forests, wildlife tracking units will be established throughout the country.
"We will involve all law enforcement agencies, police, customs, border security force and other agencies in illegal trade of wildlife. We are going to post some officers in seaport, in airport and also some in the point through which illegal wildlife is trafficking throughout the region," he said.
Conservationists say depleting food reserves also pose a huge challenge to the Royal Bengal tiger.
The head of the Wildlife Trust of Bangladesh, Anwarul Islam, says deer and other prey which tigers depend on are being increasingly hunted down by villagers on the periphery of the Sunderbans. This forces tigers to emerge out of the forest in search for food, and it is estimated that three are killed on average every year when they stray into villages.
Islam says an initiative has been launched to tranquilize tigers that enter villages and put them back into forests - a practice already followed in neighboring India. He says a 24-hour hotline has been established to alert wildlife officials and volunteers about tigers that come out of forests.
"In 29 villages around the Sunderbans we now have 200 village tiger response teams, and they are volunteers," said Islam. "Once stray tigers come into the villages, their main job is to manage the crowd, that is the main problem. Once people know there is a tiger, thousands of people flock together, they come out with sticks and what not….We need to develop confidence among local people that forest department and their partners have capacity to manage stray tigers."
But this is not always an easy task. In February, conservationists celebrated when, for the first time, a tiger that strayed out of the forest was tranquilized and put back into the wild. But the same animal emerged out of the forest again, and was killed by villagers.
Wildlife officials are calling for stiffer penalties and longer jail terms for killing tigers. They hope a tough, new law will be drafted this year and help curb poaching of an animal that is worth millions of dollars when it is killed.
The Sunderbans forest straddles India and Bangladesh, and is among the most densely populated tiger habitats in the world, with about one tiger every 20 square kilometers.
Conservationists say Bangladesh can make a critical contribution to the fate of the tiger, whose numbers worldwide have plummeted to about 3,200.
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Israel's foreign minister says a U.S.-Israeli citizen arrested in Egypt Sunday is not a spy.
Avigdor Lieberman said on Israel's Army Radio Tuesday that American-born Ilan Grapel had no ties with Israeli or American intelligence services, no matter how "strange" or "careless" his behavior.
The U.S. says a consular officer visited Grapel in prison Monday after he was arrested Sunday and ordered to be detained for 15 days.
Friends and family of Grapel say he is a 27-year-old American-Israeli who was interning for a non-profit organization in Egypt. They say he is an American law student who speaks Arabic and has an avid interest in the Middle East.
Egyptian authorities say the suspect entered Cairo around January 25 and had posed as a foreign correspondent.
The Egyptians allege Grapel is an officer with Israel's Mossad intelligence agency and had encouraged youths to clash with the Egyptian military during the protests in Cairo's Tahrir Square that led to the ouster of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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One of the nation's most prolific art collectors is the U.S. space agency. For nearly a half-century, NASA has commissioned artists to document its missions and projects. Seventy of the 3,000 works in its collection are in a traveling exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
The art is mounted in a quiet corner gallery on the second floor of this cavernous museum, perched above an atrium filled with hanging spacecraft and missiles and crowds of visiting tourists. The show retraces milestones in space history through the unique visions and sensibilities of a diverse group of artists.
"The whole collection leaves me with this wonderful artistic notion of what we've been through over the 50 years of NASA history," says curator Tom Crouch, "from the very first launches, down to the latest planetary probe, and you see it through the eyes and the experience of these artists, all different, all interested in some different aspect of this, and yet when you see it here in the gallery it all comes together."
As you enter the gallery, you come face-to-face with a life-size portrait of astronaut Gordon Cooper by Mitchell Jamieson. It is 1963 and Cooper, in his silver-colored spacesuit, steps out of his Mercury space capsule after 22 orbits of Earth onto the bright sunlit deck of the recovery ship.
Nearby is a large painting by famed American illustrator Norman Rockwell of two astronauts suiting up for the first flight of the Gemini program in 1965.
"It's like two knights putting on their armor going out to do battle," Crouch says. "We have another Rockwell called 'Behind Apollo 11' that is nothing but faces in profile, from the three Apollo 11 astronauts, to the backup crew, to their wives, to scientists, engineers and managers who stood behind them and helped them get to the moon."
A range of works in the show are inspired by the Apollo program which, as President John F. Kennedy envisioned, successfully landed the first men on the Moon in July 1969. The program carried five more crews to the lunar surface before ending in 1972.
Pop artist Andy Warhol captures the iconic image of Neil Armstrong's first steps on the lunar surface in vivid neon pink, yellow and blue. And, oil painter Robert McCall imagines the sight of the rocket engine firing to propel the lunar lander back to earth.
Crouch says artist Crystal Jackson shows spectators watching the historic events unfold. "The Crystal Jackson in the show is called 'The Moon Hut' and it was a hamburger place outside the NASA main gate with a big moon and these wonderful characters who were down there drawn by the excitement of this program."
The show also includes photographs by William Wegman, known for his Weimaraner dog portraits, here suited-up as astronauts peering out from the portholes of the International Space Station.
And high overhead there's a twisted rubber sculpture made from tire fragments called "Remembering Columbia," that evokes the loss of the Columbia Space Shuttle and its crew in a disastrous reentry accident in 2003.
Another commissioned piece by watercolorist Barbara Ernst Prey is the X-43, the fastest airplane in the world, clocked at more than 11,000 kilometers per hour. Prey studied the craft for months and did sketches at Edwards Air Force Base in the California's Mojave Desert an hour before its launch from the wing of a high-flying carrier jet.
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"What was going through my mind is: Do I make this abstract? Do I make it concrete?" says Prey. "It kept on coming to me. It's really about the blue sky and this object going as fast as it can across and just the energy. And that's what I tried to get with the yellow and the different colors in the cloud going behind it."
Prey stationed herself in front of a large TV screen to watch the flight. She says the experience filled her with a sense of awe. "It's the amazing gifts that these people have to do amazing things, and I think that's what I've really learned. And it helps you look differently because you are looking and you are thinking of the cosmos and universe and that helps you look at things differently."
Visitor Barbara Baldwin from San Antonio, Texas shares that enthusiasm. "You know, growing up with space exploration was a neat thing,"she says. "I'll never forget where I was when the men landed on the moon and what we did that day. Our family gathered around the TV that night. So I have great memories as a child."
Hunter Thorton from Vidalia, Louisiana, came to the museum with some high school friends. He says it was a chance to put on his "Star Wars" movie gear. He is a fan of science fiction, but likes how the artists in this show interpret real events. "It really goes to show how America is propelling in technology and being in space. And hopefully one day we'll be walking in costumes likes this for real."
"NASA Art: Fifty Years of Exploration" was originally slated to make its last stop at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington. But popular demand for the show has extended its journey into 2012.
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International observers who are monitoring the proceedings of the Cambodia's United Nations-backed Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal are calling for the U.N. to investigate the conduct of two judges. The Open Society Justice Initiative is questioning the court's decision to close its politically-sensitive third case, saying it threatens the court's credibility.
The Open Society Justice Initiative- or OSJI - is a non-governmental organization funded by U.S. billionaire George Soros that has monitored the Khmer Rouge tribunal since 2003 - three years before the court formally opened its doors.
On Tuesday the OSJI released a report calling on the U.N. to investigate the conduct of the tribunal's two investigating judges - Germany's Siegfried Blunk and Cambodia's You Bunleng.
Monitors say the investigating judges' decision to close Case Three, which is believed to involve two former senior Khmer Rouge military officers, could constitute judicial misconduct.
"The reason is that there are very strong grounds now for believing that there's been political interference in the judicial decision-making process," explained Clair Duffy, who monitors the tribunal for the OSJI, "and that's interfered with judicial independence, and also the fact that the judges have failed in their legal and ethical obligations amounts to judicial misconduct or breach of judicial duty."
The Cambodian government has long said it opposed having Case Three to go to trial. In late April, the two judges announced they were closing the case.
The international prosecutor for the tribunal, Andrew Cayley, responded by saying the investigating judges had failed to interview the suspects during their 20-month investigation and had not visited numerous sites where crimes were alleged to have taken place.
A tribunal spokesperson said Tuesday that the two judges would not comment on the OSJI report.
The decision to close the case is far from academic. The court has not named the two men at the center of Case Three, but media reports have stated that they are thought responsible for tens of thousands of deaths.
The OSJI says court sources have said numerous times the investigations are being undermined by political meddling and a lack of donor funding.
Earlier this week the investigating judges confirmed that a number of international staff members had quit their office. The judges responded by saying they were happy to see them go.
One of those who resigned was Stephen Heder, an academic and Khmer Rouge specialist who was working in the investigating judges' office as a consultant until he quit on May 5.
In his resignation e-mail to Judge Blunk, Heder accused the judges of closing Case Three "effectively without investigating it". He also said Judge Blunk's leadership had created a "toxic atmosphere of mutual mistrust" in the investigating judges' office, which he says had become "professionally dysfunctional".
The OSJI's Duffy says the U.N.'s own standards of judicial conduct - known as the Bangalore Principles - appear to have been breached. She says there are a number of steps it can take.
"First of all they have a particular Special Rapporteur whose mandate is to conduct these sorts of inquiries," explained Duffy. "The Office of Internal Oversight is the office that's supposed to investigate misconduct within the United Nations - misconduct of its own officials. So these are a couple of examples of the things that we say can and should be done at this stage."
The OSJI says a U.N. investigation is critical to restore public trust in the tribunal's investigations into crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970s.
The tribunal, made up of both Cambodian and international jurists, has already convicted a notorious Khmer Rouge jailer and is to open the trial of the top four surviving Khmer Rouge leaders later this month.
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