Israel / Lebanon: 'Israel's cabinet yesterday gave final approval for a prisoner swap today in which it will give up a notorious Lebanese militant in return for two Israeli soldiers who are presumed dead.' (Guardian).

Christianity / Islam: 'Key elements of Christian doctrine are offensive to Muslims, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said in a letter to Islamic scholars.' (Telegraph).

Thailand / Cambodia: 'The controversy surrounding an 11th-century temple on the Cambodian border with Thailand has taken a new twist after the authorities in Phnom Penh alleged that up to 170 armed troops and civilians from Thailand had illegally entered its territory.' (Independent).

Myanmar: 'One man was killed when a bomb exploded on a bus in army-ruled Myanmar, newspapers said on Tuesday, the latest incident ahead of anniversaries that sometimes serve as flashpoints for dissent.' (Reuters).

Turkey: 'The fight for control of Turkey's fragile political system intensified yesterday when 86 hardline secularists were indicted for allegedly plotting a violent coup against the Islamist-leaning government.' (Guardian).

Israel / Syria: 'Israeli doubts over Syria peace' (BBC).

India / Pakistan: 'Islam and Hinduism's blurred lines' (BBC).

Koreas: 'South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak has proposed reviving direct talks with North Korea, in a major policy shift.' (BBC).

Pakistan: 'Hunger brings anguish for millions of Pakistanis' (Reuters).

Iran / Israel: 'The sabre-rattling over Iran's nuclear progamme has grown louder as a defiant Tehran claimed to have conducted missile tests for a second day running, the US warned that it would defend its interests and its allies in the region, and Israel hinted it was ready to stage a preventive attack to destroy Iranian nuclear installations.' (Independent).

Israel / Lebanon: 'Israel will begin exhuming bodies of Hezbollah fighters on Monday ahead of a planned swap with the Lebanese guerrilla group, which is holding two soldiers, an Israeli military spokesman said.' (Reuters).

Afghanistan: 'A suicide bomber has rammed a car full of explosives into the gates of the Indian embassy in the Afghan capital, killing 28 people, officials say.' (BBC).

Pakistan: 'Militant violence returned to Pakistan's capital yesterday on the anniversary of the storming of the Red Mosque. A suicide bomber detonated a device next to a police post less than half a mile from the controversial Lal Masjid. At least 15 officers were killed and 22 injured.' (Independent).

China: 'A senior Chinese security official said the Beijing Olympics are threatened by sabotage and unrest, state media said on Friday, as authorities moved to sack officials blamed for a riot that torched a police headquarters. (Reuters).

Iran: 'After four weeks in police custody, Iranian Christian Mohsen Namvar was released “temporarily” last week to return to his home in Tehran.' (Compass Direct).

Indonesia: 'Indonesian police have arrested 12 suspected militants who were planning to attack an area frequented by tourists, authorities said Thursday.' (CNN).

UK: 'Britain's first Muslim minister has attacked the growing culture of hostility against Muslims in the United Kingdom, saying that many feel targeted like "the Jews of Europe". (Independent).

Mongolia: 'Five people have died in violent protests in the Mongolian capital Ulan Bator over alleged electoral fraud, says Justice Minister Tsend Munkhorgil.' (BBC).

Turkey: 'Political tensions rose Tuesday across Turkey as police seized two retired generals, a prominent journalist and others accused of plotting to overthrow the government and prosecutors undertook a court case to ban the Islamic-rooted ruling party.' (CNN).

India / Pakistan: 'Officials in Indian-administered Kashmir have stepped in to try to defuse a row over the donation of government land to a Hindu shrine which triggered the biggest protests in the area for almost two decades.' (Independent).

China: 'Senior envoys of Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, are in Beijing to hold formal talks with the Chinese government.' (BBC).

Israel / Syria: 'Israeli and Syrian negotiators are to take part in a third round of indirect peace talks in Turkey.' (BBC).

India: 'India's main communist party said it would discuss the timing of withdrawal from the government over the civilian nuclear deal with the United States due to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's trip to a G8 summit.' (Reuters).

Pakistan: 'Pakistan's new government launched its first military operation against Islamists at the weekend, moving against warlords who were threatening to overrun the major city of Peshawar.' (Reuters).

Nepal: 'The Maoist guerrilla leader who is about to become Nepal's prime minister faces a dilemma: how can he reconcile his ideology with the realities of political office? Raymond Whitaker met him' (Independent).

Israel / Lebanon: 'Israel's cabinet has decided to free a Lebanese guerrilla responsible for a notoriously brutal attack on an Israeli civilian family in return for the bodies of the two soldiers whose abduction triggered the 2006 Lebanon war.' (Independent).

Iran: 'Security police officials in Tehran this month tortured a newly converted couple and threatened to put their 4-year-old daughter in an institution after arresting them for holding Bible studies and attending a house church.' (Compass Direct).

Gaza / Israel: 'Israel said it would keep its border crossings with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip closed for a second day on Thursday, prompting the Islamist group to warn that the move could wreck a week-old ceasefire agreement.' (Reuters).

Pakistan: 'Pakistan on Wednesday moved about 3,000 troops into a tribal region where 20 local tribesmen were slain by Taliban militants, an army spokesman told CNN. (CNN).

Pakistan: 'Pakistani Taliban militants murdered 22 rivals captured this week when they seized a northwestern town, a government official and residents said on Wednesday.' (Reuters).

Indonesia: 'Local authorities accompanied by an Islamist mob attempted to demolish two buildings in a church compound used by three congregations in Jatimulya village, West Java province on June 14.' (Compass Direct).

Israel / Lebanon: 'Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will ask his Cabinet on Sunday to approve a deal with Hezbollah that would involve exchanging prisoners for two captured Israeli soldiers.' (CNN).

Tunisia: 'Rights group Amnesty International has accused Tunisia of carrying out illegal detentions and torture under its anti-terrorism policy.' (BBC).

Pakistan: 'The party of former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif blamed President Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday for Sharif's disqualification from a by-election for a National Assembly seat.' (Reuters).

Iran: 'Iran condemned on Tuesday new sanctions imposed on it by the European Union and made clear they would not slow Tehran's nuclear activities, an Iranian news agency reported.' (Reuters).

Anglican Church: 'Conservative Anglican leaders have opened talks in Jerusalem on the future of the Church with criticism of its leader, the Archbishop of Canterbury.' (BBC).

Afghanistan: 'Four Afghan civilians were killed by rocket attacks on NATO-led bases in southern Afghanistan Sunday, including on barrage launched from across the border in Pakistan, NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.' (CNN).

China: 'China paraded the Olympic torch through the streets of Lhasa at the weekend in a blaze of red flags, eager to present a picture of national unity and domestic harmony just three months after the Tibetan provincial capital was rocked by anti-Chinese riots.' (Independent).

India: 'A powerful Hindu-nationalist political party in western India has called for Hindu suicide squads to counter Islamic terrorism, causing outrage and embarrassing the national opposition with which it is allied.' (Reuters).

Britain: 'Hardline Church leaders have formally declared the end of the worldwide Anglican Communion, saying they can no longer be associated with liberals who tolerate homosexual clergy.' (Telegraph).

Gaza / Israel: 'A truce between Israel and Palestinian militants in Hamas-ruled Gaza took effect at 6 a.m. local time Thursday, after both sides spent the previous day trading blows.' (CNN).

China: 'China has posted hundreds of rescue personnel to shore up dams threatening to burst in southern mountainous areas under torrential rain that has already flooded 9,000 square miles of crops and homes. (Reuters).

Algeria: 'Convicted of blasphemy and evangelism in two separate cases this year, an Algerian Christian goes on trial in west Algeria for a third time tomorrow, again for evangelism.' (Compass Direct).

Gaza / Israel: 'Israel and Hamas agreed a ceasefire, Egyptian negotiators said, the result of months of talks to avert further bloodshed.' (Telegraph).