At least 44 prisoners were killed in a clash between adherents of Los Zetas and the Gulf Cartel at the Center for Social Readaptation (CERESO) in Apodaca, Nuevo León. The CERESO, with an official capacity of 1,500, was holding some 3,000.
Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov was sworn in as Turkmenistan’s president, having won by a predictable 97%. His personalistic dictatorship mirrors that of his autocratic predecessor “Turkmenbashi”—and is the lynchpin of the planned trans-Afghan pipeline.
Benjamin Netanyahu made the first-ever visit by an Israeli leader to Cyprus, to discuss offshore gas development and a possible new pipeline. But Turkey objects to the plans, claiming sections of the exploration blocs as under its continental shelf rights.
The assassination of Kartam Surya, legendary leader of the Salwa Judum militia in Chhattisgarh state, raises question about the Indian government’s ongoing collaboration with the officially outlawed paramilitary network.
Argentina’s confederation of transport workers (CATT) has instructed its members not to work on British ships or aircraft arriving in the country, as a show of support for the Argentine government’s claim of sovereignty over the Falkland Islands.
Honduras is in shock after a fire at a triple-capacity Comayagua prison left at least 360 dead, many burned or suffocated to death in their cells. Reports said guards hurled keys away before fleeing, abandoning the prisoners.
The Defense Department announced that military commission charges have been brought against Guantánamo Bay detainee Majid Shoukat Khan. He is the second to face a military tribunal under President Barack Obama.
Protesters took to the streets of Tehran one year after opposition leaders were put under house arrest for supporting Iran’s last protest wave. An Iranian patrol boat meanwhile had a “close encounter” with a US fleet in the Strait of Hormuz.
French officials said Tuareg guerillas of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) killed some hundred residents at a village they occupied in northern Mali. Over 50,000 have fled fighting in the remote Saharan region.
Security forces in Bahrain fired tear-gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades at protesters gathered on the eve of the first anniversary of pro-democracy demonstrations. Protesters tried to gain control of the Pearl Roundabout in the capital, Manama.
Benjamin Netanyahu blamed “Iran and its proxy Hezbollah” after a deadly attack on an Israeli diplomat’s wife and attempted bombing in Tbilisi, Georgia— the day after the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Hezbollah’s operations chief.
A 69-year-old Palestinian man was killed in an attack by the Israeli Air Force on tunnels and a weapons depot in Gaza—as managers of the Strip’s only power plant warned of impending blackouts if more fuel is not delivered.
