The first declaration of martial law in the Philippines since the fall of the Marcos dictatorship was just lifted in a province of Mindanao—but armed attacks continue to escalate.
Thich Nhat Hanh has protested the eviction of his followers from a monastery in southern Vietnam’s Lam Dong province. Vietnamese intellectuals have issued a petition to support them.
Philippine Sen. Rodolfo Biazon called for suspension of peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), claiming the group helped fight the military during last week’s clash on Basilan Island.
Nine people were killed in explosions at the Ritz-Carlton and Marriott hotels in South Jakarta. Some of the victims were attending an Indonesian business forum held at the Marriott.
A police officer who was reported missing July 12 was found dead the next day near a mine operated in West Papua by the US conglomerate Freeport. Indonesian authorities blamed Papuan separatists.
CIA director Leon Panetta met Philippine President Gloria Arroyo for a security meeting—days after the UN World Food Program suspended aid work in Mindanao in response to a wave of deadly bombings.
A wave of terror attacks again left several dead in the southern Philippines region of Mindanao, including a blast at the Cotabato cathedral blamed on the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
The largest mosque on the Indonesian island of Java has been blocked by local residents who fear the militant group Jemaah Islamiyah has been organizing and recruiting there.
An ambush on a convoy of Indonesia’s elite Mobile Brigade (Brimob) left one officer dead in restive West Papua following a wave of Brimob sweeps in which several villagers were killed.
At least 11 were killed and 18 others wounded when gunmen opened fire on a mosque in Joh-i-Rong district of southern Thailand’s Narathiwat province during evening prayers.
Authorities in Burma closed the trial of pro-democracy advocate and Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi after briefly opening it to 30 foreign diplomats earlier this week.
Nicaragua has issued a passport for Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra—who is wanted on charges of inciting the recent riots. Thai diplomats say they will request extradition.
