Voting began in Congo's second-post war election on November 28 after poll organizers defied fears that a delay will be needed to deal with logistical problems and critics who called for a review because of irregularities.  

Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has formally accepted his ruling party's nomination to return to the presidency, in an address in which he warned the West against funding his political opponents.

Prime Minister Mario Monti faces a testing week seeking to shore up Italy's strained public finances, with an IMF mission expected in Rome and market pressure building to a point where outside help may be needed to stem a full-scale debt emergency.

Egypt is entering the next stage of its transition with parliamentary elections, the first since massive street protests forced former President Hosni Mubarak to resign in February.

Rage spread in Pakistan on November 27 over a NATO cross-border air attack that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and could undermine the US effort to wind up the war in Afghanistan.

NATO helicopters and fighter jets attacked two military outposts in northwest Pakistan on November 26, killing as many as 28 troops and plunging US-Pakistan relations deeper into crisis.

A series of bombings rocked Baghdad and some surrounding areas on November 26, leaving at least 15 people dead and another 27 dead wounded.

The government is likely to have to axe an extra 100,000 government jobs over the next four years to meet its deficit-reduction goal, the Ernst & Young ITEM Club said on November 27.

NATO helicopters opened fire on a Pakistani checkpoint, killing 20 soldiers, two senior Pakistani military officials said on November 26.

Moroccans went to the polls on November 25 in the country's first parliamentary elections since adopting a new constitution following mass protests over unemployment and corruption.