At least five people were killed and six others injured in a strike by the US drones in Pakistan's northwest tribal area of South Waziristan in the morning of July 12.

Ahmad Wali Karzai, a brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and one of the most powerful men in southern Afghanistan, was killed on July 12, apparently by one of his bodyguards, officials said.

Eurozone finance ministers met on July 11 to thrash out a second bailout package to Greece amid concerns of spill-over of the debt crisis to Italy, a much bigger economy in the single currency bloc.

US President Barack Obama and top US lawmakers fell short on July 11 of finding enough spending cuts for a deal to avoid an August 2 debt default and Republicans came under fresh pressure to agree to tax hikes.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has lost legitimacy and is "not indispensable," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on July 11 as tension soared over an assault by Assad loyalists on the US and French embassies in Damascus.

Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf said on July 11 he would reshuffle his cabinet within a week, but crowds protesting at slow reforms and foot-dragging in prosecuting the ex-president said they were not satisfied.

America's military chief has said the US is deepening its commitment to its Asian allies, during a visit to China aimed at improving strained relations.

Twelve people have been killed and about 30 injured in a blast at a munitions dump in southern Cyprus.

Japan's idled nuclear reactors could be turned on again if they pass the first stage of two-step post-Fukushima safety checks, the government said on July 11.

Thousands of demonstrators, including Islamists, held rallies in Rabat and Casablanca Sunday to demand greater political reform and social justice in Morocco.