KEY STORYLINES
- AFRICA: The DRC’s military suspended its offensive against the opposition.
- AMERICAS: In Colombia, the FARC confirmed it was holding French journalist Romeo Langlois hostage.
- ASIA: Secretary Clinton indicated Pakistan had not taken appropriate steps to capture Hafiz Saeed.
- EUROPE: In Russia, Putin was sworn in as President.
- MIDDLE EAST: An air strike in Yemen killed Fahd al-Quso, wanted for his role in the USS Cole bombings.
- TECHNOLOGY: The website of radio station Echo of Moscow was taken offline by a cyberattack.
TOP STORY
- France: Hollande defeated Sarkozy to become French President
AFRICA
- Democratic Republic of Congo: The military said it secured control in North Kivu, and suspended military operations against the “undisciplined”. (AP, AFP)
- Mali: The Defence Ministry said 100 North Africans from Libya, Algeria and Tunisia had joined AQIM. (AFP)
- Sudan: President Omar al-Bashir affirmed the close ties between the people of Sudan and South Sudan. (AP)
AMERICAS
- Colombia: The FARC confirmed it was holding French journalist Romeo Langlois hostage. (NYT)
- Colombia: Presumed FARC guerrillas torched three vehicles on a highway linking three southern cities. (EFE)
ASIA
- Afghanistan: The Washington Post reported the US had been releasing high-level detainees in Afghanistan amid negotiations with Taliban insurgents. (Washington Post)
- Afghanistan: An ANA soldier shot and killed a US Marine and wounded two others. (AP)
- Pakistan: Al Qaeda released a video of Warren Weinstein, an American abducted in Pakistan, appealing to President Obama to accept Al Qaeda demands. (CNN)
- Pakistan: Secretary Clinton indicated Pakistan had not taken appropriate steps to capture Hafiz Saeed, and speculated that Zawahiri was in Pakistan. (Reuters)
- Pakistan: Two Pakistani soldiers and nine other soldiers were ambushed in North Waziristan. (Washington Post)
EUROPE
- Armenia: The ruling Republican party was projected to win parliamentary elections, with 90 percent of the vote counted. (AFP)
- Greece: No political party was able to secure enough votes to form a government in parliamentary elections. (MSNBC)
- Russia: Putin was sworn in as President for his third term. (Telegraph)
MIDDLE EAST
- Israel: President Netanyahu proposed holding elections on 04SEP. (AP)
- Iraq: A bomb on a minibus exploded in Baghdad, killing two. (AP)
- Syria: The opposition boycotted the multiparty parliamentary elections. (AP)
- Yemen: An air strike killed Fahd al-Quso, wanted for his role in the USS Cole bombings. (Independent)
- Yemen: Al Qaeda killed more than 30 Yemeni soldiers in an attack on a military outpost in the south. (Reuters)
TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS
- Russia: The website of radio station Echo of Moscow was taken offline by a cyberattack. (Itar Tass)
WORLD
- Cyclones: Nothing to report
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report
TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK (08MAY)
- United Kingdom: Pakistani PM Gilani visits the UK for the first Annual Review Meeting of the Enhanced Strategic Dialogue.
