Turkey Live Coverage (21 May): Regional and Global Dimensions of "Terrorism"

1630 GMT: After the Kurdistan Regional Government had announced a deal with Ankara that would allow them to export oil through Turkey and on to the international market, bypassing Baghdad; the central Iraqi government warned Arbil and said that the deals must abide by the constitution and laws that govern relations between Baghdad and the Kurdish north. 

1525 GMT: Turkish police detained three suspects for their suspected involvement in a plot to abduct a defected Syrian colonel who fled to Turkey.

1440 GMT: A special ops team officer was killed and five other security personnel were wounded in a clash with the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Kulp, a district of Diyarbakır province.

As known, PKK members had kidnapped the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) Kulp branch head Veysel Çelik earlier.

1120 GMT: The Turkish daily Radikal claims that President Obama, during the Chicago Summit, has ordered the handover of operational control of the early warning radar system to NATO.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Amidst the Assassination Rumors, 60 Die

An anti-regime protest on Sunday night, with a song dedicated to the dead of Homs, in Mare near Aleppo in Syria

See also Syria Video Feature: What is the State of the Opposition?
Bahrain Live Coverage: The Regime's Strategy of Rolling Detention
Sunday's Syria Live Coverage: Obama Says "Assad Must Go" --- But How?

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1939 GMT: Iraq. The central government warned authorities in the Kurdish region on Monday that their oil deals with Turkey must have Baghdad’s approval.

On Sunday, Iraqi Kurds announced a deal with Ankara that would allow them to export oil through Turkey to the international market, bypassing Baghdad.

The national government says the region has no right to sign deals unilaterally and that exports must go through state-run pipelines, but Kurds argue that the Constitution gives them the right to sign deals without consulting Baghdad.

Since the 2003 war that toppled Saddam Hussein, the Kurds have signed scores of oil deals. The central governmet considers the deals illegal and has blacklisted the companies involved.

In early 2011, the two sides agreed that the Kurds would send the oil to Baghdad, which would sell it, with an even split of the revenues. But last month the Kurds halted oil exports over a payment row

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The Latest from Iran (21 May): A Freudian Slip on the Economy

See also The Latest from Iran (20 May): A Tip of the Hat to President Obama?

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1824 GMT:. Fraud Watch. In the 11th hearing in the trial of dozens of defendants over a $2.6 billion bank fraud, a former deputy at the Ministry of Industry has accused Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of Parliament's National Security Committee, of involvement.

1813 GMT: Death to the Rapper Watch. Hojatoleslam Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, the head of the Administration Court, is the latest cleric to call for the killing of rapper Shahin Najafi because of his "insult to Imams" with his song "Naqi".

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Syria Wired: The Latest from Social Media and EA's Readers

See also Syria Wired: The Latest from Social Media and EA's Readers (19 May)

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Our recurring feature in which EA readers use the Comments section to bring in the latest news and thoughts from social media....

EA on the Road: Considering Syria

I will be at an all-day conference on Syria today.

James Miller will be here this afternoon to take you through latest developments. However, updates in our Live Coverage --- on Iran, on Bahrain, and on Syria and Beyond --- may be slow at times. 

Meanwhile, we thank readers for bringing in latest news and ideas through our Comments sections.

Bahrain Feature: Seeing the Crisis Through Children's Cartoons (Fisher)

Max Fisher of The Atlantic introduces a poignant and provocative way to view the ongoing crisis in Bahrain --- the cartoons of the country's children. Some of the examples featured on the site:

Maryam, age 7. She told activists that the drawing portrayed her and her sister running to help their uncle, shot in the head by security forces. The Pearl Monument, the icon of the protest movement, frowns in the background.

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Syria Video Feature: What is the State of the Opposition? (Al Jazeera English)

Last week was marked by tensions over the opposition Syrian National Council, with key groups threatening to freeze their activities or even withdraw in protest. Days after he was re-elected to a three-month term, SNC head Burhan Ghalioun resigned.

Al Jazeera English's Inside Story considers the issues with Bassma Kodmani, a senior SNC figure; Kamal al-Labwani, a Syrian opposition activist and former SNC member; and Joshua Landis, the academic who runs the Syria Comment website.

Bahrain Live Coverage: The Regime's Strategy of Rolling Detention

See also Bahrain Feature: Seeing the Crisis Through Children's Cartoons
Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Amidst the Assassination Rumors, 60 Die
Sunday's Bahrain Live Coverage: Regime Says, "This Protest Good, This Protest Bad"

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Carlos Latuff cartoon featuring Nabeel Rajab0935 GMT:. Maryam Alkhawaja reports that the detention of her sister and fellow activist Zainab has been extended until Thursday, when her next court hearing is scheduled.

Zainab Alkhawaja was imprisoned on 21 April after she staged a sit-in protest in the middle of a Bahraini highway.

0825 GMT:. The United Nations Human Rights Council is considering Bahrain's record and situation this morning.

The British representative has cited ongoing human rights violations, while the American delegation has called for accountability of all perpetrators of torture. Denmark has sharply criticised the Bahraini Government for lack of action on rights, while emphasising the case of Danish-Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, who has been on hunger strike for 102 days.

The Bahraini envoy, unsurprisingly, has said there are no issues, as the regime has implemented the recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry.

We hope to have a summary of proceedings later today.

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Syria Live Coverage: Obama Says "Assad Must Go" --- But How?

A Free Syrian Army officer claims the assassination of several top officials of the Assad regime (see 0630 GMT)

See also Algeria Video Feature: The Uprising That Wasn't
Bahrain Live Coverage: Regime Says, "This Protest Good, This Protest Bad"
Saturday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Shelling in the Morning, Protests in the Afternoon

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1626 GMT: Syria. The Local Co-ordination Committees of Syria claims 28 people have died today, including 19 in Hama Province.

United Nations observers moving through the rubble of Rastan:

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The Latest from Iran (20 May): A Tip of the Hat to President Obama?

Nikahang Kowsar portrays a President Obama tying up Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with the cord of sanctions, "A good boy doesn't play with nukes"

See also The Latest from Iran (19 May): Bad Numbers for Ahmadinejad and Regime's "Islamic Awakening"

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1727 GMT: All the President's Men. Mehr reports that Hamid Pourmohammadi, the former deputy head of the Central Bank, is continuing to attend important meetings of the Ahmadinejad administration even though he is accused of playing a part in the $2.6 billion bank fraud and is currently free on bail.

Mehr published a photo of Pourmohammadi at the recent meeting of the Petrochemical Industry Development Committee with 1st Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi.

Pourmohammadi’s presence at government meetings has also been challenged by leading MP Ahmad Tavakoli on his website Alef.

1723 GMT: The Revolutionary Guards Respond. Revolutionary Guards Commander Ramezan Sharif has hid back at the accusations of conservative MP Ali Motahari (see 1349 GMT) --- Sharif said the Guards had no role in Parliamentary elections and Motahari should present any evidence that he has.

The commander added that prosecution of Motahari for libel was possible.

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