1) Yemen has arrested four French nationals of Arab origin in a town 400 kilometers south of the capital of Sanaa on suspicion of having links to al-Qaeda. French officials say the 4 were studying at an Islamic Institute. French Muslim fundamentalists, especially those connected to the radical Armed Islamic Group, have been an important component of al-Qaeda.



2) Abdullah Naseri, the head of the Iranian news agency, has been summoned before a judge for having conducted and published the results of a poll that showed that 74.7 percent of Iranians favor renewing diplomatic relations with the United States. It is still surreal to me after all this time that the Mullas can put people on trial for conducting opinion polls.



3) The Palestinian National Council and prominent leaders like Mahmud Abbas are reported by Reuters to have strongly critiqued the "mistakes" of the current uprising or Intifada (implying that they are taking a stand against suicide bombing). Since the suicide bombing has been not only a vicious bloodbath visited on innocent Israelis but also perhaps the worst political blunder any movement of national liberation has ever made, such rethinking can only be to the good.