Tunisia's interim regime followed through on its pledge to replace the cabinet of ousted president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali Jan. 28, sacking the ministers of defense, interior and exterior. The changes were announced by Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi—himself a target of resignation demands by protesters who continue to take to the streets.

The new governor of Mexico's conflicted Oaxaca state, Gabino Cué Monteagudo, was sworn in last month after winning on the ticket of United for Peace and Progress Coalition, made up of all the state's major opposition parties (PAN, PRD, PT and Convergencia). But much of the state bureaucracy remains loyal to the long-entrenched machine of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Upon taking office, Cué says he found the bureaucracy crippled by years of endemic corruption. "There were no computers," he said. "We found that the staff payroll didn't match who actually was working... The bank statements were out of balance. The state automotive fleet was in terrible shape." Cué also faces local conflicts in 47 of the state's 570 municipalities, where local elections were annulled because of irregularities. (Miami Herald, Jan. 26)

US military agencies in September 2010 signed contracts for construction at Tolemaida, Larandia and Málaga bases in Colombia worth nearly $5 million, according to documents obtained by the anti-war group Fellowship of Reconciliation. US military contracts for Tolemaida in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 were larger than the last four years combined.

Thousands again took to the streets of Sana'a Jan. 27, calling for the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. "It's over Saleh, your time is up!" chanted a crowd of students, rattling the gates of Sana'a University. The protests are organized by an opposition coalition, including the Islamist party Islah, as well as the Socialist and Nasserite parties. Emphasizing a commitment to nonviolence, the protesters have adopted pink as their color, but warned that they will escalate to "red" to press their demands if necessary. (The Guardian, The Lede, Jan. 27)

Tunisia's Justice Minister Lazhar Karoui Chebbi announced Jan. 25 that the National Unity Government has issued an international arrest warrant for ousted president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali and his family. The transitional government also announced that a new cabinet is to be named this week, as well as new governors and ambassadors. Protesters continue to mobilize in the capital to demand the resignation of former members of Ben Ali's regime.

Egyptian police and protesters clashed in Cairo's city center and in the port city of Suez on Jan. 26, the second day of anti-government rallies. The Interior Ministry had banned all protests, and security officials said at least 500 were arrested around the country. In the capital, where demonstrators declared a "day of anger" to demand the resignation of Hosni Mubarak, police used tear gas and protesters responded with hurled stones. One protester and one police officer are reported killed in Cairo street fighting. In Suez, three protesters were reported killed in a police baton charge the previous day. (Middle East Online, YNet, Jan. 26)

The Irish ambassador to Israel, Breifne O’Reilly, was summoned to the foreign ministry in Jerusalem Jan. 25 to be dressed down by Israeli officials over Dublin's move to upgrade the status of the Palestinian delegation to Ireland to a mission. Israel's ambassador in Dublin, Boaz Modai, also said he will visit the Department of Foreign Affairs to protest the diplomatic upgrade announced the previous day as harmful to peace efforts. (Irish Times, Jan. 26)

President Mahmoud Abbas pledged Jan. 25 that he will personally face the Qatar-based satellite network AlJazeera to address its release of secret documents from a decade of Israel-Palestinian negotiations. Speaking a crowd of hundreds gathered at his headquarters in Ramallah, Abbas said, "I am ready personally to go on their own channel and face them." He dismissed the leaked papers as forgeries—less than a day after Palestinian negotiator Nabil Sha'ath told AlJazeera that the leaked documents matched those in his possession.