CZECH REPUBLIC: Czech authorities detained leading Syrian Kurdish politician Salih Muslim at the weekend under an Interpol red notice based on Turkey's request for his arrest.

A Democratic Union Party (PYD) official close to Mr Muslim confirmed that the former PYD co-chair was in Prague attending a conference and was arrested after a Turkish participant took a photograph of him and approached police.

An extradition request by Turkey for the Syrian citizen would have to be approved by a Czech court and by the justice minister.

PALESTINE: Leaders of major Christian sects agreed to close the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in occupied east Jerusalem for several hours yesterday to protest against an Israeli plan to tax their properties.

The churches are angry about the Jerusalem municipality's plans to tax their various assets around the city and a potential parliament Bill to expropriate land sold by Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches.

The municipality says it cares for Christians’ needs and their full freedom of worship, but "hotels, halls and businesses cannot be exempt from municipal taxes simply because they are owned by the churches.”

NIGERIA: Parents released a list at the weekend of 105 young women believed to have been abducted from a school by Boko Haram extremists in the town of Dapchi in Yobe state.

Many other students fled into the surrounding bush when the extremists arrived in the town last Monday and have since returned home.

Information Minister Lai Mohammed visited Dapchi on Thursday saying that the government still needs "some few days" to confirm the actual number of missing girls, adding that troops and surveillance aircraft were being deployed to help the search.

PAKISTAN: Federal Investigation Agency senior official Khwaja Hammad reported yesterday that a blasphemy suspect who suffered serious injuries after jumping off a federal building is now in stable condition.

He said that Sajid Masih is recovering in a Lahore hospital and denies the suspect was abused or tortured.

Mr Masih, who was summoned by the Cyber Crime Wing on Friday for allegedly posting blasphemous material on Facebook, told local media that officials tortured him and confiscated his mobile phone.