Osama bin Laden encouraged jihadists to commit acts of terrorism in Denmark, according to materials apparently seized by the American military at his home. Read the full story

A jilted lover may have caused an emergency landing in Stockholm this week after she supposedly phoned police and said her ex-boyfriend was flying with explosives. According to reports in the Swedish media, Canadian police forced a Pakistan-bound plane to land at Arlanda Airport after the woman telephoned and said her ex, who was travelling to the country to get married, was carrying a bomb. Read the full story

Swedish newspaper The Local has revealed that one of the three Swedish suspects arrested in Pakistan on suspicion of ties with Al-Qaeda is Mehdi Ghezali, a former Guantanamo Bay suspect who was released from the prison in 2004. Read the full story

A recently released video of a senior al-Qaeda commander, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, has threatened fresh attacks against Danish interests around the globe over its printing of offensive cartoons in 2005 featuring the Prophet Mohammed. Although Mustafa Abu al-Yazid was reportedly killed in July during an air strike in the tribal hinterlands of Pakistan, his death remains Read the full story

Monday’s bombing of the Danish embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan may have been a reaction to the Mohammed cartoons published in Danish newspapers.

Last year’s cartoons depicted the Prophet Mohammed with a bomb for a turban. It is expressly forbidden in Islam to draw pictures of the Prophet at all. The cartoons were reprinted in February this year.

The reason behind the attack will not be known before the completion of investigations, but it is widely believed to be linked to Muslim distaste for the cartoons, and the Danish government’s continued refusal to apologise for them.

In a recent interview, Pakistan’s ambassador to Denmark enquired whether the newspaper “is satisfied with what it has done and what it has unleashed?” She continued that the matter of the cartoons is something Danes need to reflect on.

Most people agree the cartoons were in poor taste, but debate rages on as to whether the guarantee of free speech justifies their publication.

Norway’s reputation and role as a mediator in global conflicts has been brought to the attention of several groups working to secure a resolution to the conflict between India and Pakistan over the Kashmir region.

The Norwegian Christian Democratic Party’s central board is urging the government to consider stepping in.

Members of the Kashmiri-Scandinavian-Council (KSC) have also recently released a statement indicating that several of their members, including Kashmiri politician Mirwaiz Omer Farooq, have called on the government and civil society in Norway to mediate between India and Pakistan.

Norway is often considered a mediator on the world stage, especially following the country’s constructive work in Sri Lanka. In Kashmir, however, Norway’s potential role would be extremely challenging as trust between India and Pakistan has eroded over the years since the conflict began. Norway is considered to have a good relationship with both the Indian and Pakistani governments.

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Benazir Bhutto has been killed in a gun and bomb attack after a rally in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

Police said a suicide bomber fired shots at the Pakistani opposition leader and former prime minister as she was leaving the rally before blowing himself up.

A party security adviser said Bhutto, 54, was shot in the neck and chest as she got into her car.

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