Uzbekistan Uzbekistan's autocratic President Islam Karimov faced pressure at home and abroad over a deadly crackdown, after foreign diplomats slammed a state-run trip to the site of the violence for its lack of access and an opposition group called on him to resign. Uzbekistan The United States called for a "credible and transparent" investigation into the reported massacre of hundreds of protesters in the central Asian state of Uzbekistan. Afghanistan-Italy A hostage-taker claiming to have abducted an Italian aid worker in Kabul threatened to kill her unless his demands were met, suspected kidnapper Temur Shah told AFP. Mideast Israel launched its first air strike against Palestinian militants since armed groups began observing a de facto truce, seriously wounding a Hamas militant and jeopardising the fragile peace. Iraq The Iraqi defence minister vowed to regain the upper hand against insurgents as the death toll this month neared 500, as Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al-Qaeda's top man in Iraq, justified attacks on US troups that kill Muslims. Georgia-US A live hand grenade was thrown towards US President George W. Bush as he addressed a massive crowd here last week and posed a threat to his welfare, the US embassy said, contradicting initial reports from US and Georgian officials. Iran The European Union renewed pressure on Iran over its nuclear program, confirming plans for talks with Tehran next week and warning it could yet haul the Islamic state before the UN Security Council. NKorea-SKorea Inter-Korean talks resumed in North Korea with both sides focusing on efforts to improve bilateral ties instead of wrangling over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. China-EU Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai said the country will not impose more curbs on its textile exports to placate concerns in the United States and European Union. Russia Lawyers representing Yukos founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky said it was a foregone conclusion their client would be found guilty as judges continued reading the protracted verdict in the controversial trial. China Fifty-one miners are missing and feared dead after a gas explosion ripped through the Huanerhe coal mine near Chengde city in northern China's Hebei province, the government said. Australia Australian pop superstar Kylie Minogue will undergo surgery for breast cancer this week but tests so far show that the cancer does not appear to have spread, her manager said.