Iraq

According to the Interior Ministry 758 civilians were killed this month (CNN.com).

Pakistan

Early in the month there were fierce clashes in North Waziristan between the army and militants. (AP)

2-4 OCTOBER 2007

Asia and the Pacific, diplomatic affairs

South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun met North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, North Korea. They agreed on a number of items, including the need to “end the current armistice and establish permanent peace.” (CNN.com)

7 OCTOBER 2007

Pakistan, politics

President Pervez Musharraf won the presidential election held by federal and provincial lawmakers; most of the political opposition boycotted the vote. (AP)

Iraq

Three bomb attacks in Baghdad killed 11 people. (CNN.com)

9 OCTOBER 2007

Iraq

In Baiji, bomb attacks killed at least 22 people. (CNN.com)

9-10 OCTOBER 2007

Europe, diplomatic affairs

French President Nicolas Sarkozy met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Iran's nuclear program was apparently a major topic of discussion. At the end of the visit Putin said, "We are sharing our partners' concern about making all Iranian programs transparent." Sarkozy said, "Our positions moved much closer together." (AP)

11 OCTOBER 2007

Sudan, politics

The Sudan People's Liberation Movement, the ruling party of autonomous southern Sudan, suspended participation in the national unity government. It charged the government with holding up implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement. (AP)

12 OCTOBER 2007

Myanmar, politics

Prime Minister Gen. Soe Win, the fourth-ranked member of the ruling junta, died after a long illness. (AP)

15-22 OCTOBER 2007

China, politics

The 17th Communist Party Congress was held. President Hu Jintao won a second five-year term as Communist Party general secretary. Overall, his political position improved, though it is still not dominant. Wu Bangguo and Premier Wen Jiabao both kept their places on the nine-member Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), rival Vice President Zeng Qinghong retired, and Hu protoge Li Keqiang was promoted. However, two Zeng allies, Zhou Yongkang and He Guoqiang, rose to the PSC and took the law enforcement and anti-corruption posts respectively, replacing Luo Gan and Wu Guanzheng, who retired. Another new member seen as less beholden to Hu is Xi Jinping. (AP, CNN.com)

18 OCTOBER 2007

Pakistan

A suicide bomb attack in Karachi on the convoy of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto killed 136 people and wounded at least 320; Bhutto was not hurt. (CNN.com)

19 OCTOBER 2007

Philippines

A powerful blast at a mall in Manila killed eight people and injured over 70. The exact nature of the blast was not immediately clear. (AP)

20 OCTOBER 2007

Iran, politics

The government announced that Ali Larijani, its lead nuclear negotiator, had resigned for “personal reasons” and would be succeeded by Saeed Jalili. (AP)

21 OCTOBER 2007

Poland, politics

The opposition won parliamentary elections. The Civic Platform (PO), led by Donald Tusk, won 209 seats in the lower house, the 460-seat sejm, up from the 133 seats it won in September 2005. Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski's Law and Justice (PiS) party won 166 seats, not enough against the combination of PO and the Polish Peasant Party (PSL), which won 31 seats. The Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) won 53 seats. (IFES, CNN.com)

On 23 November, Tusk, in his inaugural address as Prime Minister, called for more privatization, tax cuts and simplification of business laws; he also said Poland would withdraw its 900 troops from Iraq by the end of 2008. (AP)

Switzerland, politics

In parliamentary elections the Swiss People's Party (SVP-UDC) won 62 seats in the 200-seat National Council, up from the 52 it won in the October 2003 elections. The Social Democratic Party (SPS) won 43 seats, down from 55, and the Green Party won 20, up from 13. (IFES, CNN.com)

25 OCTOBER 2007

United States, foreign policy

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, announced economic sanctions against Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force and other Iranian military and financial entities.

In the Treasury Department statement, the US alleged the Quds Force is Iran's “primary instrument” for providing “weapons and financial support to the Taliban” rebels in Afghanistan. The alleged weapons include mortar and rocket ammunition, small arms and “probably man-portable defense systems...”

The statement also provided details of Iran's longstanding support of anti-Israel militants, saying the Quds Force provides Hezbollah with “guidance, funding, weapons, intelligence, and logistical support." Hezbollah "has reportedly trained" more than 3,000 of its fighters at Revolutionary Guard training facilities in Iran, and the Quds Force has provided roughly $100-200 million in funding per year to Hezbollah and helped it rearm after its 2006 campaign against Israel, according to the statement. The Quds Force also allegedly provides “material support” to Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command. (CNN.com)

28 OCTOBER 2007

Argentina, politics

A presidential election was held; first lady Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner won with 44.9% of the vote; Elisa Maria Avelina Carrio had 23.0% and Roberto Lavagna had 16.9%. Turnout was 71.8%. (IFES, CNN.com)