Top story: Iran has invited Russia, China, and members of the European Union to inspect its nuclear facilities during a two-day visit beginning on Jan. 15. However, it did not extend the offer to the United States.
The invitation comes as Iran and the "P5+1" -- the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany -- prepare for a second round of negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, scheduled to be held in Istanbul in late January. European envoys said that they were unlikely to accept the invitation until after the Istanbul summit, if at all.
One diplomat, speaking anonymously, said that the Iranian offer would allow representatives to inspect the facilities located at Natanz and Arak, where the Islamic Republic is constructing a second nuclear reactor. There appears to be no mention of inspecting the previously secret uranium enrichment facility near Qom. The invitation also offers meetings with acting Foreign Minister Ali Salehi and the Islamic Republic's chief negotiator regarding its nuclear program, Saeed Jalili.
The invitation was dismissed by U.S. officials. "It's a clever ploy, but it's not a substitute for Iran's responsibilities to the IAEA," said State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley.
Pakistan governor assassinated: A gunman shot and killed Salman Taseer, the governor of Pakistan's Punjab province.
Asia
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Some areas of Australia are preparing for the peak of floodwaters, which have devastated northeast regions of the country.
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Stephen Bosworth, the top U.S. envoy for North Korea policy, called for a new diplomatic effort to decrease tensions on the Korean peninsula.
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A Chinese official warned that it would take 300 years to reverse the effects of desertification on China's land.
Middle East
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Coptic Pope Shenouda III urged calm after protesters clashed with police following the New Year's Day attack on a Coptic church, which killed 21 people.
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Israel arrested two Palestinian employees of the British Consulate in east Jerusalem over a plot to fire a rocket at a soccer stadium.
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A top leader of Israel's Labor Party threatened to pull out of the coalition government if peace talks remain stalled.
Europe
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220 people believed to have been euthanized by the Nazis were unearthed at a psychiatric hospital in Austria.
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Greece announced plans to construct a fence meant to prevent illegal immigration from Turkey.
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Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero announced that Spain would meet its target of reducing its debt to 9.3 percent of GDP in 2010.
Africa
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African leaders have failed to make progress in convincing Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo to relinquish power after his defeat in November's presidential election.
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Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir arrived in Southern Sudan before the planned referendum on the region's independence.
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Uganda's top court ruled that media would no longer be allowed to publish lists of people they said were homosexual.
Americas
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A fire bomb exploded aboard a Guatemalan bus, killing five people.
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Thieves in Argentina tunneled into a bank vault, emptying over 100 safe-deposit boxes during the New Year's holiday.
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Computer hackers tried but failed to bring the Brazilian government's website down on the day of President Dilma Rousseff's inauguration.
ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Image
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