In parts of Iraq, the U.S. military has been setting up Sunni tribal security forces to fight al-Qaida.

NPR: Cloudy Fate for Iraqi Sunnis Fighting Al-Qaida

The Arabic news network al-Jazeera said a gang stormed its Cairo offices, setting them on fire and damaging equipment.

WSJ: Regime Seeks an Exit for Mubarak

Kenyan troops have launched a cross-border operation against Al-Shabaab in southern Somalia with the apparent intention of setting up a buffer zone across the border.

CNN: Mysterious al Qaeda 'envoy' dispenses aid in Somalia

But in potentially precedent-setting cases, such as those of Mr Kadi and al Barakaat, its reaction, expected by the summer, is much harder to predict.

ECONOMIST: UN law

So is this sort of setting up a confrontation between Ali Sistani, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani and Muqtada al Sadr, who is very powerful politically?

NPR: Top Muslim Cleric Urges Militias to Disarm

He says the Shia-led government of Mr Maliki has tried to calm the situation by setting up an inquiry into the Hawija incident and appointing Sunni Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlag as its chairman.

BBC: Iraq police and gunmen die in Mosul clashes