(Euronews: 0413 PT, May 2, 2011) World leaders have been reacting to the death of Osama bin Laden. In Kabul, Afghan president Hamid Karzai said that the al-Qaeda leader's killing showed the fight against terrorism should be focused in neighbouring Pakistan. Turkish President Abdullah Gul said Bin Laden's death proved that all terrorist group leaders would eventually face justice. British Prime Minister David Cameron struck a cautious tone, welcoming Bin Laden's death but warning that the threat of terrorism had not yet been defeated.

(Associated Press: 0606 PT, May 2, 2011) Leaders, experts and citizens around the world are reacting to news of the death of Osama bin Laden in a US military operation.

(Euronews: 0925 PT, May 2, 2011) Reaction in the Arab world has been mixed. In the Gaza strip, Hamas's leader Ismail Haniyeh was guarded, yet also clear he saw no change for the better coming from it: "If the news is correct, we regard this as a continuation of the American policy that is based on oppression and shedding the Muslim and Arab blood."

(ITN News: 0724 PT, May 2, 2011) Former UK prime minister Tony Blair responds to death of Osama bin Laden.

(Al Jazeera English: 0530 PST, February 8 2011) This report from Al Jazeera English looks to Turkey as a possible model for new governments in the Middle East. Turkey has been praised for its balance of democracy, modernity, secularism and religion.

(Al Jazeera English, 0400 PST, February 1, 2011) Recep Erdoğan, the Turkish prime minister, has called on Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's president, to listen to the calls for change from Egyptian people. Al Jazeera's Anita McNaught in Istanbul speaks about the Turkish PM's forceful remarks.

Click here for important background information on the unrest in Egypt.

Watch Al Jazeera English's live broadcast stream, online now.

A few weeks ago, we were lucky enough to have Sertab Erener and her partner Demir Demirkan come by the studio to talk about their latest project "Painted on Water." For those you who are not familiar with them, Sertab is a pop diva from Istanbul, and her rendition of "Every Way That I Can" (written by Demirkan) which won the Eurovision Song contest in 2003 cemented her place in the hearts of the Turkish public. During the time we spent here, one couldn't help but see that the couple truly enjoy each other's company, and the interview went on for quite a while, as they talked about their music, how they met, their work method, and how the "Painted on Water" project developed. This was a tough one to edit, because it was all so interesting.

I really wanted them to demonstrate how the songs went from Turkish folk to mainstream pop, and they did that and more.

Keep an eye out for more from this very rich interview in upcoming blogposts-- like a performance where Sertab demonstrated her operatic chops and her pop stylings, all in one song!

I first heard Tamer Pinarbasi play the kanun on our video for Amnesty International "The Price of Silence." Andres Levin, the producer, had him record the first layer of "world music" onto the existing basic track from Aterciopelados. As soon as I heard the results, I was entranced. Tamer just laid down one good take after another, plus it was all tasty stuff.  Later, when I was taping my first blog installment I caught Tamer playing again, with the New York Gypsy Allstars.  This time I was struck by his technique and velocity. He played some great solos, and even his backup (which I sometimes think is as much the measure of a musician as the solos) was great. So I contacted him and last week he gave me a quick interview and performance at our office before running off to a gig in Brooklyn.

I must say I got a bit hypnotized just looking at the kanun and at Tamer's hands...hope you do too!