The AFP news calendar

Monday, March 11 to Sunday, April 7

Monday, March 11

ABU DHABI: Second hearing in the trial of 94 Islamists accused of plotting to seize power in the United Arab Emirates

ATHENS: Newly-elected Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades on first visit to Greece since assuming his post

AMMAN: Prince Charles and wife Camilla begin visit to Jordan, Qatar and Oman (to 19)

BRUSSELS: EU foreign ministers meet

BUCHAREST: One World documentary film festival starts (to 17)

- New hearing in the case of ex-Romania diplomat Silviu Ionescu charged with manslaughter in Singapore car crash

HERZLIYA, Israel: Annual security conference (to 14)

ISLAMABAD: Groundbreaking ceremony to initiate construction work on 780-kilometre pipeline in Pakistan to import Iranian gas

ISTANBUL: Trial of around 300 people accused of plotting to topple government enters final stages

LELYSTAD, Netherlands: Pre-trial hearing for seven suspects, six of them youths, for the death of a linesman who was assaulted after a football match

LONDON: British government appeals decision to let Abu Qatada, wanted by Jordan on terror charges, to stay in Britain

MAPUTO: Hydrocarbon convention (to 13)

MONTREAL: Trial begins of Canadian accused murderer Luka Rocco Magnotta

MOSCOW: Posthumous trial starts for Sergei Magnitsky, whose death in jail has upset the Kremlin's ties with the United States

NEW DELHI: Second auction starts of Indian bandwidth to provide telecommunications services

RABAT: First anniversary of the suicide of a teenager who was forced to marry her rapist

SEOUL: US and South Korean troops stage a computer-simulated drill named Key Resolve

STOCKHOLM: Turkish President Abdullah Gul visits (to 13)

STRASBOURG: European Parliament holds plenary session (to 14)

TAIPEI: Taiwan and US reopen talks on Trade and Investment Framework Agreement

TOKYO: Japan marks two years since a huge tsunami hit the northeast, killing 19,000 people and sparking a nuclear emergency

Tuesday, March 12

ALGIERS: International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde visits (to 14)

BELGRADE: Serbia marks 10th anniversary of assassination of reformist premier Zoran Djindjic

LONDON: Singer David Bowie launches his first album in 10 years, "The Next Day"

MANILA: President Benigno Aquino speaks at investor conference

MOSCOW: Alexander Ankvab, leader of Georgia's breakaway region Abkhaz, visits

- Armenia's President Serge Sarkissian meets Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin

MUMBAI: India's annual three-day media and entertainment conference starts

STRASBOURG: Israeli President Shimon Peres addresses members of the European Parliament

VIENNA: 75th anniversary of Nazi Germany's annexation of Austria

- Historians publish report on Vienna orchestra's Nazi past

- Monthly OPEC report

Wednesday, March 13

ACCRA: Extradition hearing for Justin Kone Katinan, spokesman of ex-Ivory Coast leader Laurent Gbagbo, wanted back home over economic crimes and murder.

BUCHAREST: New hearing in case of ex-Romanian diplomat charged with manslaughter in Singapore car crash

DOHA: Prince Charles and wife Camilla arrive in Qatar and as part of regional tour (and 14)

OTTAWA: French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault visits (to 15)

RIYADH: Arab interior ministers meet for two days

SANTIAGO: ALMA radio telescope, one of the world's most important astronomical projects, is inaugurated

SIERRE, Switzerland: First anniversary of a Belgian tourist bus crash that killed 28 people, including 22 children

Thursday, March 14

BRUSSELS: EU leaders summit (and 15)

HANOI: 25th anniversary of a maritime battle between Vietnam and China over Gac Ma island in the contested Spratly archipelago in which 64 Vietnamese soldiers died

HONG KONG: Man Asian Literary Prize, Asia's most prestigious literary prize, announces the 2012 winner

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Supreme Court resumes hearing contempt charges against the chairman of an anti-corruption watchdog

NEW YORK: Samsung presents its new smartphone, the Galaxy S4

PANAMA: The 54th Annual Meeting of board of governors of the Inter-American Development Bank (to 17)

WASHINGTON: Annual Conservative Political Action Conference (to 16)

Friday, March 15

BUDAPEST: National holiday. Opposition groups to stage demonstration against Prime Minister Victor Orban

DAMASCUS: Second anniversary of the start of the conflict in Syria

HONG KONG: Former Hong Kong politician Henry Tang sells part of his multi-million-dollar wine collection

RIYADH: Prince Charles and wife Camilla visit (to 17)

ROME: First meeting between the lower house of parliament and the senate since the February elections.

SEPANG, Malaysia: South Korea's Psy performs at Future Music Festival Asia

TEL AVIV: Annual marathon, with thousands of international and Israeli runners

ZAGORA, Morocco: Annual festival of nomads in the extreme south of Morocco, expected to attract more than 30,000 people

Saturday, March 16

BRUSSELS: Russel Tribunal on Palestine holds final session (and 17)

HANOI: Vietnam marks the 45th anniversary of the massacre of civilians by US troops at My Lai

HARARE: Constitutional referendum in Zimbabwe

ISLAMABAD: End of current government's official mandate and national election deadline

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: Jeddah Economic Forum 2013 (to 18)

MANILA: Giant Entertainment City casino complex opens

Sunday, March 17

BEIJING: End of China's annual parliament meeting, where Xi Jinping is due to become national president and Li Keqiang premier

RAMALLAH, Palestinian territories: Activists begin a 12-day campaign in support of Palestinians fighting eviction by Israeli military authorities (to 29)

TOKYO: Tokyo Fashion Week (to 23)

TUNIS: Ceremonies marking end of 40-day mourning period for assassinated opposition leader Chokri Belaid

Monday, March 18

BRUSSELS: EU agriculture ministers meet (and 19)

HONG KONG: Seventh annual Asia Film Awards

JOHANNESBURG: Nigerian national Henry Okah is sentenced for the 2010 deadly bombings in his home country

ISTANBUL: Nuclear experts from Iran and world powers hold technical talks over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme

MILAN: Verdict expected in Rubygate trial of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi

MOSCOW: British airline EasyJet plans to launch flights to Moscow, becoming first foreign budget carrier to fly to Russia

MUSCAT: Prince Charles and wife Camilla arrive for two days in Oman, the last stop of their regional tour

SANAA: National dialogue begins with goal to draft a new constitution and electoral law ahead of 2014 elections

Tuesday, March 19

ANTALYA, Turkey: Verdict due in trial of a former Swiss police chief charged with smuggling a cultural relic from Turkey

BANGKOK: Thailand decides whether to alter the emergency rule decree in parts of the south

GUATEMALA CITY: Trial starts for former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt, accused of "genocide and crime against humanity"

LONDON: Ten dresses worn by the late Princess Diana go up for auction

TOKYO: Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa steps down

WASHINGTON: Federal Open Market Committee meeting (and 20)

Wednesday, March 20

BAGHDAD: Tenth anniversary of US-led Iraq invasion

BANJUL: Campaigning begins ahead of April local elections in Gambia (to April 2)

BRUSSELS: Seventh round of talks between premiers of Serbia and Kosovo

JERUSALEM: US President Barack Obama visits Israel, Palestinian territories (to 22)

MUSCAT: New hearing in the trial of five Omani cyber-activists accused of defaming Sultan Qaboos

LISBON: Lisbon metro-workers stage strike to protest job cuts

LONDON: Queen Elisabeth II and Prince Philip visit the London Underground to mark the transport system's 150th anniversary

OFER MILITARY PRISON, Palestinian territories: Hunger-striking Palestinian prisoner Samer Issawi faces a military court to decide whether he will be freed or jailed for violating terms of his prison release

SINGAPORE: International conference on aviation finance (and 21)

STRASBOURG: European Court of Human Rights reviews its ruling last year when it ordered the release of ETA activist Ines Del Rio Prada after it found that Spain had wrongly extended her jail term

WASHINGTON: National cherry blossom festival (to April 14)

Thursday, March 21

BRUSSELS: European Commission publishes monthly list of infringement warnings

- EU environment ministers meet

CANTERBURY, England: Justin Welby enthroned as the new archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Church

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey: Kurds celebrate New Year or Newroz amid renewed peace talks between Turkey's secret services and jailed Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan

LISBON: Workers at Portugal's state TAP airline stage three-day strike to protest wage cuts.

PARIS: Parole hearing for Lebanese militant Georges Ibrahim Abdallah

TEHRAN: Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers live televised speech for Iranian new year

Friday, March 22

BUDAPEST: Far-right Jobbik party holds protest at decision to ban fans from Hungary-Romania after racist incidents at previous match

KHARKIV, Ukraine: Fraud trial resumes for jailed ex-premier Yulia Tymoshenko

PARIS: Paris book fair Salon du Livre opens (to 25)

TOULON, France: German company TUeV appears in a trade court hearing as 1,000 women demand compensation for defective breast implants

Saturday, March 23

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan National Day

LONDON: The V&A museum opens "David Bowie Is", the first international retrospective of the singer's career (to August 11)

MILAN: Verdict expected in former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's appealed tax fraud case

VARIOUS: Cities around the world turn off their lights to mark "Earth Hour" and draw attention to climate change

Sunday, March 24

DOHA: Arab ministers hold preparatory meeting ahead of the annual Arab League summit (to 25)

SKOPJE: Macedonia holds local elections

PARIS: Opponents of gay marriage and adoption demonstrate

Tuesday, March 26

DOHA: Arab leaders hold annual summit in Qatar (to 27)

DURBAN, South Africa: The fifth BRICS Summit (and 27)

GENEVA: The 23rd round of talks between Russia and Georgia aimed at easing tensions since the 2008 war over breakaway Georgian provinces

STOCKHOLM: Winner of the 2013 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award announced

TUNIS: The World Social Forum (to 30)

WASHINGTON: Supreme Court to hear oral arguments on gay marriage (and 27)

Wednesday, March 27

ADDIS ABABA: Appeals trial resumes for jailed Ethiopian blogger Eskinder Nega and opposition leader Andualem Arage, convicted last year on terror-related charges.

NAYPYIDAW: Myanmar military parade to mark Armed Forces Day

Thursday, March 28

LYON, France: Appeals trial of Kafa Kachour Bashir, the wife of former Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi's chief of staff, who was sentenced to two years in prison for illegally restraining domestic workers

TUNIS: Verdict expected in trial of Tunisian academic Habib Kazdaghli, accused of slapping a female student wearing an Islamic veil

VARIOUS: Beginning of Easter holiday

Sunday, March 31

KHARTOUM: Final direct KLM flight between Khartoum and Amsterdam, leaving crisis-hit Sudan with only one other direct link to Europe

ROME/VATICAN CITY: Christians around the world mark Easter

Monday, April 1

YANGON: Myanmar to allow publication of private daily newspapers for first time as part of new media freedoms

Thursday, April 4

JERUSALEM: Thousands join the annual 122-kilometre (75-mile) ultra-marathon from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv with participants running through the night

Friday, April 5

ALMATY, Kazakhstan: Six world powers represented by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton meet to hold talks on Iran's nuclear programme (and 6)

Saturday, April 6

PARIS: Trial of French actor Gerard Depardieu, accused of drink driving

Sunday, April 7

DOHA: Donor conference for Darfur (to 8)

HANOVER, Germany: Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel attend the opening of the Hannover Messe, the world's biggest industry and trade fair

PODGORICA: Montenegro holds first round of presidential election

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