A court in Azerbaijan on Wednesday extended the pre-trial detention of two prominent opposition leaders accused of fomenting rare anti-government riots in the tightly-controlled former Soviet state, opposition activists said. Ilgar Mammadov -- who heads the Republican Alternative (REAL) movement -- and Tofig Yagublu -- deputy head of opposition group Musavat -- were handed an additional three months in jail in closed court hearings in Baku where they are awaiting trial on charges of causing mass disorder and resisting state officials.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to hold talks on Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the conflict in Syria, the Kremlin said, amid concerns Moscow plans to deliver advanced missiles to the Damascus regime. "During the meeting an exchange of opinion is planned on key aspects of bilateral ties," the Kremlin said in a statement. "It is expected that major attention will be paid to the current situation in the Middle East, first and foremost in Syria," the statement said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Russia for talks with President Vladimir Putin, officials said Saturday, amid concerns Moscow may be about to deliver advanced missiles to Syria. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the visit to AFP, but declined to give details, although he told the Interfax news agency it was being planned for next week. The state RIA Novosti news agency, citing a diplomatic source, also said Netanyahu expected to call on Putin at his Black Sea residence in Sochi early next week.

British Prime Minister David Cameron and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday sought to forge a joint approach to the crisis in Syria, as a row over Moscow's weapons deliveries to Damascus showed up the divisions between the Kremlin and the West. Cameron's rare call on Putin at his summer vacation residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi came three days after top US and Russian diplomats agreed to make a joint effort in search of a solution.