Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy rushed to the defence of King Juan Carlos on Monday, a day after a poll showed the monarch's approval ratings have plunged due to a corruption probe involving members of his family. Rajoy recalled the king's role in helping to restore democracy following the death of dictator General Francisco Franco in 1975 and the decisive action he took to fend off an attempted military coup on February 23, 1981. On that day a section of the army seized parliament, firing shots over the heads of lawmakers, in a bid to establish another military regime.

LONDON (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said on Thursday that the central bank was not seeking any further fall in the level of sterling which now appeared to be fairly valued. The pound hit a two-and-a-half year low against the dollar on Tuesday, down more than 8 percent since the start of the year, though it surged 1 percent in the hours before ITV News released King's comments, made in a pre-recorded interview.

The king of Bahrain named his son Crown Prince Salman, a reputed moderate, as deputy premier, on Monday, as a promised national dialogue stalled between the Gulf state's Sunni regime and its Shiite majority. The main Shiite-led opposition group Wefaq gave the appointment a guarded welcome, saying it hoped it would clear the way for a constitutional monarchy with an elected prime minister in place of the appointed incumbent, King Hamad's cousin, Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa.

Spain's 75-year-old King Juan Carlos left intensive care Monday after undergoing lower back surgery at a Madrid hospital. The king was discharged in the morning from the intensive care unit of the La Milagrosa hospital, where he will continue his recovery, the director of the hospital. Gaspar Palet, told reporters. "Juan Carlos' progress during the night was really good and he was able to rest," he said.