German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to seek a swift revival of peace talks with the Palestinians citing regional unrest as cause for urgency.

At a joint press conference with Netanyahu on the first day of a visit to Tel Aviv that included a joint German-Israeli cabinet meeting, she spoke of "troubled times" against a backdrop of civil revolt in Egypt and Tunisia.

Ten people died when a regional passenger train collided with a goods train late Saturday in eastern Germany, police and firemen said.

Up to 20 other people were seriously injured in the accident which happened at Hordorf near Oschersleben, in Saxony-Anhalt, firemen and police said. They gave differing numbers.

British Prime Minister David Cameron, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Egypt's Hosni Mubarak to avoid violence "at all costs" in a joint statement Saturday.

The three leaders called on Egypt's embattled president to commit to change in response to what they said were the "legitimate grievances" of his people.

German Foreign Ministry spokesman Andreas Peschke said the task given to Najib Miqati to form a new government is “not easy.”

He said his government is “carefully monitoring the developments in Lebanon since they have an impact on the region.”

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said the European Union must accept Turkey as a member if it wants to avoid being a "Christian club," in an interview with a German newspaper.

Asked whether Turkey should join the E.U., Assad told Germany's top-selling Bild newspaper: "They simply must ask Turkey to become a member because they need it as an Islamic country so the E.U. does not become a Christian club."

World Cup fever is sweeping across Asia as hundreds of millions of fans in the football-mad region count down to the start of an event that's a surefire winner for pubs, clubs and bookmakers.

From Seoul to Sydney, Beijing to Bangkok, preparations are underway for Friday's kick-off thousands of miles away in South Africa, heralding a month of late nights and bleary-eyed mornings for many Asian fans.

Hizbullah MP Hussein Moussawi on Wednesday saluted veteran U.S. reporter Helen Thomas' "courage" for her comments against Israel, which sparked a furor Washington and forced her to retire.

"Respected American journalist Helen Thomas' answer shows ... a courageous, bold, honest and free opinion which expresses what people across the globe believe: that Israel is a racist state of murderers and thugs," Moussawi said in a statement.