Turkey’s prime minister said on Friday his cabinet had authorized the armed forces to conduct a cross-border operation against Kurdish PKK rebels in northern Iraq, but analysts said major action did not appear imminent.

A Syriac Christian priest kidnapped this week in southeast Turkey was released unharmed on Friday.“The priest was released in good condition…,” Batman province Deputy Governor Aziz Mercan told Reuters.

Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto published her manifesto for a January election on Friday, promising jobs for the poor if victorious but keeping open the option of boycotting the vote.