Ireland's smoking ban claims a prominent victim, reports the BBC: Fine Gael TD (that's like an MP, only in Irish) and justice spokesman John Deasy has been thrown off the front bench for lighting up outside the parliamentary bar. (The place has since been designated a smoking area; another Irish solution for an Irish problem.)

Kofi Annan has now produced a final plan for Cyprus which will be put to referendums in the two halves of the island

A Periodic Table of Blogs by Score Bard. Apparently, it has been discovered by the Instapundit last November. But I had not seen it yet and so had to express my excitement by posting this link.

The Greek government doubts that an agreement over Cyprus will be reached before the deadline for negotiations to conclude, which will mean Kofi Annan will be required to impose a solution before referendums are held

Two sad recent deaths: Legendary actor/writer/raconteur Peter Ustinov and British Letter From America broadcaster and writer Alistair Cooke

An in interesting Guardian interview with European Parliament President Pat Cox

If you're off to the pub in Ireland, leave your ciggies at home. As of today. smoking is illegal in public workplaces. Those near the border may slip across to the wee North for a fag with their pint.

Europe and the War on Liberty - Maria Farrell on the proposals for European anti-terror legislation after Madrid

Europe Counts - a European Parliament site trying to encourage voters to take part in June's Parliament elections (found via Doctor Vee)

Early Monday morning, Israeli forces killed Hamas' spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin. Here's some early coverage of this important development from Reuters, AP, and Haaretz.

Harry's Place is running a Do Something for Iraq campaign to promote 'campaigns, projects and charities that are directly helping Iraqi people'

Juliana, former Queen of the Netherlands, has died aged 94

Recently, Samuel Huntington laid out his reasons for being afraid of Mexican immigrants to the US in an essay in Foreign Policy. You should read it. But even more importantly, make sure to read our AFOE co-editor Scott Martens' most excellent three part (one, two, three) point by point refutation of Mr Huntington's effort over at pedantry. While the case study is about the US, there are important lessons to be drawn for European immigration, too - "It's all Tim Berner-Lee's fault."

The emergency meeting of EU interior ministers today has recommended that next week's heads of government meeting appoint an EU anti-terrorism 'czar', but there will not be a centralized 'European Intelligence Agency'

According to the people who voted in the Bloggy^tm category "best European weblog", the best one is Textism. The four runner-ups are, in order of appearance on the award's website - Ben Hammersley's Dangerous Precedent, Open Brackets, Giornale Nuovo, Chocolate & Zucchini. The overall winner is, by the way, BoingBoing, the directory of wonderful things.

My favorite blogger, Kevin "Calpundit" Drum, has gone professional. He now blogs at the Washington Monthly.

Newly released polls from Spain show that the PSOE may have been in the lead before last Thursday. More discussion of this at Harry's Place

After Madrid, there'll be a series of emergency EU meetings to discuss greater co-operation over terror

Who did it? - Maria Farrell on the questions raised by Madrid

Another search for Radovan Karadzic has ended in failure