Obama said the Middle East nation "will be held accountable" if it uses chemical weapons on foreign invaders

Romney said the "heartbreaking" death of Oswaldo Payá in an automobile accident raises questions about the Castro regime's involvement.

Republican Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) on Monday sided with Israel in criticizing the BBC's Olympics coverage.

Kirk tweeted that he is "disappointed BBC News refuses to recognize" Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has created a Facebook page called “Jerusalem is the Capital of Israel" as a means to publicize the BBC's decision to not list Jerusalem as the capital in its official Olympics coverage. Kirk linked to the page — which has garnered 17,642 "likes" since last week — in his tweet.

Fact: #Jerusalem is the capital of #Israel. Disappointed @BBCNews refuses to recognize this on its Olympic site facebook.com/JerusalemCapit…

— Mark Kirk (@SenatorKirk) July 23, 2012

The countdown is on for Congress to normalize trade relations with Russia. 

Moscow officially told the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Monday said it has ratified the accession package and is set to become the 156th member of the trade group on Aug. 22. 

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said the "action marks a significant point in the evolution of the WTO and the global trading system.” 

"Congress should continue to work on legislation regarding Jackson-Vanik and permanent normal trade relations for Russia so American businesses, workers and creators have access to the same benefits from Russia’s membership that their foreign competitors have.”

The money will help the global fight against AIDS, the secretary announced at the International AIDS Conference

President Obama's campaign team argued Monday that Mitt Romney will need to prove that his overseas trip isn't "one long photo op and fundraising tour" by offering a substantive foreign policy platform during his travels to the United Kingdom, Israel, and Poland.

"He'll need to prove to the American people that he sees foreign policy issues as worthy of substantive discussion rather than just generality and soundbites in this campaign," said campaign spokesman Robert Gibbs. "It's widely accepted that President Obama has an exceptionally strong record on national security issues, and I think quite frankly Mitt Romney is having a tough time making an argument against the president of the United States on these issues."

Gibbs went on to detail the itinerary of President Obama's foreign trip as a candidate in 2008, pointing out that then-Sen. Obama met with troops in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Kuwait and gave a number of extensive speeches and interviews to demonstrate his foreign policy bona fides. Romney does not currently have any plans to meet with American service members while abroad, and the Romney campaign has not advised whether they, like Obama did in 2008, will hold interviews with network news outlets.

As the death toll from Monday's string of terrorist attacks in Iraq climbed over 100, Defense Department officials say the country's military and police forces will be able to hold off a newly resurrected al Qaeda in the country. 

The top U.S. commander in Kabul said the drawdown of forces would accelerate before September.

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