United Nations

The youngest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il is rumoured to be on a visit to China in what many observer see as an indication of the role of Kim Jong-un as a potential successor to his father. Although his whereabouts remain partially unknown, he was reported by South Korean media to have taken the train to China, which is known to be North Korea’s main ally.

US President Barack Obama yesterday introduced sanctions against Syrian President Bashar Assad and six of his deputies as the regime continued to impose oppressive measures against its own people. The announcement came a day before President Obama is due to make a major policy speech on the recent developments in the Middle East and northern Africa. The sanctions are largely symbolic as Assad has few assets in the US and is unlikely ever to visit the country but come as a reinforcement of pre-ex...

As talks between Israel and Palestine have been frozen since last year because of a dispute over settlements, Barack Obama said the US and Jordan both wanted Israelis and Palestinians to go back to the negotiating table, adding that it was "more vital than ever" for Israelis and Palestinians to restart negotiations on a peace deal.

Liam Fox's letter to David Cameron highlights tension within the Conservative party over plans to increase the amount of foreign aid Britain sends to developing countries.

Part of an Associated Press release reads: "...angry crowds chanted 'All the whites out!'...French soldiers in boats plucked trapped countrymen from the banks of lagoons.....France commandeered commercial airlines after attacks on civilians, peace keepers and foreigners.

Laurent Gbagbo, the apparently outgoing President of Ivory Coast has been arrested.

Soldiers loyal to Alassane Ouattara, who has been recognised as the victor of last November's presidential election in the Ivory Coast by the United Nations, have begun what they hope is the final assault that will help bring Mr Ouattara to power.

Laurent Gbagbo, the President of the Ivory Coast, is on the verge of leaving office, it is being reported as three of his generals negotiate surrender terms.

Libyan rebels are reported to be preparing for a large counter attack, after losing significant ground to forces loyal to Colonel Gaddafi.

Below is the full text of a British government note explaining what it regards as the legal basis for using British military forces in Libya:

The British military and political leadership appears to be divided over whether Colonel Gaddafi is a legitimate target for airstrikes and missile attacks, following the passage of United Nations Resolution 1973.

The civil war in Libya, the length and result of which is of course unknown, has shown the USA and the European powers to be sufferers of what Winston Churchill once described as a "disease of the will".

United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), the top militant group fighting in the country's remote northeast for almost three decades has dropped its demand for independence in talks with New Delhi, softening its stand in an insurgency that has killed thousands of people.

Devastating weather has destroyed Pakistan's food pricing system as severe flooding have wiped out crops and many livestock are now lost, say the United Nations.