Burmese president, Thein Sein, has appointed opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi to head a commission to investigate the brutal crushing of a protest by police forces,that left several people injured last week.

A tribunal at The Hague has cleared former Kosovan Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj of war crimes for a second time, along with two commanders of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

All three men were first acquitted of charges of torturing and murdering prisoners at KLA camps in 2008, before a partial retrial was announce by the tribunal two years later.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has criticised moves by Israel to allow the building of 3,000 settler homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Talking at a forum in Washington, in front of Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Clinton said that negotiations with Israel are the only way to a separate state for the Palestinians.

Amidst strong protests, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has announced a snap referendum on the new constitution drafted by the, Muslim brotherhood dominated, constituent assembly.

The legendary singer Stevie Wonder cancelled a concert for the Friends of the Israel Defence Forces (FIDF) in response to numerous complaints from organisations condemning Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories.

In a statement, Wonder said:

A man accused of partaking in the Srebrenica massacre has lost his appeal against an extradition to Bosnia, the first time a genocide suspect has been liable for eviction in Israel.

The Israeli government has approved the building of 3,000 homes for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The move comes less than a day after a vote at the UN General Assembly granted Palestine non-member observer status.

The UK has stopped £21m worth of aid to Rwanda, over its alleged support for rebels fighting the army of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

International Development Secretary Justine Greening said she stopped the payment to Kigali because President Paul Kagame has broken agreements.

The nephew of Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng has been jailed for three years for assaulting a police officer.

Chen Kegui was detained by police during a scuffle when police raided homes of Gunagcheng’s relatives.

The UN’s Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said that the UN could authorise a 3,300 strong African Union mission to support Mali’s military against rebels in the north of the country.

He said it could "restore the unity and territorial integrity of Mali and reduce the threats posed by terrorist and affiliated groups and transnational organised crime".

The United Nations general Assembly has voted to grant Palestine non-member observer state status.

The vote has seen Palestine's position at the UN enhanced from "permanent observer" to "non-member observer state" status, with the assembly voting 138-9 in favour, with 41 nations abstaining.

President of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation,Mahmoud Abbas, who arrived to a standing ovation at the UN said,

"Palestine has come to the United Nations because it believes in peace and because its people are in desperate need of peace,"

"The international community is now the last chance to save the two-state solution. We did not come here to complicate the peace process. The moment has arrived for the world to say clearly: enough Israeli aggression, settlements and occupation."

"Sixty-five years ago on this day, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 181, which partitioned the land of historic Palestine into two states and became the birth certificate for Israel... The General Assembly is called upon today to issue a birth certificate of the reality of the State of Palestine".

Meanwhile, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, said "the only way to reach peace is through agreements" between the two parties, slamming the vote. He commented,

"No decision by the UN can break the 4,000-year-old bond between the people of Israel and the land of Israel."

The Burmese riot police dispersed thousands of protestors using phosphorus shells, tear-gas and water cannons, claimed activists and local media sources.

The villagers were protesting against a vast copper mining project that is currently underway.

Activists on the ground said that at least 50 people were injured. Local media reported the use of ‘phosphurous bombs’.

Describing the brutal attack of the riot police, student activist, Myo Thant said,

“The stuff from these canisters got caught on the clothes and bodies of the victims. When they shook their robes to remove this stuff, fire started.”

The British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said that the UK will not vote against Palestinian non-member observer status at the UN.

However, Mr Hague demanded assurances from the Palestinians that they would enter talks without setting conditions and that Palestine will not seek membership of the International Criminal Court.

Several EU nations have vowed to support the Palestinian bid for UN recognition of statehood.

States include: Austria, Denmark, Norway, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.

Reports indicate the UK is likely to abstain, whilst Germany has made clear it will not support it.