Two people, identified as foreign workers, have been killed in a series of bomb blasts in Bahrain’s capital city, Manama on Monday.

Activists have claimed that Syrian rebels have captured an oil field in eastern Syria.

Al-Ward oil field was captured by the rebels after several days of fighting, reported the Syrian Human Rights Observatory.

The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has sparked widespread anger and condemnation within the Palestinian territories and abroad for publicly waiving his right to return to live in his town of birth.

Talking to Israeli Channel 2 about Safed, his town of birth from which his family fled in 1948, Abbas said:

The Syria National Council held talks on Sunday in Doha in an effort to form a more united coalition, and consider the possibility of transforming it into a government in exile.

Set to take place over four days, the talks are to include younger voices with a view to forming a stronger united leadership for the anti-Assad force.

The former president of the Ivory Coast, Laurent Gbagbo, has been declared healthy enough to stand trial at the International Criminal Court, where he faces charges of crimes against humanity, stated judges on Friday.

Thousands of Libiyans flooded central Benghazi today to rally for autonomy of the eastern region of Libya, Cyrenica.

Staging a pro-federalism rally, the activists called for the creation of a semi-autonomous region of Cyrenaica, which contains almost three quarters of Libya’s accessible oil reserves.

The European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso has offered Burma over £62 million in development aid.

The chief met President Thein Sein to discuss plans to boost trade after ending of decades of sanctions.

The European Commission President’s visit is one of many visits to Burma by Western officials since the beginning of the reforms.

The Chinsese authorities must address the "deep-rooted frustrations with human rights" in Tibetan areas, said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, which have led to "desperate forms of protest, including self-immolations".

Speaking on Friday, Pillay said:

“I have had several exchanges with the Chinese Government on these issues. But more needs to be done to protect human rights and prevent violations,”

“I call on the Government to respect the rights to peaceful assembly and expression, and to release all individuals detained for merely exercising these universal rights.”

“I recognise Tibetans’ intense sense of frustration and despair which has led them to resort to such extreme means, but there are other ways to make those feelings clear. The Government also needs to recognise this, and permit Tibetans to express their feelings without fear of retribution.”

“Social stability in Tibet will never be achieved through heavy security measures and suppression of human rights,”

The UN has said that Syrian opposition fighters may have committed war crimes.

A video, which appears to show the execution of Syrian soldiers, surfaced after rebels seized army checkpoints all over Syria.

The video shows rebels assaulting captured soldiers, before shooting at the cowering group.

Uganda has outlined its intentions of withdrawing its peacekeeping forces from conflict hotspots, following UN allegations that suggested it was supporting the Congolese rebels.

The security minister, Wilson Mukasa, described the decision as “irreversible” and said another cabinet minister was travelling to New York to explain Uganda’s position.

An US diplomat for East Asia, Kurt Cambell, stressed that the US would not shy away from raising concerns over the human rights situation in Cambodia at the upcoming summit East Asian Leaders.

Serbia must acknowledge Kosovo’s borders will not change and are not debatable, said the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday, as the United States and European Union urge the two countries to cooperate on trade and security.