At least 29 migrants have died of hypothermia, after initially being rescued alive by the Italian coastguard off the coast of Libya, according to latest reports.

Two coastguard ships were dispatched after a ship carrying over 200 migrants let off a distress call as it was battered by waves as high as 25 feet, reports the New York Times. The victims, all men, died as the coastguard attempted to take them to the nearest Italian port on the island on Lampedusa.

Italian coastguard spokesperson Cmdr. Filippo Marini, said the migrants were “devastated by the weather and sea conditions, and by the trip they had undertaken just to reach their boat.”
The deaths come following the suspension of an Italian navy-run rescue program known as Mare Nostrum, with a more limited operation by Frontex, the European border patrol agency, taking its place.

Flavio Di Giacomo, a spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration said it could be argued “that this is the first consequence of the absence of Mare Nostrum.”

US President Barack Obama said sending weapons to Ukraine may still be an option however added that a decision was yet to be made on the matter.

"It is true that if, in fact, diplomacy fails, what I've asked my team to do is to look at all options," said Mr Obama. "But I have not made a decision about that yet."

His remarks came at a joint press conference with German chancellor Angela Merkel, after talks at the White House on Monday. “I’ve consulted with not just Angela [Merkel] but will be consulting with other allies about this issue,” said Mr Obama. He further added,

"Can we be certain that any lethal aid that we provide Ukraine is used properly, doesn't fall into the wrong hands, does not lead to over-aggressive actions that can't be sustained by the Ukrainians? What kinds of reactions does it prompt, not simply from the separatists but from the Russians? Those are all issues that have to be considered."

Three Sudanese aid workers were killed by militants announced Sudan’s government humanitarian body on Sunday.

"Sudanese Red Crescent Society aid workers were killed in the Blue Niles state…. whilst returning from the town of Kurmuk after finishing a task related to distribution of humanitarian aid in the region,” said the head of the Humanitarian Affairs Commission, Ahmed Mohamed Adam in a statement.

Nigeria's presidential election have been postponed over security concerns, after the military said it would not be able to help during the poll, as it was too busy fighting Boko Haram in the north.

The election, initially to be held on February 14, is being closely contested by President Goodluck Jonathan and General Muhammadu Buhari and will now be held at the end of March.

Speaking to Channel 4 News ahead of the official announcement of the postponement by the electoral commision, Gen Buhari said he would oppose it and that the government was using Boko Haram as an excuse not to hold the election.

Mr Buhari said to Reuters it was a "big disgrace" that other countries had more success in fighting Boko Haram than Nigeria.

African nations collaboratively pledged a regional force of 8,700 personnel including troops, policemen and civilians to aid in Nigeria’s fight against Boko Haram militants.

“The representatives of Benin, Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria and Chad have announced contributions totalling 8,700 military personnel police and civilians,” the countries said in a statement.

The representatives agreed to work towards “a safe and secure environment in the impacted regions.”

The UN Security Council warned unspecified “further steps” would be taken after Houthi militants took control of the Yemeni government and dissolved parliament.

UN Security Council members said they were "gravely concerned" and "called in the strongest terms for all parties, in particular the Houthis, to abide by the GCC initiative and the national dialogue conference."

Security Council President Liu Jieyi further warned the body was ready to "to take further steps" if negotiations were not "immediately" restarted.

Conflicting factions in Libya are set to resume talks on Tuesday according to officials from both sides, as the death toll in the country reaches almost 700 in the last four months of fighting, reports Reuters.

"The U.N.-sponsored peace talks will take place in Libya on Tuesday unless anything unforeseeable happens," said Emhemed Shoaib, deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, which is internationally recognised as the legitimate government of Libya.

The opposing faction, parliament known as General National Congress (GNC), resides in the city of Tripoli, set up after Libya Dawn seized the city last year.

Whilst visiting Tripoli, UN Special Envoy Bernadino Leon confirmed that talks would be starting this week. The United Nations reportedly initially wanted talks to take place in Geneva, but the GNC insisted that they take place inside Libya. Earlier talks held in Septmeber last year ended with no progress made.

The location of the talks has not yet been disclosed. Plans for local ceasefires and prisoner exchanges are thought to be on the agenda, in the first step towards resolving the conflict that has raged across the country.