The British and French governments have summoned the Israeli ambassadors to their countries, after Israel said it would build 3,000 more settlements in Palestinian territory.

The BBC quoted a spokesman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) as saying:

The head of the United Nations Peace keeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) expressed disappointment at the recent suspension of Radio Okapi broadcasts, a radio station backed by the UN.

Commenting on the suspension of the Radio station, the head of the Un Organisation Stabilisation mission in DRC (MONUSCO) Roger Meece said,

The well-known spokesperson of the Syrian Foreign Ministry, Jihad al-Makdissi, is reported to have fled the country on Monday, becoming the latest in a long line of defectors.

Makdissi worked in the foreign ministry for over 10 years, and spoke eloquantly in English, making him a prominent public face within the regime.

Speaking to Reuters, a diplomatic source said: "He defected. All I can say is that he is out of Syria." He is believed to have escaped for Beirut, and heading to London.

Rejecting criticism from the US and Europe, on the Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu's announcement of settlement expansion, Israel reiterated its intention to build more.

An official within Netanyahu's office said:

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.

In a statement on the presidential website, President Thein outlined that the purpose of the commission was to “investigate the truth” behind the police raid.

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.

Haradinaj's lawyer, Ben Emmerson QC, said after the verdict,

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.

She added that the UN vote, granting Palestine non-member observer status, “should give all of us pause. All sides need to consider carefully the path ahead".

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

Morsi, who recently triggered a crisis by granting himself sweeping powers over the judiciary and allowing the constitution to be tailored by an islamist-dominated assembly, attempted to make amends by calling for a referendum on the 15th December.

Commenting on the referendum announced by the assembly, protestor Sayed el-Erian said,

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.

Aleksandar Cvetkovic, an Israeli citizen, was arrested in January 2011 after an international arrest warrant was issued. Bosnia and Herzegovina have since called for his extradition, which the suspect was fighting.