At least 22 members of the Afghan security forces have been killed after an ambush on their convoy by Taliban militants in the Sar-e-Pol province, in the north of the country.

Officials say 22 Taliban fighters died in the ensuing fire fight.

The attack came after Nato said it had killed "eight armed enemy combatants" in airstrikes, however villagers said seven civilians, including a nine-year-old child, died in the attack.

The civilian deaths would be the first caused by air strikes since the new government came to power last month.

Turkey will be allowing the United States and coalition forces to use its military bases in the fight against Islamic State, and has also agreed for moderate Syrian rebels to be trained on its soil.

Although Turkey has so far refused to send troops into Syria, MPs voted to allow foreign forces to use its bases for activities in Syria and Iraq.

The development was announced by US National Security Adviser Susan Rice, although Turkey is yet to to publicly confirm the news.

A Chinese court has sentenced 12 people to death in connection with attacks earlier this year which left dozens dead.

According to the government, attackers had stormed a police station and government offices in July, killing 37 civilians. 59 of the attackers were shot dead by security forces.

Fifteen individuals were given suspended death sentences, nine were imprisoned for life and another 20 received jail sentences ranging between four and 20 years.

The government’s Tianshan Newsv reported that they were convicted of "organising, leading or participating in organised terror crimes, homicide, illegal construction of explosive devices, arson, kidnapping and harming public safety".

Activists at the time disputed the government’s version of events, saying that Uighurs were protesting "against Chinese security forces' heavy-handed Ramadan crackdown... and extrajudicial use of lethal force in recent weeks in the county".

British lawmakers voted overwhelmingly in favour of officially recognising Palestine as a state, in a vote held in Parliament on Monday.

274 Members of Parliament voted in favour of the resolution “this House believes that the Government should recognise the state of Palestine alongside the state of Israel as a contribution to securing a negotiated two state solution.” 12 MPs voted against it.

Prime Minister David Cameron, alongside other government ministers abstained from the vote, with Middle East Minister Tobias Ellwood stating the UK would recognise Palestine as a state when it is "appropriate for the peace process". The Prime Minister's spokesman had also earlier said that the vote would have no impact on UK foreign policy, no matter the outcome.

The vote comes after Sweden became the first sitting member of the European Union to recognise the state of Palestine. Scotland had earlier called on the United Kingdom government to follow suit, inviting Palestine to open its first European Consulate in Edinburgh.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott pledged to confront Russian President Vladimir Putin over the shooting down of a Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine in July.

298 passengers, including 38 Australians were killed in the attack, with Abbott saying they were "murdered with Russian support".

Several states called for a self-determination referendum to be held in Western Sahara, whilst speaking at the UN Fourth Committee for Special Political and Decolonization, in New York on Thursday, reports SPS.

Reiterating Botswana's support of Sahrawi self-determination, Botswana's ambassador to the UN, Charles T. Ntwaagae, said "Saharans should have the right to choose between independence and integration with Morocco, and be given the opportunity to do so through a referendum".