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.

"It is an act of Israeli aggression against a state, and the world needs to take up its responsibilities," a senior Palestinian official told AFP.

The US also criticised the decision to expand settlements in the occupied territory.

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.

Greening said that the evidence gathered by DfID "constitutes a breach of the partnership principles set out in the memorandum of understanding [between Britain and Rwanda], and as a result I have decided not to release the next payment of budget support to Rwanda".

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.

Guangcheng escaped from house arrest and fled to the US, but has since expressed concern about the safety of his relatives remaining in China.

Chen Kegui is accused of hacking and wounding police officers.

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".

Mr Ban warned of the “pitfalls” of such a move, saying that "the focus must be on initiating a broad-based and inclusive political dialogue".

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.

"Up until the time of the vote itself, we will remain open to voting in favour of the resolution, if we see public assurances by the Palestinians on these points," he said.

The French foreign minister Laurent Fabius has confirmed that france will vote in support of Palestine’s bid to become a non-member state at the United Nations General Assembly.

"You know that for years and years France's consistent position has been the recognition of the Palestinian state," Fabius said to the lower house of parliament.

"That is why when the question is raised on Thursday and Friday, France will respond with a 'yes'."