Afghan President Hamid Karzai has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during a visit to New Delhi.

A UN Security Council resolution threatening sanctions against Syria has been vetoed by Russia and China.

The resolution, proposed by Britain, Portugal, Germany, France and the US, had been watered down three times before its proposal, to address concerns by Russia and China that, if passed, it might pave the way for another military intervention.

Russia, China, Brazil, India and South Africa have argued that the resolution passed on Libya was used as a pretext to aid the removal of Gaddafi, although the resolution only authorised the use of force for the protection of civilians.

"I was a human being. I was a doctor. I was doing my duty as a professional.

What we did is our duty as doctors, human beings, mothers. If I knew this would sentence me to life... I would still do it, again and again and again."

Iraq's political leaders announced on Tuesday that American troops may remain in Iraq next year, however, any remaining troops would no longer be granted immunity from Iraqi law.

The move is expected to be welcomed by the Iraqi public, who have long protested against perceived impunity granted to US troops particularly after the Abu Ghraib affair.

Amnesty International accused Syrian diplomats of launching a 'systematic' campaign of harassment and threats against expatriate dissidents protesting outside their embassies in eight countries - Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Britain and the United States.

Syria’s opposition forces have formally established a united front for the first time at a meeting in Turkey on Sunday.

The formation of the Syrian National Council (SNC) represents a serious challenge to President Assad’s regime as it continues to crackdown on pro-democracy protests across the country.

Laurent Gbagbo was captured by Ouattara loyalists backed by French special forces (Photo: ZimDaily)

The International Criminal Court in The Hague has granted prosecutors permission to investigate alleged war crimes in the Ivory Coast.

A spokesperson for the ICC said an investigation into the atrocities will begin soon.

A war crimes tribunal set up to investigate war crimes committed during the independence struggle in Bangladesh has charged its first suspect.

Delawar Hossain Sayedee, a senior leader of the Jamat-e-Islami party, has been charged with war crimes including mass murder, rape, looting and forcibly converting Hindus.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague met pro-democracy Syrian activists in London on Thursday, describing them as exiles from a "brutal regime that has lost all legitimacy."

Comment by Dr Andrew Wallis, Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Cambridge, as published in The Guardian:

A French court has ruled it will block the extradition of a leading genocide suspect to face trial in Rwanda .

The letter addressed to UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon

Western countries are in talks to draft a UN resolution aimed at pressuring president Saleh to step down, Reuters reported.

Ethnic Serbs have constructed a new roadblock in northern Kosovo, after NATO peacekeepers removed a previous barricade.

Helicopters and heavily armed NATO troops removed the roadblock, amidst protest by Serb residents.

But a few hours after the peacekeepers cleared the roads, Serbs constructed a new barricade further down the road.