A coalition of Iranian opposition figures from a range of political groups condemned the upcoming Iranian presidential election as a 'charade', reports the Guardian.

The coalition, which came together for a two day conference organised by United for Democracy in Iran in Stockholm this weekend, consisted of exiled political figures, who attended in their personal capacity, rather than as representatives of their political parties.

Russia has confirmed it will deliver anti-aircraft missiles to the Syrian regime, saying the arms would be a ‘stabilising’ factor and help deter "some hotheads" from intervening.

"We consider these supplies a stabilising factor and believe such steps will deter some hotheads from considering scenarios that would turn the conflict international with the involvement of outside forces," said Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.

The African Union accused the International Criminal Court of being 'racist' on Monday, reports AFP. 

Demanding that the ICC end proceedings against the Kenyan president, it said Africans were being targeted due to their race.

Speaking at the end of the AU summit, AU chair and Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, said:

The European Union has agreed not to renew an arms embargo on the Syrian opposition, meaning individual countries could arm the opposition. Pressure to arm the rebels, mainly from the British and French foreign ministers, was not successful with the EU deciding not to deliver any weapons to the rebels.

William Hague welcomed the decision, saying it was "important for Europe to send a clear signal to the Assad regime that it has to negotiate seriously, and that all options remain on the table if it refuses to do so".

Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen has called for a new law to be passed that criminalises denial of genocide committed by the country’s Khmer Rouge regime.

Speaking to Parliament ahead of an election due to be held on July 28, Sen, a former Khmer Rouge cadre himself, Sen stated,

Two rockets have hit a district in southern Beirut, controlled by Hezbollah.

The missiles, Soviet-made Grad rockets, hit buildings in the al-Shayyah area and injured three people.

Syrian rebels have vowed to attack Hezbollah after their leader Hassan Nasrallah promised to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad until the rebels were defeated.

"We used to say before, 'We are coming Bashar'," Col Abdul-Jabbar al-Aqidi was quoted as saying. "Now we say, 'We are coming Bashar and we are coming Hassan Nasrallah'.

Speaking to reporters, Issoufu went on to add,

"I had said that if the Libyan state turned into a Somalia or fell into the hands of fundamentalists, the solution would be worse".

He also stated that whilst Libya was doing their best to control the situation,

The announcement was made as Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Burma and met with President Thein Sein, the first visit by a Japanese Prime Minister to the country since 1977.

He also had talks with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Last year Japan announced the cancellation of $3.4bn debt from Burma, and the latest move will see that all outstanding debt are also erased.

"The population growth of Rohingya Muslims is 10 times higher than that of the Rakhine [Buddhists],"

The Colombian government announced progress in peace talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The government said that an agreement on land reform had been reached by the two parties. A joint statement released by the two sides, outlined their agreement on ‘integrated rural reform’, which included a fund that allowed for the redistribution of unused land to displaced people and peasants.