The Reuters news agency said one of its Twitter accounts - @ReutersTech - was hacked on Sunday, and false tweets regarding the Syria conflict were posted.

Twenty-two false tweets were sent, with some including false reports of rebel losses at the hands of government forces.

A spokesperson for Reuters said,

Syrian Prime Minister Riad Hijab has defected from President Bashar al-Assad's government, the BBC reports. He had been appointed two months ago.

"I announce today my defection from the killing and terrorist regime and I announce that I have joined the ranks of the freedom and dignity revolution," ran the statement read by his spokesman.

The former spy chief of the Gaddafi regime in Libya will not be extradited from Mauritania, said the president of the West African nation.

President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz said that Abdullah al-Senussi must face charges for illegal entry into Mauritania, before being extradited to Libya.

Al-Senussi is wanted by Libya, France and the International Criminal Court for crimes committed while he was the spy chief for Colonel Gaddafi.

Protests in Vietnam over Chinese 'bullying' have continued to grow this week, after China declared a city, which Vietnam claims, it's newest municipality.

Protesters were seen marching through Hanoi brandishing posters which read, "China! Hands off Vietnam!" and "Shame on you, bastard neighbour", as frustration with Beijing's aggression grew.

The protests come as the state-backed China National Offshore Oil Corporation also sought bids for oil exploration in waters that Vietnam claim, and the arrest of Vietnamese fishermen near the disputed islands earlier this year.

A Palestinian conference regarding the nation's bid for recognition as a state at the UN next month, was abandoned on Sunday, after four envoys were prohibited by Israel from reaching Ramallah in the West Bank.

The four envoys, from Malaysia, Indonesia, Cuba and Bangladesh, were barred on the grounds that the four states do not recognise Israel.

The envoys were due to sign a declaration backing the Palestinians' campaign.

The US government has made it possible for Americans to donate money to help arm the Syrian rebels whilst upholding its official refusal to arm the forces opposing Bashar Al-Assad.

The United Nations Human rights envoy to Burma, Tomas Ojea Quintana, called for an urgent investigation into the Rakhine state conflict that has left at least 78 dead and tens of thousands homeless.

Speaking at the end of a six day visit to Burma, Quintanta expressed his concerns about allegations of murder, torture and mass arrests by security forces ‘restoring order’ in the state.

A Sudanese United Nations staff member working for the World Food Programme has been shot dead in the disputed Sudanese region of South Kordofan, as negotiations for a ceasefire continue to take place.

Fighting between government troops and rebel forces has caused a humanitarian crisis, with an estimated 200,000 people displaced since last June.

Whilst the Sudanese government blamed rebels for the attack, just two days after a WFP compound was ransacked and looted, the rebels claimed that the area was under government control.

A deal allowing for humanitarian access was agreed upon, with Sudan stating that,

Bahrain authorities have been accused by a US based human rights group of ‘weaponising’ tear gas against protesters.

Physicians for Human Rights said the indiscriminate use of tear gas against civilians has resulted in maiming, blinding and even death, as at least 30 have died since protests sparked off last year.

The government of Bahrain has denied the accusations saying that international standards are followed by its security forces.

The British Foreign Office has released a statement after a junior diplomat from it’s North Korean Embassy was photographed enjoying a rollercoaster ride with the country’s new leader, Kim Jong-Un.

The release of the photograph with British chargé d'affaires Barnaby Jones, comes soon after Kim Jong-Un publicly announced that he was married.

The UK Foreign Office said,