BBC News - Home

• Gulf states fuel Syria isolation
  Gulf Arab states expel Syria's ambassadors, accusing Damascus of shunning Arab efforts to end months of bloodshed, as Russian officials visit President Assad.

• Maldives leader quits amid unrest
  Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed resigns after weeks of demonstrations and a mutiny by some police officers.

• Iranian president summoned by MPs
  Iran's parliament summons the country's president for questioning - the first time this has happened since the 1979 revolution.

• LA abuse school removes all staff
  The whole staff of a Los Angeles school is to be replaced amid a probe into allegations of sex abuse against two long-serving teachers, officials say.

• Chinese workers released in Sudan
  A group of Chinese workers kidnapped by rebels in Sudan last month has been freed and flown to Kenya, officials from both countries say.

• Royals celebrate Dickens' legacy
  The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall are leading global celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens's birth.

• Euro 'could survive Greece exit'
  EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes piles pressure on Greece to agree tough reforms, saying a euro exit would be "no man overboard".

• Freeze prompts Europe emergencies
  As freezing weather grips much of Europe, Italy takes steps to conserve gas while emergency situations have been declared in other countries.

• US to deport Liberia ex-warlord
  Former Liberian rebel leader George Boley should be deported from the US over his role in the civil war of the 1990s, a judge rules.

• Obama to give back campaign funds
  US President Barack Obama's election campaign is to return some $200,000 of funding linked to the family of a Mexican fugitive.

• Glencore-Xstrata in $90bn merger
  Anglo-Swiss mining group Xstrata unveils a $90bn merger with commodity trader Glencore, a move opposed by some major shareholders.

• Spanish artist Antoni Tapies dies
  Spanish painter and sculptor Antoni Tapies, who was one of the world's leading contemporary art figures, dies aged 88.

• VIDEO: Syria artillery onslaught on Homs
  Residents in the restive Syrian city of Homs are suffering one of the fiercest assaults from government troops since the uprising began.

• VIDEO: Skydiver to jump from space
  An Austrian adventurer is making the final preparations to jump from 23 miles high.

• VIDEO: Medical system for Libyans 'abused'
  A system for sending wounded people from the Libyan conflict abroad for treatment has been suspended after it came to light that it has been abused.