The UN has appealed for a total of $543m in humanitarian aid to help more than 1.6 million people displaced by fighting in north-west Pakistan.

GAZA, May 21 (Xinhua) — The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) Thursday criticized the new Palestinian government as an obstacle on the way of the inter-Palestinian dialogue.

MAOZ ESTHER, West Bank (AP) — Israeli security forces demolished a minor Jewish settlement outpost in the West Bank on Thursday, three days after President Barack Obama told visiting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he must halt settlement activity.

Prisons inspector brands Parkhurst a failing jail, lacking basic levels of safety and decency

Sri Lankan government blocks access to camps in which thousands could face two years behind razor wire.

Mr Rajapaksa made the announcement in a speech to the country’s parliament, a day after the army said rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran had been killed.