More than 2,000 Sudanese well-wishers welcome a delegation from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) to Khartoum.

Riyadh names 26 men - 23 Saudi Arabians, two Moroccans and a Yemeni - that it wants in connection with terrorist activities in the kingdom.

Sudanese rebel group, the Justice & Equality Movement (JEM), says that it killed about 700 government troops in the western Darfur region on 5 December.

Algeria's main opposition group, Al-Islah, calls for changes to the electoral code which would ban military and security service personnel from voting.

The UN General Assembly passes a resolution asking the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague to make a ruling on the legality of the controversial 'security fence'.

Tehran says authorities are 'seriously' working towards securing the release of three tourists - two Germans and an Irishman - kidnapped in southeastern Iran.

The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) says it has killed two armed men who had crossed the border from Lebanon into northern Israel.

Senior officials from 14 international donor states and non-governmental organisations meet in Rome to discuss aid for the Palestinian territories.

Iran confirms that it will sign an additional International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) protocol which will allow for more intrusive inspections by the agency.

About 150 pro-democracy protestors hold a sit-in demonstration outside the prime minister's Damascus offices calling for the abolition of the emergency law, which has been in place since 1963.

Washington is finalising plans for a new Iraqi intelligence service, which will be trained, financed, and equipped by the CIA, with help from Jordan, reports the US daily Washington Post.