A Nigerian court martial in the capital Abuja sentences 54 soldiers to death for refusing to fight Boko Haram Islamist militants.

The government made £180m less from the sale of Royal Mail than it could have, and the process of privatising state assets should be reformed, says a new report.

Militants storm a remote village in north-eastern Nigeria, killing at least 33 people and kidnapping at least 100, a survivor tells the BBC.

Sony cancels the release of The Interview, a film about a fictional plot to kill North Korea's leader, after major cinemas decide not to screen it.

Cuban President Raul Castro urges the US to end its trade embargo after the two countries opened formal talks on restoring diplomatic relations.

The director of Premier Oil says no new North Sea projects are profitable with oil below $60 a barrel and the industry is "close to collapse".

A New Zealander and two Burmese men go on trial in Myanmar on charges of insulting Buddhism with a flyer for a bar event.

President Vladimir Putin insists Russia's under-fire currency will stabilise, but warns the country's economic crisis could last two years.