South Africa's Olympic mountain biker Burry Stander dies in a road accident while on a training ride.

A decision by outgoing Czech President Vaclav Klaus to amnesty nearly one in three prisoners draws protests and raises concerns in legal circles.

Education campaigner Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban, is to undergo reconstructive cranial surgery in Birmingham.

At least nine people have been killed and many injured by a car bomb at a petrol station in Damascus, say activists.

The M23 rebel group threatens to pull out of peace talks with the Democratic Republic of Congo unless President Joseph Kabila signs a ceasefire.

The leaders of Sudan and South Sudan are to meet to address disputes that brought them close to war following the South's independence in 2011.

Switzerland's oldest bank, Wegelin, is to close permanently after pleading guilty in a New York court to helping Americans evade their taxes.

Venezuela's President, Hugo Chavez, is suffering from "complications" brought on by a "severe lung infection" which developed after surgery, officials say.