Human rights groups and NGOs have accused HSBC bank of colluding in a campaign of intimidation which they say is being waged against them by Egypt’s ruling military council.

A Saudi prince has increased a reward to $1m for the capture of any Israeli soldier to be swapped for Palestinian prisoners.

Merchant shipping owners warned yesterday that a policy to allow British vessels sailing off Somalia to carry armed guards is at best a "short-term" measure and could lead to an escalation of violence by pirates.

Syrian president Bashar Assad has warned Western intervention against his regime would cause an "earthquake" that would "burn the whole region".

British merchant ships sailing off the coast of Somalia will soon be able to carry armed guards to ward off pirate attacks, Prime Minister David Cameron said on Sunday.

Kenyan troops will stay in southern Somalia until Kenyans feel safe again, the chief of Kenya's armed forces said today, raising questions about whether Kenya risks becoming bogged down in an open-ended occupation of its war-ravaged neighbour.

The Syrian opposition's two main activist groups, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordinating Committees, said shells slammed into the Baba Amr district of Homs.

New flights, balmy days and absorbing culture make this Moroccan city an enticing option. By Nick Boulos

Two days before Gaddafi was murdered, I was reading the morning newspapers in Beirut and discovered a remarkable story on most front pages.

The leader of the Islamist party that won Tunisia's first free election appealed for calm yesterday in the town where the Arab Spring began – and accused forces linked to the ousted president of fanning violence there.

Syrian security forces opened fire on protesters and hunted them down in house-to-house raids, killing about 30 people, activists said today.

A car bomb killed the head of the anti-terror force in Yemen's restive southern Abyan province, a Yemeni security official said.

The International Criminal Court is in indirect negotiations with Muammar Gaddafi's son about his possible surrender for trial, the chief prosecutor said today.