Former Ivory Coast President, Laurent Gbagbo, became the first ex-head of state to appear before the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday, as Chief ICC Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, vowed that justice would not stop there and all those responsible for atrocities would be held to account.

In a statement, Moreno-Ocampo said,

"In the past, if you were a head of state you could commit massive atrocities and nothing would happen."

"This era is gone."

“Ivorian victims will see justice for massive crimes,”

"We have evidence that the violence did not happen by chance: widespread and systematic attacks against civilians perceived as supporting the other candidate were the result of a deliberate policy,”

He added that investigations into the violence will continue and Gbagbo was "only the first" to face justice.

Meanwhile, Gbagbo has claimed he was "deceived" into being transferred to The Hague.

Gbagbo told the court he had been told he was going to meet a judge in the north-eastern town of Korhogo when an arrest warrant was produced.

"My lawyers were not prepared for that," he said, adding that the he was only made aware of his journey to The Hague upon arrival at the airport.

Syria has agreed to an Arab League demand to allow in observers to monitor its crackdown on anti-government protests.

The Assad regime however placed conditions on the Arab League's protocol, namely the suspension of all sanctions placed by the Arab League last week.

Syria is also demanding the annulment of its suspension from the body.

The European Union has mediated a deal between Kosovo and Serbia to jointly manage their border crossings.

"The parties reached an agreement on the EU-developed concept of integrated management for crossing points," the EU said in a statement late on Friday.

The International Criminal Court is compiling evidence of war crimes allegedly committed by the Sudanese Defence Minister, Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussain, along the border between South and North Sudan.

"In light of the manifest failure of the Syrian authorities to protect their citizens, the international community needs to take urgent and effective measures to protect the Syrian people."

“that the Assad regime is now more isolated and under greater international pressure than ever before."

"It is clear that the Syrian government is willing to do anything to strangle the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people."

"We've set the stage in a very substantive way for strong action by the U.N. if other entities choose to take the opportunity."

"Absolutely, including the ICC if the Security Council chooses to refer this matter."

"The overwhelming use of force has been taken by Assad and his regime. So there's no kind of equanimity here."

A British soldier has been jailed for 18 months and dismissed from the army for stabbing a 10-year old Afghan boy for “no reason”, the Guardian has revealed.

Myanmar's president, Thein Sein, approved a bill to allow citizens to protest peacefully if granted permission on Saturday.

Protesters will be required to inform authorities of the location, timing and reason for protest, five days in advance.

The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrest of the Sudanese defence minister Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussain.

Chief Prosecutor of the ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, has requested the ICC to issue an arrest warrant for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur from 2003 to 2004.

Gambian lawyer, Fatou Bensouda, has emerged as the consensus canditate for the International Criminal Court's next Chief Prosecutor.

Bensouda, who has been the Deputy Prosecutor of the ICC since 2004 and a former minister of justice in Gambia, also served at the UN tribunal on Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

In a statement, Bensouda said,

"I am deeply grateful for the nomination and remain committed to the goals of the court to end impunity for those responsible for the gravest offences, bring justice to their victims and prevent future crimes."

“Those who are trying to bring unspeakable atrocities, suffering to civilians anywhere in the world will be held accountable.”

The European Union agreed to impose fresh economic sanctions on Iran, on Thursday.

In a statement, EU ministers said,

Indonesian security forces are reported to have attacked a rally marking Papua’s 50th anniversary of its declaration of independence.

Activists across Papua rallied in traditional dresses and protested against the continued occupation of the restive province by Indonesia.

The Secretary General of the Arab league has warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that the imposition of sanctions was a ‘very serious’ message that they were sending, and urged him to cease the ongoing violence in the country immediately.

Turkey has announced tough economic and financial sanctions against Syria on Wednesday.

The move by Syria’s largest trading partner comes after similar sanctions were imposed by the Arab League, the European Union and the US.