Hugo Chávez won the presidential vote on Sunday, securing another six year term in office.

Chávez's socialist part, polled 54.66% compared to 44.73% for the opposition leader Henrique Capriles of the Movement for Democratic Unity (MUD).

Addressing cheering crowds from the balcony of Miraflores Palace, Chávez said people had "voted for socialism" and exclaimed, "the revolution has triumphed!"

The former president of the Maldives, Mohamad Nasheed, has been arrested for failing to turn up at his trial for illegally arresting a judge.

A spokesman for Mr Nasheed's party, Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, tweeted that Nasheed was "grabbed from protesting supporters" before being arrested and "taken away" from the southern atoll of Fares Mathoda.

"I also fear for his safety given the brutality shown by armed and covered police. We do not know where he is being taken," he told the BBC.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, urged Nepal to proceed with plans to investigate its 10-year-civil war which saw abuses committed by both sides.

Pillay outlined that, “Perpetrators of serious violations on both sides have not been held accountable, (and) in some cases have been promoted and may now even be offered an amnesty”, in the introduction to an online report documenting the violations.

Egyptian President Mohammed Mursi has decreed that all political prisoners detained from last year’s uprising be pardoned on Monday.

According to the President’s Facebook page, an amnesty was declared for all acts

"committed with the aim of supporting the revolution and bringing about its objectives, in the period January 25, 2011 to June 30, 2012, with the exception of crimes of first-degree murder."

The Philippine government has agreed a peace deal with the largest rebel group in the country, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

After lengthy negotiations between MILF and the government, the new agreement creates a larger autonomous region in the Muslim south of the majority-Catholic country.

On Saturday a drone was spotted over Israeli territory of Yatir forest, with it's origin and full purpose in crossing into Israeli airspace uncertain. According to Israeli military, the drone was not carrying explosives and within twenty minutes of crossing into Israeli territory, it was shot down by Israeli air force.

Libya’s first elected prime minister since the fall of Gaddafi, Mustafa Abu Shagur has been dismissed after failing to win a parliamentary vote on a new cabinet.

The prime minister wanted to establish an “emergency government” with just 10 ministries.

"In face of the dangers threatening the country, I present to you a crisis government restricted to 10 ministers, rejecting all geographical considerations," Mr Shagur told the General National Congress before the vote.

The Nepali government's decision to promote an army colonel accused of war crimes has come under criticism by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the International Commission of Jurists earlier this week.

Raju Basnet is accused of commanding troops who used systematic torture and enforced disappearances in 2003, with evidence compiled by the UN and Nepali National Human Rights Commission. This included allegations that Basnet himself was personally involved in acts of torture.

Russia has signed an agreement with Tajikistan that allows it to keep its military base in the Central Asian country for another 30 years.

Around 7,000 Russian soldiers are based on the border to Afghanistan.

The country’s border with Afghanistan is thought to be a major transit point for drugs trafficking and the forthcoming withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan has raised fears of an influx of militants into Tajikistan.

Catalonians are preparing to use a football match - Barcelona v. Real Madrid - to assert the call for independence reports The Times.

As an estimated 400 million viewers watch the match worldwide, Barcelona football fans are planning to recreate an enormous Catalan flag, holding up red or yellow cards to form the stripes of the flag.