The leader of the PKK Abdullah Ocalan has called for an immediate ceasefire with Turkey, in a significant step in the peace process between Kurds and Turkey.

A statement by Ocalan was read out to hundreds of thousands of people in the Kurdish capital Diyarbakir, during the Kurdish New Year Newroz celebrations. The statement was also broadcast live on Turkish television, an unprecedented move as all displays of PKK symbols are banned.

The Italian government has agreed to send back the marines accused of murdering two Indian fishermen.

Delhi had allowed the men to return to Italy last month to vote in the country’s election, however they failed to return, sparking a diplomatic row which saw the Italian ambassador to India barred from leaving the country.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti’s office announced it has received ample assurances about the men’s human rights and treatment while in custody. "The marines agreed to this decision," the statement added.

The US has been working with Kigali and the ICC to transfer Bosco Ntaganda to the The Hague “as quickly as possible”.

US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Johnny Carson, said Rwanda was cooperating and would not interfere with the transfer of the man, also known as “The Terminator”.

"The timeline is uncertain but the need for rapid and quick action is clear," Mr Carson said, according to AFP.

US President Barack Obama is reportedly set to receive a cold reception when he visits the West Bank on Thursday.

Obama has angered Palestinians by significantly diluting his ambitions with regards to resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict, as he told news reporters:

The former military ruler of Guatemala, Efrain Rios Montt, has begun his trial for charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

The trial was hailed by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay who said,

"This is the first time, anywhere in the world, that a former head of State is being put on trial for genocide by a national tribunal”

The new Chinese president Xi Jinping has hailed the “enormous shared interests” between China and the US, calling for stronger ties between the two countries.

Speaking during talks with US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, Xi said the relationship should be approached "from a strategic and long-term perspective".

"In the China-US relationship, we have enormous shared interests, but of course, unavoidably, we have some differences," Mr Xi said.

The White House has said they were “deeply sceptical” of claims by the Syrian government that chemical weapons were used by the Syrian opposition, in a rocket attack in Aleppo.

Sana news agency reported that,

"Terrorists launched a missile containing chemical products into the region of Khan al-Assal in the province of Aleppo, killing 15 people, mainly civilians".

Eighteen people were arrested in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday on suspicion of spying.

The group consisted of sixteen Saudi Arabians, an Iranian and a Lebanese.

Saudia Arabia's interior ministry claimed that the alleged spies were working for a foreign country, which it did not name.

See AFP for full report.

Kenya's President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta is to challenge a case against him at the International Criminal Court today, where he stands accused of crimes against humanity.

Kenyatta's lawyers are currently at a hearing scheduled at The Hague, where they will request a case due to be held in July to be scrapped. The hearing comes just a week after Kenyatta's co-accused, top civil servant Francis Muthaura, had his case dropped.

Italy has accused India of violating international laws on diplomatic immunity after it barred Ambassador Daniele Mancini from leaving the country.

India’s Supreme Court said that Mancini had waived his right to diplomatic immunity and ruled he was not to leave the country “until further orders”.