The Indonesian army has claimed that eight of its soldiers were killed in attacks by armed men in Papua.

Army spokesperson Jansen Simanjuntak told the BBC that two attacks in the district Puncak Jaya saw the soldiers ambushed with guns. Two of the attackers were also reported to have been killed.

Papuan rebels have been fighting for independence from Indonesia for over four decades.

The Zambian government has seized a Chinese coal mine, after it revoked the mine’s license over safety concerns.

The Zambian mining minister Yamfwa Mukanga said that the government would continue to run the Collum Coal mine until “suitable investor was found”.

"Collum coal mine has failed to consistently provide employees with approved personal protective equipment" he told a press conference. He added that the mine also failed to pay royalties or declare how much coal was produced.

Syria's opposition council has said that it is willing to negotiate a peace deal with the USA and Russia, on the condition that President Bashar al-Assad is not party to any settlement.

In a draft document, the opposition said:

"Bashar al-Assad and the military and security apparatus commands are responsible for the decisions that have led the country to what it is now, are outside the political process and are not part of any political solution in Syria,"

The British prime minister David Cameron described the massacre of Indians at the city of Amritsar during colonial times was "deeply shameful", however he stopped short of a public apology.

Cameron who is on a three day visit of India in order to strenghten economic ties between the two countries, visited the memorial for victims at the Jallianwala Bagh where British soldiers gunned down thousands of unarmed protesters in 1919.

Writing in a visitor's book, Cameron wrote:

"formally recognises the Genocide against the people of Iraqi Kurdistan and encourages governments, the EU and UN to do likewise".

The Prime Minister of Tunisia, Hamadi Jebali resigned on Tuesday after failing to form a new government of non-partisan technocrats.

Speaking at a news conference Jebali said:

"I vowed that if my initiative did not succeed, I would resign and ... I have already done so,"

Jebali vowed to form a new government after Tunisia's secular opposition leader was assassinated.

A French soldier has been killed fighting rebels in Mali, announced the French president Francois Hollande. It is the second fatality since France deployed troops last month.

During his visit to Greece, Hollande said:

"There was a serious clash with many dead on the terrorist side but also a death on the French side."

EU ministers on Monday agreed to renew sanctions against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which includes an arms embargo to all sides.

Britain had earlier demanded that the embargo be lifted, but the EU instead agreed only to allow 'non-lethal' aid and 'technical assistance' to flow to the opposition.

A statement from the EU said that if need be, ministers would assess and review the sanctions regime again after three months.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said:

Hezbollah forces have attacked three Syrian villages near the Lebanese border according to the Syrian opposition.

The Lebanese Shia group has always denied sending fighters to assist Bashar al-Assad’s forces.

"The Hezbollah force moved on foot and was supported by multiple rocket launchers. The Free Syrian Army [FSA] had to call in two tanks that had been captured from the Assad army to repel the attack," Syrian Revolution General Commission (SRGC) spokesman Hade al-Abdallah told Reuters news agency.

The European Union eased sanctions on Zimbabwe in acknowledgment of the government's political reforms, whilst also pledging to lift sanctions on a state run Zimbabwe diamond mining company if the country holds fair elections.