A five-member Indonesian military team visited the disputed Thai-Cambodian border area on February 26 to pave the way for deployment of Indonesian observers in the region, a senior Cambodian defence official said.

Ireland's main opposition leader Enda Kenny has said his Fine Gael party has won a "massive endorsement" to govern after parliamentary elections.

The army in Egypt has passed a draft of constitutional amendments to be submitted to a national referendum.

The US has announced sanctions against the Libyan government, as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged the body's Security Council to take "decisive action" over the Libya crisis.

Visiting French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday reiterated his opposition to Turkey's full membership in the European Union (EU), urging that an alternative formula must be found.

The confirmed death toll from the New Zealand Christchurch earthquake rose to 145 on Saturday evening, while the number of missing people remains at more than 200.

An early morning gun and bomb attack has shut down Iraq's biggest oil refinery, Baiji, with at least two employees killed.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged the global body's Security Council to take "decisive action" over the Libya crisis.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has asked border guards close to Thailand, especially in the area adjacent to Preah Vihear temple, to stay alert but “exercise extreme restraint”.

Japan has agreed to an “open skies” arrangement with Malaysia, the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism said on February 25.