The acting President of Nigeria Goodluck Jonathan has approved the release of two billion dollars worth of oil money to the government. Executive power was transferred to Mr Jonathan earlier this week following the long absence of President Umaru Yar'Adua who has been receiving medical treatment abroad. Mary Harper reports.
Some of the money will go to the powerful governors of Nigeria's 36 states. On Tuesday, they publicly backed the handover of power to Mr Jonathan, lending significant political weight to what some in Nigeria say was an illegal transfer of authority. Previously, some of the governors have been accused of using state funds to pay for their political campaigns. Elections are due next year and many of the governors will be running for a second term.
Sri Lanka's influential Buddhist clergy have expressed grave concern about the island's political situation after several days of demonstrations following the arrest of the defeated presidential candidate General Sarath Fonseka. The Buddhist leadership warned that the future could be disastrous and said it would hold a special conference next Thursday on ways of re-establishing democracy.
The BBC, the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle and Voice of America have condemned Iran for what they describe as deliberate electronic interference in their broadcasts. They say a new wave of jamming of satellite services began on Thursday as Iran marked the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. The Director of the BBC World Service Peter Horrocks called for all relevant authorities to take action to stop the jamming.