regarded as

one of the country's most powerful men.

World News from the BBC

The United Nations Security Council has condemned in the strongest terms Monday's attacks by Syrian government supporters on the French and American embassies in Damascus. The council said Syria was under an obligation to protect diplomatic property and staff. The attacks followed visits last Friday by the two countries' ambassadors to the city of Hama, a major centre of protests against President Bashar al-Assad.

Thousands of people have held further protests in Cairo despite a warning from Egypt's governing military council against harming public interests. Activists are demanding faster political reform, but the military has said parliamentary elections may have to be

postpone

d. More from Jon Leyne in Cairo.

The situation in Egypt appears to be building towards a new confrontation, this time between protesters and the military. During the day, demonstrators in Tahrir Square fought off an attack by plain-clothes thugs, an

ominous

echo of events during the revolution earlier this year. The military have

concede

d for the first time that parliamentary elections due to be held in September might be delayed. They now say only that the election procedures will begin in September without explaining further. That in turn means the timetable for the presidential election and full handover to civilian rule could also be delayed.