The head of the US Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, has warned that the Greek debt crisis could threaten the global financial system if a solution is not found. He described it as a very difficult situation and said Washington had been in close contact with its European colleagues. Mr Bernanke also told journalists the US economic recovery was proceeding more slowly than expected. He highlighted the main reasons.
"In particular, consumers' purchasing power has been damaged by higher food and energy prices, and the aftermath of the tragic earthquake and tsunami in Japan has been associated with disruptions in global supply chains, especially in the auto sector. However, some moderation in gasoline prices is now in prospect, and the effects of the Japanese disaster on manufacturing output are likely to dissipate in coming months."
A military court in Bahrain has sentenced eight opposition activists to life in prison after convicting them of plotting to overthrow the government during protests earlier this year. Thirteen other defendants received lesser sentences. After the verdicts, the defendants defiantly chanted slogans.
World News from the BBC
The British ambassador to Syria has told the BBC that he has reason to believe that there was indeed an attack on a Syrian military post in the northern town of Jisr al-Shughour this month as Syria says. The ambassador Simon Collis said that embassy officials had visited the town on Monday at the invitation of the Syrian authorities. He didn't say whether he thought the attack involved mutineers as the opposition says or the armed gangs that the government blames.