President Obama said he has seen no evidence that classified information had been disclosed that might have a negative impact on national security. He went out of his way to praise General Petraeus, who what he called an extraordinary career. In a wide -ranging news conference, the president did not face a relentless grilling on the affair that still fascinates Washington. He found time to set out his views on how to avoid a fiscal crisis at the end of the year and said he would redouble his efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Police in the Kenyan capital Nairobi say there has been an explosion outside a supermarket in the city. They say a man was trying to take a bomb into the shop in a predominantly Somali neighbourhood when it exploded at the entrance. Local people then attacked him and started beating him up. Police are questioning the injured suspect.

Officials in South Africa say at least one person has been killed in a clash between the police and farm workers demanding better pay. Agricultural laborers on vineyards and fruit farms in the fertile region around Cape Town blocked roads, set field alight, overturned the vehicles and destroyed the equipment. The Protests come after months of unrest among South African miners.

Argentina has asked the United Nations court to order the release of one of its Navy ships impounded in Ghana because of a debt dispute. Argentina argues that the seizure violates maritime law. The ship was prevented from leaving Ghana after a local court ruled in favour of a financial fund backed by an American billionaire. The fund says it's owed $317m by the Argentine government.