BBC News with Marion Marshall

Syrian opposition factions meeting in Qatar have agreed to form a unified political coalition as they seek to topple President Bashar al-Assad. The coalition has named a president and two vice presidents. Jim Muir reports from Beirut.

The man named as the president of the new unified coalition is Ahmad Moaz al-Khatib. He is a moderate Islamist cleric, who left Damascus just three months ago and would therefore be considered an insider. The friends of the Syrian group led by the United States has pledged to recognize the new coalition officially as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrians. It may be allowed to take Syria's seat at the Arab League. It is expected to establish a compact interim government and a military council to try to coordinate the struggle on the ground.

The Israeli military says it's fired warning shots into Syria after a mortar round from Syria hit an Israeli outpost in the Occupied Golan Heights. It's the first time the two sides exchanged fire since 1973.

West African leaders have agreed to send more than 3,000 soldiers to Mali to try to recapture the north of the country from Islamist rebels. The Nigerian president warned of costly consequences if Africa failed to force rebel groups out of northern Mali. From Lagos here's Will Rose.

Even though peace talks with the hard line Islamist seem unlikely to succeed, politicians from the West Africa bloc known as Ecowas still hope to dialogue can rescue Mali. Ecowas says the use of force might be necessary in order to dismantle what it called terrorist and transnational criminal networks. Islamist militants took control of northern Mali following a coup in March. They've imposed strict sharia law and have destroyed tombs in ancient towns like Timbuktu, hundreds of thousands of people have fled the area.