Nepal has been waiting for four years for its politicians to agree a new constitution. But a final deadline

expired

at midnight on Sunday without agreement,

plunging the country into

crisis. With the life of the current Assembly over, Nepal has entered a political

vacuum

. The prime minister addressed the nation to announce fresh elections in six months' time. For many in Nepal, frustrated with this lengthy

stalemate

, it's depressing news. Politicians still seem as divided as ever on a central issue whether states in a new federal system should or shouldn't be formed along ethnic lines.

Tens of thousands of Georgians have attended a rally in Tbilisi to launch a new opposition alliance led by a billionaire businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili. It comes ahead of parliamentary elections in October. From Tbilisi, Damien McGuinness.

This is the first time in years that so many government critics have

taken to the streets

in Georgia. Previous rallies have been undermined by a

bickering

and divided opposition, but Mr Ivanishvili has used his wealth to unite the opposition, and to

bankroll

a starting to look like a

slick

election campaign. His supporters accuse President Saakashvili of authoritarianism, and say he's not doing enough to tackle poverty and unemployment.

World News from the BBC

Officials in eastern Afghanistan say several member of the same family have been killed in a Nato airstrike. A spokesman for the governor of Paktia Province told the BBC that a mother and her children were amongst the dead. The village was bombed on Saturday night, he said. A spokesman for Nato-led forces said troops were involved in an operation in the area and called in air support.