BBC News with Marion Marshall
The United Nations Security Council has condemned two suicide car bombings which left at least 55 people dead in the Syrian capital Damascus. The council members acknowledged the international peace plan for Syria was
under strain
, but they insisted there was no
alternative
. Barbara Plett at the UN headquarters has more.
The Security Council issued a strong condemnation of the attacks, but gave no sign it was ready to admit the failure of peace efforts. Instead, it called on all parties to keep their commitments to stop the violence and reaffirm support for the peace plan of the special envoy, Kofi Annan. Syria's ambassador, Bashar al-Ja'afari, told the council his country had evidence that foreign fighters and groups linked to al-Qaeda were behind a growing number of terrorist operations. He repeated accusations that some regional countries were arming and financing Syrian rebels, and he urged the council to
exert
maximum pressure on those states to end such support.
Millions of Egyptians are watching their country's first live television debate between presidential candidates. Two front-runners, the former head of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, and the moderate Islamist, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, are going head-to-head. Yolande Knell has been watching.
Several polls suggest that Amr Moussa and Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh are closely leading the presidential race. This