whereabouts
of President Amadou Toumani Toure are still unknown although he's believed to be safe and protected by the elite presidential guards.
Formal charges of murder and attempted murder have been laid against an American soldier, Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, who's accused of killing civilians in Afghanistan. Jonathan Blake reports.
Staff Sergeant Robert Bales is accused of leaving his base in the early hours of the morning and shooting people as they slept. A US army spokesman says Sergeant Bales has now been formally charged with 17 counts of
premeditated
murder, six counts of attempted murder and six counts of assault. Sergeant Bales' lawyer says there is no
forensic
evidence against his client and that he has made no
confession
. The 38-year-old father of two is being held at a maximum security prison at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas. If convicted of the crimes, Sergeant Bales could face the death penalty.
The United States is resuming its military aid to Egypt despite concern about its progress towards democracy. The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton informed Congress that aid worth $1.3bn would be released to Egypt. She said this was to serve US national security interests.
President Obama has nominated a Korean-born American academic, Jim Yong Kim, for head of the World Bank. He said Mr Kim had the experience to help the bank improve conditions around the world. The post has always been held by an American, but South Africa, Nigeria and Angola are challenging that.