The UN said the humanitarian situation in Somalia's southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle districts had deteriorated rapidly and declared them to be suffering a famine. Meanwhile, News of the World owner News International said it had authorised law firm Harbottle & Lewis to answer any questions from Scotland Yard and the Commons home affairs committee…

Meanwhile, News of the World owner News International said it had authorised law firm Harbottle & Lewis to answer any questions from Scotland Yard and the Commons home affairs committee about its work for the company. But US aid officials say assurances must be given that the insurgents will not interfere with its distribution. One…

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Wednesday that Washington would provide an extra $28m in emergency aid to counter the famine. He said the goal was to save lives, "not to play a game of 'gotcha' with a UN agency or any other group that is brave enough to go in and provide…

"The overall requirement is $1.6bn (�990m) for Somalia, roughly $300m is needed in the next two months to provide an adequate response to famine-affected areas. Children and adults are dying at an appalling rate," Mr Ban said. Nearly half the Somali population - 3.7 million people - were in crisis, he said, with most of…

Labour MP Nick Raynsford said that, when Mr Coulson was at Downing Street, the cabinet secretary was alerted to evidence of illegal phone hacking, covert surveillance and hostile media briefing against a senior government official - the cabinet secretary later denied it. An estimated 10 million people have been affected in East Africa by the…

Some children look like skeletons while others have swollen legs and hands, he adds. Downing Street confirms that the prime minister received and responded to a letter from Labour MP Tom Watson last October, in which he had raised concerns about Mr Coulson He said discussions with al-Shabab about the safe distribution of food aid…

Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Sue Akers said the move came after a "significant increase in the workload" over the past fortnight. The UN has declared a famine in two areas of southern Somalia as the region experiences the worst drought in more than half a century. "If we don't act now, famine will spread…

BBC Africa analyst Martin Plaut says this marks a considerable change in policy from Washington. The protester accused of throwing shaving foam at Rupert Murdoch is charged with a public order offence "What we need is assurances from the World Food Programme and from other agencies, the United Nations or other agencies, both public and…

During Wednesday's House of Commons debate on the phone-hacking scandal, MPs called on News International to publish the full exchanges about e-mails examined by the legal firm. Downing Street and Buckingham Palace denied claims by Labour MP Chris Bryant that royal officials raised concerns about Mr Coulson's appointment An estimated 10 million people have been…

In other developments in the phone-hacking saga: In Somalia's war-ravaged capital, Mogadishu, the BBC's Mohamed Mwalimu says more than 4,000 people are crammed into one camp, called Safety. He said the goal was to save lives, "not to play a game of 'gotcha' with a UN agency or any other group that is brave enough…