BBC News with Marion Marshall.
The head of Egypt's Election Committee has said that a planned vote on Saturday by Egyptians living abroad on a controversial draft constitution has been delayed. It comes as tens of thousands of protesters have again gathered near the presidential palace to demand that the referendum for all Egyptians due on Dec.15 be postponed. Sebastian Usher reports.
The news with the referendum vote by Egyptian expatriates won't now start on Saturday leaves some space for the dialogue that President Mursi has urged with the opposition, but it isn't enough itself. His Vice President Mahmud Mekki now appears to suggest that the president might postpone the referendum altogether if it's legally possible to do so. This is the key demand of the protesters who are out in full force again near the presidential palace. Opposition leaders earlier rejected the president's invitation for dialogue on Saturday. They would want more concrete concessions to persuade them that it is worth their while.
Syrian activists say government forces have reinforced their positions in the suburbs of the capital, Damascus, raising fears of a ground attack on rebel-held parts of the capital. As the army continued to shell rebel positions, the BBC Middle East editor was taken by Syrian government officials to interview prisoners at, what he described as a notorious military-run jail nearby. He said two admitted to be members of an al-Qaeda-type group.
The exile leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, has described his first visit to Palestinian territory for nearly 40 years as a rebirth. He is there to mark the 25th anniversary of Hamas which governs the territory. Ulan Nell reports.
After being welcomed by Hamas dignitaries, Khaled Meshaal gave a short address, saying that Gaza had always been in his heart. He spent the day on a tour of the Palestinian territory. He visited the home of the assassinated founder of Hamas, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, and also went to the mourning house of the military commander who was killed by an Israeli airstrike last month leading to an eight-day conflict with Palestinian militants. An Israeli official told the BBC that no guarantees for Mr. Meshaal's safety in Gaza had been given. Israel, like most Western countries, sees Hamas as a terrorist group.
A nurse at a London hospital, who put a hoax call through to the room where Prince William's wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, was being treated, has been found dead. During the call early this week, two DJs from an Australian radio station posed as members of the royal family, which led to details of the pregnant Duchess's condition being broadcast. The radio station said the DJs had been taken off air until further notice. Peter Hunt reports.
Jacintha Saldanha, who had worked as a nurse at the King Edward VII Hospital for more than four years, was found dead at an address near the Hospital. The BBC understands that her death is not being treated as suspicious and yet not been suspended or disciplined over the hoax call. She's been described by the Edward VII as an excellent nurse who was well respected and popular with colleagues.
World news from the BBC.
Unemployment in the United States has fallen to its lowest level for four years. The economy generated nearly 150,000 new jobs in November, bringing the unemployment rate down by two points from October to 7.7%. The figures surprised analysts, who had predicted that Superstorm Sandy would have had more adverse impact on recruitment.
Voting is continuing in Ghana, where people have been electing a new president and parliament. Polling has been extended in some areas to allow people standing in long queues to cast their ballots. Observers are expecting a tight race between the two main candidates, the incumbent President John Dramani Mahama and the opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo.
Thousands of Brazilians have been paying their final respects to the country's greatest architect, Oscar Niemeyer, who died on Wednesday at the age of 104.
Mr. Niemeyer rose to international fame for his designs in the futurist capital, Brasilia. He was laid to rest in his native Rio de Janeiro, from where Julia [Caniaro] reports.
Brazil's farewell to Oscar Niemeyer extended throughout two days of memorial services and honors paid to the country's most famous architect. Niemeyer's body has just been buried in the Sao Joao Batista Cemetery in Rio. During the day, his coffin lay in the City Hall's palace, attracting hundreds of visitors, family (and) friends and fans to pay their last respects. During his long lifetime, he designed over 600 buildings in Brazil and abroad, among them some are the 20th century's most famous modernist buildings.
Police in Brazil have arrested the former prime minister of Turks and Caicos, Michael Misick, who's accused of masterminding the biggest corruption scheme in the history of the Caribbean islands. Mr. Misick fled from the British territory in 2009 after an official inquiry uncovered evidence of systematic corruption. He denies any wrongdoing.
BBC World Service News.