BBC News David Austin.
The United Nation Security Council has promised action against North Korea over its third nuclear test, calling it a clear threat to international peace and security. The US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said the test was a serious provocation.
The International Community - this council - has been quite clear: the actions of North Korea are a threat to regional peace and security, international peace and security. And there are not acceptable, there will not be tolerated, and there will be met with North Korea's increasing isolation and pressure under United Nations sanctions.
The South Korea Foreign Minister called the test unacceptable threats and direct challenge to the whole international community. Japan called the test a grave threat, and Russian urge North Korea to abandon its nuclear arms program. Earlier China, North Korea sole major ally summoned Pyongyang's ambassador to convey strong dissatisfaction.
President Obama is expected to announce in a few hours time that he will withdraw nearly half of all the American troops serving in Afghanistan within a year. Mr Obama will announce the decision during his first State of the Union address since his reelection in November. From Washington Here's Mark Mardell.
It sets a brisk place without feeling too much like an over a hasty rush towards the exit. It a lot seems to demonstrate to the American people that the war of the last decade really are drawing to an end. A firm timetable is also intended to concentrate the minds of Afghanistan leaders on the fact they have fairly short period of time to train their own people to take over the job. It is relatively a little coverage of the handover the continuing conflict in the American media that President wants to show in tonight's speech his intense focus on the economy and domestic problems.
The Vatican says Pope Benedict will not play any role in the election of his successor or the running of the Church following his decision to step down. The Vatican also confirmed that the resignation was not due to any specific illness. A spokesman said Pope has been wearing a heart pacemaker for sometime, but was generally in good health. Pope Benedict will hold his final open air general audience in Saint Peter's Square on February 27th.
The leaders of nine ethnic groups have been in conflict with the Burmese government have attended the national ceremony from Union Day which commemorate an agreement that led to Burma's independence from Britain. Michael Bristow has more.
Union Day marks an agreement signed by Burma’s government and the country’s ethnic minorities in 1947. In it, they jointly called for independence but this is the first time in decades that they have celebrated the anniversary together. The leaders of nine ethnic groups, 16 were invited attended the ceremony in Naypyitaw although there was a notable absence. No one attended from the Kachin rebels who won’t agree to autonomy. Michael Bristow reporting.
World News from the BBC
A former head of Italy's military intelligence Nicolo Pollari has been sentenced to ten years in jail for his role in the abduction of a terrorism suspect. The appeals court also jailed his deputy and three other agents over the arrest of the suspect and an Imam during the US extraordinary rendition program ten years ago. The Imam was snatched on the streets in Milan and flown to Egypt where he says he was tortured.
Police in Britain has raided two meat production plants as a part of a growing Europe wide investigation into the sale of horse meat wrongly labeled as beef. Both plants have now been close down. Tim Reid has more details.
The first plant in West Yorkshire is believed by the Food Standards Agency to have supplied horse carcasses to a company in Aberystwyth within West Wales. Officials are said to be investigating allegations that the meat products involved were sold as beef for kebabs and burgers but were in fact horsemeat. The revelations have come on the day the environment secretary Owen Paterson was forced to answer claims that the government had shown a lack of urgency in dealing with the crisis.
Several European countries have been implicated in the horsemeat scandal. Horsemeat was first discovered last month in burgers imported from France and then sold in Britain and Ireland.
Parliament in Spain has paved the way for bullfighting to be given special cultural status. A petition signed by more than half a million people was voted through easily. If it becomes law, it could overturn a ban on bullfights that came into effect in the region of Catalonia last year. And they also bid tax breaks for promoters of bullfighting which is a centuries old tradition in Spain. Government figures show that the number of bullfights each year is falling and correspondents say the conservatives are keen to keep the controversial tradition alive.
And those are the latest stories from BBC World News