Syrian opposition groups have agreed a commoon approach towards peace talks with the government which is expected to be held next month. A framework document signed at the end of two-day meeting in Saudi Arabia drops a previous demand that president Bashar al-Assad leave office before any negotiations. The opposition said Bashar al-Assad must step down when a transitional government is established. A US state department spokesman John Kirby welcomed the agreement as a critical first step towards negotiations on Syria. There is still more work to do bewteen now, the conclusion of today's meeting. And sometime in early January,when we hope this political negotiation can continue. For instance, one big thing is to pick a negotiating team.
A Senior US treasury official has said Islamic State militants have looted up to a billion dollars from banks in territory held by the group in Iraq and Syria. Adam Szubin told the BBC how the Hardists acquired the cash. As they rigged through in terms of their initial military campaign and took over cities like Mosul, there were banks standing there, that banks have cash in their vault of course, I saw them obtained control over those bank vault. The good news is that once that money is spent, it is not renewable. Mr Szubin said IS made a further 500 million dollars from oil sales. He said the costomers included government of president Bashar al-Assad which is fighting to overthrow. US official said the militants' finance chief known as Abu Salah has been killed.
The French foreign minister Laurent Fabius has submitted a new drafted agreement at the climate change talks in Paris as delegates continue negotiations for the second night running. Here is Roger Harrabin. Mr.Fabius has been saying from the start but it is expected to close matters at five o'clock this evening, so people could get home for the weekend. That is looking an increasingly for long hope. Things had been going well but the revised negotiating text has clarified deep divisions over what countries expect each other. Vulnerable nations want protection and money. Rich nations want to clear date for ending carbon emissions and for emerging economies to make more effort.
A campaign group Anmesty International has accused Saudi Arabia and its allies of delibately attacking schools in Yemen. It says since the Saudi led coalition began conducting airstrikes in March, more than a thousand schools have been put out of action. And it calls on US and Britain to suspend arm sales to Saudi Arabia.
A US army sergeant who was held captive by the Taliban for nearly five years after walking away from his military base in Afghanistan has spoken publicly about his decision for the first time. Bowe Bergdahl said he was trying to draw attention to bad leadership within his unit. World news from BBC.
The Vatican has told Roman Catholics they should not try to convert Jews in a further departure from the historical tradition of antipathy towards Judaism. It conincides with the 50th anniversary of a Vatican statement repudiating the doctrine that Jews born collective guilt for the death of Jesus. Brownie Mccanthy reports. Although not a formal change to Catholic doctrine, this new document stressed unique relationship of the two faiths and called on Christians to consider Jews as their elder brothers. Written by the Vatican's commission for regilous relations, it said Jews could attain salvation without accepting divinity of Jesus Christ.
Russia has led a revolt against proposals to introduce a worldwide annual view of whether countries that signed up to the Geneva conventions on the rules of war are abiding by them. The move was blocked at a meeting of the international committee of Red Cross in Geneva. Most international treaties have a review process the Geneva Conventions do not, encouraging respect is done through confidential discussions between the international committee Red Cross and warring parties. The ICRC itself isn't sure that is working.It has warned the conventions are being violated on a regular and brutal scale. ICRC president spent most of the night lobbying the countries in the hope they would agree to a more formal review. The move to reject the proposal came from Russia but it received world support.
The American firm SpaceX is lauching its first mission next week since an unmanned rocket carrying supplies to the international space station exploded in June. A spokesman said upgraded version of the Falcon 9 rocket would carry commerical communication satellites.BBC world service news.