Suarez's sponsorship to be reviewed

Suarez has been banned twice before for biting during club games.

Suarez's sponsorship is to be reviewed

A company that sponsors the Uruguayan football star, Luis Suarez, says it's reviewing their relationship, after he appeared to bite an Italian player during a World Cup match on Tuesday.

The governing body of world football, FIFA, has opened disciplinary proceedings against Suarez, which could result in a lengthy ban.The betting firm, 888poker, said it wouldn't tolerate unsporting behaviour.

The player says he was pushed and that situations like that happened on the pitch. He has been banned twice before for biting during club games.

Spanish princess to face charges

The sister of the newly-crowned King Felipe of Spain has been formally named as a suspect in a corruption investigation, paving the way for a criminal trial.

Princess Cristina is accused of tax fraud and money-laundering.

The judge leading the probe believes she knew about the allegedly fraudulent activities of her husband, Inaki Urdangarin, who is accused of embezzling millions of euros of public funds.

The ruling is one of the last stages before a trial although the couple will be able to appeal against today's decision.

A BBC correspondent in Madrid says it's a major embarrassment to the new king as he tries to restore the flagging credibility of the Spanish royal family.

Greste 'devastated' by court verdict

Greste 'devastated' by court verdict

Peter Greste -one of the three Al-Jazeera journalists jailed in Egypt this week- has said he is devastated and outraged by the verdict.

He said the trial had been an attempt to use the court to intimidate and silence critical voices in the media.In a statement issued by his brothers, who visited him in prison in Cairo, he said prosecutors had failed to provide a single piece of concrete evidence to support claims that he and his colleagues were guilty of spreading false news.

Mr Greste, Mohammed Fahmy and Baher Mohammed were given seven-year prison sentences on Monday, sparking an international outcry.

Thai general denies coup was planned

One of Thailand's most senior generals has denied that last month's military coup was planned in advance.

In a BBC interview, Lieutenant General Chatchalerm Chalermsukh rejected claims from a key political supporter of the coup that the military had been preparing for months to take over.

He said the detention of politicians, academics and activists was designed to give people time to cool off after a period of turmoil.

The general promised that a reconciliation process would start soon and denied that there was a climate of fear in Thailand.

A Malaysian diplomat charged with sexual assault

A Malaysian diplomat charged in New Zealand

 

This general view shows the exterior wall of the High Commission of Malaysia building in Wellington.

The Malaysian foreign ministry has confirmed that one of its diplomats has been charged with sexual assault in New Zealand.

A military officer at the Malaysian High Commission in Wellington, Mohammed Rizalman Bin Ismail, is alleged to have used his diplomatic immunity to leave the country.

The prime minister of New Zealand, John Key, said a request for the officer to be returned to face trial in New Zealand had been rejected.

Malaysia denies this, saying Mr Rizalman was recalled with New Zealand's consent, and his conduct will be investigated

Cameroon to investigate an alleged match-fixing

Cameroon's football authorities say they will investigate alleged match-fixing during their team's World Cup campaign in Brazil.

Attention will focus on a game against Croatia, which Cameroon lost 4-0 after having a player sent off in the first half. The investigation follows allegations in a German newspaper by a convicted match-fixer from Singapore.

More than half of the Guantanamo detainees to be transferred

More than half of the Guantanamo detainees to be transferred

The official in charge of overseeing the closure of the United States' controversial Guantanamo Bay prison facility expects more than half of the remaining detainees to be transferred within months.

He said Guantanamo's existence weakened national security, damaged relations with allies and was exorbitantly expensive.Clifford Sloan, the US Special Envoy for Guantanamo Closure told the BBC that substantial progress had been made on repatriating or resettling 78 of the 149 terrorism suspects, and the case for closing the camp was compelling.

National action plan is called for

A British parliamentary committee has described the failure to tackle female genital mutilation in the UK as a 'national scandal' and is calling for a national action plan.

The politicians want vulnerable girls to be protected by court orders and medical professionals to conduct regular physical examinations of those considered at risk of what they describe as an extreme form of child abuse.

Although FGM was outlawed in Britain in 1985, only one prosecution has taken place and it is estimated that 65,000 girls across the country could be in danger of mutilation.