Amnesty has called on the new Thai government to bring the perpetrators of past human rights violations to justice, including protest-related deaths.

Christian Aid are focusing their Christmas appeal on the 42 million people who are displaced, driven from their homes by disaster, war, persecution or hunger.

Anti-government protesters in Thailand are withdrawing from their barricaded camp in Bangkok to avoid further deaths and bloodshed following the vicious military assault on them.

Countries across the Indian Ocean have marked the fifth anniversary of the Asian tsunami which killed almost 250,000 people, rendered many more homeless, and left properties and businesses devastated.