An annual ice festival has opened in Harbin, north-east China, featuring a giant ice-carving of a castle.

Honduras sacks its ambassador to Colombia, Carlos Rodriguez, after a wild alcohol-fuelled Christmas party on embassy premises.

The BBC's Frank Gardner looks at how the West is trying to prepare for a Syria without President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is to give a rare speech, state media say, as the conflict between government forces and opposition rebels continues to rage.

Indian and Pakistani troops exchange fire across the Line of Control in disputed Kashmir, with Pakistan saying one of its soldiers has been killed.

The father of an Indian woman who was gang-raped and later died says her name should be made public so she can serve as an inspiration.

Two Italian skiers die in an avalanche in north-eastern Italy, in the same valley where six Russian tourists were killed just a day earlier.

A US drone attack kills at least eight suspected militants in a Pakistan north-western tribal area near the Afghan border, officials say.