INDONESIA: Big tobacco companies have snubbed an Indonesian law requiring them to put graphic health warnings on cigarette packets.

The National Commission for Child Protection says despite having a year and a half to prepare, most tobacco companies failed to meet today’s deadline.

Only 409 of the more than 3,300 brands had registered the photos they plan to use on their products, according to the Food and Monitoring Agency.

SPAIN: The National Court has scrapped an investigation into several former Chinese leaders for alleged genocide in Tibet.

A court statement late Monday said it dismissed the investigation because it did not comply with a new law that curbs courts’ use of universal jurisdiction to pursue crimes against humanity committed abroad.

The law was drawn up after China expressed anger over the probe and hinted it could damage relations.

FINLAND: Former European affairs minister Alexander Stubb has taken over as the head of the conservative-led government after Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen resigned to pursue a position in the European Commission.

The appointment was approved by President Sauli Niinisto yesterday after parliament backed Mr Stubb in a 96-76 vote, with 28 lawmakers absent or abstaining.

KENYA: At least five people have been killed in a new attack on a coastal area, officials said today, a week after some 60 people died in twin massacres nearby.

The night-time attack took place on a small village near the town of Witu on the mainland.

There was no immediate claims of responsiblity.

Attacks last week on the nearby coastal Mpeketoni district left at least 60 dead and were claimed by Somalia’s al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab insurgents.

LEBANON: An suicide bombing in a southern Beirut neighbourhood has killed a security officer and wounded 20 other people.

The explosion occurred just after midnight on Monday near a checkpoint in the Shatila area.

It wasn’t clear if the checkpoint was the intended target of the attack.

The wounded included people who had gathered at a cafe to watch World Cup matches.

SUDAN: Meriam Ibrahim, who was freed from death row on Monday was rearrested with her husband today as they tried to leave the country.

A court had ordered her release after she was imprisoned for converting from Islam to Christianity.

Ms Ibrahim and her husband, Daniel Wani, were detained as they tried to board a plane at Khartoum airport. They were taken to a facility used by the National Intelligence and Security Service.

FRANCE: Airlines were forced to cancel flights today after air traffic controllers started a six-day strike.

The country’s civil aviation watchdog said about 20 per cent of flights had been cancelled.

The air traffic controllers are striking against a lack of sufficient funding allocated for their sector, which they say is in dire need of modernisation.

They want airport fees for airlines to increase by 10 per cent.

SWEDEN: Julian Assange’s lawyers filed a court petition today to withdraw an arrest warrant for the WikiLeaks founder who has spent two years at Ecuador’s London embassy.

Assange says he fears Sweden could in turn extradite him to the US to be tried for leaks of classified information.

Mr Assange’s lawyers said the arrest warrant should be repealed because it cannot be enforced while he is in the embassy and the Swedish prosecutor had not considered the possibility of interrogating him in London.