Barack Obama cuts short holiday to tackle budget crisis as country faces breaching its $16.4tn debt limit
Hamas says ‘gates of hell opened’ as Israel kills military leader in Gaza
Ahmed al-Jabari’s assassination in missile strike marks ‘start of broader operation’ that may involve ground troops, says Israel
Israel fires warning shots into Syria as violence escalates in Gaza
Four Palestinian civilians are reported killed in Gaza as fears grow that Syrian civil war could spill across border
Greek MPs approve hefty budget cuts
Thousands gather in protest as parliament votes to pass new austerity measures in 2013 budget
Barack and Mitt finally feel brotherly love … thanks to their Kenyan mother
Twins born in a hospital close to Obama’s ancestral home village named to mark the events in the US on their birthday
Barack Obama’s odyssey continues
History made as first black US president is re-elected, defying jobless rate and assaults of American right
Striking South Africa platinum miners agree deal with Lonmin
Miners to return to work after pay rise ends five weeks of bitter industrial action during which 45 people were killed
Japanese firms close offices in China as islands row escalates
US defence secretary urges restraint as diplomatic dispute over East China Sea islands threatens countries’ close economic ties
Deadly clashes in Kenya fuel fears of election violence
Death of at least 116 people in coastal region raises suspicions of political motives and Somali involvement as elections near
France opens murder inquiry into Yasser Arafat’s death
Public prosecutor will try to establish if Arafat was poisoned with polonium-210