BBC news with Neil Nunes.
The United Nations Security Council has adopted a non-binding presidential statement backing the Chadian government in its battle against rebel groups and giving the green light for countries to help President Deby. From New York, here's our United Nations correspondent Laura Trevelyan.
After a late night negotiating session on Sunday, on Monday morning diplomats agreed a statement condemning the attacks by rebels against the government of Chad and demanding an end to the violence. This statement clearly backs President Deby's government against rebels who closed in on the Chadian capital N’Djamena in the past three days. It asks countries to provide the support asked for by the government of Chad. This gives the go-ahead to France, the former colonial power in Chad with a military presence there still and other countries to help the government against the rebels.
France has welcomed the Security Council's statement, but its Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said French forces would not be turning their guns on the rebel forces.
The main candidates for the Democratic and Republican Party nominations for the US presidency are winding up their campaigns ahead of Super Tuesday. More than 20 states, including two of the largest, will be choosing their presidential nominees tomorrow. On the Democratic side, the latest opinion polls indicate the race between senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama is a dead heat. Speaking to an enthusiastic crowd in New Jersey, Senator Obama made it clear that if he won his party's nomination, he expected his Republican opponent to be John McCain.
We have a real choice to make. And it is a choice not between black and white, not between genders or regions or religions, but a choice between the past and the future. And if I'm running against John McCain, I wanna be making the argument for the future, not for the past.
Millions of people in Colombia and across the world have held a day of demonstrations against the left wing rebel group FARC. President Alvaro Uribe has hailed the day of protest as a clear rejection of the group's violent campaign and kidnappings. The Colombian police said almost five million people had turned out across the country. Among those marching was former hostage Clara Rojas, who was released last month after six years in captivity. She said she hoped the FARC were listening.
A new report on the drugs trade in Afghanistan says the counter-narcotics policy implemented since the fall of the Taliban has failed. According to the report commissioned by the World Bank and the British government, opium production is Afghanistan's main economic activity. Its center is in Helmand province where there is heavy fighting and very little hope of curbing poppy growth. The report says there’s been some successes, but there is a need for a far more consistent approach and sustained investments.
World news from the BBC
The World Bank says the quality of education in the Arab world is falling behind other regions and needs urgent reforms if the countries are to tackle the economic challenges of the future. The report says the region hasn't seen the same positive change in literacy and secondary school enrollment that have taken place in Asia and Latin America. A senior World Bank official Marwan Muasher told the BBC education was particularly important because of the large number of young people in the region.
It's a very youthful region. 60% of the population is under 30 years of age. There are estimates that close to 100 million new jobs need to be created in the next 10 to 15 years in the Arab world. If we are to create such jobs, then we have to start with education.
The American space agency NASA is broadcasting the Beatles' song across the universe into outer space to mark the 40th anniversary of its recording. The satellite signal is aimed at the North Star Polaris, but it will take more than 400 years to arrive. Veronica McGregor who is a spokeswoman for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory explained why they were doing it.
You know, this is really just doing it for fun. This is again to draw attention to the fact that it’s the 40th anniversary of the Beatles' song being recorded and it's the 50th anniversary here in the United States for NASA for the first launch of a US satellite. And when we heard that it is the anniversary of the song as well, we thought let's tie the two of them together and just make this a fun event.
Cameroon had become the last team to qualify for the semi-finals of Africa's most prestigious football tournament, the Cup of Nations. Two goals from Stephane Mbia helped the West African team beat Tunisia 3:2 after extra time. Cameroon will now face the tournament host Ghana, in the other semi-final, the defending champions Egypt playing Ivory Coast.
BBC news.