BBC News with Nick Kelly

Tuareg rebels in Mali have entered Timbuktu, the last stronghold of the army in the north of the country. They say they now control the city, which is reported to be quiet. The rebels, who want an independent Tuareg homeland, are assisted by Islamist fighters and have made (sweeping military) gains since mutinous troops staged a coup in Mali 10 days ago. Thomas Fessy has more.

Effectively the rebels have now sort of achieved their first objective which is to take over all the centres of northern Mali, and they say they will now work into establishing their (own administration). They've raised their flag everywhere that they've gone through. Now the question is how they will come about sharing their success.

As vote counting continues in Burma following by-elections, the opposition National League for Democracy has said its leader Aung San Suu Kyi has won her first ever parliamentary seat. The NLD also said it was on course to win all the seats it contested. No (official results) have yet been declared. The elections are being seen as a key test of the government's commitment to reform after almost 50 years of military rule. The opposition has alleged there were some (irregularities) during the campaign and during the voting itself.

Gulf Arab states have agreed to pay the salaries and other costs of the Free Syrian Army through a multi-million dollar fund to be operated by the opposition Syrian National Council, the SNC. The decision was announced at a meeting in Istanbul of 83 countries backing (political change) in Syria. Jonathan Head reports.

There were no dramatic new promises at this conference, but then none was expected. Instead, the growing Friends of Syria group hopes that (sheer) weight of numbers - it now comprises close to half the membership of the United Nations - will keep the diplomatic pressure on President Assad and eventually persuade his allies, Russia and Iran, to abandon him. Some Gulf States now believe the time has come to supply weapons to the (insurgents) of the Free Syrian Army. Other members of the group fear this would fuel a full-scale civil war. So a compromise was reached where a fund will be established to pay for salaries and (non-lethal) equipment for the fighters.

The British government is drawing up controversial plans to monitor the emails, phone calls, text messages and Internet searches of everyone in the country. It says such powers are vital to investigate serious crimes and (terrorism). A member of parliament for the main governing Conservative Party, David Davis, voiced strong opposition to the plans.

"This is a major intrusion on our privacy, and it's a major intrusion on privacy without asking a magistrate or a judge. It should be subject to the law. When they tried to do this in Germany a couple of years ago, the Supreme Court in Germany struck it down. They can do everything necessary to catch terrorists and to catch criminals if they use the law. They don't need to be able to (intrude on) your and my privacy to do so."

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