He was the most powerful man in Egypt for decades, but today, ex-president Hosni Mubarak lay on a stretcher in court facing charges of corruption and ordering the killing of protestors. What is your reaction to this trial?
Do you see a trial like this one ever happening in Sub-Saharan Africa?
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Tens of thousands of people have been fleeing to the capital in search of foodThree new areas of Somalia have been classified as having been hit by famine, the UN says.
It declared a famine in two large southern regions of the war-torn country in July.
"Famine is expected to spread across all regions of the south in the coming four to six weeks," said the UN Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit.
More than 11 million people have been affected by the worst drought in 60 years in the Horn of Africa.
The UN's Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) said that famine was "likely to persist until at least December 2011".
Evidence from malnutrition and mortality rates shows that famine thresholds have been surpassed in two rural districts of the Middle Shabelle region - Balcad and Cadale - as well as the parts in and around the capital, Mogadishu, where there are camps for displaced people.
These three areas join the Bakool and the Lower Shabelle region, where famine was declared on 20 July 2011.
"A humanitarian emergency persists across all other regions of southern Somalia, and tens of thousands of excess deaths have already occurred," the UN unit said in a joint statement with the US-based Famine Early Warning Systems Network (Fewsnet).
Getting aid into Somalia has been difficult because al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group, which controls much of the south and central regions and parts of the capital, has banned some aid agencies from their territory.
"Despite increased attention in recent weeks, current humanitarian response remains inadequate, due in part to ongoing access restrictions and difficulties in scaling up emergency assistance programs, as well as funding gaps," the joint statement said.
Some 3.2 million people in Somalia are in need of immediate life-saving assistance - almost half the population, the UN says.
According to the FSNAU and Fewsnet, the situation has been compounded by the rise in prices of food staples in Somalia - they have more than doubled since 2010, and in some areas have tripled.
"Across all livelihoods, poor households (30% of the population) are unable to meet basic food needs and have almost no ability to cope with these food deficits," their statement said.
It is the first time in 19 years that the country - which has been without a central government since 1991 - has experienced famine.
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The BBC's Jim Muir says unverified footage appears to show tanks on the streets of Hama
The UN Security Council has condemned the Syrian government for its deadly crackdown on protesters.
It is the first clear condemnation issued by the Security Council, which includes longstanding allies of Syria such as Russia.
The statement was adopted over the fears of some members that any action could lead to Libya-style intervention.
It comes as the Syrian army attacks Hama, a centre of opposition protest, with reports of much loss of life.
Dozens of people are believed to have been killed in the action against Hama, with residents saying tanks have shot their way into Assi (Orontes) Square, in the centre of the city of 800,000 people.
Human rights groups say at least 140 people have been killed in the Syrian unrest since Sunday, mainly in Hama, adding to a civilian death toll believed to be more than 1,600 since March.
Protesters have vowed to rally every evening during the holy month of Ramadan, after nightly prayers.
Late on Wednesday, there were reports of large demonstrations in several Syrian cities.
Activists told AFP news agency that 50,000 people demonstrated in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, 20,000 in Duma, north of Damascus, and 40,000 in Homs.
At least four people were killed when troops fired on protesters in Damascus, near the southern city of Deraa, and in the central town of Palmyra.
On Thursday, Syria's Sana news agency said that President Bashar al-Assad had issued a decree authorising a multi-party system, apparently ending decades of monopoly on power by the Baath party.
'Brutally shocking'In Wednesday's statement, the council said it "condemns the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities".
It says those responsible for the violence should be held accountable.
European members of the 15-nation council had pushed for a strong resolution condemning the Syrian government and calling for a rights inquiry.
The BBC's correspondent at the UN in New York, Barbara Plett, says the statement is weaker than what the European states wanted, but stronger than might have been expected given the opposition from some members to saying anything on Syria.
The statement stressed that the only solution to the crisis was a Syrian-led political process, in effect ruling out outside intervention, says our UN correspondent.
It also called for "an immediate end to all violence and urges all sides to act with utmost restraint, and to refrain from reprisals, including attacks against state institutions."
Observers say the phrase is a concession to Russia and other governments that said they wanted a balanced statement that placed some blame with both sides.
Syria's neighbour, Lebanon, while not blocking the statement, disassociated itself from the text after it was adopted - a procedure last used decades ago.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the statement represented "the clear message of the international community" to Mr Assad.
"The world has watched the deteriorating situation in Syria with the most profound concern. But the events of the past few days have been brutally shocking," Mr Ban said.
"Just continuing like this is not sustainable. He cannot and they cannot carry on like this, killing their people."
'Massacre'Anti-government protests began in March, inspired by the successful uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, and soon spread to many cities across the country.
Mr Assad has promised reforms, and on Thursday reportedly issued a decree allowing multiple parties, one of the main demands of the protest movement.
The government adopted a draft law to this effect on 24 July, but the decree gives it immediate effect.
The Baath party has enjoyed a monopoly on power in a one-party system since 1963.
Mr Assad blames the current violence on "armed criminal gangs" backed by unspecified foreign powers.
Access to events in Syria has been severely restricted for international journalists and it is rarely possible to verify accounts by witnesses and opposition activists.
Activists and residents of Hama said tanks pushed in to the city centre on Wednesday morning, reaching Assi Square.
One resident of the city told the BBC's Damascus correspondent, Lina Sinjab, that he believed a massacre was taking place. He said he had seen piles of bodies in different parts of the city.
There are reports that families trying to flee the city have been shot at to force them to turn back.
Some families who have managed to leave have described the situation as worse than the 1980s, when the late President Hafez Assad, father of the current leader, crushed an uprising, leaving at least 10,000 people dead and the old quarter flattened.
Communication with the city is all but completely cut off, as are water and electricity, correspondents say.
