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BBC news 2012-02-25

BBC News with David Austin

The Red Cross says the first seven people have been evacuated from the Baba Amr district in the Syrian city of Homs to a local hospital. An official in Geneva, Carla Haddad, said a joint team of the International Red Cross and Syrian Red Crescent had begun rescuing those in urgent need of medical assistance.

"The ICRC teams and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers have been in Homs since the afternoon, negotiating with the Syrian authorities and the opposition to enter Baba Amr and evacuate the wounded and sick. What happened just a few moments ago is that the operation of evacuation started, and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent team entered with three ambulances inside Baba Amr and just evacuated seven women and children to, I mean, hospitals in Homs."

The city of Homs has been under heavy bombardment for several days. As well as countless Syrians, two seriously injured foreign journalists are among those needing urgent help.

The American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the day-long international conference on Syria held in Tunis has agreed a series of measures that should help provide more humanitarian aid to the people of the country. Mrs Clinton said the 60 countries involved would increase the pressure on the Syrian government and prepare for a democratic transition.

"Today the friends of the Syrian people sent a strong and unified message that the Assad regime's escalating violence is an affront to the international community, a threat to regional security and a grave violation of universal human rights."

Neither Moscow nor Beijing were at the meeting.

The Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has accused Western powers of using fears over Iran's nuclear programme as a pretext to bring about regime change in Tehran. Mr Putin said Russia took a different stand and would resist such efforts. James Reynolds reports.

Russia is often suspicious of the West's approach to Iran, and the Prime Minister Vladimir Putin now suggests that Western fears over Iran's nuclear ambitions may conceal a hidden agenda. Under the appearance of a struggle to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, he warned, attempts are being made to change the regime. Mr Putin's comments come as the latest report by the International Atomic Energy Agency is made public. In its 11-page report, the IAEA makes one overriding point: Iran is not fully cooperating with the agency.

At least 12 people have been killed in anti-American protests in Afghanistan over the burning of Korans at a US base. Several others were injured when police clashed with demonstrators after Friday prayers. Many of the casualties were reported from the western province of Herat as well as the capital Kabul.

World News from the BBC

Officials in Haiti say the Prime Minister Garry Conille has resigned unexpectedly. Mr Conille reportedly sent the President Michel Martelly a resignation letter after serving less than five months in office. There had been rumours about disagreements between Mr Conille and President Martelly. Vanessa Buschschluter has more.

Garry Conille took office in October after months of delay in forming a government. President Martelly's two previous candidates failed to get the necessary endorsement by the Haitian parliament, which is dominated by the opposition. His resignation is likely to worsen political infighting in Haiti as Mr Martelly and parliament struggle to agree on another candidate. It's also likely to further slow down reconstruction efforts after the earthquake which devastated much of the country two years ago.

A leading presidential candidate in Egypt, Abdul Moneim Abu al-Futuh, is recovering in hospital after an attack in which his car was stolen. Mr Abu al-Futuh was returning to Cairo after an election rally when he was attacked by three masked men. But members of his political campaign believe the attack may have been politically motivated.

Senegal has been holding a last day of campaigning for Sunday's presidential election, in which President Abdoulaye Wade, who's 85, is seeking a third term in office. As Mr Wade prepared to address his final election rally in the capital Dakar, a group of 100 women dressed in white marched through the city, declaring no to a third term.

Two Spanish military planes laden with half a billion dollars worth of silver and gold coins have left Florida for Spain after a lengthy legal battle. The coins were recovered from a Spanish galleon which was sunk near the Straits of Gibraltar in 1804. They had been taken to Florida by the American company which discovered the shipwreck five years ago and made claim to the treasure. Spain successfully argued it was the rightful owner of the ship and its cargo.

That's the BBC News.