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BBC news 2014-01-21

BBC with Fiona McDonald.

Frantic diplomatic efforts are underway to save a key peace conference on Syria planned for later this week. It follows a decision by the main Syrian opposition bloc, the National Coalition, not to attend if Iran takes part without first committing itself publicly to supporting a transitional government that excludes President Assad. Nick Bryant reports from the UN.

Following months of exhausted diplomacy aimed at convening what's been called the Geneva II summit, the talks have been placed in jeopardy by disagreement over whether Iran should participate. After extending his invitation for Tehran to attend, a spokesman for Ban Ki-moon said he was deeply disappointed by its refusal to state publicly that it backs the 2012 Geneva communique.  A stunt which was not consistent with private assurances he had received. With Ban Ki-moon fighting now to save the talks, one western diplomat described the situation as chaotic.

And some news just in. Iran's ambassador to the United Nations has said Iran will not take part in the forthcoming Syrian peace conference if it is required to accept a deal agreed in 2012 that calls for a transitional government in Syria.

The Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has issued a statement, saying that continuing clashes between police and anti-government protesters in the capital Kiev are a threat to his entire country. He's urged dialogue after a leading opposition figure Vitaly Klitchko called on all Ukrainians to join demonstrations in Kiev. The worst violence yet has taken place around the Ukraine parliament. David Stern is in Kiev.

The center of gravity has moved down the road about a kilometer where these running battles between the protesters and the riot police continue. Protesters are hurling petrol bombs, stones that they have, torn up from the streets and even launching a catapult and the riot police hunkered down behind shields, but occasionally shot, firing plastic bullets and stun grenades to push back the protesters. The tension continues, this is the second night that these clashes are taking place.

The United States and the European Union have announced they are suspending some trade restrictions on Iran. Earlier, the United Nations nuclear agency, the IAEA, confirmed that Iran had started curbing uranium enrichment as part of an interim deal. Bethany Bell in Vienna has the details.

The confidential IAEA report, a copy of which was obtained by the BBC, says Iran has stopped enriching uranium above 5%. That's a key part of Iran's landmark agreement with 6 world powers over its controversial nuclear program. The deal is meant to stop Tehran developing atomic weapons, a charge Iran denies. The IAEA says Iran has also agreed to arrangements for more access to UN inspectors to its nuclear sites.

World News from the BBC.

The South Sudanese army says it's recaptured the key town of Malakal from rebels. An army spokesman Philip Aguer said its soldiers had flushed rebels out of the town which is the capital of the Upper Nile state, one of the country's main oil-producing regions. But a rebel spokesman said the town was still in rebel hands.

Islamist militants in Nigeria have attacked a village in the northeast of the country, killing at least 18 people. The raid happened on Sunday night in a village in Borno state, the center of an insurgency by the Boko Haram group. The new head of the Nigerian military called for a swift end to the insurgency. President Goodluck Jonathan declared an emergency in 3 northeastern states, including Borno in May last year, but the group has continued to carry out attacks.

A spacecraft called Rosetta belonging to the European Space Agency has successfully been woken from hibernation. The agency's mission control in Germany received the all clear message "Hello World" from 800 million kilometers away. Here is our science reporter Rebecca Morelle.

For the last 2.5 years, the spacecraft has been in a deep sleep with its instruments switched off to save energy. But today, after a slow and complex wake-up procedure, scientists were relieved to pick up a signal from the probe. Now Rosetta can start to chase down its target. It will take the craft several months to catch up to comet 67P. After that, it will attempt a daring maneuver, deploying a robotic lander onto the comet's surface.

New United Nations figures show that international tourism surged to a new record last year despite ongoing economic uncertainty. Overall, almost 1.1 billion people took foreign trips in 2013, with Southeast Asia and Africa showing the strongest relative yearly growth. Europe however easily remained the most popular tourist destination.

BBC News.