Unanswered questions in Kenya vex MPs – Australia leads efforts to turn the UN’s focus in Syria from Military to Humanitarian – A deadly week in Pakistan ends with another unwanted bang.

Kenya MPs want to question top security officials about the alleged intelligence failures before the deadly siege at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi.  There are reports the country’s intelligence services issued warnings about al-Shabab a year ago.  And there are indications the terrorists hired a shop there in the weeks preceding the attack that killed at least 67 civilians.

A gun battle in the north of Mali is sparking fears of a return to violence.  The number of casualties is unclear.  French troops are still stationed in the area, after supporting the government put down an al Qaeda-linked insurgency.

At least 38 people are dead in a car bombing in Peshawar, Pakistan, and several women and children appear to be among the victims, members of a rural family who came to town to distribute wedding invitations.  The Taliban denied responsibility.  At least 140 people have killed in Peshawar in a series of attacks over the past seven days, and 300 were killed when a powerful earthquake struck the south.

After coming together on a resolution to remove chemical weapons from Syria, the UN Security Council is now considering the country’s humanitarian crisis, after two-and a half years of civil war.  Australia is circulating a draft resolution calling on nations to “agree on the modalities to implement humanitarian pauses, as well as key routes to enable promptly - upon notification from relief agencies - the safe and unhindered passage of humanitarian convoys along these routes.”  Millions have been displaced in Syria’s civil war and more than 100,000 civilians have been killed.

A sixth fascist “Golden Dawn” party leader has been arrested by Greece, after the murder of a popular Left-Wing musician by an admitted Golden Dawn member.  Earlier in the day, the party’s leader was formally charged with belonging to a criminal organization.  The unprecedented clampdown on the neo-nazi party comes after months of complaints of Golden Dawn attacking immigrants, LGBT, and political opponents.

The far-right, anti-immigrant, and comically-named “Freedom Party” increased its vote to 21.4 percent in Austria’s election.  But that’s not enough to break up the ruling “grand coalition”, which appears to have won a second term. 

30 people were rescued when a tourist boat caught fire on the River Thames in London, close to Parliament.  Aussies were among the passengers on the London Duck Tours boat, who were mostly okay although three suffered minor smoke inhalation.

Despite the Colombian government’s refusal, US civil rights leader the Reverend Jesse Jackson says he will go to Colombia to seek the release of a former US marine held hostage by FARC Marxist guerillas.  The rebels say they are ready to release Kevin Scott Sutay, and are asking the Colombian government not to delay that release by rejected Jackson’s mediation.  Sutay was captured hiking the region in May.