A Russian draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and a humanitarian corridor met with criticism from the West and cool response at the Security Council Monday.

Moscow drafted the resolution at the start of its month-long presidency of the Council as Western powers want to enforce humanitarian corridors in Syria -- a prospect blocked by Russia.

The U.N. Security Council condemned "in the strongest terms" Friday a recent spate of attacks in the Central African Republic capital, urging an immediate end to the bloodshed.

In a unanimous statement, the 15-member panel demanded that "all militias and armed groups and elements put aside their arms, cease all forms of violence and destabilizing activities immediately in order to end the cycle of violence and retaliation."

The U.N. Security Council expressed "disappointment and concern" Thursday that an election of a new Lebanese president has not occurred and demanded that polls be held without delay.

In a unanimous declaration, the Council's 15 member states urged the country's parliament "to uphold Lebanon's long standing democratic tradition and to work to ensure that presidential elections take place as soon as possible and without external interference."

Israel's Prisons Service has hospitalized 40 Palestinian inmates who have been refusing food for over a month in protest against the terms of their imprisonment, spokeswoman Sivan Weizman said Wednesday.

Describing their condition as "reasonable" Weizman told Agence France Presse they had been taken to hospital at different stages.

The U.N. Security Council on Thursday urged Somalia to do a better job keeping track of its arsenal of weapons, which in the past have fallen into the hands of Islamic militants.

"The Security Council remains concerned about the diversion of arms and ammunition, including potentially to al-Shebab," it said in a unanimous declaration.

China and Russia vetoed Thursday a draft U.N. Security Council resolution to refer Syria to the International Criminal Court for crimes committed by both sides in the three-year civil war.

Western powers pressed for the resolution in the face of mounting atrocities in Syria, including chemical attacks, systematic torture, barrel bombings and blocked aid access.

The U.N. Security Council has condemned the killing of a French journalist in the Central African Republic, and stated those responsible "shall be held accountable." 

The body of 26-year-old Camille Lepage, described by her mother in French media as "an exceptional girl" who wanted to be "a witness to people that are not talked about and who are in danger", was found Tuesday by a patrol of French peacekeeping troops.

Sudan's powerful intelligence service has filed a criminal complaint against the leader of a major opposition party, disputing claims a counter-insurgency unit looted, raped and committed arson, reports said Tuesday.

The National Intelligence and Security Service laid the complaint against Umma party leader Sadiq al-Mahdi over comments made about the Rapid Support Forces at a news conference last week, according to identical newspaper reports.

The U.N. Security Council should impose a ceasefire to end the bloodshed in Syria, Qatar's foreign minister said Monday, accusing the Damascus regime of using poison gas against rebel-held areas.

"It is imperative that the U.N. Security Council assume its responsibilities and force the implementation of its resolutions for a ceasefire, to protect the Syrian people from killing and displacement," Khalid al-Attiyah told participants in the Doha Forum.

Outgoing President Michel Suleiman condemned on Monday a new Israeli breach along Lebanon's southern border, considering it violates United Nations Security Council resolution 1701.

He called on the international community to take the necessary decision to prevent the Jewish state from further violating the Lebanese sovereignty and to press it to end its aggression.