Visiting Red Cross chief is seeking access to those detained in more than five months of anti-regime protests in Syria.

The UN said on Friday that the number of deaths in Sri Lanka's civil war in recent months was "unacceptably high", but declined to give figures.

At least 120 people have died from cholera throughout Mozambique since January, Ministry of Health spokesperson Leonardo Chavane said on Wednesday.

The Philippines is ready to resume peace talks with the country's largest Muslim rebel group, government's chief peace negotiator said on Wednesday.

The international Red Cross is asking for $420-million, but acknowledged that the global financial crisis means donors will be less generous.

President Thabo Mbeki has brushed off criticism that he failed to show compassion by not visiting areas affected by violent attacks against foreigners around the country, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported on Thursday.

The Department of Home Affairs said on Wednesday it planned to establish shelters for foreigners who have fled xenophobic attacks over the last two weeks. The BBC reported on Wednesday that seven "refugee camps" would be set up. By Monday night there were an estimated 17 000 displaced foreigners left in Johannesburg.

Jimmy Malish huddles under a blanket, looks at the darkening sky and prays that it doesn't rain again on him and the hundreds of other African migrants camped in the courtyard of a Johannesburg police station. Although President Thabo Mbeki has condemned the violence, on the ground there are few signs the government has stepped in with significant aid for victims.

Burma's junta extended the house arrest of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday, a move likely to dismay Western nations who promised millions of dollars in aid after Cyclone Nargis. Officials drove to the Nobel laureate's lakeside Rangoon home to read out a six-month extension order in person.

Several institutions, including the Development Bank of Southern Africa, and national carrier South African Airways, offered funding totalling more than R20-million to xenophobia victims on Tuesday. SAA chief executive Khaya Ngqula said the airline would donate about R750 000 to the Red Cross.