BBC News with Julie Candler

Final results in Egypt's presidential election have confirmed a landslide victory for the former army chief Abdul Fatah al-Sisi.The election commission said Mr.Sisi won 96.9% of the vote, less than half of those eligible to vote took part.In his first speech as president he said it was time to look ways to develop the country.

I extend my special thanks to presidential candidate Mr.Hamdeen Sabahi who provided a series of opportunity to achieve electoral competition.I said to him and to all Egyptians that I looking forward to continue efforts and determination in the coming stages of nation building.

Voting is drawing to a close in Syria's presidential election which is being held in amid of civil war.There were no polls outside areas controlled by President Bashar al-Assad's forces and the opposition denounced the election as farce but state media said voting had to be extended to several hours for what it called a turnout beyond all expectations. Mr.Assad is expected to win easily.

The BBC has learned that dozens of people have been killed in Nigeria in a series of attacks on villages in remote parts of Borno state.Our Nigeria correspondent Will Ross reports.

People from Attagara village closed to the Cameroonian border say the men dressed in military uniform turned up in cars and called people to a church compound.They thought these were Nigerian soldiers who come to protect them it was only when the men opened fire on the crowd then they realized these were Boko Haram fighters.The member of parliament of the area Peter confirmed the attack to the BBC he said the people have been killed and many houses burned in five other villages in the area meanwhile there have been reports in Nigeria that several generals in the army have been found guilty before a court martial of assisting Boko Haram.A defense ministry spokesman denied that any generals were on trial.

In the meantime the police say they are now allowing peaceful protests hours after banning demonstrations in support of more than 200 school girls abducted by Boko Haram 50 days ago.

Saudi Arabia has sharply increased the reported number of deaths from Mers, the Middle East respiratory syndrome.Health officials now say that has killed 282 people nearly a hundred more than previously acknowledged.Early on Tuesday the deputy health minister was sacked.T reports.

These new cases have been identified as part of a review looking back into how this flu-like virus is spread since it first emerged in the kingdom two years ago,cases have risen from 575 to 688, around third of those infected have died.These emerged after a retrospective study ordered by the new health minister.It's all part of a drive by the kingdom to be more transparent.The government has been accused of not doing enough to contain Mers.Cases have been identified in 17 other countries.

World News from the BBC.

The Ukrainian army says it has started blocking the border with Russia in the separatist controlled Lukansk region.Reports from the area on the social media speak of heavy gunfire.Earlier fighting in north of Donetsk has subsided according to the Ukrainian presidential website.It says militants have been cleared from the towns of Slaviansk and Kramatorsk.

The Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has welcomed President Obama's plans to strengthen the US military presence in eastern Europe in response to events in Ukraine.Earlier President Obama announced a billion dollar program which if approved by Congress would increase troop numbers and military exercises in eastern Europe.Mr.Rasmussen said the Russian actions in Ukraine had dramatically changed the security situation in Europe.

This is a timely and an important contribution that reinforces the steps Nato has already taken.It is a clear sign of America's commitment to Europe and it's a clear sign of the strength of the trans-Atlantic bond.

Tensions are high in the Pakistani city of Karachi following the arrest in London of Altaf Hussain, one of the Pakistan's most powerful politicians.His MQM party has appealed for calm in Karachi, the party's power base.Thousands of MQM supporters are staging a sit-in on one of the city's main fairs.Mr.Hussain who was arrested on suspicion of money laundering.He is now in police costudy in a London hospital.

Mexico has published new guidelines that will double prison sentences for kidnapping. The minimum prison term has risen from 20 to 40 years and the maximum from 50 to 140 years for those who kill their victims. The number of kidnapping reported to the police has risen dramatically in recent years, but the government estimates the number of kidnapping reported to the police could be fewer than 2% of the total.

BBC News.