Hello, I'm Jim Lee with the BBC news.

In the worst wave of violence in Northeastern Nigeria in weeks, Boko Haram militants have killed around 150 civilians. The group has mounted attacks on three separate villages over the past two days. Will Ross in this report from Lagos.

"Eyewitnesses fleeing the area close to Lake Chad say dozens of gunmen stormed three villages where they killed men, women and children. Some reports say they were shot, others described how the Jihadis slit their victims' throats and set fire to buildings. Further south, just outside Monguno Town, a group of Boko Haram gunmen arrived as people were praying in the evening. They waited until the prayers were over, and then separated the men from the women before opening fire on all the men."

The British oil company BP has announced a huge settlement with the US Department of Justice following the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Under the deal, the oil company will pay up to 18.7 billion dollars in stages to the federal government and five southern states. Nick Bryant reports.

"One of the worst environmental disasters in American history has produced the largest settlement ever paid by a single company. It follows lengthy legal battles in the American courts. The Justice Department says it will repair the damage done to the economy of the states along the Gulf of Mexico, as well as the region's fisheries, wetlands and wildlife. BP described it as 'a realistic outcome' that provided clarity and certainty for all parties."

The United Nations report says the area used for the cultivation of coco leaves in Columbia increased by 44% last year. The country is the second largest producer of coco leaves after Peru. Our America's editor Leonardo Rocha has more.

"The UN described the findings of its annual survey as 'an important warning signal' that probably underestimates the rising production. Most of the increase was in the south of Columbia, in areas controlled by the FARC rebel group. The report says farmers had probably boosted their production to cover potential losses in the events that the FARC reached an agreement with the government to conclude two years of peace talks."

Malaysia has told the United Nations Security Council it wants to set up an international criminal tribunal to prosecute those suspected of having shot down a passenger jet over Ukraine last year. Nearly 300 people were killed last July when Malaysia Airline's flight MH370 crashed in Ukrainian territory held by pro-Russian separatists.

Reports say at least nine people have been killed and more than 70 others injured after a new alliance of Syrian insurgents launched an offensive to seize full control of the northern city of Aleppo. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a number of Islamist groups had issued a statement, expressing their intent to take the city. Hundreds of mortar bombs have been fired at positions held by government forces. Aleppo has become the key battleground in the civil war.

Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo are investigating a possible outbreak of Ebola after four men died of symptoms typical of the disease. The health ministers said they fellowed with symptoms including diarrhea and vomiting after killing and eating an antelope that may have been infected.

The French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius says there is still work to be done to reach a deal on Iran's nuclear programme. On leaving Vienna, where he had been meeting foreign ministers from the other five major powers, negotiating with Iran, Mr Fabius said he would return on Sunday, when he hoped progress in the talks would have been made.

UN observers have criticised the parliamentary and local elections in Burundi on Monday. They say the environment was not conducive for free, credible and inclusive polls. The election, boycotted by the opposition, took place in what the UN called "a climate of widespread fear and intimidation" in parts of the country. F H, a UN spokesman, said the UN secretary general urged Burundian leaders to put peace before politics.

"The overall environment was not conducive for free, credible and inclusive elections. Maximum chance should be given to dialogue among the political actors and civil society in order to create conditions for peaceful and credible elections. The secretary general reiterates his urgent call to Burundian leaders, from across the political spectrum, to put peace and national reconciliation above partisan interests."

The United States health officials have announced the first death from measles in the country for 12 years, A post-mortem on a woman from Washington State confirmed her fatal pneumonia had been caused by measles.

A new report claims that life in the seas will be irreversibly changed unless carbon dioxide emissions are drastically cut. Writing in the journal, Science, a team of experts warned that time is running out to prevent lasting damage to marine ecosystems caused by a rise in temperatures in our oceans, a loss of oxygen and an increase in acidity.

BBC news.