Corsican nationalist gunned down

A prominent nationalist figure on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica has been shot dead.

Police say Jean-Michel Rossi, a former leader of the Cuncolta Nazionalista party, and another man, were killed when gunmen opened fire outside a bar in the northern town of L'Ile-Rousse.

The killing comes amid a recent upsurge in violence on the island between rival nationalists. The French government recently unveiled proposals aimed at granting Corsica more autonomy -- a move which has increased tensions within the French government.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service