New figures from human rights groups in Syria find the death toll in that country's civil war has doubled from last year, putting estimates at over 310,000 killed. Support for the death penalty in the US has dropped to a 40-year-low according to the latest Pew Research Center survey, down to 56%. Chinese journalist Gao Yu has been sentenced to seven years in prison for leaking state secrets to a book publisher in 2014. German and Greek officials are beginning to consider what would happen to the eurozone if Greece really did exit the euro currency. New Zealand internet mogul Kim Dotcom is in trouble with the law again and could face deportation, this time for driving 150kph in a 50kph zone.