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Iran supreme leader calls for unity among Muslim countries

Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Sunday called on Muslim countries in the region to unite against the United States and Israel, in a written message issued six months on from the start of the Middle East war.

Khamenei, in power since shortly after his father Ali Khamenei was killed at the start of the war on February 28, has yet to be seen in public since his appointment, and authorities have not released any video or audio of him.

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Death toll from Russia strike on Ukraine arms depot rises to 38

The death toll from a Russian strike on an arms depot near Kyiv has risen to 38, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday.

The strike on the Ukrainian military depot storing ammunition, drones and explosives triggered a huge explosion and fire, and secondary detonations that sent flames shooting into the surrounding area.

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Qassem again rejects Lebanon-Israel deal, refuses 'surrender'

Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem has again rejected a deal struck between Israel and Lebanon and said his Iran-backed group refused to "surrender" nearly six months after war erupted with Israel.

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US to set limits on Egyptian bank in effort to pressure Iran

The U.S. Treasury Department is due to cut off a major Egyptian bank's operations in the United Arab Emirates from the U.S. financial system, an official said Friday, as Washington pushes to choke Iran off economically.

The move impacts UAE branches of Egypt's second-largest bank, Banque Misr, blocking their banking access to U.S. financial institutions.

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Iran says still open to diplomacy as war with US hits six months

Iran has left the door open to diplomacy, six months into a war with the United States that has upended the Middle East, but only if Washington abandons its pressure campaign.

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Trump announces deal for huge US stake in Venezuelan oil reserves

President Donald Trump said Friday his administration has reached a huge oil deal with Venezuela that gives the United States majority control of 65 billion barrels of proven petroleum reserves.

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Two people killed in northeast Syria explosion

Two people were killed by an explosion on Friday in front of the Hassakeh courthouse, in Syria's predominantly Kurdish northeast, state news agency SANA reported.

SANA quoted a security source as saying that the blast was from a hand grenade and that it killed, according to health authorities, a man and a 13-year-old child.

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Woman killed, people wounded as Israel hits south in response to Hezbollah drones

An Israeli airstrike on a house in the southern town of Arab Salim killed a young woman and wounded several people on Thursday, as Israel launched a wave of airstrikes outside the so-called security zone in response to an alleged Hezbollah drone attack.

The National News Agency said the woman "had been married for 48 hours."

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Transgender woman in Lebanon allowed to change gender in rare case

A Lebanese judge told AFP on Wednesday that he has allowed a transgender woman to update her personal status record and change her gender, a rare move in a country where LGBTQ issues remain highly taboo.

Lebanon has never been a safe haven for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer people, but the community has long been visible and outspoken, defying crackdowns on its bars, nightclubs and community centers.

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Iran Guards say agreed with Oman to share revenues from Hormuz

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday they had agreed with Oman to share any revenues earned from transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz.

"During negotiations with Oman, some agreements were made regarding the share of each country in the waters of the Strait and the share of Iran and Oman in its revenues," said Guards spokesman Hossein Mohebi, adding that the US was "obstructing work" to finalize a deal.

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