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Saudi Arabia condemns far-right Israeli minister's 'storming' of Al-Aqsa compound

Saudi Arabia condemned on Wednesday a visit by Israel's far-right national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir to the Al-Aqsa compound, a disputed area in occupied east Jerusalem home to Islam's third-holiest site that is also Judaism's holiest place.

Riyadh voiced its "condemnation of the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by Israeli officials and settlers under the protection of the occupation forces, reiterating its strongest condemnation of the continued attacks on the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

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UK prosecutors to appeal dropped 'terrorism' case against Kneecap rapper

The UK’s public prosecution body Tuesday said it would appeal a court’s decision to drop a charge of supporting "terrorism" brought against a Northern Irish singer from rap group Kneecap.

"We are appealing the decision to dismiss this case as we believe there is an important point of law which needs to be clarified," a Crown Prosecution Service spokesperson said, referring to the case against Liam O’Hanna, also known by his stage name Mo Chara.

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'Optimism prevails among all parties' in Gaza talks

A senior Hamas official said on Wednesday that negotiations held in Egypt for an end to the war in Gaza were advancing in a "spirit of optimism".

"The mediators are making great efforts to remove any obstacles to the implementation of the ceasefire, and a spirit of optimism prevails among all parties," Taher al-Nunu told AFP from the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh, where indirect talks began on Monday between Israel and Hamas.

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Geagea urges Hezbollah to 'learn from what is happening with Hamas'

Lebanon Forces leader Samir Geagea on Tuesday urged Hezbollah to surrender its weapons to the state "as soon as possible," warning the Iran-backed group it has run out of options.

"Hezbollah has no choice but to hand over its weapons to the Lebanese state... because the state took this decision," Geagea told AFP in an interview from his residence in Maarab.

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Four missing, around 10 injured in Madrid building collapse

Spanish emergency services were scrambling to find four people who went missing after a building under construction in Madrid's touristic city center collapsed on Tuesday, injuring around 10, authorities said.

The toll "at the moment is estimated to be around 10, mostly minor, injuries", said Francisco Martin Aguirre, the central government's top representative in the Madrid region, adding that "there are four people missing".

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Hamas says working to 'surmount all obstacles' in Gaza truce talks

Hamas said Tuesday it was working to overcome "all obstacles" as Palestinian militant leaders held indirect talks with Israel aimed at ending the two-year Gaza war.

"The delegation of the movement participating in the current negotiations in Egypt seeks to surmount all obstacles to achieving an agreement that fulfils the aspirations of our people in Gaza," senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum said in a televised speech.

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Qatar says Israel should have already ceased fire under Trump plan for Gaza

Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday that Israel should have ceased operations in Gaza already in line with U.S. President Donald Trump's peace plan.

"Regarding the ceasefire, this question should be directed first to the Israeli occupation government. It was supposed to actually cease fire if the statements made by the prime minister there regarding adherence to the Trump plan were true," Majed al-Ansari told reporters in Doha.

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Gaza talks 'positive', resuming Tuesday, sources say

Indirect talks in Egypt between Israel and Hamas have been "positive" so far, two sources close to the Palestinian militants' negotiating team told AFP on Tuesday, with discussions set to resume around midday.

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Ukraine strike on Russia-held part of Kherson region kills four

A Ukrainian drone attack on the Russia-held part of Ukraine's Kherson region killed four people, the Moscow-installed governor said Tuesday.

"Four civilians were killed on the highway between Zavodovka and Gornostayevka as a result of a targeted drone attack on civilian vehicles," Vladimir Saldo, governor of the Russian-occupied part of Kherson region wrote on Telegram, using the Russian spelling for the towns' names.

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Syria announces 'comprehensive ceasefire' with Kurds after clashes

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa was meeting Tuesday with Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi in the presence of U.S. officials, a Syrian government source told AFP, after deadly clashes overnight in Kurdish-majority districts of Aleppo city.

It is the first encounter since July between Sharaa and Abdi, head of the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and comes as implementation of a March deal between the two on integrating Kurdish institutions in the country's north and northeast into the state has largely stalled.

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