Russian President Vladimir Putin has hosted his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for talks in the Black Sea resort of Sochi that were expected to focus on war-torn Syria.

It was the first in-person meeting for Putin in over two weeks. On Sept. 14, the Russian president went into self-isolation after a staff member he worked closely with contracted coronavirus. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Putin's two-week self-isolation ended on Wednesday.

Iraq's top Shiite cleric has called for wide participation in next month's parliament elections, saying that despite "shortcomings," voting remains the best way for Iraqis to take part in shaping their country's future.

Iraqis are headed to the polls Oct. 10 for early elections characterized by widespread apathy and concerns of low voter turnout. The elections are being held a year before they had been scheduled to take place in line with a key demand of protesters who filled the streets in October 2019 demanding change in the country, where corruption is widespread.

Israel's foreign minister headed to Bahrain on Thursday, the first high-level visit to the small Gulf state by a senior Israeli official since the signing last year of a landmark agreement to establish diplomatic ties.

Yair Lapid flew to Bahrain's capital, Manama, for meetings with his Bahraini counterpart and to inaugurate Israel's embassy. It will be the first official visit by an Israeli Cabinet member.

Three Palestinians were killed Thursday by Israeli fire, including a woman who tried to stab officers in Jerusalem, a militant shot during West Bank clashes and a Gazan who approached the border fence.   

The violence comes days after an Israeli raid on militants in the occupied West Bank left five Palestinians dead.

Dozens of Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank, hurling stones at cars and homes and leaving several people wounded, including a Palestinian toddler, activists said Wednesday.

Video of Tuesday's attack released by an Israeli rights group showed several shirtless settlers with scarves wrapped around their faces hurling stones at a cluster of homes and vehicles. Israeli troops stood among the settlers but did not appear to be taking any action to stop them.

Tunisia's president on Wednesday named geologist Najla Bouden as the country's first ever female prime minister-designate, two months after he seized wide-ranging powers.

"The President of the Republic Kais Saied charged Najla Bouden with forming a government as quickly as possible," said a statement from his office published on Facebook.

The United Nations said Wednesday that a Yemeni humanitarian organization working to help people displaced by the country's conflict was this year's recipient of its prestigious Nansen Refugee Award.

Praising the "extraordinary work" carried out by the Jeel Albena Association for Humanitarian Development, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said the NGO was "an example of humanity, compassion and dedication." 

The U.N. special envoy for Syria announced Tuesday that invitations have been issued for a sixth meeting of the committee charged with producing a new constitution for war-torn Syria in October.

After the failure of the five previous meetings of Syrian government, opposition and civil society representatives, Geir Pedersen told the U.N. Security Council: "We should all now expect the constitutional committee to begin to work seriously on a process of drafting — not just preparing — a constitutional reform."

President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan is heading to Cairo on Wednesday for talks with Egyptian government officials about rising tensions between Israel and Hamas.

The Biden administration is leaning heavily on Egypt, which has long played a role as mediator between Israel and Hamas, for help in maintaining stability in the region even as it presses Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to stop his crackdown on dissent.

Two days of fierce clashes between Yemeni government forces and the country's Houthi rebels over a crucial central city have killed more than 130 fighters, mostly rebels, officials said Tuesday.

The escalation of fighting over the energy-rich city of Marib comes as President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan travelled to Saudi Arabia to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as Washington presses for a cease-fire in the yearslong Yemen's war.