Iraq declared on Thursday that its forces had retaken the northern city of Tal Afar and the surrounding region in another major victory over Islamic State group jihadists.

An Algerian policeman was killed Thursday when he threw himself on a suicide bomber before the attacker's explosives belt detonated, state media said, citing the police department.

Some two million Muslims from around the world began gathering Thursday on Mount Arafat for the highlight of the hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia dedicated to prayers and reflection.

Oil production has been suspended for several days at three oil fields in Libya after an armed militia shut off pipelines, the state-owned National Oil Company said Wednesday.

U.N. chief Antonio Guterres called for the blockade of Gaza to be lifted Wednesday as he visited the Palestinian enclave enduring "one of the most dramatic humanitarian crises" he had seen.

Human Rights Watch called Wednesday for an independent inquiry to probe the fate of thousands of people who have disappeared in Syria's war and to identify mass graves.

Jordan and Iraq on Wednesday reopened their only border crossing, saying security had been restored three years after the Islamic State group seized control of frontier areas.

Fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and the Islamic State group has killed 64 combatants in Raqa province over a 24-hour period, a monitoring group said Wednesday.

Spain's Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido, visiting his Moroccan counterpart Tuesday, said Rabat had arrested two men linked to deadly twin attacks in Catalonia.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remained the only viable option as he made his first visit to the West Bank since taking office.