Tunisia's massive election boycott has further challenged the legitimacy of President Kais Saied, but a divided and discredited opposition poses little threat to his grip on power, experts say.

Thousands of people on Sunday joined the funerals of eight young Palestinian men who drowned off the coast of Tunisia nearly two months ago as they tried to sail to new lives in Europe.

The drownings have reverberated across Gaza, drawing attention to the dire conditions in the territory after a 15-year Israeli-Egyptian blockade but also prompting some rare public criticism of the ruling Hamas militant group.

Baghdad-mediated diplomatic talks between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia have come to a halt, largely because of Tehran claims the Sunni kingdom has played a role in alleged foreign incitement of the mass anti-government protests underway in Iran, multiple Iraqi officials said.

The talks had been lauded as a breakthrough that would ease regional tensions. Iraq's new Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said last month after taking office that Iraq had been asked to continue facilitating the dialogue.

Three police officers were killed in a restive town in southern Jordan on Monday while trying to arrest a suspect in last week's slaying of a police commander. The main suspect was also killed in the gunbattle, authorities said.

The shootout took place near the town of Maan, where Abdul Razzaq Abdel Hafez Al Dalabeh, a local deputy police director, was killed last week.

Israel said it deported a Palestinian lawyer and activist to France early Sunday, claiming he has ties to a banned militant group, despite objections from the French government.

The expulsion of Salah Hammouri underscored the fragile status of Palestinians in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, where most hold revocable residency rights but are not Israeli citizens. It also set up a possible diplomatic spat with France, which had repeatedly appealed to Israel not to carry out the expulsion.

Jordan has announced it was imposing a "temporary ban" on the social media platform TikTok, a day after a police officer was killed during clashes with protesters that broke out over high fuel prices.

Truck drivers launched a strike last week to protest high fuel prices in the Arab kingdom. The strike and protests have spread to several cities across Jordan. Clashes erupted in multiple cities on Thursday, with police using tear gas to disperse them.

Israel's attorney general has warned against a raft of legislation being proposed by the expected next government, saying some of the planned new laws would imperil Israel's "democratic" principles.

Gali Baharav-Miara's comments set up what's expected to be a major clash between the next government, a far-right coalition likely to be headed by former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and buoyed by ultranationalists and ultra-Orthodox parties, and the judicial system, which could see its role as a check on politicians squeezed under the new legislation.

French President Emmanuel Macron is about to jet off to Qatar for the second time in a week, despite broad concerns about the emirate's human rights and environmental record. Why? Because France is in the World Cup final, and Macron really is a big football fan — as well as a prominent advocate of the longstanding partnership between the two countries.

A video broadcast after France's victory over Morocco in the semifinal showed an enthusiastic Macron mingling with French players in the dressing room on Wednesday evening at the Doha stadium, applauding to the sound of the "Freed from desire" music hit that has become the team's victory hymn.

Israel's designated prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has vowed to seek full diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia once he takes office, claiming that doing so would also promote peace with the Palestinians.

Netanyahu also said he would be open to restarting behind-the-scenes peace talks with the Palestinians.

Jordanian police say a senior commander has been killed in clashes with protesters that broke out over high fuel prices.

Abdul Razzaq Abdel Hafez Al Dalabeh, deputy police director in the city of Maan, was shot Thursday "by a group of outlaws," police said.