Arab League chief Ahmed Abul Gheit on Tuesday condemned the killing of former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh by Huthi rebels, saying it illustrated their "criminal nature".

Human Rights Watch in a report on Tuesday criticised Iraq and the autonomous Kurdish authorities over mass trials of suspected Islamic State group jihadists.

The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday announced it has formed a new economic and partnership group with Saudi Arabia, separate from the Gulf Cooperation Council — a move that could undermine the council amid a diplomatic crisis with member state Qatar.

The Emirati Foreign Ministry announcement, just hours ahead of a GCC meeting in Kuwait, said the new "joint cooperation committee" was approved by the UAE's ruler and president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan.

Saudi-led warplanes pounded the rebel-held Yemeni capital before dawn on Tuesday after the rebels killed former president Ali Abdullah Saleh as he fled the city following the collapse of their uneasy alliance, residents said.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that Yemenis would make those attacking their country regret their actions as a Saudi-led coalition pounded the rebel-held capital with heavy air strikes.

Yemen's exiled president ordered troops to advance on Sanaa hours after his predecessor was killed by Huthi rebels, officials said, as heavy fighting continued in the capital.

Israeli fighter jets bombed areas near the Syrian capital Damascus late Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said.

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said Monday there is a "reasonable basis" to believe that some British soldiers committed war crimes after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

The disclosure came in a 74-page report on preliminary inquiries as the ICC's member states gather in New York for its annual nine-day meeting to discuss matters relating to the tribunal.

Britain suspended a foreign aid scheme to fund policing in rebel-held areas of Syria worth millions on Monday, following allegations the money had ended up with extremists or been misappropriated.

U.S. President Donald Trump faces a key decision this week on whether to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, prompting a flood of warnings from the Arab world that it could ignite tensions and sink hopes for peace.