The UN Security Council on Thursday added two armed groups in Syria, two money exchange businesses and four individuals to a sanctions blacklist for their alleged ties to the Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda.

Qatar announced Thursday changes to its anti-terror legislation, one of the controversial issues at the core of the crisis between Doha and its neighbours who accuse it of backing extremists.

The decree from Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani establishes two national lists for individuals and terrorist entities and sets out the requirements for being included on them.

China's foreign minister has called on Qatar and four Arab nations to resolve their diplomatic crisis through talks within the Gulf Cooperation Council, state media reported on Friday.

Jihadists from a coalition led by al-Qaida's former Syria affiliate fired on protesters in northwestern Idlib province on Thursday, a day after killing a demonstrator in the area, a monitor said.

Qatar on Thursday accused the United Arab Emirates of being behind the "hacking" of its national news agency that triggered one of the worst Gulf crises in years.

Protesters prepared to march in the Moroccan city of Al-Hoceima on Thursday in defiance of a government ban, the latest in a series of demonstrations that have shaken the country's north.

The Qatari foreign minister began a visit to Beijing on Thursday, a day after his Chinese counterpart told a top official from Qatar's rival the United Arab Emirates that China hoped the rift between the Gulf countries could be repaired.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani was scheduled to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi later in the day, China's foreign ministry said, although no details of any discussions were immediately released.

On a day off from the Raqa front line, Syrian fighter Iskandar was busy chopping up chicken and garlic cloves for a steaming pot of homecooked mulukhiyah stew. 

Kuwait on Thursday ordered the expulsion of about 15 Iranian diplomats after the emirate's top court convicted a "terror" cell of links to the Islamic republic, a government source told AFP.

Kuwait also ordered the closure of the Iranian "military, cultural and trade" missions, said the government official, who asked not to be named.

Israel's public security minister says metal detectors are essential to maintain security at a contested Jerusalem shrine despite rising tensions and a Muslim call for mass protests in the city.

Gilad Erdan tells Israel's Army Radio on Thursday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will rule on the issue later in the day when he returns from a working visit to Europe. But Erdan insisted the new Israeli measures did not change the status of the site and were necessary to carry out proper security checks.