Middle East & North Africa

ISTANBUL (AP) — A multi-vehicle crash in southern Turkey’s Hatay province killed at least 12 people and injured 31 others, including three seriously, officials said.

A truck crossed into opposite lanes after the driver lost control late Saturday, colliding with nine cars and two minibuses, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

Many of the vehicles were parked by the roadside near a gas station as friends and relatives said goodbye to men leaving to carry out mandatory military service.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two oil tankers recently seized by Iran are anchored off the coast of one of its key port cities on the strategic Strait of Hormuz, according to satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press on Sunday.

Tehran, IRNA- Iran has declared four Azerbaijani diplomats as persona non grata and has expelled them.

Four Azerbaijani diplomats in Tehran and Tabriz have been declated as persona non grata and expelled from lran.

The measure was a tit-for-tat response taken in reaction to Azerbaijan's measure to expel four Iranian diplomats.

On April 6, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Iran Seyyed Abbas Mousavi was summoned to the Azerbaijan Republic Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

06 May 2023; MEMO: Five extremist Jewish settlers on Friday attempted to perform ritual animal sacrifice at Al-Aqsa Mosque to mark the second Jewish Passover, Al-Watan Voice reported.

06 May 2023; MEMO: Iran on Saturday executed a Swedish-Iranian dissident convicted of leading an Arab separatist group accused of attacks including one on a military parade in 2018 that killed 25 people, state television reported, Reuters reports.

The Swedish foreign ministry said it had summoned Iran's deputy ambassador to protest the execution of Habib Farajollah Chaab, which it confirmed took place earlier in the day.

06 May 2023; MEMO: Representatives of the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group began their first face-to-face talks in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, Anadolu reports.

According to the Saudi state news agency SPA, the talks between the two military rivals were held in the city of Jeddah.

On Friday, Saudi Arabia and the US welcomed the start of the "pre-negotiation talks" between the two conflicting parties to end their fighting that has killed hundreds.

06 May 2023; MEMO: The official vehicle of Turkiye's ambassador to Sudan was hit by gunfire on Saturday, as fighting continues between the army and a paramilitary group in the capital Khartoum and its surroundings, Anadolu reports.

No casualties were reported and the source of the gunfire that hit Ismail Cobanoglu's vehicle was unclear, said Turkish diplomatic sources, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media.

06 May 2023; MEMO: Kuwait signed a memorandum of understanding on Saturday to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a powerful regional bloc led by China and Russia, Anadolu reports.

The document was inked on the sidelines of a meeting of the SCO foreign ministers on May 4-5 in Panaji city, India, the state news agency KUNA reported.

CAIRO, May 6. /TASS/: Arab foreign ministers on May 7 will make a decision to restore Syria's full membership of the League of Arab States (LAS), a LAS spokesman announced on Saturday.

"Tomorrow, the Arab foreign ministers will decide on Syria's return to the LAS," El Sharq TV quoted the official as saying.

An early meeting of the LAS Council at the foreign minister level is expected to be held on Sunday at the organization's headquarters in Cairo with the restoration of Syria's membership featuring prominently on the agenda.

RAMALLAH, May 6 (NNN-WAFA) – The Israeli army, yesterday handed over the bodies of three Palestinians, who were killed by Israeli soldiers more than 50 days ago, to the Palestinian side, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said in a statement.

In coordination with the Palestinian liaison office of security coordination with Israel, the Israeli army handed the bodies over to the Palestinian side at an Israeli army checkpoint, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, the statement added.