Middle East & North Africa

AMMAN, Jun 23 (NNN-PETRA) – Jordan and Saudi Arabia, yesterday, urged Israel to stop all “illegal actions” that undermine the two-state solution and the chances of achieving a fair peace.

In a joint declaration, issued at the conclusion of a visit to Jordan by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, the two countries stressed the need to launch an international effort to realise a political horizon to resolve the Palestinian cause based on the two-state solution.

ANKARA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud on Wednesday arrived in Ankara, Turkey's capital, to start his first visit to Turkey since the death of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan greeted the crown prince with a grand welcoming ceremony, which was followed by a private meeting between the two leaders.

Turkey is the third stop of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's regional tour, which also brought him to Egypt and Jordan.

GAZA/RAMALLAH, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian young man died after an Israeli settler had stabbed him near the northern West Bank city of Salfit on Tuesday night, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement.

The Israeli directly stabbed Hassan Harb in the heart during confrontations with Israeli settlers who stormed the city's suburb, the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) said in a press statement on Tuesday.

TEHRAN, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Russia called for a boost to their comprehensive ties to benefit both countries, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said in a Thursday statement on his meeting with the visiting Russian foreign minister.

Raisi told Sergei Lavrov that continuous meetings and talks between the officials of Iran and Russia are a sign of serious will on both sides to shape a new era of bilateral "strategic cooperation," particularly in the economic field, said the statement issued by the presidential website.

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s president began consultations with members of parliamentary blocs on Thursday to name a new prime minister following last month’s parliamentary elections.

Outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati is widely expected to get the largest support from legislators to form a new Cabinet that will be in power until the end of October when President Michel Aoun’s six-year term expires. Such a short tenure could make it difficult for the billionaire premier to form a Cabinet since it usually takes months to form a government in Lebanon due to political bickering.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s Parliament is set to hold a session Thursday to vote in replacements for 73 lawmakers who resigned earlier this month. The collective walkout by followers of Iraq’s most influential Shiite politician threw Iraq into further uncertainty, deepening a months-long political crisis over government formation.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A court in Iran on Thursday ordered the United States government to pay over $4 billion to the families of Iranian nuclear scientists who have been killed in targeted attacks in recent years, state-run media reported.

The largely symbolic ruling underscores the escalating tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program, with negotiations to restore the tattered atomic accord at a standstill.

New Delhi, Jun 21 (PTI) The Centre has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court and urged that it be heard before the court passes any order on petitions against the Agnipath scheme.

The Agnipath scheme, announced on June 14, provides for the recruitment of youths between the age bracket of 17.5 to 21 for four years with the provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years. Protests have erupted in several states against the scheme.

Dubai, Jun 21 (AP-PTI) A US Navy warship fired a warning flare to wave off an Iranian Revolutionary Guard speedboat coming straight at it during a tense encounter in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, officials said Tuesday.

The incident on Monday involving the Guard and the Navy comes as tensions remain high over stalled negotiations over Iran's tattered nuclear deal with world powers and as Tehran enriches uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels under decreasing international oversight.

22 June 2022; MEMO: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has condemned the murder of a Palestinian man by an illegal Jewish settler in the occupied West Bank. PA Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh also condemned the killing of Ali Harb, 27, in the village of Iskaka, near Salfit.