MOSCOW, October 22. /TASS/: Russia’s Battlegroup East has thwarted two attempted rotations of Ukrainian troops in the south Donetsk area, the battlegroup’s spokesman Oleg Chekhov told TASS on Thursday.

"In the south Donetsk area, units of the Battlegroup East, supported by artillery, thwarted two attempted rotations of Ukrainian forces near Ugledar and to the north of Novodonetsk. A Ukrainian subversive group was eliminated by the artillery fire to the north of the Priyutnoye settlement," he added.

LISBON, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Portugal on Saturday raised its terrorism alert level from "moderate" to "significant" due to the potential threat arising from the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

The decision is endorsed by the Anti-Terrorism Coordination Unit and is being taken "mainly for preventive and precautionary reasons," said the Portuguese Security Information Service, adding that there are "no indications pointing to the development of terrorist actions on Portuguese territory."

GAZA/JERUSALEM, Oct 21 (NNN-WAFA/MA’AN) – Hamas said in a statement yesterday that, it has released two American hostages for “humanitarian reasons,” in response to Qatari efforts.

It said, it made the move to prove that the U.S. allegations were “false and baseless.” This is the first time that the Gaza-ruling party released hostages, since the conflict began two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, confirmed the release of the two hostages, in a statement.

BEIRUT (AP) — A top official with Hezbollah vowed that Israel will pay a high price whenever it starts a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip and said Saturday that his militant group based in Lebanon already is “in the heart of the battle.”

The comments by Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Sheikh Naim Kassem, came as Israel shelled and made drone strikes in southern Lebanon and Hezbollah fired rockets and missiles toward Israel. Hezbollah said six of its fighters were killed Saturday, the highest daily toll since the violence began two weeks ago.

GAZA, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- At least 60 percent of the population in the Gaza Strip has been displaced as a result of the ongoing Israeli attacks, according to a UN organization.

"About 1.6 million people were forced to be displaced from their houses since the start of the current Hamas-Israel bloody conflict 15 days ago," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a press statement sent to Xinhua on Saturday.

OBREZJE, Slovenia, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Slovenia on Saturday deployed police on border crossings with Croatia and Hungary to prevent potential security threats, leading to queues as travellers waited to have their documents checked.

The Slovenian government had on Friday decided to introduce temporary border controls until Oct. 30, following its neighbour Italy which introduced controls on its border crossing with Slovenia to improve home security.

LONDON, Oct 21 (Reuters) - About 100,000 people joined a pro-Palestinian demonstration in central London on Saturday, marching through the British capital to demand an immediate ceasefire in Gaza following the Hamas attack on Israel two weeks ago.

Chanting "Free Palestine", holding banners and waving Palestinian flags, the protesters moved through London before massing at Downing Street, the official residence and office of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

MOSCOW, October 21. /TASS/: Russia believes that it is necessary to immediately start negotiating the strategy of collective steps to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Russian Presidential Special Envoy for the Middle East, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said at the Cairo Peace Summit looking for solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The text of his speech was posted on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website.

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina could take an unprecedented turn Sunday as frustrated voters weigh handing the presidency to an anti-establishment, right-wing populist who has shaken up the political system and pledges to drastically overhaul the state.

OSLO, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- Norway has finalized a fisheries agreement for 2024 with Russia through digital discussions, which is viewed as Norway's paramount bilateral fisheries contract.

"We're pleased to solidify a fisheries agreement with Russia, especially considering the exceptional circumstances this year," Norway's Fisheries and Oceans Minister Cecilie Myrseth said in a statement on Saturday.

SEOUL, Oct 22 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea, yesterday, confirmed two more cases of lumpy skin disease (LSD) at local cattle farms, after reporting the country’s first-ever case on the previous day.

The additional LSD cases were confirmed at a beef cattle farm in Dangjin, around 80 km south-west of Seoul, and a milk cow farm in Pyeongtaek, about 60 km south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The ministry cordoned off the farms, planning to cull some 40 heads of cattle in Dangjin and about 100 milk cows in Pyeongtaek.

NEW YORK (AP) — Starbucks accused a union representing thousands of its baristas of damaging the brand and endangering co-workers with a pro-Palestinian tweet. The CEO of a prominent tech conference resigned amid backlash for his public statements suggesting that Israel was committing war crimes. Company bosses vowed never to hire members of a university’s student groups that condemned Israel.