Fakhria al-Ali depends on the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees for her breast cancer treatment in Lebanon, but after key countries suspended their financing, she fears she has been handed a death sentence.

"My life is a nightmare," said the unemployed 50-year-old, who lives in the impoverished Beddawi Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon.

Spanish farmers blocked roads across Spain on Thursday for the third day running to protest against heavy regulation and cheaper imports, with the country's main farmers' unions joining the demonstrations for the first time.

Several columns of slow-moving tractors took over roads to snarl traffic, particularly in the eastern region of Valencia, the northern region of Astoria and the central region of Castilla la Mancha.

Iraq on Thursday condemned a U.S. air strike that killed a senior commander from a pro-Iran armed group accused of having been involved in attacks on American troops in the region.

The U.S. attack on Wednesday came after a wave of strikes on Iran-linked targets in Iraq and Syria last week following the killing of three American troops in neighboring Jordan on January 28.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin believe the United States is trying to "contain" their two countries, the Kremlin said Thursday after a call between the leaders.

"The two leaders realise that the US is practically implementing a policy of dual containment: both Russia and China," Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said in comments after the call.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered troops to prepare to enter the overcrowded Gazan city of Rafah, even as a new round of talks aimed at securing a truce with Hamas were set to open Thursday in Cairo.

Netanyahu announced the order after rejecting Hamas's response to a ceasefire proposal at the centre of intense recent diplomatic efforts, though visiting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken insisted on Wednesday that he still saw "space for agreement to be reached".

On the first anniversary of his trade to Dallas, Kyrie Irving returned to Brooklyn on Tuesday and showed his old team what they had lost with 36 points as the Mavericks beat the Nets 119-107.

Jurgen Klinsmann's position as South Korea coach came under intense pressure on Wednesday after what local media called a "shameful" and "humiliating" Asian Cup semi-final defeat to Jordan.

The Koreans crashed out 2-0 to a team ranked 64 places below them in the world and they failed to muster a shot on target despite boasting Son Heung-min in attack.

Lionel Messi started on the bench for Inter Miami's pre-season friendly in Tokyo Wednesday, days after his absence on the pitch in a recent Hong Kong friendly angered fans there.

The decision not to come on in Hong Kong had prompted the ire of tens of thousands of fans, who booed the World Cup-winning Argentinian and the team's co-owner David Beckham.

U.S. military action has so far failed to halt attacks by Iran-backed groups on Washington's forces in the Middle East and shipping in the Red Sea, with the threats persisting despite recent heavy air strikes.

The attacks by militants -- which the armed groups that claim them say are driven by the Israel-Hamas war -- have been launched from or hit four different countries, posing a multi-front challenge for the United States, which aims to curb the unrest while avoiding direct conflict with Iran.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday described the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel as the "biggest anti-Semitic massacre of our century" as he hosted a ceremony paying tribute to the French victims.

He described the attack by the Palestinian militant group as "barbarism... which is fed by anti-Semitism and propagates it," vowing also not to give in to "rampant and uninhibited anti-Semitism."