European Union leaders are seeking a more active role in Gaza and the occupied West Bank after being sidelined from the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

At a summit Thursday in Brussels largely focused on Ukraine and Russia, EU heads of state are also expected to discuss the shaky ceasefire in Gaza and potential EU support for stability in the war-torn coastal enclave. The EU has been the biggest provider of aid to the Palestinians and is Israel's top trading partner.

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Thursday that Saudi Arabia should "keep riding camels" if it asks for a Palestinian state in exchange for normalizing ties with Israel.

"If Saudi Arabia tells us normalization in exchange for a Palestinian state, friends, no thank you", Smotrich said at a conference in Israel.

Syrian authorities have agreed a ceasefire with a group of jihadists led by Frenchman Oumar Diaby in northwest Syria, sources from both sides told AFP on Thursday.

Government forces surrounded the camp of Firqatul Ghuraba ("the Foreigners' Brigade") on Wednesday, leading to the first clashes with jihadists under Syria's new leadership since the ousting in December of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance criticized on Thursday Israel's parliament vote on West Bank annexation, saying the move was an "insult."

Speaking on the tarmac of Tel Aviv's international airport before departing at the end of his visit to Israel this week, Vance said that if the vote was a "political stunt, then it is a very stupid political stunt."

As U.S. Vice President JD Vance's visit to Israel comes to a close, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would be traveling to the country to keep the momentum on the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier this week, Vance announced the opening of a civilian military coordination center in southern Israel where some 200 U.S. troops are working alongside the Israeli military and delegations from other countries planning the stabilization and reconstruction of Gaza.

Israeli settlers descended on Palestinian olive harvesters and activists this week in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, beating them with clubs in an attack Palestinian health officials said sent at least one woman to the hospital with serious injuries.

The attack Sunday in the town of Turmus Ayya, which was captured in videos obtained by The Associated Press, came as Palestinians say settler violence in the region is worsening. The United Nations and rights groups have raised the alarm as harvest season begins and Palestinian farmers are at growing risk while gathering olives.

Egypt and the European Union will hold their first summit on Wednesday in Brussels where leaders will discuss security, trade and migration as well as stability in Gaza.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa are expected to announce increased European economic assistance to Egypt and Egypt's admission to the EU's Horizons research incubation program, a 175 billion euro (about $202.7 billion) fund for scientific research and innovation in fields from quantum technology to the space industry.

Israel's prime minister toughened his stance Wednesday by declaring that his country is in charge of its own security and isn't an American protectorate as he prepared to discuss progress on Gaza's fragile ceasefire agreement with U.S. Vice President JD Vance.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks ahead of his meeting with Vance appeared aimed easing public concerns that the presence of an envisioned international security force in Gaza could limit Israel's ability to strike in the devastated territory to thwart future threats.

he International Court of Justice said on Wednesday that Israel must allow the U.N. aid agency in Gaza, known as UNRWA, to provide humanitarian assistance to the war-torn territory.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday that the Gaza ceasefire brokered by Washington could pave the way for broader alliances for Israel in the Middle East.