Syrian state media said a car exploded on Monday in the Mazzeh neighborhood of Damascus which is home to embassies and security headquarters but it did not specify the cause of the blast.

The official SANA news agency reported "a car explosion in one of the neighborhoods" of Mazzeh, where an AFP correspondent said a hotel was damaged and vehicles torched following the blast near Syria's Information Ministry.

French President Emmanuel Macron called once again for a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, the Elysee Palace said in a statement.

Macron said the elimination of Hamas’ top leader Yahya Sinwar last week in Gaza “must be an opportunity to begin a new phase of negotiation” for a cease-fire, the release of hostages and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Egyptian officials said the head of Israel’s internal security agency has visited Cairo to discuss reviving Gaza cease-fire talks after the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Israel and Hamas, as well as Egypt, which has served as a key mediator, appear to still be divided over whether Israel would retain control over parts of Gaza, a dispute that dragged the talks to a halt in August.

The world's final glimpse of Hamas' leader was rough and raw, showing him wounded and cornered as he sat in a bombed-out Palestinian home and faced down the Israeli drone filming him, hurling a stick at it.

For Israel, the scene was one of victory, showing Yahya Sinwar, the architect of Oct. 7, broken and defeated.

The United States is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel's plans to attack Iran, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press. A fourth U.S. official said the documents appear to be legitimate.

The documents are attributed to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency, and note that Israel was still moving military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran's blistering ballistic missile attack on Oct. 1. They were sharable within the "Five Eyes," which are the U.S., Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken heads back Monday for Israel and Arab countries in a new bid to push a Gaza ceasefire after Israel killed Hamas' leader, the State Department said.

Blinken, on a trip expected to run through Friday, "will discuss the importance of bringing the war in Gaza to an end, securing the release of all hostages and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people," the State Department said in a statement.

On top of the grievous toll in human life and misery, Israel's war against Hamas and Hezbollah has been expensive, and the painfully high financial costs are raising concerns about the long-term effect of the fighting on the country's economy.

Military spending has ballooned, and growth has stalled, especially in dangerous border areas that were evacuated. Economists say the country could face declining investment and higher taxes as the war strains government budgets and forces tough choices between social programs and the military.

Iran's United Nations mission said that Lebanon's Hezbollah, armed and financed by Tehran, was behind a drone attack on the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday accused Iran and its "proxy Hezbollah" of trying to kill him and his wife, vowing that they would pay "a heavy price," after his office reported a drone targeted his residence in Caesarea.

U.S. President Joe Biden and the German, French and British leaders have stressed the "immediate necessity" for ending the more than year-old war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.

Biden, Olaf Scholz, Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer in a joint statement said they agreed on "the immediate necessity to bring the hostages home to their families, for ending the war in Gaza, and ensure humanitarian aid reaches civilians."