Palestinian eyewitnesses said a group of Israeli settlers has vandalized dozens of cars in the occupied West Bank.

A number of witnesses told an Associated Press photographer that Israeli settlers entered the town of al-Bireh near the West Bank city of Ramallah and damaged dozens of parked vehicles.

The head of the Islamist party in Israel's governing coalition has met with Jordan's King Abdullah II in Amman, the latest sign of warming ties between the two countries.

The Jordanian Royal Palace said in a statement that Abdullah and United Arab List lawmaker Mansour Abbas discussed "the latest developments in the Palestinian territories and ways to advance the peace process." The king restated his commitment to a two-state solution to the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates met with Syria's once widely shunned president in Damascus on Tuesday, sending the clearest signal yet that the Arab world is willing to re-engage with strongman Bashar Assad.

The visit by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the first by an Emirati foreign minister since Syria's civil war erupted in 2011. It comes as some Arab countries are improving ties with Syria. The U.S., a close Emirati partner, promptly criticized the visit, saying it would not support any normalization with Assad's government.

The Israeli army chief warned Tuesday that the military was ramping up its preparations for a possible attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi told the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the army “is accelerating operational planning and preparedness to deal with Iran and the military nuclear threat.”

Pope Francis condemned an assassination attempt against Iraq's prime minister as a "vile act of terrorism" and said Tuesday he is praying for peace in the country.

The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, sent a telegram to Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi expressing Francis' solidarity and prayers to al-Kadhimi's family and those injured in the Monday drone attack on the prime minister's residence.

Egypt and Israel have said they agreed on an increase in Egyptian border forces in a restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, where Egypt has battled Islamic militants for years.

The Egyptian military said a joint military committee with Israel agreed to amend a security deal between the two countries, allowing Cairo to increase the number and capabilities of border guards in the town of Rafah.

Five European countries have expressed "serious concern" at Israel's designation of six Palestinian civil society organizations as terrorist groups after a Security Council meeting and said they will be seeking more information from Israeli authorities on the reasons for their listing.

The 15-member council took no action after the closed consultations. But a statement from Estonia, France, Ireland, Norway and Albania, which will join the council in January, said the listings "have far-reaching consequences for the organizations in political, legal and financial terms."

An assassination attempt targeting Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi marks the latest escalation in tensions following last month's legislative polls, amid allegations of fraud from pro-Iran groups.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday condemned the attack that targeted Iraq's Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi and said his administration would help Iraqi security forces identify those responsible.

The United States and Egypt have put a brave face on strains in their relationship amid domestic Egyptian developments and regional crises that are testing long-standing ties between the countries.

With Egypt's human rights record posing a significant irritant that has resulted in the withholding of some U.S. military aid and flashpoint situations in Egyptian neighbors Ethiopia and Sudan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry opened two days of strategic talks in Washington.