It was just 67 words written in a faraway country a century ago, but it shaped their lives, Israelis and Palestinians say.

Libya's coastguard has rescued nearly 300 migrants including dozens of women and children from unseaworthy boats as they tried to reach Europe, a navy official said Wednesday.

The handing over of Gaza Strip border crossings by Islamist movement Hamas to the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday is the latest step in efforts to end a 10-year rift.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Iran's leadership Wednesday, with the two Damascus allies pushing a peace deal on Syria and looking to boost business despite U.S. opposition to a landmark nuclear deal.

A Saudi-led coalition air strike killed 29 people at a crowded marketplace in the heartland of the Iran-backed Huthi rebels in northern Yemen on Wednesday, Huthi health authorities said.

A hardline Islamist stabbed two Tunisian policemen on Wednesday in front of parliament, gravely wounding one of them, the interior ministry said.

Hamas handed over control of the Gaza Strip's borders with Egypt and Israel to the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday in the first key test of a landmark reconciliation accord agreed last month.

The handover signaled that Islamist movement Hamas remained committed to a deal that would eventually see it give up full control of the Gaza Strip and bring an end to a 10-year rift with rivals Fatah.

Iraqi forces on Tuesday battled up to the edge of Al-Qaim, the largest town still held by the Islamic State group in the country, as they pushed a final assault on the jihadists.

Egypt's military said Tuesday its air force had carried out a desert raid, killing "a large number of terrorist elements" responsible for the deaths of 16 policemen earlier this month.

Iraqi government forces on Tuesday took control of the key border crossing with Turkey in the Iraqi Kurdistan region after weeks of tensions between Baghdad and Arbil, the Turkish prime minister said.

The border crossing "has been handed over to the central government" of Iraq, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told his ruling party at a televised meeting in Ankara.