Turkey on Wednesday said a planned buffer zone in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib has been cleared of heavy weapons as part of a deal reached between Moscow and Ankara.

At least 15 Saudi journalists and bloggers have been arrested over the past year, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said on Wednesday, following the disappearance of Saudi columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

A planned buffer zone in northwest Syria has been cleared of heavy armaments ahead of time but a new deadline loomed Wednesday for the tougher task of Turkey convincing jihadists to pull out their fighters.

Turkish investigators are examining CCTV footage showing the moment missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi entered the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul and the movements of a team suspected of involvement in his disappearance.

The fiancee of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Tuesday asked President Donald Trump to help uncover what happened to the Riyadh critic who she said had "been fighting for his principles".

The disappearance of journalist and Riyadh critic Jamal Khashoggi from Saudi Arabia's Istanbul consulate has rattled already brittle ties between two powerful rivals vying for influence in the Muslim world, analysts say.

Saudi-led coalition air strikes in Yemen have killed almost 80 Huthi rebel fighters over 48 hours in the western province of Hodeida, military and medical sources said Tuesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he told Russia's vice premier in talks on Tuesday that Israel must continue to hit hostile targets in neighboring Syria, despite Moscow's decision to equip Damascus with advanced air defense missiles.

Bahrain's main opposition group called Tuesday for a boycott of November parliamentary elections after its members were banned from running.

Qatari-bought fuel arrived at the Gaza Strip's only power station after entering through Israel on Tuesday in a bid to alleviate conditions in the Palestinian enclave, a Hamas spokesman and sources said.