A vast crowd of protestors flooded the streets of Algiers Friday, the first mass demonstrations since the resignation of ailing president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and a show of strength by those pushing demands for reform.

The US envoy tasked with forging a peace deal with the Taliban met with officials in Pakistan on Friday, after telling leaders and various groups in Afghanistan they would be included in future talks.

Forces loyal to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar were pushed back Friday from a key checkpoint less than 30 kilometres from Tripoli, checking their lightning advance on the capital, a security source said.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday he was open to allowing the return of orphaned children of an Australian jihadist in a Syrian refugee camp following their desperate plea for help. 

In the days ahead of Israel's April 9 elections, activists in the country's north were not trying to convince some residents who to vote for -- but just to vote.

The United States and its allies called Thursday for an immediate de-escalation of tensions in Libya and warned any military action would have consequences after strongman Khalifa Haftar ordered forces to advance on Tripoli.

"Our governments oppose any military action in Libya and will hold accountable any Libyan faction that precipitates further civil conflict," said a joint statement by the United States, France, Britain, Italy and the United Arab Emirates.

U.S. lawmakers voted Thursday to end military support for the bloody Saudi-led war in Yemen, dealing a harsh bipartisan rebuke to Donald Trump and taking the historic step of curtailing a president's war-making powers.

The House of Representatives voted 247 to 175, with one congressman voting present, to approve a resolution that directs the president "to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities in or affecting the Republic of Yemen" within 30 days.

Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar ordered his troops Thursday to "advance" on Tripoli, seat of the internationally-recognized unity government, after U.N. chief Antonio Guterres warned against a major flare-up.

"The time has come," Haftar said in an audio message released online by his self-proclaimed Libyan National Army. 

An Airbus jet operated by EgyptAir that crashed over the Mediterranean almost three years ago, killing all 66 people on board, should have been grounded because of a series of technical issues on previous flights, according to a French investigation.

Mass protests may have pushed long-time Algerian leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika from power, but demonstrators look unlikely to let up, demanding sweeping changes to the political system.