Tens of thousands converged on Baghdad's Green Zone Friday for mass prayers in a new power play by Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr after his adversaries conditionally backed his call for early elections.

Sadr, a longtime political and religious force in the war-scarred country, has for months been in a political standoff with a rival alliance backed by Iran.

The Israeli military has said it is sending additional forces to the area around the Gaza Strip as it braces for possible attacks after the arrest of a senior militant in the West Bank this week.

Authorities closed roads and other areas around Gaza after a raid Monday night, in which troops arrested a senior member of the Islamic Jihad militant group in the occupied West Bank town of Jenin. A Palestinian teenager, who Islamic Jihad claimed as a member, was killed during clashes with the Israeli forces.

Mourners have poured out onto the streets of Tehran to pay their respects to several Iranian officers killed in Syria, a testament to the human cost of Iran's involvement in the civil war and a public display of nationalist fervor as nuclear talks resume in Vienna.

The remains of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard members were recently recovered in Khan Tuman, a village 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) south of Aleppo, Syria's largest city that was for years the war's most important front line.

Morocco's Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, a billionaire petrol baron, is facing a growing online campaign demanding he step down as fuel prices -- and energy firms' profits -- surge.

After repeatedly rebuilding his home only to have it demolished by Israeli soldiers, Mohammed Abu Sabaha has a new plan to remain on the land — he is moving into a cave.

Abu Sabaha is among some 1,000 Palestinians at risk of expulsion from an arid region of the occupied West Bank that the Israeli military has designated as a live-fire training zone. Israel's Supreme Court upheld their expulsion in May after a two-decade legal battle.

Powerful Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr, whose bloc won the most seats in Iraq's elections last year, demanded Wednesday that parliament be dissolved and new national polls be called.

The United Nations said Yemen's warring parties have agreed to renew an existing truce for two more months after concerted international efforts.

The already 4-month-old cease-fire has been the longest nationwide ease in fighting since the war began in the Arab world's poorest country nearly eight years ago.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri expressed Wednesday his support for a national dialogue initiative suggested by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

Thousands of Iraqi protesters have been occupying the parliament in Baghdad's Green Zone for the past five days.

Thousands of Iraqi protesters have occupied the parliament in Baghdad's Green Zone for the past five days, the latest political turmoil to strike the war-scarred country.

The mass sit-in is led by followers of powerful Shiite Muslim preacher and political kingmaker Moqtada Sadr, who is facing off against a rival, Iran-backed Shiite faction called the Coordination Framework.

Arab Bank Group has reported a net income of $252 million for the first half of 2022, recording an increase of 38% from last year.

Chairman of the Board of Directors, Sabih Masri, stated that the performance in the first half of the year reflects the Group’s prudent operating policies and strong financial position, despite challenging economic environment.