Egypt and Serbia on Wednesday agreed to boost political, economic and other cooperation as the two countries look for ways to deal with the global impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi was in Serbia on a three-day visit this week — the first in more than three decades by an Egyptian president. His host, Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic, said the visit had a "historic character."

Egyptian authorities on Wednesday resumed hot air ballooning over the ancient city of Luxor following a two-day hiatus after two tourists were lightly injured during a ride.

A hot air balloon with 28 tourists drifted off course Monday because of a change in the direction and speed of winds. The balloon was at an altitude of 60 meters (197 feet) when it veered off course.

Syria said Wednesday it is formally breaking diplomatic ties with Ukraine in response to a similar move by Kyiv.

Syria is a strong ally of Russia, which joined Syria's conflict in September 2015 helping tip the balance of power in favor of President Bashar Assad.

Russian President Vladimir Putin won staunch support from Iran on Tuesday for his country's military campaign in Ukraine, with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei saying the West opposes an "independent and strong" Russia.

Khamenei said that if Russia hadn't sent troops into Ukraine, it would have faced an attack from NATO later, a statement that echoed Putin's own rhetoric and reflected increasingly close ties between Moscow and Tehran as they both face crippling Western sanctions. NATO allies have bolstered their military presence in Eastern Europe and provided Ukraine with weapons to help counter the Russian attack.

The Israeli military said it launched strikes Tuesday on the Gaza Strip, after gunfire from the Palestinian enclave.

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Tehran for talks Tuesday on the Syrian war at a three-way summit overshadowed by fallout from his country's war on Ukraine.

Putin traveled abroad for only the second time since ordering the invasion of Ukraine in order to attend the gathering that also involves Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The U.N. special envoy for Syria has expressed regret that talks between the government and opposition scheduled to start on July 25 in Geneva "are no longer possible," reportedly because President Bashar Assad's government contends that Switzerland is not neutral because of its support for European Union sanctions against its ally Russia.

U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq didn't directly confirm the reason but said Monday that "we do reaffirm the neutrality of Switzerland as a venue for much of the work that the United Nations does." Geneva is the major European headquarters for the 193-member United Nations.

It began with a message that appeared on Danah al-Mayouf's phone from an anonymous Instagram account — a promise to help her "crush" a $5 million lawsuit she faced from a pro-government Saudi fashion model.

But, the mystery texter said, she had to meet him in person.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday told visiting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that any offensive by Ankara in northern Syria would be "detrimental" to the region.

His statement came shortly before Iran's ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi hosts his Russian and Turkish counterparts for talks on the Syrian conflict.

The leader of Tunisia's Islamist-inspired opposition party Ennahdha arrived Tuesday for questioning by an investigating judge at an anti-terror center, just days before a hotly contested constitutional referendum.

More than 20 security vans were stationed in front of the headquarters of the anti-terror center where about 200 Ennahdha activists were gathered in support of their leader Rached Ghannouchi, AFP correspondents said.