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UNRWA warns of service cuts without more funding

The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said Tuesday that without a new injection of funding, it is "likely or highly likely" that the agency will not be able to deliver some services or pay salaries by the fall.

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Israel troops kill Palestinian near Bethlehem

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man in fighting in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials said as the death toll from clashes earlier in the city of Jenin rose to six. The fatalities were the latest in a surge of violence that has wracked the region.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said late Monday that 21-year-old Zakaria al-Zaoul was shot in the head in the town of Husan, west of Bethlehem. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that he was killed during clashes with the military.

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Syrian leaders, Congolese rebels hit with UK sanctions

The UK on Monday announced new sanctions against Syria's defence minister and its head of the armed forces, as part of new curbs targeting conflict-related sexual violence.

The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said Ali Mahmoud Abbas and Abdel Karim Mahmoud Ibrahim would be subject to asset freezes and travel bans.

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Tunisia security guard stabbed outside Brazil embassy

An attacker stabbed a security guard on Monday outside Brazil's embassy in Tunis before being shot and arrested, the Tunisian interior ministry said.

The guard "was wounded by a sharp object" wielded "by a person he was questioning over the reason for his presence in the perimeter of the embassy", the ministry said in a statement.

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Troubled Kuwait swears in fifth government in a year

Kuwait's fifth government in less than one year took the oath of office Monday after elections returned an opposition-controlled parliament, setting the stage for further political turmoil in the oil-rich emirate.

Four royals are among the 15-strong cabinet, which is appointed by the ruling Al-Sabah family and has a history of clashes with the Gulf's only elected national assembly with powers to hold government to account.

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UAE, Qatar reopen embassies after yearslong rift

The United Arab Emirates and Qatar have announced the reopening of their embassies on Monday following a yearslong rift over Qatar's support of Islamist groups.

The two countries issued statements saying the Qatari Embassy in Abu Dhabi and a Qatari Consulate in Dubai, as well as an Emirati Embassy in Qatar's capital, Doha, had resumed operations. The statements did not say if ambassadors were in place or if the missions were open to the public.

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Israel to move ahead on judicial overhaul plan after talks crumble

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his government intends to move ahead on contentious plans to change the country's judicial system after talks aimed at finding a compromise solution appeared to be crumbling.

The government's plans to overhaul the judiciary plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises ever earlier this year. Negotiations between the government and opposition parties somewhat alleviated the crisis with attempts to find a middle ground over proposed changes to the country's justice system.

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Crime within Palestinian minority reaches new heights under Netanyahu's govt.

A relentless wave of violent crime within Israel's Palestinian minority is turning cities and towns into bloody battlefields, exasperating a community feeling increasingly forsaken by Israeli authorities.

Anger over the mounting insecurity is directed at Israel's government and its ultranationalist minister in charge of police, Itamar Ben-Gvir. Critics say that with his history of anti-Arab rhetoric, he cannot be trusted to combat the rising scourge.

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Israeli govt. gives settler minister control over West Bank settlement planning

Israel's government has granted a pro-settlement firebrand authority over planning in the occupied West Bank and lifted red tape on the settlement housing approval process.

The changes make it easier for Israel to expand its settlements on land the Palestinians seek as the heartland of their future state, at a time when hopes for peace are more distant than ever.

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Netanyahu says he's opposed to any interim US-Iran deal on nuclear program

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he opposes any interim agreement reportedly being negotiated between the U.S. and Iran over its nuclear program.

Netanyahu spoke after reports in Israeli media said understandings are being reached between Washington and Tehran that would seek to hold back Iran's nuclear program somewhat, in exchange for some sanctions relief. The reports could not be independently confirmed and the U.S. has publicly denied any such deal.

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