Iraqi forces battled the Islamic State group deep inside Mosul Thursday, piling pressure on jihadists who have no more escape routes but leaving trapped civilians in the crossfire.

Tunisia paid tribute Thursday to 12 presidential security guards killed in a suicide blast in the heart of the capital one year ago that was claimed by the Islamic State group.

Kuwaitis vote on Saturday for a new parliament they hope will halt austerity measures forced by falling oil revenues in the emirate, known for its cradle-to-grave welfare system.

With the return of opposition groups after a four-year boycott, the outcome of the snap elections is seen as crucial for shaping the domestic politics of the oil-rich Gulf state.

Tens of thousands of Israelis fled raging bushfires in the northern city of Haifa Thursday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said any proof of arson would be treated as "terror."

Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said up to half of a spate of fires had been "arson terror", while another minister appeared to point a finger at the country's Arab minority -- drawing fierce rebukes from Arab Israeli leaders.

The Turkish army blamed the Syrian regime for an air strike on Thursday in northern Syria that killed three soldiers, the first time it has accused Damascus of killing its soldiers since launching its three-month military incursion.

The incident came on the first anniversary of the shooting down of a Russian military jet over the Syrian border by the Turkish air force.

A U.N. envoy warned Wednesday that the situation in the Middle East was changing "dangerously" as Israel builds new Jewish settlements and Palestinians remain divided.

Nickolay Mladenov told the Security Council that Israel's planned new settlements in east Jerusalem were part of "increasingly worrying" developments and urged Israel to halt the construction.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said he supports the Syrian military, a position at odds with his country's Gulf benefactors like Saudi Arabia.

Israel revived plans on Wednesday to build 500 new homes for Jewish settlers in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, an ominous sign for Palestinians wary of a Donald Trump presidency, an NGO said.

Iraqi-led forces have cut off the Islamic State group's last supply line from Mosul to Syria, completing the isolation of the jihadist stronghold, security officials said Wednesday.

An air strike by an Arab coalition battling Yemeni rebels killed 12 civilians in the northwest of the country on Wednesday, rebel media and witnesses said.