Business partners of French sugar giant Tereos have filed a complaint against the firm for allegedly supplying an artificial sweetener to Syria, where it is being used to make weapons, the plaintiffs' lawyer said Tuesday.

Tereos, which denies the claims, is accused of "acts of terrorism and complicity in acts of terrorism", according to documents from the anti-terror prosecutor's office seen by AFP.

Two Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in clashes near a flashpoint religious site in the occupied West Bank overnight Wednesday, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with Russia's defense minister Tuesday, stressing the importance of coordination between the two countries in the fight against "terrorism", state media said.

Germany must ensure that the United States respects international laws when deploying drones over Yemen, a German court ruled Tuesday, in what amounted to a partial victory for three Yemeni plaintiffs.

The trio had turned to the court after losing close relatives to a drone attack in 2012 in Hadramaut province.

An Italian fighting alongside a Kurdish-led force to expel the Islamic State group from its last pocket of territory in eastern Syria has been killed, the force said Tuesday.

Tens of thousands of students again took to the streets of the Algerian capital on Tuesday, just hours after long-time leader President Abdelaziz Bouteflika confirmed he plans to stay in power after his mandate expires next month.

A prominent Syrian businessman with close ties to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been arrested in Kuwait, his lawyer said Tuesday.

Syria's Kurds have criticised the "threatening language" of the Damascus regime after it pledged to retake northeastern areas they control by reconciliation or by force.

Human Rights Watch urged Egyptian authorities on Tuesday to establish the whereabouts of a missing opposition activist following their denials he was in their custody. 

Former lawmaker Mostafa al-Naggar disappeared in September and there has been no word on his whereabouts since. 

Kurdish-led fighters advanced in the Islamic State group's last bastion in eastern Syria, confining holdout jihadists to a tiny pocket on the edge of Baghouz village, the force said Tuesday.