They arrived in unprecedented numbers, pushing a strained Sweden to shut its borders as anti-immigration sentiment flared. Five years later, Syrians are still trying to integrate, some more successfully than others.

Israel is in secret talks with several Arab states on establishing ties, in addition to its U.S.-backed deal struck with the UAE, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday.

"There are many more unpublicized meetings with Arab and Muslim leaders to normalize relations with the state of Israel," he said on the eve of Israel’s first commercial flight to the United Arab Emirates.

Egyptian authorities have arrested a new suspect involved in the alleged gang rape of a women in 2014, the public prosecution said on Sunday.

Israeli tanks hit Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, the army said, as Palestinian balloon attacks across the border continued despite international truce efforts.

Thousands of tearful Shiite pilgrims wearing gloves and face masks  flooded Iraq's holy city of Karbala Sunday to mark Ashura, one of the largest Muslim gatherings since the Covid-19 pandemic started.

Ashura, on the 10th day of the mourning month of Muharram, commemorates the killing of the Prophet Mohammed's grandson Hussein at the Battle of Karbala in 680 AD -- the defining moment of Islam's confessional schism.

The United Arab Emirates announced Saturday it had repealed legislation imposing a boycott of Israel after the two countries struck a US-brokered deal to normalise relations.

Libya's UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) on Friday said the interior minister had been suspended after militia gunmen fired on peaceful protesters last week.

The United States plans to reduce its military force in Iraq from the current 5,200 to about 3,500 by November, U.S. officials said Friday. The cut would be in line with President Donald Trump's repeated call to bring troops home and his reelection campaign pledge to end what he calls "endless wars."

The plan to shrink the U.S. force in Iraq was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Officials who confirmed the plan spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a matter not yet publicly announced.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has headed home after a Middle East tour aimed at encouraging Arab countries to follow the UAE's move and normalize relations with Israel.

Saudi authorities are reviewing death penalties against three men convicted of crimes when they were minors, a statement said, as the kingdom seeks to improve its human rights record.