Senior Hezbollah legislator Mohammed Raad said Thursday that the crisis-hit country's parliamentary blocs are in the "early stages" of finding a president who would "bring stability to the country."

"The blocs need to discuss and develop an understanding over a possible consensus candidate," Raad told the press, after parliament held a first presidential election session in which no candidate managed to win the 86 votes needed to win from the first round.

The U.S. will provide an additional $1.1 billion in aid to Ukraine, with funding for 18 more advanced rocket systems and other weapons to counter drones that Russia has been using against Ukrainian troops, the Biden administration announced.

The latest package is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds contracts to purchase weapons and equipment. And it brings the total of U.S. aid to Ukraine to nearly $17 billion since the Biden administration took office.

Long lines of Russians trying to escape being called up to fight in Ukraine continued to clog highways out of the country on Wednesday, and Moscow reportedly set up draft offices at borders to intercept some of them.

North Ossetia, a Russian region that borders Georgia, declared a state of "high alert" and said that food, water, warming stations and other aid should be brought in for those who have spent days in queues. Volunteers on the Georgian side of the border also have brought water, blankets and other assistance.

Hurricane Ian left a path of destruction in southwest Florida, trapping people in flooded homes, damaging the roof of a hospital intensive care unit and knocking out power to 2 million people before aiming for the Atlantic Coast.

One of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the United States barreled across the Florida peninsula overnight Wednesday, threatening catastrophic flooding inland, the National Hurricane Center warned.

Lebanon will weaken its official exchange rate for the first time in more than two decades, the Finance Ministry and a Central Bank official said, as part of efforts to tackle a crippling financial crisis.

In a statement, the Ministry called the move a "necessary corrective action" and noted that the Central Bank has approved it. The decision is a "step to gradually unify exchange rates" in the country, it added.

The U.N. envoy for Yemen warned that the risk of a return to fighting "is real," urging warring parties to accept a longer extension of the current ceasefire due to expire next month.

Hans Grundberg's stark warning late Tuesday came after he met in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, with Rashad al-Alimi, head of the internationally recognized presidential council, and in Oman's capital of Muscat with Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the chief negotiator of the Houthi rebels. He also met with Saudi and Omani officials to push for a cease-fire extension.

Jihad Michlawi struggled to make ends meet as a chef in crisis-hit Beirut. The Palestinian had never considered taking a perilous journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe until friends who did so persuaded him to try.

Now, he's one of dozens of survivors from a capsized migrant boat that left Tripoli, Lebanon, last week heading toward Italy carrying some 150 Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians.

Hurricane Ian tore into western Cuba on Tuesday as a major hurricane, with nothing to stop it from intensifying into a catastrophic Category 4 storm before it hits Florida on Wednesday.

Ian made landfall at 4:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday in Cuba's Pinar del Rio province, where officials set up 55 shelters, evacuated 50,000 people, rushed in emergency personnel and took steps to protect crops in Cuba's main tobacco-growing region.

A hard-line Iranian lawmaker on Tuesday slammed female protesters who have taken off mandatory headscarves as prostitutes, doubling down on the government stance amid the dramatic demonstrations following the death of a 22-year-old woman detained by the country's morality police.

The harsh language by Mahmoud Nabavian, a legislator from Tehran, was in sharp contrast to the appeal by a top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Hossein Nouri Hamadani, who on Sunday urged the government to listen to the people's demands.

Paris is the center of the world's globalized luxury industry this week, and Tuesday marks the first major day of ready-to-wear shows at Paris Fashion Week, including Saint Laurent and Dior. These Parisian powerhouses are among the 107 brands showcasing spring-summer 2023 collections. Here are some highlights:

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