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Palestinians mourn Israel's creation amid outcry over funeral raid

Palestinians have rallied to mark the "Nakba," or catastrophe, 74 years after Israel's creation, with condemnation spreading over a police raid on the funeral of a slain journalist.

The annual demonstrations across the occupied West Bank, annexed east Jerusalem and inside Israel came with tensions high over the killing of 51-year-old Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh.

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Early results: Hizbullah, allies suffer some election losses

Hizbullah and its allies appear to have suffered some losses in this weekend's parliamentary elections, with their opponents gaining more seats and some of their traditional partners not making it into the legislature, early results showed Monday.

Despite the apparent setback, Hizbullah and its main Shiite ally, the Amal group of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, are likely to retain the 27 seats allocated to the sect. It was not clear, however, whether the Iran-backed group and its allies would hang on to the majority they have held since 2018, when they had 71 of the 128 seats in parliament.

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India open to exporting wheat to needy nations despite ban

India on Sunday said it would keep a window open to export wheat to food-deficit countries at the government level despite restrictions announced two days earlier.

India's Commerce Secretary B.V.R. Subrahmanyam told reporters the government will also allow private companies to meet previous commitments to export nearly 4.3 million tons of wheat until July. India exported 1 million tons of wheat in April.

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Russian neighbor Finland announces it wants to join NATO

Finland declared Sunday that it wants to join NATO as the head of the trans-Atlantic military alliance expressed hope that — with Russia's military advance appearing to falter — Ukraine can win the war.

President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin made the announcement that Finland would seek membership of NATO during a joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. The previously neutral Nordic country shares a long border with Russia.

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Prominent Israeli peace negotiator Uri Savir dies at 69

Uri Savir, a prominent Israeli peace negotiator and dogged believer in the need for a settlement with the Palestinians, has died, according to Israeli media reports. He was 69.

The reports said he died Friday. No cause of death was given.

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Palestinian gunman dies days after clash with Israeli troops

A Palestinian gunman who is the brother of a prominent Palestinian militant died Sunday after being critically wounded in clashes with Israeli forces, according to the Israeli hospital where he was being treated.

Daoud Zubeidi was wounded in clashes with the Israeli military in the West Bank city of Jenin on Friday. Zubeidi is the brother of Zakaria Zubeidi, a jailed Palestinian militant who briefly became one of Israel's most wanted fugitives after tunneling out of a high-security prison last year. He was eventually caught and returned to prison.

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Saudi oil giant Aramco's first-quarter profits surge 80%

Oil giant Saudi Aramco said Sunday its profits soared more than 80% in the first three months of the year, as the state-backed company cashes in on the volatility in global energy markets and surging oil prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The bumper first-quarter earnings by the firm formally known as the Saudi Arabian Oil Co., which overtook Apple as the world's most valuable company last week, show a record net income of $39.5 billion, up from $21.7 billion during the same period last year.

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World leaders descend on UAE to pay respects to late ruler

An array of presidents and prime ministers continued to descend on the United Arab Emirates Sunday from around the world to pay their respects to the federation's late ruler. They also came to praise his successor, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan — a vivid sign of Abu Dhabi's influence in Western and Arab capitals.

The first Western leader to jet to the oil-rich emirate was French President Emmanuel Macron. He met Sunday with Sheikh Mohammed to pay tribute to Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the long-ailing ruler who died Friday at the age of 73 after years presiding over the country's rapid transformation into a global business hub and regional power center.

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Mired in collapse, Lebanese vote for new parliament

Lebanese voted for a new parliament Sunday against the backdrop of an economic meltdown that is transforming the country and low expectations that the election would significantly alter the political landscape.

A new crop of candidates from the 2019 protest movement are running against the country's entrenched ruling class that is blamed for the collapse, hoping to unseat them. But they are divided and lack the money, experience and other advantages held by traditional political rulers.

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Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra wins Eurovision amid war

Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest in the early hours of Sunday in a clear show of popular support for the war-ravaged nation that went beyond music.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the victory, Ukraine's third since its 2003 Eurovision debut, and said "we will do our best" to host next year's contest in the hotly contested port city of Mariupol. He underlined "Ukrainian Mariupol," adding: "free, peaceful, rebuilt!"

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