The United States and Egypt have put a brave face on strains in their relationship amid domestic Egyptian developments and regional crises that are testing long-standing ties between the countries.

With Egypt's human rights record posing a significant irritant that has resulted in the withholding of some U.S. military aid and flashpoint situations in Egyptian neighbors Ethiopia and Sudan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry opened two days of strategic talks in Washington.

Two leading international rights groups urged Sudan's military in a joint statement Tuesday to release government officials, activists and others detained during the army's coup last month.

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International also appealed for an end to "further arbitrary arrests" and the crackdown that has been taking place on anti-coup protests.

Israel's Iron Dome defense system intercepted a drone on Monday launched from Gaza by the Palestinian territory's Hamas Islamist rulers, the army said.

"A short while ago, a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) belonging to the Hamas terror organization approached the Gaza maritime zone and was intercepted," it said in a statement. 

The Vatican's Apostolic Library, which is home to ancient manuscripts, rare books and reading rooms for scholars is opening its doors to the general public with a small new exhibition space aimed at pairing its artistic treasures with contemporary art.

The inaugural exhibit "Tutti" (All) takes its inspiration from Pope Francis' 2020 encyclical "Brothers All" which combines his appeals for environmental sustainability, greater human fraternity and a more just socio-economic order in the post-COVID world.

Kuwait's government resigned Monday for the second time this year, underscoring the political problems plaguing the small, oil-rich nation.

The state-run KUNA news agency said Kuwait's ruler, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah, received the government's resignation notice. However, the report did not say whether Sheikh Nawaf would accept the resignation, tendered by the country's prime minister, Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al Hamad Al Sabah.

The Saudi-led coalition battling Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen said Monday it had killed 115 insurgents in the past 24 hours in air strikes around the northern Marib government bastion.

Nineteen vehicles were destroyed in the raids that targeted the Sirwah district west of Marib city and Al-Jawf further north, it said in a statement carried by the official Saudi news agency SPA.

Thousands of fans arrived at the Camp Nou to welcome Xavi Hernández as Barcelona's new coach on Monday, hoping he can turn the club's fortunes around after a dismal start to its first season post-Lionel Messi.

Xavi, who thrived in Barcelona's side for several years when Paris Saint-Germain forward Messi was also in the same team, was officially introduced at a reception usually offered only to top players. Supporters chanted his name and waved club flags in the stands.

Italy coach Roberto Mancini has lost another two midfielders ahead of the World Cup qualifier against Switzerland on Friday.

Mancini, who was already without regular starter Marco Verratti through injury, said on Monday that Nicolò Zaniolo and Lorenzo Pellegrini would return to their club Roma.

A top Iranian general visited Baghdad after the assassination attempt against Iraq's prime minister, and said Tehran and its allies had nothing to do with the drone attack that lightly injured the Iraqi leader, two Iraqi politicians said Monday.

News of the visit came as an Iraqi army general said the investigation into the drone attack against Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi is ongoing but that indications point to Iran-backed factions. The general said Monday the drones used in the attack took off from areas east of the capital where Iran-backed militias have influence.

The withered carcasses of livestock are reminders that drought has descended yet again in northern Kenya, the latest in a series of climate shocks rippling through the Horn of Africa.

As world leaders address a global climate summit in Glasgow, pastoralists watch their beloved animals suffer from lack of water and food. Yusuf Abdullahi says he has lost 40 goats.