The chief lawyer for Greg Kelly, an American on trial in Japan on charges of under-reporting Nissan former Chairman Carlos Ghosn's compensation, says his client was merely trying to prevent Ghosn from going to a rival automaker.

"Greg has no motive at all to commit such a crime," Yoichi Kitamura said Friday at his Tokyo office.

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz revealed on Friday a target map of "Hizbullah" missiles amid civilian infrastructure in Lebanon.

Pope Francis arrived in Iraq on Friday to urge the country's dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns to make his first-ever papal visit.

The pope, who wore a facemask during the flight, kept it on as he descended the stairs to the tarmac and was greeted by two masked children in traditional dress. But health measures appeared lax inside the airport despite the country's worsening coronavirus outbreak.

Iran has agreed to sit down with international technical experts investigating the discovery of uranium particles at three former undeclared sites in the country, the head of the U.N. atomic watchdog said Thursday, after months of frustration at Tehran's lack of a credible explanation.

The agreement came as three of the remaining signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran — France, Germany and Britain — backed off the idea of a resolution criticizing Iran for its decision to start limiting access by International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to current facilities.

Israel has yet to decide whether it will cooperate with the International Criminal Court's investigation into alleged crimes in the Palestinian territories, a senior Justice Ministry official said Thursday.

The decision by the court's outgoing prosecutor to probe Israeli military actions and settlement construction on lands captured in the 1967 Mideast war was announced Wednesday and condemned by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as "the essence of anti-Semitism and hypocrisy."

The White House has warned that the U.S. may consider a military response to the rocket attack on Wednesday that hit an air base in western Iraq where American and coalition troops are housed, raising concerns this could trigger a new round of escalating violence.

A U.S. contractor died after at least 10 rockets slammed into the base. And while no group claimed responsibility, it was the first strike since the U.S. bombed Iran-aligned militia targets along the Iraq-Syria border last week.

Israel's environmental protection minister on Thursday stood by her allegation that a crude oil spill in the eastern Mediterranean last month was an intentional attack by Iran but provided no evidence for her claim.

Defense officials remained silent about the charge by Gila Gamliel, a junior minister in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, who on Wednesday announced that she had concluded the Iranian government deliberately spilled tons of crude oil into the sea in an attempt to damage Israel's marine ecosystem.

Lebanese protesting the dire living conditions took to the streets Thursday across the country, blocking vital highways and roads.

In the capital, protesters blocked the roads around Martyrs Square, sparking altercations with motorists who were trapped in their vehicles. Security forces later intervened to reopen the roads and contain the situation.

The anger of the Lebanese grew on Wednesday, on the second day after the unprecedented collapse of the Lebanese pound’s value as the dollar exchange rate hit 10,000 pounds.

Protests against the worsening living crisis spread to several Lebanese regions. Roads were blocked with barrels and burning tires in the north, south and Bekaa region.

Kuwait's new Cabinet was sworn in Wednesday, state-run media reported, weeks after the government quit amid a deepening deadlock with parliament that has blocked badly needed reforms in the tiny oil-rich Gulf Arab state.

Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al Hamad Al Sabah swapped out four ministers whose selections had angered various lawmakers for less contentious, veteran politicians, an apparent gesture to appease parliament.