Travel agencies in countries across the Middle East and Africa say the United Arab Emirates has temporarily halted issuing new visas to their citizens, a so-far unexplained ban on visitors amid both the coronavirus pandemic and the UAE's normalization deal with Israel.

Confusion over the UAE visa ban targeting 11 Muslim-majority nations, in addition to Lebanon and Kenya, swirled after a leaked document from Dubai's state-owned airport free zone surfaced this week, declaring restrictions against a range of nationalities.

An Iranian scientist that Israel alleged led the Islamic Republic's military nuclear program until its disbanding in the early 2000s was killed in a targeted attack that saw gunmen use explosives and machine gun fire Friday, state television said.

Iran's foreign minister alleged the killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh bore "serious indications" of an Israeli role, but did not elaborate. Israel declined to immediately comment, though Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once called out Fakhrizadeh in a news conference saying: "Remember that name." Israel has long been suspected of carrying out a series of targeted killings of Iranian nuclear scientists nearly a decade ago.

People continued to flee the capital of Ethiopia's embattled Tigray region in fear of an imminent assault after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said the army had been ordered to move in for the "final phase" of an offensive to arrest the defiant regional leaders.

Fighting reportedly remained well outside Mekele, a densely populated city of a half-million people who had been warned by the Ethiopian government of "no mercy" if they didn't separate themselves from the Tigray leaders in time. Abiy on Thursday told residents to stay indoors and disarm as the army, with tanks, was given the order to move in. His government has vowed to protect civilians.

After months of slumping sales and businesses toppling into bankruptcy, Black Friday is offering a small beacon of hope.

In normal times, Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year, drawing millions of shoppers eager to get started on their holiday spending.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered at least two people executed, banned fishing at sea and locked down the capital, Pyongyang, as part of frantic efforts to guard against the coronavirus and its economic damage, South Korea's spy agency told lawmakers Friday.

Kim's government also ordered diplomats overseas to refrain from any acts that could provoke the United States because it is worried about President-elect Joe Biden's expected new approach toward North Korea, lawmakers told reporters after attending a private briefing by the National Intelligence Service.

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will leave the White House if the Electoral College formalizes President-Elect Joe Biden's victory — even as he insisted such a decision would be a "mistake" — as he spent his Thanksgiving renewing baseless claims that "massive fraud" and crooked officials in battleground states caused his election defeat.

"Certainly I will. But you know that," Trump said Thursday when asked whether he would vacate the building, allowing a peaceful transition of power in January. But Trump — taking questions for the first time since Election Day — insisted that "a lot of things" would happen between now and then that might alter the results.

Iran's president reiterated his hope Wednesday that U.S. President-elect Joe Biden would return America's Iran policy to where he left things as vice president four years ago, state TV reported, rejoining Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers.

Hassan Rouhani said that if Iran and the U.S. could find a path back to "the situation on Jan 20, 2017," President Donald Trump's inauguration day, "it could be a huge solution for many issues and problems."

A Lebanese prosecutor filed charges Tuesday against current and former customs officials over the massive blast at Beirut's port in August, including a former customs chief who was reportedly the point man for Hizbullah at the facility.

State prosecutor Ghassan Khoury charged senior customs official Hani Haj Shehadeh and former customs chief in Beirut, Moussa Hazimeh, on Tuesday, according to state-run National News Agency. The report didn't reveal the charges or give additional details.

Locals in the northern town of Bsharri called on authorities Tuesday to evict all Syrians from the area a day after a Syrian citizen shot dead a local man in a personal dispute.

The announcement in the resort town came after a night of riots against Syrians in the town during which some homes of Syrians were reportedly torched and individuals were attacked in the streets. The army said that as of Monday night, troops had begun conducting patrols in the town, adding the accused killer surrendered to security forces and an investigation had begun.

When Manal Saab heard that a massive explosion had struck Beirut, she grabbed her phone, frantically trying to reach loved ones there.

The news she received was good: Her mother-in-law and sister-in-law, both of whom live not far from the Lebanese capital's port that was devastated by the Aug. 4 blast, were vacationing at the time.