A spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry on Monday categorically denied interfering in Lebanon's politics, saying that his country hopes Prime Minister Saad Hariri will return to Lebanon soon.

"Lebanon's internal affairs concern Lebanon, and we never intervene in the internal affairs of other countries," Bahram Ghassemi said.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi kicked off a trip to Saudi Arabia on Monday where he is scheduled to hold talks with King Salman bin Abdul Aziz, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri who has been in Riyadh since his shock resignation on Nov. 4.

Spain's foreign minister says he will brief his European Union counterparts on alleged cyber-meddling from Russian territory and elsewhere aimed at spreading misinformation about the independence push in the northeastern region of Catalonia.

Alfonso Dastis said he would tell the EU's top diplomats Monday in Brussels that data showed internet traffic by media networks "in Russia and other countries" after a banned Oct. 1 secession referendum in Catalonia.

Saudi Arabia announced Monday that the Saudi-led coalition fighting Shiite rebels in Yemen will begin reopening airports and seaports in the Arab world's poorest country, days after closing them over a rebel ballistic missile attack on Riyadh.

The announcement from the Saudi mission at the United Nations came after the coalition fighting Yemen's rebels, known as Houthis, faced widespread international criticism over the closure, with the U.N. and over 20 aid groups saying it could bring millions of people closer to "starvation and death."

Turkey has dispatched emergency personnel and aid to northern Iraq following Sunday's earthquake on the Iraq-Iran border as officials expressed their "deep sadness" at the tragedy.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said his country has taken immediate action to provide medical and food aid to northern Iraq. Kerem Kinik, Turkish Red Crescent's vice president, told The Associated Press from Habur border gate that 33 aid trucks were en route to Iraq's city of Sulaimaniyah, carrying 3,000 tents and heaters, 10,000 beds and blankets as well as food.

Saudi Arabia said Monday that the Saudi-led coalition fighting Shiite rebels in Yemen will begin reopening airports and seaports in the Arab world's poorest country, days after closing them over a rebel ballistic missile attack on Riyadh.

The announcement from the Saudi mission at the United Nations came after the coalition fighting Yemen's rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies faced widespread international criticism over the closure, with the U.N. and over 20 aid groups saying it could bring millions of people closer to "starvation and death."

Teams of Iranian rescuers dug through rubble in a hunt for survivors Monday after a major earthquake struck the Iran-Iraq border, killing at least 421 people and injuring thousands.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Sunday he will return to Lebanon "within days" and that his surprising resignation was aimed at creating a “positive shock.”

Just when things were starting to look up for Lebanon's economy, a new political crisis threatens to send it crashing down again.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri's shock resignation could unravel the first steps in years toward injecting some cash and confidence in Lebanon's anemic economy. Already, the crisis is putting at risk multi-billion-dollar plans to rebuild decaying road and electrical and communication networks and get the oil and gas sector moving.

The United States and France have expressed their support for Lebanon's sovereignty and stability amid heightening tensions between Beirut and Saudi Arabia.

A political crisis has gripped Lebanon and shattered the relative peace maintained by its coalition government since Prime Minister Saad Hariri's stunning announcement Nov. 4 from the Saudi capital that he was resigning.