State Prosecutor Judge Jamal al-Hajjar on Wednesday referred the file of detained former Central Bank governor Riad Salameh to Financial Prosecutor Judge Ali Ibrahim, who charged Salameh and referred him in custody to Beirut First Examining Magistrate Bilal Halawi.

The top U.S. envoy to Taiwan on Wednesday said American support for the island is "rock-solid, principled, and bipartisan," and said Washington will continue to follow through on its commitments to ensure the island can defend itself against threats from China.

Raymond F. Greene's remarks Wednesday come at a time of uncertainty over China's intentions toward the island it claims as its own territory — to be taken by force if necessary — and amid conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East that threaten to draw the U.S. in further.

Salvagers abandoned an initial effort to tow away a burning oil tanker in the Red Sea targeted by Yemen's Houthi rebels as it "was not safe to proceed," a European Union naval mission said, leaving the Sounion stranded and its 1 million barrels of oil at risk of spilling.

While a major spill has yet to occur, the incident threatens to become one of the worst yet in the Iranian-backed rebels' campaign that has disrupted the $1 trillion in goods that pass through the Red Sea each year over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. It also has halted some aid shipments to conflict-ravaged Sudan and Yemen.

Shaimaa Saadoun is haunted by her memory of being forced into an abusive marriage to a 39-year-old man just after she turned 13.

Her impoverished family near the southern Iraqi city of Basra hoped that the dowry of gold and money would help improve their circumstances. Her husband presented a bloodstained piece of linen to prove her virginity after their wedding night.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, one of Ukraine's most recognizable faces on the international stage, submitted his resignation Wednesday ahead of an expected major government reshuffle. Russian strikes, meanwhile, killed at least seven people in the Ukrainian city of Lviv near the Polish border, a day after one of the deadliest missile attacks since the war began.

Kuleba, 43, didn't give a reason for stepping down. His resignation will be discussed by lawmakers at their next session, parliamentary Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said on his Facebook page. Four other Cabinet ministers tendered their resignations late Tuesday, making the Cabinet reshuffle likely the biggest since Russia's February 2022 invasion.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi on Wednesday is making his first official visit to Turkey since assuming power, after the two regional powers ended years of tensions.

El-Sissi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are set to discuss bilateral relations, the conflict in Gaza and escalating tensions in the Middle East, among other topics. They are also expected to oversee the signing of more than a dozen cooperation agreements to strengthen the relationship between their nations, including in energy, defense and tourism.

Large protests continued in Tel Aviv, Israel, for a third consecutive night Tuesday as hundreds took to the streets to call on the government to reach a cease-fire deal that would bring home the remaining hostages held in Gaza.

The protests have come after the Israeli military said six hostages were killed by their captors in Gaza just as troops were closing in on their location. Many Israelis blame Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the mounting number of dead hostages and are calling for a cease-fire agreement to free the remaining hostages.

The Palestinian team is closer to the World Cup than ever after reaching the third round of qualifying in Asia as one of the top 18 on the continent.

The next phase starts with one of the toughest possible soccer assignments in Asia, with the Palestinians taking on South Korea in front of 66,000 fans in Seoul on Thursday. The South Koreans have qualified for the past 10 World Cup tournaments, and were semifinalists in 2002.

The U.S. Justice Department has announced criminal charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other senior militants in connection with the Oct. 7, 2023, rampage in Israel, marking the first effort by American law enforcement to formally call out the masterminds of the attack.

The seven-count criminal complaint filed in federal court in New York City includes charges such as conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization resulting in death, conspiracy to murder U.S. nationals and conspiracy to finance terrorism. It also accuses Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah of providing financial support, weapons, including rockets, and military supplies to Hamas for use in attacks.

European aid sent to Lebanon in an attempt to regulate migration by sea is funding practices that violate human rights, according to a global watchdog report published Wednesday.

As part of a policy to contain migration, authorities in Cyprus have physically pushed Syrian refugees back to Lebanon, and Lebanese security agencies have deported them, the Human Rights Watch report said.