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Russia suspected of jamming navigation on EU leader's plane above Bulgaria

A plane carrying European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was hit by GPS jamming over Bulgaria in a suspected Russian operation, a spokesperson said Monday.

The plane landed safely at Plovdiv airport in central Bulgaria and von der Leyen will continue her planned tour of the European Union's eastern frontline nations, said commission spokesperson Arianna Podestà.

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Lebanon and Syria to form committees on prisoners, missing persons, and border issues

Lebanon and Syria will form two committees to decide the fate of the nearly 2,000 Syrian prisoners held in Lebanese jails, locate Lebanese nationals missing in Syria for years and settle the shared unmarked border, judicial and security officials said.

Monday's announcement came as a Syrian delegation, which included two former Cabinet ministers and the head of Syria's National Commission for Missing Persons, visited Beirut, a first since insurgent groups overthrew Syrian President Bashar Assad's government in early December.

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850,000 Syrian refugees have returned home since Assad's fall, UN says

Since the fall of Bashar Assad's government in December, some 850,000 Syrian refugees have returned home from neighboring countries and the figure could reach 1 million in the coming weeks, a top official with the U.N. refugee agency said Monday.

Deputy High Commissioner of UNHCR Kelly T. Clements told The Associated Press in Damascus that about 1.7 million people who were internally displaced during the 14-year-old conflict have returned to their communities as the interim central government now controls large parts of Syria.

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Leading genocide scholars organization says Israeli action in Gaza is genocide

The largest professional organization of scholars studying genocide said Monday that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

The determination by the International Association of Genocide Scholars — which has around 500 members worldwide, including a number of Holocaust experts — could serve to further isolate Israel in global public opinion and adds to a growing chorus of organizations that have used the term for Israel's actions in Gaza. Israel has repeatedly rejected the accusation.

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Yemenis mourn killed Houthi prime minister as rebel group targets ship in Red Sea

Hundreds of Yemenis mourned Monday the death of Houthi Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi, killed last week along with several officials by an Israeli strike, as the group targeted an oil tanker in the Red Sea, renewing their attacks in the crucial global waterway.

The Israeli attack came three days after the Houthis launched a ballistic missile toward Israel that its military described as the first cluster bomb the Iranian-backed rebels had launched at it since 2023.

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Jude Law debuts portrayal of Putin in 'The Wizard of the Kremlin' at Venice Film Festival

Jude Law transforms into Vladimir Putin for Olivier Assayas' "The Wizard of the Kremlin," which had its world premiere Sunday at the Venice Film Festival.

Law said earlier he didn't enter the project naively, and that he also does not fear repercussions for his portrayal.

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Flotilla leaves Barcelona in biggest attempt yet to break Israeli blockade of Gaza

A flotilla of ships departed from Barcelona to the Gaza Strip Sunday with humanitarian aid and activists on board in the largest attempt yet to break the long Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory by sea.

This comes as Israel has stepped up its offensive on Gaza City, limiting the deliveries of food and basic supplies in the north of the Palestinian territory. Food experts warned earlier this month that the city was in famine and that half a million people across the strip were facing catastrophic levels of hunger.

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Earthquake kills 800 people in eastern Afghanistan

Desperate Afghans clawed through rubble in the dead of the night in search of missing loved ones after a strong earthquake killed some 800 people and injured more than 2,500 in eastern Afghanistan, according to figures provided Monday by the Taliban government.

The 6.0 magnitude quake late Sunday hit towns in the province of Kunar, near the city of Jalalabad in neighboring Nangarhar province, causing extensive damage.

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Xi and Putin round on West at regional summit in China

Chinese President Xi Jinping said that China plans to accelerate the creation of a development bank and to set up an international platform for energy cooperation, announcements he made Monday at a summit that represents an emerging challenge to U.S. global leadership.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi were among the leaders meeting in Tianjin, in northern China, for the latest annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The security forum was originally seen as a foil to U.S. influence in Central Asia. It has grown in size and influence over the years.

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Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state in September angers Israel and the US

French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state, prompting similar moves from other Western nations, angered Israel and its U.S. ally by putting a two-state solution back at the heart of diplomatic efforts to end the devastating war in Gaza.

In a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, Macron wrote that "our determination to see the Palestinian people have their own state is rooted in our conviction that lasting peace is essential to the security of the state of Israel."

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