Mena Today

Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi was released from prison on Dec. 1 after completing a one-year sentence for speaking out against the Iranian regime, the Iranian judiciary's Mizan news agency reported early on Monday.

Hundreds of fighters from Iran-backed Iraqi militias crossed into Syria overnight to help the government fight rebels who seized Aleppo last week, Syrian and Iraqi sources said on Monday, and Tehran pledged to aid the Damascus government.

Pro-Turkish rebel groups captured the strategic city of Tal Rifaat in northern Syria on Sunday, which had been under Kurdish control, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

Russian war bloggers reported on Sunday that Moscow has dismissed Sergei Kisel, the general in charge of its forces in Syria, after insurgents swept into the city of Aleppo in the biggest challenge to President Bashar al-Assad in years.

Russian and Syrian jets struck the rebel-held city of Idlib in northern Syria on Sunday, military sources said, as President Bashar al-Assad vowed to crush insurgents who had swept into the city of Aleppo.

Hamas leaders held talks with Egyptian security officials on Sunday in a fresh push for a ceasefire in the Gaza war, two Hamas sources said, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to convene his security cabinet on the matter, two Israeli officials said.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman flew to the United Arab Emirates, the Saudi state news agency said on Sunday, the first such visit in three years.

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has pledged to use force to defeat insurgents, following their sweeping advance into the northern city of Aleppo on Friday. 

Doubts rose on sealing a global treaty to curb plastic pollution on the last day of scheduled talks, as over 100 countries pushed to cap production while a handful of oil-producing countries wanted to focus only on plastic waste.

For a second year running, there is no Christmas cheer in Bethlehem, with tourists shunning the Palestinian city and many residents seeking a way out as the Gaza war grinds on.

The low-cost airline Wizz Air has announced the gradual resumption of operations in Israel, starting on December 20. The airline will initially restore service on the Tel Aviv-Larnaca route, with four flights per week.