DIARY: In Gaza, bombs drop and the conflict again hits home

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — On Friday morning, a military airstrike smashed my family's farm in the northern Gaza Strip into a jagged mass of metal and splintered trees. An Israeli bomb had slammed into the yard, carving a crater into the dirt and leaving rubble in its wake. ...

UN chief: Foreign fighters in Libya are violating cease-fire

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. chief said foreign fighters and mercenaries remain in Libya in violation of last October’s cease-fire agreement and called for their withdrawal and an end to violations of the U.N. arms embargo, saying these are “critical elements” for lasting peace in...

West Bank erupts in protest amid more Israel-Hamas fighting

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Turmoil from the battle between Israel and Hamas spilled over into the West Bank on Friday, sparking the most widespread Palestinian protests in years as hundreds of young demonstrators in multiple towns clashed with Israeli troops, who shot and killed at least...

South Sudan, nearing 10 years old, struggles for stability

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — As South Sudan approaches 10 years of being an independent country, many challenges remain for the world’s youngest state. A 2018 peace deal ending a five-year civil war has faced delays in implementation. A government of national unity was...

Beset by virus, Gaza's hospitals now struggle with wounded

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Just weeks ago, the Gaza Strip’s feeble health system was struggling with a runaway surge of coronavirus cases. Authorities cleared out hospital operating rooms, suspended nonessential care and redeployed doctors to patients having difficulty breathing. ...

Israel threatens Gaza ground invasion despite truce efforts

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel on Thursday said it was massing troops along the Gaza frontier and calling up 9,000 reservists ahead of a possible ground invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory, as the two bitter enemies plunged closer to all-out war. Egyptian mediators rushed to Israel for...

Beset by virus, Gaza's hospitals now struggle with wounded

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Just weeks ago, the Gaza Strip’s feeble health system was struggling with a runaway surge of coronavirus cases. Authorities cleared out hospital operating rooms, suspended nonessential care and redeployed doctors to patients having difficulty breathing. ...

17 migrants drown, 2 rescued in boat sinking off Tunisia

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Authorities say 17 migrants drowned and two were rescued Thursday after a boat trying to carry them to Europe sank off the Tunisian coast. A naval mission saved two women from Nigeria off the coastal town of Zarzis who said their inflatable boat...

Tunisia to reopen economy despite hospital strain

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisian authorities plan to reopen the economy next week amid public pushback against virus restrictions, even as the country's hospitals are struggling for enough oxygen to treat a persistently high number of COVID-19 patients. Tunisia shut down...

Officials say Egyptian delegation is in Tel Aviv in effort to negotiate a cease-fire in escalating Gaza conflict