The United Nations top human rights official Michelle Bachelet called on Israel on Monday to halt its “illegal” plans to annex part of occupied Palestinian territory in the West Bank and warned it could lead to deadly clashes.

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan will agree a deal to fill the giant Blue Nile dam in two to three weeks, following mediation by the African Union to broker a deal to end a decade-long dispute over water supplies.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israel to drop plans to annex parts of the West Bank, news wires reported. The move would be a “most serious violation of international law,”including the Charter of the United Nations,” Guterres said in a report, issued ahead of the Security Council’s meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict  on Wednesday. Several ministers are set to take part at the request of the Arab League.

France will not tolerate Turkey's military intervention in Libya, President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday, accusing Ankara of playing "a dangerous game", news wires reported. Turkey has intervened decisively in recent weeks in Libya, providing air support, weapons and allied fighters from Syria to help the government based in Tripoli repel a year-long assault by eastern military leader Khalifa Haftar.

The United States on Wednesday imposed its toughest sanctions ever targeting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to choke off revenue for his government in a bid to force it back to United Nations-led negotiations and broker an end to the country’s nearly decade-long war.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu will visit Istanbul today for talks with their Turkish counterparts on the situation in Libya and Syria, Turkish media reported citing Foreign Ministry sources.

The United States promised Thursday to reduce troops from Iraq over the coming months after talks with Baghdad, where lawmakers have pushed for their withdrawal.

Syrian President Bashar Assad fired his prime minister Imad Khamis on Thursday, a month ahead of elections as the economic crisis worsens and public anger rises, news wires reported. Assad also appointed the current water resources minister Hussein Arnous to replace Khamis, who has been the premier since 2016.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Wednesday restated his country’s opposition to unilateral Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, but stopped short of announcing possible punitive measures Berlin could take if Jerusalem goes ahead with its controversial plan.

An Iranian man who provided information to US and Israeli intelligence services on the whereabouts of Iran’s slain Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani has been sentenced to death, Iran’s judiciary said on Tuesday.