Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that he had ordered an evacuation plan to be prepared for civilians in Rafah, a densely-populated city in the southern Gaza Strip.Rafah, which had a prewar population of about 280,000, has become home to about 1.4 million people in the wake of Israel’s…

The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo sparred at the United Nations over the latter’s ban of the use of the Serbian currency in areas where minority Serbs live, the latest crisis between the two governments.Tensions escalated after the government of Kosovo, a former Serbian province, banned banks and other financial…

Dries van Agt, the Christian Democrat prime minister of the Netherlands from 1977 until 1982, has died by euthanasia, “hand in hand” together with his wife, according to the human rights organization he founded. They both were 93.The news was made public on Friday by The Rights Forum, which said…

The suspect in a London chemical attack that left a woman hospitalized with life-changing injuries and injured her two young daughters likely has vanished in the River Thames, police said Friday.Metropolitan Police Commander Jon Savell said closed-circuit television images showed Abdul Ezedi walking on a bridge over the river but…

Malaysia’s top court on Friday struck down Shariah-based criminal laws in an opposition-run state, saying they encroached on federal authority. Islamists denounced the decision and said it could undermine religious courts across the Muslim-majority nation.In an 8-1 ruling, the nine-member Federal Court panel invalidated 16 laws created by the Kelantan…

Authorities in a northern Indian town imposed an indefinite curfew and ordered police to shoot violators after clashes over the construction of a Muslim seminary and a mosque left at least five people dead and more than 150 injured, officials said Friday.The violence Thursday also led authorities to shut down…

At least 18 people were killed Friday when the bus they were traveling on collided with a truck in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa, authorities said.The bus collided with the truck as it tried to make a turn along a highway leading to the N’Djili International Airport, said Anaddolu Nganga,…

President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan has officially won another term in office with 92.12% of the vote, the country’s Central Election Commission said Friday.Election monitors, however, have expressed concern about the vote. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said Thursday that the election took place in a restrictive…

Over 40,000 children in El Salvador have experienced the detention of one or both parents as a result of President Nayib Bukele’s anti-gang campaign.Bukele’s campaign has led to the detention of over 76,000 Salvadorans, with families enduring long periods without news of their loved ones.Social workers, religious leaders and Vice…

Combat exercises between the U.S. and the Philippines will remain unaffected by America’s current focus on conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, Maj. Gen. Marcus Evans confirmed.The Biden administration aims to bolster military alliances in the Indo-Pacific region to deter China and prepare for potential conflicts over Taiwan.Maj. Gen.…