Tens of thousands protested in Iranian cities and in the rebel-held Yemeni capital on Friday to condemn Israeli attacks on Lebanon and Gaza, AFP journalists and state media reported.

The demonstrates in Tehran and other Iranian cities were responding to call by authorities on Wednesday to demonstrate in support of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon "and to condemn the barbaric crimes of the Zionist regime in Palestine," the official IRNA news agency said.

A paramilitary attack on a market in the Sudanese city of El-Fasher killed 18 people, a medical source told AFP on Friday, after world leaders appealed for an end to the country's wartime suffering.

The Rapid Support Forces' shelling of the market on Thursday evening also injured dozens, activists said separately, as the paramilitaries and regular army vie for control of the North Darfur state capital, 17 months into their war in the northeast African country.

Around 60 women have now come forward to allege they were sexually abused by former Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed, lawyers representing them said on Friday.

A BBC documentary last week aired claims by women that Fayed, who died last year aged 94, raped and sexually abused them during his ownership of the luxury department store.

The accusations make the Egyptian billionaire the latest high-profile figure to join a list of rich and powerful men, such as Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, disgraced by sexual abuse allegations.

Beirut is buzzing with activity as volunteers scramble to aid the tens of thousands displaced by Israel's intense bombardment of Lebanon this week.

Despite an economic crisis that has gripped the country for years, people in the capital are stepping up, finding shelter, cooking meals and gathering essentials.

In a cramped soup kitchen, dozens of volunteers wearing aprons and hairnets stir steaming pots of tomato bulgur and pack hundreds of meals into plastic containers.

The United States has returned to Iran more than 1,000 clay tablets dating from the Achaemenid-era, official media said, reporting the sixth such handover of its kind.

Iran's official IRNA news agency said Thursday evening that the tablets, 1,100 in all, were returned with President Masoud Pezeshkian who had attended the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Israel has killed Hezbollah's leader Hassan Nasrallah and several of its top commanders in a series of targeted air strikes on the Iran-backed movement's stronghold in Beirut.

Here is what we know about the slain commanders.

- Nasrallah: Hezbollah chief -

On Friday, an Israeli air strike on the Hezbollah stronghold in south Beirut killed Hassan Nasrallah, the group's leader for 32 years.

His death was confirmed a day later by Hezbollah.

Despite leading a life in hiding to avoid assassination, the 64-year-old Nasrallah had wielded great power in Lebanon.

As violence between Israel and Hezbollah escalates, Iran is walking a tightrope by supporting Hezbollah without being dragged into a full-blown conflict and playing into its enemy's hands.

With a focus on easing its isolation and reviving its battered economy, Iran is aware that war could complicate efforts to secure relief from crippling sanctions.

Cross-border fire between Israel and Hezbollah, sparked by Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, has intensified, especially after last week's sabotage on Hezbollah's communications that killed 39 people.

Israel conducted two rounds of air strikes on Hezbollah's main bastion in the south of Lebanon's capital Beirut, sending huge clouds of smoke soaring above the densely populated area.

Friday's strikes were heard across the Mediterranean city and sparked panic in the residential area that has been the Iran-backed movement's main stronghold for decades.

They were by far the fiercest strikes to hit Beirut since Israel shifted its focus from the war in Gaza to Lebanon this week, pounding Hezbollah strongholds around the country and killing hundreds of people.

A year after the October 7 attack that sparked war in Gaza, diplomacy has failed to produce a ceasefire and the world watches on as the death toll mounts.

Fears of war engulfing the wider region have soared as exchanges of fire have escalated between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Over the past year, South Africa has taken Israel to court and some European governments have drawn Israeli anger by recognising the State of Palestine, but analysts say only a radical change in US policy can stop the conflict.

Here is a breakdown:

The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog on Thursday said Iran is showing "willingness" to re-engage on the nuclear issue, but that Tehran will not reconsider its decision to deny access to top UN inspectors.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said Tehran was "showing signs of willingness to reengage, not only with the IAEA, but also... with our former partners in the nuclear agreement of 2015."