Under a vast canopy of tents in the Saudi city of Jeddah, religious artefacts are on display alongside contemporary art pieces, part of the kingdom's bid to transform its ultraconservative image.

The second edition of the Islamic Arts Biennale, titled "And All That Is In Between", features as its centrepiece segments of the "kiswa", the black cloth embroidered with gold and silver that covers the Kaaba, the cubic building towards which all Muslims pray.

The wife of Elkana Bohbot, a Colombian-Israeli man being held hostage by Hamas, said Wednesday she had received proof he was alive and denounced the "terrible" conditions in which he was being held.

In an interview with Colombia's Blu Radio, Rebecca Gonzalez said that she received news of her husband from Ohad Ben Ami, one of the three hostages released by Hamas last weekend.

The three, whose emaciated appearance caused widespread shock, were released under the fifth exchange of prisoners since Israel and Hamas agreed a truce in their 15-month war on January 19.

The United Nations envoy for Syria on Wednesday called on its new authorities to prevent a "cycle of retribution and revenge" after the overthrow of the brutal rule of Bashar al-Assad.

At a Security Council meeting, Geir Pedersen spoke of worrying reports of "men killed in the exchange of fire and reported serious ill-treatment in detention" taking place under the country's transitional authorities.

He lamented reports of "kidnapping, looting, expropriation of property, and forced evictions of families from public housing."

Jordan's King Abdullah II was visibly uncomfortable as he sat across from US President Donald Trump and discussed the fate of over two million Palestinians in Gaza.

Trump's proposed plan to take over Gaza and "clean out" the territory of its Palestinian residents, sending them to Jordan or Egypt, had already sent the region into a tailspin.

But in Tuesday's meeting in Washington, the tension between Trump's vision and the reality that King Abdullah -- whose wife is of Palestinian descent -- has long negotiated was palpable in the exchange between the two leaders.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a series of agreements Wednesday to boost trade and defence ties between the Muslim-majority nations, including the delivery of 69 Turkish combat drones to Jakarta.

The Turkish leader was visiting Southeast Asia's largest economy after travelling to Malaysia and before heading to Pakistan on a four-day tour of key allies in the Islamic world.

Syria said Wednesday a new government would take over next month from the interim cabinet formed following Bashar al-Assad's overthrow, and announced a preparatory body for a national dialogue conference.

The new authorities need to rebuild Syria's institutions after more than 50 years of Assad family rule and revive an economy smashed by nearly 14 years of war.

The United Arab Emirates is planning to launch new artificial intelligence models inspired by China's DeepSeek, a senior official told AFP, calling the system's disruptive emergence "fantastic news".

Faisal Al Bannai, the driving force behind the UAE's Falcon large language model, said DeepSeek's challenge to American tech giants showed the field was wide open in the race for AI dominance.

The oil-rich Gulf monarchy is betting big on the transformational technology as part of its push to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels.

Israel on Wednesday threatened to launch a "new" war on Hamas and implement US President Donald Trump's plan to displace Palestinians from the ravaged Gaza Strip if the militants do not release hostages this weekend.

The remarks by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz came shortly after Palestinian group Hamas said it would not bow down to US and Israeli "threats" over the release of hostages under a fragile truce deal.

Saudi Arabia made their debut at the Asian Winter Games in China this week and will controversially host the next edition in a move derided as "awful" by one Olympic skier and denounced by environmental groups.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) in 2022 unanimously approved the desert kingdom's bid to stage the Games at its $500 billion megacity NEOM in 2029.

"It is awful for our sport," Olympic downhill silver medallist Johan Clarey previously told French radio.

In a packed cafe in Cairo, all eyes were glued to a flickering flat-screen TV, waiting for Omar Marmoush, now donning Manchester City's sky-blue jersey, to step onto the pitch.

In the 84th minute, the Egyptian forward finally jogged to the sideline, ready to make his UEFA Champions League debut against Real Madrid.

The cafe erupted with cheers and hands banging on tables, and even longtime Madrid fans joined in to celebrate one of their own.

The Spanish side ended up winning 3-2, but at the Cairo cafe, the result did not diminish the love for Marmoush.