BEIJING (Reuters) -Australia's statements about an incident involving Chinese military aircraft over the South China Sea are an attempt to cover up an Australian "intrusion" into Chinese airspace, the Chinese defence ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry has complained to Canberra about the matter.

The ministry was referring to an incident around the Paracel Islands in which Australia claimed a Chinese fighter jet dropped flares near one of its maritime patrol planes. Australia called the incident "unsafe and unprofessional".

LONDON (Reuters) -A small contingent of British military planning officers has been sent to Israel to join a task force led by the United States to support stabilisation efforts in Gaza, the UK defence ministry said.

Gaza mediators - the United States, Egypt and Qatar - stepped up their efforts this week to stabilise the early stages of the truce between Israel and Hamas and to push forward U.S. President Donald Trump's 20-point ceasefire plan.

By Tarek Amara

TUNIS (Reuters) -A general strike and tens of thousands of protesters brought the southern Tunisian city of Gabes to a standstill on Tuesday to back demands for the closure of a state chemical plant blamed for a pollution crisis.

A recent spate of environmental and anti-government protests prompted by a worsening economic crisis and disruptions in public services has posed the biggest challenge to President Kais Saied since he seized all power in 2021.

(Reuters) -Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to appoint a new national security adviser, replacing Tzachi Hanegbi, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Muhammad Al Gebaly and Jaidaa Taha; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

By Parisa Hafezi

DUBAI (Reuters) -Iran's economy risks staggering into simultaneous hyperinflation and deep recession, officials and analysts say, as clerical rulers scramble to preserve stability with limited room to manoeuvre after a snapback of U.N. sanctions.

They followed a breakdown in talks to curb Iran's disputed nuclear activity and its ballistic missile programme. Diplomacy to resolve the deadlock remains possible, both sides say, though Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has rebuffed U.S. President Donald Trump's offer to forge a new deal.

DUBAI (Reuters) -An Iranian student detained in France has been readied for a prisoner swap, an Iranian diplomat told semi-official Tasnim news agency on Tuesday, a day after Iran said there was necessary will to exchange prisoners with France.

"The foreign minister announced that Mrs. Esfandyari was placed in the exchange channel and we have put together a political and consular package that both countries must implement," the deputy for Consular Affairs at Iran's foreign ministry said.

LONDON (Reuters) -The British government on Tuesday removed Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the group which spearheaded the Syrian rebel alliance that helped oust President Bashar al-Assad, from its list of banned terrorist organisations.

HTS, a former al Qaeda affiliate, was proscribed in 2017, meaning that Britain designated it as a terrorist group, making it illegal to support or join it.

By Jennifer Rigby

LONDON (Reuters) -Eradicating polio is still possible despite significant funding cuts to the effort, global health officials said on Tuesday as they outlined how they will cope with the shortfall.

The budget of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, a partnership including the World Health Organization and the Gates Foundation, will take a 30% cut in 2026 and has a $1.7 billion funding gap up to 2029, the organisation says.

The shortfall is largely driven by a pullback from foreign aid led by the United States and other wealthy donor governments.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday said it is sending a team of five investigators to Hong Kong to support the investigation into a cargo plane from Dubai that skidded off the runway and killed two airport security staff.

The Boeing 747 involved in the deadliest airport incident Monday in the financial hub in more than 25 years collided with their security patrol vehicle, fell into the water and was partially submerged, but all four crew members on board escaped.

By Nafisa Eltahir

(Reuters) -The Sudanese pound has shed nearly two-fifths of its value after a de facto embargo on flights from the army's wartime capital Port Sudan into the United Arab Emirates disrupted the vital gold trade, traders and Sudanese officials said.

The army relies on the UAE for hard currency from gold exports but also accuses it of backing the rival Rapid Support Forces paramilitary in a two-and-a-half-year civil war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions.