Oscar beats the summer heat of the United Arab Emirates by working out in a gym, hitting the treadmill twice or three times a week. Nothing unusual in that -- except that Oscar is a dog.

As the Gulf's increasingly fierce temperatures become dangerous to health amid fears over the pace of climate change, those who can afford not to work outside in the blazing sun stay inside in air-conditioning.

And for owners of pampered pets able to splash the cash, an air-conditioned gym for dogs has become an attractive option.

Worshippers crying "Hail Mary" walk alongside their Muslim neighbours in the Tunisian port district of La Goulette, harking back to a time when Sicilians were at the heart of neighbourhood life.

The Madonna of Trapani procession, marking the Catholic Feast of the Assumption, is an echo of a "forgotten history" researchers of Italian origin say offers a model for coexistence with migrants, among faiths and ethnicities.

Clashes between backers of Libya's rival governments killed at least 23 people and damaged six hospitals in Tripoli on Saturday, sparking fears that a political crisis could spiral into a major new armed conflict.

Small arms fire and explosions rocked several districts of the capital overnight and into Saturday, when smoke could be seen rising from damaged buildings.

But cautious calm appeared to have returned on Saturday night, an AFP correspondent said.

French President Emmanuel Macron and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune Saturday declared a "new, irreversible dynamic of progress" in their nations' ties, concluding a visit by Macron aimed at ending months of tensions.

The three-day visit comes less than two months after Algeria marked six decades of independence following 132 years of French rule and a devastating eight-year war.

UN member states ended two weeks of negotiations Friday without a treaty to protect biodiversity in the high seas, an agreement that would have addressed growing environmental and economic challenges.

After 15 years, including four prior formal sessions, negotiators have yet to reach a legally binding text to address the multitude of issues facing international waters -- a zone that encompasses almost half the planet.

"Although we did make excellent progress, we still do need a little bit more time to progress towards the finish line," said conference chair Rena Lee.

Hundreds of Iranians attended a funeral service in Tehran on Friday for the country's best-known contemporary poet, Hushang Ebtehaj, who died earlier this month aged 94.

Ebtehaj, whose Persian pen name was Sayeh (the Shadow), shot to fame composing lyrical poems themed on love and solitude, as well as reflections on the struggles and upsides of life in Iran.

He died of kidney failure in Germany and his remains were transferred to his home country ahead of Friday's service, which was attended by a crowd of officials, artists and admirers.

Populist Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr's camp on Friday refiled a petition for Iraq's judiciary to suspend parliament to clear the way for fresh elections amid a months-long political deadlock.

A source within the judiciary said it would give its response on Tuesday to the second such motion within a month submitted by the Sadrists.

At weekly Friday prayers near parliament attended by thousands of Sadr supporters, an aide to the cleric urged the justice system to pay heed to his calls.

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Olena and Eduard German, a Jewish couple from Kharkiv, found refuge in an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank.

Six months since the start of the war in their homeland, the Germans are rebuilding their lives in a new home decorated with Israeli flags in Maale Adumim, a settlement of over 42,000 between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea, regarded as illegal under international law.

A two-week negotiating session on a treaty to protect the high seas wraps up Friday, with UN observers holding their breath that the long-stalled deal can cross the finish line.

After 15 years, including four prior formal sessions, negotiators have yet to reach a legally binding agreement to address the growing environmental and economic challenges involving the high seas, also known as international waters -- a zone which encompasses almost half the planet.

After his family was massacred and home torched, Sudanese farmer Ayoub Haroun sought refuge in a school alongside some of the tens of thousands fleeing recent bitter ethnic conflict.

More than a week of bloodshed last month in Sudan's Blue Nile state left at least 105 people dead and scores wounded, as rival groups fought in a complex conflict involving deep-seated grievances, control of land and battles for power.