By Parisa Hafezi and John Irish

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -Iran insists diplomacy is the only way to resolve a decades-long nuclear dispute with the West, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told Iranian state TV on Monday, adding it was time for the West to choose "cooperation or confrontation."

Britain, France and Germany, known as the E3, launched a 30-day process on August 28 to reimpose U.N. sanctions, accusing Tehran of failing to abide by a 2015 deal with world powers aimed at preventing it from developing a nuclear weapon.

Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, visiting New York for the UN General Assembly, voiced hope Monday for a security deal that eases tensions with Israel but he played down the prospect of recognition.

Sharaa, a former jihadist whose forces toppled longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December, met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and later will deliver the first address in decades by a Syrian leader to the General Assembly.

By Humeyra Pamuk

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa renewed his call on Monday for Washington to formally lift U.S. sanctions imposed under the 2019 Caesar Act while visiting New York to attend the first U.N. General Assembly of a Syrian leader in nearly six decades.

Sharaa, a former al Qaeda leader, led rebel forces that overthrew Bashar al-Assad's government last year. U.S. President Donald Trump met him in Riyadh in May and ordered most sanctions lifted but the legislation authorizing them remains U.S. law.

British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, a major figure of Egypt's 2011 uprising, was granted a presidential pardon on Monday, after spending years behind bars.

The 43-year-old computer programmer and activist has long been one of Egypt's most recognisable dissidents.

Over the past two decades, he has been imprisoned under every administration -- from ousted president Hosni Mubarak to the current president, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

(Reuters) -Several world leaders are expected to formally recognise a Palestinian state on Monday at a summit in New York convened by France and Saudi Arabia, a move Israel says will undermine the prospects of a peaceful ending to the war in Gaza.

Here are some reactions:

FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTER JEAN-NOEL BARROT:

"The recognition of Palestine is a categorical rejection of Hamas and its definitive isolation. It vindicates those Palestinians who have chosen to renounce violence and terrorism."

The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, told AFP Monday that diplomatic efforts to resolve the dispute over Iran's nuclear program were at a "difficult juncture" but dialogue would continue.

The UN Security Council voted on Friday to reimpose UN sanctions that had been frozen, after three European governments activated the "snapback" mechanism in a decade-old nuclear agreement accusing Iran of non-compliance.

Prominent British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah was released from prison in Cairo, his family said on Tuesday, prompting an emotional reunion with his loved ones after a pardon from President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Abdel Fattah, 43, was a leading figure in Egypt's 2011 uprising and an outspoken critic of the country's authorities who had been jailed for the better part of the past decade.

By Nidal al-Mughrabi

CAIRO (Reuters) -The Gaza health ministry said two Gaza City hospitals have been taken out of service due to Israel's escalation of its ground offensive and damage caused by continued Israeli bombing, as tanks advanced deeper into the territory.

The ministry said in its statement that Al-Rantissi Children's Hospital was badly damaged a few days ago by an Israeli bombardment. At the same time, it reported Israeli attacks in the vicinity of the nearby Eye Hospital, which forced the suspension of services there, too.

By Pesha Magid

JABAL Al-BABA, West Bank (Reuters) -The land available to Atallah al-Jahalin’s Bedouin community for grazing livestock near Jerusalem has steadily shrunk, as expanding Jewish settlements on Israeli-occupied territory encircle the city and push deeper into the West Bank.

Now, the group of some 80 families faces eviction from the last patches of valley and scrubland they have called home for decades.

By Jun Yuan Yong

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Singapore said on Monday it will impose targeted sanctions on leaders of Israeli settler groups and would recognise a Palestine state under the right conditions.

Western and other nations have been taking an increasingly hard line against settler groups and some Israeli officials they accuse of fomenting violence, while global recognition is growing of Palestinians' aspiration for an independent homeland.