By Francois Murphy

VIENNA, May 11 (Reuters) - This week's Eurovision Song Contest, already stung by boycotts over Israeli participation, is also facing a test of new public-voting rules introduced to address complaints about Israel's ability to mobilise votes in the last competition.

The contest, a celebration of pop music and high camp now in its 70th year, is no stranger to tussles over voting records and rivalries between the national broadcasters taking part.

European Union foreign ministers on Monday agreed new sanctions on Israeli settlers over violence against Palestinians, as a change of government in Hungary ended months of blockage.

"It was high time we move from deadlock to delivery," EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas said in announcing the green light. "Extremisms and violence carry consequences."

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the EU was "sanctioning the main Israeli organisations guilty of supporting the extremist and violent colonisation of the West Bank, as well as their leaders".

The public broadcasters for Spain, Ireland and Slovenia said Monday they will not show the 70th anniversary Eurovision Song Contest this week, as they boycott the TV extravaganza over Israel's participation.

The three countries, along with the Netherlands and Iceland, pulled out of this year's event in Vienna, which kicks off on Tuesday and culminates in Saturday's grand final.

BEIRUT, May 11 (Reuters) - Lebanon's president has urged the United States to put pressure on Israel to cease fire and stop home demolitions in south Lebanon, the presidency said on Monday, as the death toll from Israeli attacks rose.

Lebanon's health ministry said 74 people had been killed by Israeli strikes in the last three days despite a truce announced last month in fighting between Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah and the Israeli military, a spokesperson said.

BRUSSELS, May 11 (Reuters) - European Union foreign ministers reached an agreement on Monday on new sanctions targeting violent Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, as well as leading Hamas figures, European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.

The sanctions package, which targets three settlers and four settler organisations whose identities have yet to be publicly disclosed, had been blocked for months by the previous Hungarian government which lost an election last month.

Tens of millions of people could face hunger and starvation if fertilisers are not soon allowed through the Strait of Hormuz, the head of a UN task force aimed at averting a looming humanitarian crisis told AFP on Monday.

Iran has had the strategic waterway -- through which a third of the world's fertilisers normally pass -- in a chokehold for months in retaliation for the war launched by the United States and Israel on February 28, disrupting a trade critical for farmers around the world in a race against the end of planting seasons.

By Antoni Slodkowski and Mei Mei Chu

BEIJING, May 11 (Reuters) - The Iran war has strained U.S.–Chinese ties further and looks set to dominate the May 14 to 15 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart and host Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Below are the key issues at stake for Washington and Beijing as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran reshapes calculations in their broader relationship:

IRAN CEASEFIRE TALKS

ISLAMABAD, May 11 (Reuters) - Pakistan blames Afghanistan-based militants for the attack on a police post that killed 15 personnel over the weekend, Pakistan's foreign ministry said on Monday, signaling fresh tension between the neighbours whose militaries have clashed over the issue this year.

The police personnel were killed in a car bombing at a police post in the northwestern part of Pakistan on Saturday,followed by an ambush on forces rushing to the scene, Pakistani police said.

TEL AVIV, May 11 (Reuters) - Israel's Iron Dome has been nearly 99% effective against missiles from Hamas and Hezbollah militants and has knocked out most missiles from Iran, the chairman of state-owned Iron Dome maker Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd said on Monday.

Rafael's Yuval Steinitz told a conference of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs that since the October 2023 Hamas raid on Israel, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon combined have fired some 40,000 rockets at Israel.

KYIV, May 11 (Reuters) - Nearly 20 countries are interested in drone deals with Ukraine and four agreements have already been signed, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday.

Since the outbreak of the Iran war in late February, Zelenskiy has managed to leverage Ukraine's expertise in drone warfare into a series of successful diplomatic deals during visits to the Middle East and Europe.