By Dawoud Abu Alkas , Nidal al-Mughrabi and Emma Farge

GAZA/CAIRO/GENEVA, April 16 (Reuters) - Fourteen-year-old Fadel al-Naji used to be a keen footballer but is now largely confined to his home in Gaza City since both legs were severed in an Israeli drone attack in September.

He sits sullenly on a couch with one hollow pant leg dangling and the other tucked into his waist besidehis 11-year-old brother who lost an eye in the same strike.

ISLAMABAD, April 16 (Reuters) - No dates have been decided for the second round of talks between the U.S. and Iran, a spokesperson for Pakistan's foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Nuclear issues are among the subjects being discussed by the countries, he said.

(Reporting by Asif Shahzad and Saad Sayeed, Writing by Hritam Mukherjee)

The latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Lebanon unaware of Israel talks -

Lebanon is unaware of any planned contact with Israel, an official source told AFP, after US President Donald Trump said the leaders of the two countries would speak on Thursday.

"We are not aware of any planned contact with the Israeli side, and we have not been informed of any through official channels," the source said.

- Australia diesel boost -

BEIRUT/JERUSALEM, April 16 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said leaders of Lebanon and Israel will speak, saying he was "trying to get a little breathing room" between the countries, after more than six weeks of war between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

"It has been a long time since the two leaders have spoken, like 34 years. It will happen tomorrow. Nice!" Trump wrote in a social media post published before midnight on Wednesday, Washington time.

It did not say which Lebanese and Israeli leaders would speak, or give any further details.

By Jonathan Stempel

April 16 (Reuters) - Tehran has sought to tighten its grip over the Strait of Hormuz by charging tolls on vessels to ensure safe passage, in conjunction with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The following explains law governing toll collections and actions that countries opposed to tolls might take.

WHAT IS THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ?

SYDNEY, April 16 (Reuters) - Australia and Malaysia are committed to working together to strengthen their energy supply chain resilience and promote stable trade flows, the countries said in a joint statement on Thursday.

The statement added that Australia and Malaysia shared "deep concern" over the conflict in the Middle East, its escalation and the consequences for their region, including the impact on energy supply and prices.

(Reporting by Christine Chen in Sydney; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

By Steve Holland and Maayan Lubell

WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM, April 16 (Reuters) - Optimism grew on Thursday that the war in the Middle East may be near an end, with a key Pakistani mediator in Tehran and the administration of President Donald Trump talking up hopes for a deal that would open the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

By Florence Tan

SINGAPORE, April 16 (Reuters) - A second U.S.-sanctioned supertanker has entered the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, shipping data showed, despite a U.S. blockade on vessels visiting Iranian ports.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced the blockade on Sunday after weekend peace talks in Islamabad between the U.S. and Iran failed to reach a deal.

The U.S. Central Command said on X that 10 vessels have been turned around and no ships have broken through since the start of the blockade on Monday.

In a packed hall in Qamishli's sports stadium in northeast Syria, Firas Ahmad is one of dozens of Kurds waiting to apply for citizenship after many in the minority were barred from doing so for decades.

Since last week, "unregistered" Kurds, who have been stateless since a controversial 1962 census, have been flocking to registration centres across Syria to apply for citizenship, based on the interior ministry's instructions.

"A person without citizenship is considered as good as dead," Ahmad, 49, told AFP.

LIV Golf on Wednesday moved to reassure players and staff that it remains fully funded, as reports circulated that the breakaway tour is on the verge of collapse due to the possible withdrawal of Saudi Arabian financing.

The Saudi-backed tour has bitterly divided the world of golf since its 2022 launch, when several of the sport's biggest names were lured to defect from the traditional PGA and DP World tours with huge-money deals.