Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund announced Thursday the sale of its majority stake in Saudi Pro League football club Al-Hilal, where French striker Karim Benzema plays.

The PIF, which also owns English Premier League side Newcastle United, sold 70 percent of Al-Hilal to Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), the firm run by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a billionaire businessman and member of the Saudi royal family.

The deal values the share capital of Al-Hilal at 1.4bn Saudi riyals ($373m).

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Thursday after announcing a 10-day Lebanon-Israel ceasefire that leaders of the two countries could meet at the White House over the next week or two.

Trump spoke to both leaders as the ceasefire was announced. He said he was working on a longer term deal.

“It's very exciting. I think we're going to have a deal where we're going to have a meeting, first time in 44 years, and Lebanon will be meeting with Israel, and they're probably going to do it at the White House over the next week or two," Trump said.

By Christian Martinez

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he was not sure that the ceasefire with Iran needs to be extended.

"I'm not sure it needs to be extended," Trump told reporters at the White House. "Iran wants to make a deal and we're dealing very nicely with them."

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, writing by Christian Martinez; editing by Scott Malone)

BEIRUT, April 16 (Reuters) - Hezbollah said on Thursday that the presence of Israeli troops on Lebanese territory would grant Lebanon and its people "the right to resist," adding in its first comment on a proposed truce that any ceasefire must not allow Israel freedom of movement within Lebanon.

In a written statement, Hezbollah ally and speaker of Lebanon's Parliament Nabih Berri urged Lebanese to "postpone their return to their towns and villages until the situation becomes clearer, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement."

BRUSSELS, April 16 (Reuters) - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed on Thursday a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, and reiterated that Europe would continue to call for the respect of Lebanon's territorial integrity.

"I welcome the announced 10 day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, mediated by President Trump. This is a relief, as this conflict has already claimed far too many lives," wrote von der Leyen on X.

April 16 (Reuters) - Police on Thursday were investigating a bomb threat made to the Chicago-area home of Pope Leo's brother John Prevost after a search found no explosives or hazardous materials.

A bomb threat was reported Wednesday evening at the home of John Prevost in New Lenox, Illinois, according to media outlets that cited police. Prevost lives on the same street cited as the location of the attack by police. New Lenox police did not return a call for comment on the report.

The Middle East war has created an "unprecedented shock" for the region's economies with no guarantee of a quick recovery, a senior International Monetary Fund official has told AFP.

Five of the Gulf's eight oil- and gas-producing countries face a contraction this year, the IMF said in a regional report published on Thursday.

Growth in the others -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman -- will slow but remain in positive territory, it said.

By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth cited biblical scripture on Thursday to attack the media, comparing reporters to Jewish adversaries of Jesus Christ plotting "how to destroy him."

Hegseth's comments sought to counter what he saw as negative coverage of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. They also came amid an escalating feud between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born leader of the Catholic ​Church and a critic of the war.

French Finance Minister Roland Lescure told reporters Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz needs to reopen "but not at any price," adding that G7 leaders stand ready to mitigate the war's economic fallout.

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of Seven advanced economies added in a statement released Thursday that "it is urgent to limit" the global economic cost of an enduring conflict in the Middle East.

The US House of Representatives on Thursday rejected an effort to curb President Donald Trump's authority to wage war in Iran, another setback in Democrats' campaign to force Congress back into decisions over military action in the Middle East.

The vote, held after Democrats forced the issue onto the floor, came as unease over the six-week conflict continued to spread on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers wary of rising costs, an unclear endgame and the risk of a wider war.