Fighting back tears, the head of the World Health Organization on Thursday urged Israel to have "mercy" in the Gaza war and insisted peace would be in Israel's own interests.
In an emotional intervention at the WHO annual assembly, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the war was hurting Israel and would not bring a lasting solution.
The suspect accused of gunning down two Israeli embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington was charged Thursday with murder, as international tensions over anti-Semitism erupted over the attack.
Elias Rodriguez, 31, shouted "Free Palestine" as he was taken away by police after the shooting late Wednesday outside the Capital Jewish Museum, prosecutors said in a court document.
"I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza," he told the officers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday his pick for the next head of the Shin Bet domestic security agency, defying the country's attorney general and a significant segment of the public.
"Prime Minister Netanyahu announced this evening his decision to appoint Major General David Zini as the next head of the Shin Bet," a statement from the premier's office said.
Palestinian residents of Maghayer al-Deir in the occupied West Bank told AFP on Thursday that they had begun packing their belonging and preparing to leave the village following repeated attacks by Israeli settlers.
Yusef Malihat, a resident of the tiny village east of Ramallah, told AFP his community had decided to leave because its members felt powerless in the face of the settler violence.
A state-approved Iranian movie featuring women constantly in headscarves premiered at the Cannes film festival on Thursday, with director Saeed Roustayi defending his decision to bend to the diktats of national censors.
The Cannes Festival has long offered a platform for independent Iranian filmmakers whose work is lauded on the French Riviera but usually banned at home.
Roustayi has previously defied his country's authorities. His last film in Cannes -- "Leila's Brothers" in 2022 -- landed him a six-month suspended jail term and film ban.
This year's Eurovision Song Contest winner Austrian singer JJ called for Israel to be excluded from next year's competition in an interview published Thursday.
He also expressed regret over Israel's participation in this year's competition despite the war in Gaza.
Eurovision has faced criticism for allowing Israel to participate in the contest despite the devastating Gaza war. This year, pro-Palestinian activists staged protests during the extravaganza in Switzerland over the weekend.
Plumes of smoke rose Thursday over the northern Gaza Strip, where Israel's military urged civilians to evacuate, as rescuers said Israeli strikes across the territory killed more than 50 people.
The latest evacuation warning for parts of Gaza City and neighbouring areas came hours after the United Nations said it had begun distributing around 90 truckloads of aid in Gaza -- the first such delivery since Israel imposed a total blockade on March 2.
At a currency exchange in Damascus, Anas al-Shammaa is one of many Syrians hopeful that promised relief from Western sanctions will help revive their country's economy after years of war and isolation.
"We were totally cut off from the world," said Shammaa, 45, who has been running the exchange shop since 2008.
With the lifting of sanctions, "we hope that the Syrian economy will start to recover both gradually and quickly", he told AFP.
Irish rappers Kneecap on Thursday denied supporting a proscribed group and vowed to defend themselves after a singer was charged with a "terror" offence for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at a London concert.
The Iran-backed Lebanese force Hezbollah and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are banned in the UK and it is an offence to support them.
"We deny this 'offence' and will vehemently defend ourselves. This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction," the band said on X.
International tensions over anti-Semitism erupted Thursday after two Israeli embassy staffers were shot dead at a Jewish museum in Washington by a gunman who shouted "free Palestine" as he was arrested.
Israel's foreign minister Gideon Saar blamed European criticism of his country's stepped-up Gaza offensive, claiming "a direct line connecting anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli incitement to this murder."
"This incitement is also done by leaders and officials of many countries and international organizations, especially from Europe," he said.
