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Greece will cooperate with Israel on anti-drone systems, cybersecurity, Greek minister says

ATHENS, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Greece will cooperate with Israel on anti-drone systems and cybersecurity, Greek Defence Minister Nikos Dendias said on Tuesday after meeting his Israeli counterpart in Athens.

With strong economic and diplomatic ties, Greece and Israel operate an air training center on Greek territory and have held joint military drills in recent years.

(Reporting by Elefterios Papadimas; Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

FILE PHOTO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (centre), Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides (left) and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis hold a joint press conference after a trilateral meeting at the Citadel of David Hotel in Jerusalem, 22 December 2025. ABIR SULTAN/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Syria government agrees new truce with Kurdish forces

Syria's government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces agreed a new ceasefire on Tuesday as Washington said the SDF's purpose in fighting Islamic State group jihadists was largely over.

The announcement came after the army sent reinforcements to the Kurds' Hasakeh province stronghold in the northeast, and Kurdish forces withdrew from the Al-Hol camp which houses thousands of people with suspected IS links, including foreign women and children.

Syrian government forces make their way towards Hasakeh city in the northeast on January 20

UN rights council to hold emergency session on Iran, document shows

By Olivia Le Poidevin and Emma Farge

GENEVA, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The U.N. Human Rights Council will hold an emergency session on Iran in the coming days, with proponents aiming to discuss "alarming violence" used against protesters, a document showed on Tuesday.

An Iranian official said authorities have verified at least 5,000 deaths in the protests which are the biggest demonstrations since 2022, prompting U.N. rights chief Volker Turk to condemn the violence.

Iranian human rights activist Ahmad Batebi speaks during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Iran at the request of the United States at U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S., January 15, 2026. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Israel begins demolitions at UNRWA headquarters in east Jerusalem

Israeli bulldozers began demolitions at the headquarters of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in east Jerusalem on Tuesday, in what the organisation called an "unprecedented attack".

UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler said in a statement to AFP that Israeli forces "stormed into" the compound shortly after 7:00 am and ejected security guards before bulldozers arrived and began demolishing buildings.

AFP photos showed heavy machinery demolishing at least one structure at the compound

Trump threatens 200% tariffs on French wines to get Macron on Board of Peace

By Nandita Bose and Bo Erickson

WASHINGTON/PARIS, Jan 20 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to hit French wines and champagnes with 200% tariffs in an apparent effort to cajole French President Emmanuel Macron into joining his Board of Peace initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts.

Trump's initiative, which would start by addressing Gaza and then expand to deal with other conflicts, raises questions about the role of the United Nations and a source close to Macron said the French president intended to decline the invitation to join.

Bottles of French wine are displayed for sale at a supermarket in Paris, France, April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

Police, pro-Kurd protesters clash at Turkey border with Syria

Clashes erupted on Turkey's border with Syria Tuesday between police and protesters angered by a Syrian military offensive targeting Kurds, an AFP correspondent said.

Damascus has since announced a four-day ceasefire with Kurdish forces but protests across Turkey have continued.

The earlier violence broke out in the border town of Nusaybin, just across from the northern Syrian town of Qamishli, at a protest called by the pro-Kurdish DEM, Turkey's third-largest party.

Turkish riot police broke up a protest over Syria in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, using tear gas and rubber bullets, an AFP correspondent said

Israel demolishes buildings in UN Palestinian agency's East Jerusalem compound

By Pesha Magid

JERUSALEM, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Israel demolished structures inside the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency's East Jerusalem compound on Tuesday after seizing the site last year, in an act condemned by the agency as a violation of international law.

Surrounded by Israeli forces, bulldozers razed several large buildings and other smaller structures inside the United Nations Relief and Works Agency's compound, where dozens of agency staff once worked.

Heavy machinery operates as Israeli forces dismantle the Jerusalem headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), in East Jerusalem, January 20, 2026. REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Egypt's Sisi to meet Trump on the sidelines of Davos, presidency says

CAIRO, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will meet U.S President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Egypt's presidency said on Tuesday.

This will be the first meeting between the two leaders since the U.S announced it was launching the second phase of its plan to end the war in Gaza.

Sisi and Trump met in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in October during a summit convened by Egypt to sign a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the war.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi meet ahead of a world leaders' summit on ending the Gaza war, amid a U.S.-brokered prisoner-hostage swap and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, October 13, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

Analysis-Pakistan's 'combat tested' jets boost weapons sales

By Saad Sayeed and Ariba Shahid

ISLAMABAD, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Pakistan's defence manufacturing industry is running red hot since its jets, drones and missiles earned the coveted 'combat tested' tag in a conflict with India last year, attracting a slew of interested buyers.

Islamabad has held talks with 13 countries, six to eight of which are in an advanced stage, for deals involving JF-17 jets made jointly with China as well as training aircraft, drones, and weapons systems, said three Pakistani sources who have knowledge of defence sales.

Drone models are displayed at the Sysverve Aerospace Private Limited in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, January 16, 2026. REUTERS/Waseem Khan