Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat has visited Lebanon for the first time in a decade following years of strained relations between the oil-rich kingdom and the tiny Mediterranean country.

French President Emmanuel Macron has met with Lebanon’s newly elected President Joseph Aoun and vowed to support the small nation as it attempts to recover from the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war and an economic crisis.

Lebanon’s prime minister-designate has vowed to rebuild the country following years of economic meltdown and a 14-month war between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group.

Lebanon’s new president has asked prominent diplomat and jurist Nawaf Salam to form the country’s new government after Salam was named prime minister by a large number of legislators.

Officials say Israel and Hamas appear to be inching closer to a phased ceasefire agreement.

Lebanon’s new president and former army commander Joseph Aoun has maintained a low profile.

Israel’s military says it has carried out new airstrikes on Yemen against what it said were Houthi rebel targets.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says more than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, with no end in sight to the 15-month conflict.

Lebanon’s parliament has voted to elect army commander Joseph Aoun as the head of state, filling a more than two-year-long presidential vacuum.

The World Health Organization’s director-general said airstrikes on Yemen’s main airport occurred as he was about to board a flight in the Houthi rebel-held capital of Sanaa.

Israel’s defense minister has confirmed that Israel assassinated Hamas’ top leader last summer and is threatening to take similar action against the leadership of the Houthi rebel group in Yemen.

Iran’s foreign minister says Tehran wants Lebanon's rivals to reach an agreement to elect a new president in the crisis-hit country that has been without a head of state October.

Lebanon's economic meltdown threatens to undermine its military, a force that Lebanese have long considered an anchor for stability.

Syrian state media say the country has received a planeload from the United Arab Emirates with food items and medical aid yo help the war-torn country fight against the spread of the coronavirus.