Middle East & North Africa

TEHRAN, May 2 (Xinhua) -- A big fire broke out on Sunday morning in an industrial alcohol production plant near the central Iranian city of Qom, injuring six, Tasnim News Agency reported.

The fire was reported around 06:00 a.m. local time (0130 GMT) in the industrial park of Shokuhiyeh, located 20 km from Qom, according to a local fire department spokesperson.

More than 100 firefighters were immediately deployed to extinguish the fire, preventing it from reaching the tanks of alcohol and other flammable items, the spokesman added.

TRIPOLI, May 1 (Xinhua) -- Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah on Saturday visited a power plant in western Tripoli, calling for intensified efforts to ensure power supply in the war-torn country.

During a meeting with officials of the General Electricity Company, the prime minister asked the state-owned company to try its best to stabilize the public power network and prevent any major power blackouts, pledging to provide all possible support for the company, said a statement issued by the prime minister's information office.

IDLIB, Syria (AP) — A COVID-19 vaccine campaign kicked off in Syria’s last rebel-held enclave on Saturday, with a 45-year-old front-line nurse becoming the first to receive a U.N.-secured jab.

Nizar Fattouh, a nurse in Ibn Sina Hospital in Idlib city, received one of 53,800 AstraZeneca vaccines delivered to northwest Syria through Turkey on April 21.

The vaccines come amid a new surge of infections in the war-torn country. Syria’s supplies of oxygen are depleted and its hospitals were already overwhelmed from 10 years of conflict and deteriorating health care services.

01 May 2021; MEMO: Israeli occupation police have prevented West Bank Palestinians from entering Jerusalem for Ramadan's third Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Anadolu Agency reported.

Israel recently set a requirement that those wishing to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque must be vaccinated against the coronavirus.

30 Apr 2021; MEMO: The World Bank approved a new four-year strategy for Palestine that puts emphasis on protecting lives and creating new job opportunities for Palestinians amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Palestinian economy is projected to grow by only 3.7 per cent annually between now and 2025, according to a new UN study, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to limit economic recovery and growth globally.

01 May 2021; MEMO: Israeli occupation authorities have started building 164 new settlement units in the Neve Daniel settlement built on Palestinian lands in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Al-Ayyam newspaper reported on Friday.

(Reuters) --- A number of U.S. citizens are among the dozens killed or injured in a stampede at a Jewish religious festival in Israel, a U.S. Embassy spokesperson said on Saturday.

At least 45 people were crushed to death and more than 100 injured in the disaster on the slopes of Israel's Mount Meron, which occurred overnight between Thursday and Friday.

"We can confirm that multiple U.S. citizens were among the casualties," the spokesperson said, and casualties included both dead and injured.

30 Apr 2021; MEMO: Iran has welcomed a "change of tone" from Saudi Arabia, as both countries seem to be open to taking steps to calm tensions and improve cooperation

In a statement yesterday by the Iranian Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said that "by adopting constructive stances…the two countries…can enter a new chapter of interaction and cooperation to reach peace, stability and regional development, by overcoming differences."

BAGHDAD, May 1 (Xinhua) -- At least four soldiers were killed in an overnight attack by extremist Islamic State (IS) militants north of the Iraqi capital, the Iraqi military said on Saturday.

Two others were wounded by a roadside bomb that the militants had planted and detonated in the Tarmiyah area, some 30 km north of Baghdad, the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said in a statement, citing initial reports.

Reinforcement troops backed by helicopters have been searching the area for hours since early morning for the attackers, according to the statement.

DAMASCUS, Apr 30 (NNN-SANA) – The Syrian parliament completed yesterday, voting for candidates for the upcoming presidential elections.

A total of 51 people, including Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, submitted applications to parliament, over the past 10 days.

Remarkably, seven women submitted applications, marking the first time women in Syria running for the presidential elections.

Candidates qualified to entre the election need to win 35 votes from the parliament lawmakers.