Middle East & North Africa

JAFFA, Israel (AP) — Israeli police scuffled with protesters in an Arab neighborhood near Tel Aviv for a second night late Monday after the assault of a rabbi over the weekend.

The protesters, including Arabs and Jews, say Jewish nationalist religious groups are buying up property in the traditionally Arab district of Jaffa, which has rapidly gentrified in recent years as luxury housing has gone up.

KHARTOUM, April 19 (NNN-Xinhua) — Sudanese police announced the crackdown of a criminal network and seizure of around 15,000 pieces of cannabis goods.

After violent clashes and exchanges of fire, two suspects of the criminal group were arrested, along with the seizure of a vehicle and two Kalashnikov rifles, said a police statement.

The police said they obtained information about the criminal group travelling on a vehicle loaded with cannabis from the production areas in South Darfur State to Khartoum State.

JERUSALEM, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Israel's Ministry of Environmental Protection on Monday unveiled a new comprehensive climate law to deal with the global climate crisis and global warming.

The law, which will come into effect after the approval of the Israeli parliament, aims to create a comprehensive framework for the state's response to the climate crisis, with an emphasis on preparing for the damage caused by the crisis.

ISTANBUL, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Turkey has administered over 20 million COVID-19 vaccines across the country since the start of the mass vaccination program in mid-January, the country's health ministry announced Monday.

So far, over 12.2 million people have received their first doses, and 7.8 million others have taken their second shots, according to the data released on the ministry's website.

Jerusalem, Apr 19 (AP-PTI) Israeli police clashed with hundreds of Palestinian protesters outside Jerusalem's Old City, firing stun grenades and a water cannon to disperse the crowd, Israeli media said.

Similar clashes have occurred nightly since the Muslim holy month of Ramadan began last week.

Palestinians say they typically gather on the stairs outside the Old City's Damascus Gate each evening during Ramadan but that this year Israeli police put up barriers to keep away the crowds.

18 Apr 2021; MEMO: The Israeli intelligence service on Sunday summoned Sheikh Omar al-Kiswani, the director of East Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, for interrogation, according to the Jordan-run Islamic Endowments Authority, Anadolu Agency reported.

The authority, which oversees the holy sites in Jerusalem, did not give any further details about the reason behind the Israeli move.

Israeli authorities have not yet commented on the news.

18 Apr 2021; MEMO: Syria will hold a presidential election on May 26 that is virtually certain to return President Bashar al-Assad for a third term – an event that Washington and the opposition say is a farce designed to cement his autocratic rule, Reuters reported.

Assad's family and his Baath party have ruled Syria for five decades with the help of the security forces and the army, where his Alawite minority dominate.

18 Apr 2021; MEMO: Israel and Greece have signed a defense deal worth $1.65 billion, according to the Israeli Defense Ministry on Sunday, Anadolu Agency reported.

As part of the agreement, Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems will establish an international training center in Greece to train the Greek Air Force over a period of 22 years.

The exact date the project will commence was not mentioned.

CAIRO (AP) — A passenger train derailed Sunday north of Cairo, killing at least 11 people, Egyptian authorities said. It was the latest of several rail accidents to hit the country in recent years.

Four train wagons ran off the railway at the city of Banha in Qalyubia province, just outside Cairo, the railway authority said in a statement. Videos on social media showed wagons overturned and passengers escaping to safety along the railway.

The train was travelling to the Nile Delta city of Mansoura from the Egyptian capital, the statement said.

MUSCAT, Apr 18 (NNN-ONA) – Oman’s Dhofar Governorate, began a partial lockdown, running from 6.00 p.m. to 5.00 a.m. local time yesterday, citing a high level of danger from COVID-19.

The curfew is expected to bring down the rate of infection and also serves as a safety measure, to protect the community from the spread of the virus, according to the supreme committee handling COVID-19.

Oman has so far confirmed a total of 176,668 COVID-19 cases, including 156,845 recoveries and 1,821 deaths.