Syria's interior ministry said Sunday that its forces had dismantled a cell that was responsible for recent attacks targeting Damascus' Mazzeh district, saying the weapons came from Lebanon's Hezbollah.

Syria's interior ministry said Sunday that its forces had dismantled a cell that was responsible for recent attacks targeting Damascus' Mazzeh district, saying the weapons came from Lebanon's Hezbollah.

Iran's supreme leader on Sunday likened recent anti-government protests to a "coup", warning that any U.S. attack on the Islamic republic following Washington's military deployments in the Middle East would trigger a regional war.

Iran's top security official said Saturday that progress had been made towards negotiations with the United States, even as the Islamic republic's army chief warned Washington against launching military strikes.

An explosion took place on Saturday at a building in the Iranian city of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf coast, state media reported, though the cause of the blast was as yet unknown.

Iranian army chief Amir Hatami on Saturday warned the United States and Israel against an attack, saying his country's forces were on high alert following Washington's heavy military deployments in the Gulf.

U.S. allies and partners in the Middle East again are urging restraint from both the United States and Iran as the Trump administration warns of a possible strike and builds up its military presence in the region, according to an Arab diplomat familiar with the matter.

Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Oman and Qatar have all been in touch with leaders in Washington and Tehran to make the case that an escalation by either or both sides would cause massive destabilization throughout the region and affect energy markets, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private diplomatic discussions.

Thousands of Shiite Muslims who fled Syria after former President Bashar Assad's government was toppled in an offensive by Sunni rebels in December 2024 have found a new home in Lebanon.

Many of them stayed in mosques, schools or with relatives in Lebanon until the Imam Ali Housing Compound — funded by Hezbollah and Shiite religious institutions in Iraq and Iran — was opened in late 2025.

South Africa declared Israel's deputy ambassador persona non grata on Friday and ordered him to leave the country within 72 hours.

The South African Foreign Ministry said that it was expelling Ariel Seidman, the charge d'affaires at the embassy, because of repeated official Israeli social media posts that insulted South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Palestinian militant group Hamas called on Friday for Israel to reopen Gaza's Rafah crossing to Egypt immediately in both directions.

In a statement, the group called for the "immediate transition to the second phase" of the U.S.-brokered truce in Gaza, namely its provision for the reopening of Rafah, as well as the entry of a technocratic Palestinian committee to administer the territory.