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Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad are trying to regain control of Ras al-Ain, which fell to rebels last Thursday.
The offensive has caused some of the biggest refugee movements since the Syrian conflict began in March last year.
In one 24-hour period last week, some 9,000 Syrians fled fighting during a rebel advance into Syria’s northeast.
Rockets and missiles continued to rain on southern Israel Monday, with more than 160 landings in the area around Gaza. Property was damaged — including a direct hit on a home in Netivot — and 40 people were treated for shock and light injuries. Schools were closed in parts of the region.
Fire is reportedly coming largely from the Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad, various Salafi factions, and the Popular Front are all asserting independence from Hamas authority in Gaza.
Nigerian state-run TV says a bloc of West African nations has agreed to send 3,000 troops to stabilize Mali.
The decision came late Sunday at the end of an emergency ECOWAS bloc summit in Nigeria’s capital.
Military experts from the U.N., ECOWAS, Europe and the African Union have drafted a plan to recapture northern Mali from militants, but it would need final approval from the African Union and the U.N. Security Council before it could be carried out.
Nearly 80 rockets fired from Gaza have struck Israel since Saturday night, according to the military and Israeli news reports. A factory in Sderot sustained a direct hit Sunday morning and several buildings and two cars in the Sha’ar Hanegev municipality were also damaged in attacks. At least three Israelis have been wounded.
The terrorist group Islamic Jihad has claimed responsibility for the bombardment. The Palestinian Maan news agency reported that Islamic Jihad said it shot more than 70 rockets at Israel between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Three people were injured Wednesday in Southern Yemen’s Abyan governorate, in confrontations between tribal chief Tarek Al-Fadhli and pro-army militiamen known as Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), according to Shakir Al-Ghazeer, an officer in the 111 Infantry Brigade, stationed in Abyan.
Al-Fadhli has alleged ties to al-Qaeda.