Israeli forces detained more than 240 Palestinians including dozens of medical staff from a north Gaza hospital they raided on Friday, including its director, according to the Health Ministry in the enclave and Israel's military.

Ukraine is capitalising on its strategic asset – grain exports – to carve out a diplomatic foothold in Syria, a longtime ally of Moscow as Damascus seeks urgent supplies to refill its granaries. As the US introduced sanctions waivers allowing deals with Syria's governing institutions,

The new Syrian authorities have refused to grant entry to a ship that was supposed to evacuate Russian military equipment from Russia's Tartus naval base in Syria, The Moscow Times reported on Jan. 9.

Ukraine has pledged its support for the interim government in Syria after Kyiv's foreign minister met with his new Syrian counterpart during a visit to Damascus.

Russian ships are preparing to transport military equipment from a base in Syria to Libya after the fall of Bashar Assad, per Ukrainian intelligence.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met with Syria's de facto leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, during a high-profile visit to Damascus.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told The Associated Press that the U.S. needs to keep troops deployed in Syria to prevent the Islamic State group from reconstituting as a major threat.

As Russia clings to its only bases in the Mediterranean — they’re on the coast of Syria — Ukraine is moving aggressively to displace Moscow as Syria’s main source of imported grain. Soon to follow are university educations, military drone technologies, and aid on investigating war crimes.

On December 18, Zelensky met with NATO secretary general Mark Rutte in Brussels to discuss enhancing air defense for Ukraine and ensuring the sustainability of peace. In the following days, he met with top EU officials in Brussels to discuss the importance of Western efforts to achieve a "just peace."

Ukraine is pledging support for the new authorities in Syria, which was once a key Russian ally in the Mideast.

The visit comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a large shipment of wheat flour to war-torn Syria, as the two countries seek to reset relations following years of tensions over former President Bashar al-Assad's alliance with Russia.

According to the agency, Russian large landing ships Ivan Gren and Aleksandr Otrakovsky, as well as the dry cargo ship Sparta, are scheduled to arrive in the Syrian port on Jan. 5. Two more Russian vessels — the universal cargo vessel Sparta II and the tanker Ivan Skoblev — are expected to arrive on Jan.