The Hague (AFP) – The Netherlands said Monday it regretted Israel's decision to revoke accreditation of Dutch diplomats based in the West Bank, the latest retaliation by Israel to mounting Western pressure over settlements.

Israel, which has occupied the West Bank since 1967 and exerts power over diplomats' entry into the Palestinian territory, on Monday ordered Dutch officials to surrender their diplomatic privileges.

"I deeply regret this unnecessary decision," Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen said.

Israel retaliated after Dutch authorities began implementing a ban on imports of any products from Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

In later comments after meeting his German counterpart Johann Wadephul, Berendsen told reporters he would summon the Israeli ambassador to "talk about the details of the measures and the impact on our diplomats, who have to leave within seven days".

Berendsen said Dutch authorities were still assessing how many diplomats were affected by the sanctions.

The exports decision, Berendsen said, was "not directed against Israel" but rather "the obligation, under international law, not to contribute to an unlawful situation: the illegal settlements".

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, announcing the move on Sunday, vowed: "Any country that acts in a hostile and one-sided manner against Israel will lose its influence and relevance in the region."

"If the Netherlands wishes to continue representing its interests vis-a-vis the Palestinians, it may do so from the territory of the Palestinian Authority and not from the territory of the State of Israel," he said.

Israel controls entry points into the West Bank and the Oslo peace accords in the 1990s gave Israel control over diplomatic accreditation in the Palestinian territories.

The Palestinian Authority condemned the move, saying Israel was trying to "reduce the international and diplomatic presence in Palestine so that it can carry out its crimes without witnesses".

"The State of Palestine affirms that Dutch diplomats are welcome on the territory of the occupied State of Palestine, and that Israel has no sovereignty over any part of the land of the State of Palestine," the foreign ministry said.

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Tehran (AFP) – Flying out of Iran has long required patience in the face of restrictions and delays, but new US sanctions have grounded flights at short notice and left war-weary travellers feeling trapped as they try to leave the country.

Among those scrambling for a way out is Mitra, a 49-year-old woman who had planned to travel to Paris via Istanbul along with her brother, but who now faces a long journey by road to get to Turkey.

"Some airlines are still selling tickets, but they keep getting cancelled. It honestly makes us feel completely trapped," she told an AFP journalist in Paris, using a pseudonym for fear of retribution by authorities.

"When we were told that flights had been suspended, we decided to travel to Istanbul by land instead."

Mitra described paying around $75 to book a flight to the Iranian city of Tabriz, from where she will travel by road for several hours to reach the border.

In Van in Turkey, they will stay at a hotel, because the wait at the border can be long and chaotic.

"At this point, we're just hoping that we can actually get out. They might even close the land border," she fears.

For decades, Iranians have lived under foreign sanctions and restrictions by their country's authorities on their personal freedoms.

The US added to their woes last week by tightening restrictions on Iran's aviation industry, in a bid to choke its economy in the Middle East war.

Passengers who booked tickets out of Iran to Middle Eastern destinations like the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Oman and Turkey have faced short-notice cancellations as the latest sanctions bite.

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Metz (France) (AFP) – Pope Leo XIV wrapped up a historic four-day visit to France on Monday after warning that relations between nations were becoming increasingly uncivilised and urging Europe to help break the spiral of "lies and deceit".

Speaking in the eastern city of Metz near the border with Germany, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics did not mention any world leaders by name.

The pope sees Europe as a counterweight to major powers and has in the past called on the European Union to overcome tensions and rediscover unity in pursuit of peace in Ukraine and beyond.

Leo, the first US pontiff, has clashed with President Donald Trump in recent months over the harsh crackdown on immigration in the United States and the war on Iran.

"Relations between individuals and states are becoming increasingly uncivilised. The value of keeping one's word is dismissed. Instead, people boast of lies and deceit," Leo said in French, alongside President Emmanuel Macron and a handful of other leaders.

"Europe can help to break this cycle through the respect for others that it has learned to cultivate and preserve," Leo said, on the first official papal visit to France in nearly two decades.

Metz, which changed hands between France and Germany in past conflicts, is associated with Robert Schuman, considered one of the founding fathers of the European Union, who is buried just outside the city.

Macron saw off the pope in Metz. "We're sad that he’s leaving, but happy that everything went well," he said.

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Washington (United States) (AFP) – President Donald Trump's administration on Monday finalized its rollback of US fuel economy standards that were meant to spur the transition towards electric vehicles and reduce planet-warming emissions from transport, the country's biggest source of greenhouse gases.

The new standards require a fleet average fuel economy of 34.9 miles per gallon (6.74 liters per 100 kilometers) by model year 2031 -- a figure that the rule's own data shows was already achieved two years ago.

"Thanks to President Trump's leadership, we have finally ended the illegal mandate that forced automakers to produce more expensive electric vehicles that American families didn't want," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement.

The statement said the rule change would reduce the average cost of new vehicles by $1,300, save $138 billion over the next five years, and "prevent more than 300,000 serious injuries and save 1,900 lives by encouraging new car sales."

The change was hailed by Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a lobby group that includes Detroit and international carmakers.

"The standards finalized under the previous administration effectively required a switchover to electric vehicles that was out of step with market realities and customer demand. Today's final rule is an appropriate course correction," said John Bozzella, the group's president and CEO.

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Strasbourg (France) (AFP) – Iranian human-rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh on Monday won the Council of Europe's Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize in recognition of her long-running advocacy work, months after being released following her latest arrest.

Still in Iran after her release on bail in May, Sotoudeh said in a brief video message that "one day, the sun of freedom will shine upon our country as well" and added "perhaps one day, truth will find its way to our country too."

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) which awards the prize named after the Czech dissident and former president Vaclav Havel, hailed Sotoudeh's work.

She had "represented activists, journalists, minorities and children facing execution, while campaigning against compulsory hijab laws and the death penalty, despite repeated arrests, lengthy imprisonment and great personal risk", it said.

In the absence of Sotoudeh, her daughter, Mehraveh Khandan, accepted the prize on her behalf.

Sotoudeh was arrested at her home on April 1 as part of what activists said was a crackdown on civil society during Iran's war with Israel and the United States and released on bail around six weeks later.

The arrest followed protests across Iran in January in which thousands were killed as security forces suppressed the demonstrations, according to activists.

Sotoudeh, who has won previous awards including the 2012 Sakharov Prize from the European Parliament and the 2020 Right Livelihood Award, has repeatedly been arrested over her work in the past.

Her husband and Mehraveh's father, Reza Khandan, has been held in an Iranian prison since December 2024.

Sotoudeh has for years campaigned on some of the most sensitive issues in the Islamic republic, notably working to prevent the execution of youths convicted of crimes.

She has also won prominence thanks to several films and documentaries highlighting her activism.

She made a memorable cameo as a passenger in Jafar Panahi's 2015 movie "Taxi Tehran", and was the subject of a warmly received 2020 documentary "Nasrin".

Washington (United States) (AFP) – US President Donald Trump on Monday denied asking Xi Jinping if he wanted to buy American weapons, countering his own envoy's claim that Trump made the offer to his Chinese counterpart.

US Ambassador to China David Perdue told Fox News on Sunday that Trump made the extraordinary offer to sell arms to the rival superpower.

"I've never heard of that one, I'm going to have to ask him," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about Purdue's comments.

"They'd probably like to buy it because we do make better equipment than them, so maybe it's a good idea. But we didn't discuss it."

Purdue had said Trump made the offer during Xi's state visit to the White House last week in response to Chinese concerns over US weapons sales to Taiwan.

"President Trump continues to say, 'Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world.' He actually asked President Xi -- would he like to buy some? -- at one point," Perdue said in an interview with Fox News.

"There are continuing conversations about other sales, (Trump) and President Xi talk about that every time they get together," Perdue said, adding that the US position has not changed.

A US official told AFP earlier that "the US government has no plans to sell weapons to China", when asked about Purdue's remarks.

US arms sales to Taiwan, a self-ruled island which China claims is part of its territory and has threatened to seize by force, have long been a thorny issue between Washington and Beijing.

The United States is required by law to supply Taiwan, which has a democratically elected president and legislature, with weapons for its defense.

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Gusau (Nigeria) (AFP) – More than 80 people, mostly women, were missing Monday after being abducted by armed gangs in two separate weekend attacks in northern Nigeria, the latest mass kidnappings to rock the country.

Gunmen on motorcycles -- members of gangs specialising in ransom kidnappings and cattle rustling, locally known as "bandits" -- have for years terrorised rural communities in northwestern and central Nigeria.

On Saturday, at least 47 farmers were abducted by armed men while harvesting peanuts in Niger state, and on Sunday, 40 women were kidnapped in the neighbouring state of Zamfara, according to two security reports seen by AFP and a local source.

Bandits regularly carry out bloody raids on villages, killing residents and torching homes after looting them.

Jihadists in Nigeria also use kidnapping as a money-making tactic and have at times collaborated with bandit gangs -- though the latter are motivated by money more than ideology, sometimes leading to clashes between the groups.

A local source said the 47 farmers, most of them women, were taken from their farms in Rimi, an agricultural community in the Mariga area of Niger state.

A security report prepared for humanitarian groups and seen by AFP confirmed the attack, without giving a toll.

The women kidnapped on Sunday were taken from Yargada, in the Gusau area of Zamfara, according to a security report prepared for the UN and seen by AFP.

Adamu Lawwali, a resident of Magama Mairake, said his village and neighbouring Maikogo were also hit in the Yargada raid.

"The bandits have been burning homes in Magama Mairake since yesterday up till this moment," he told AFP, adding the death toll wouldn't be known until survivors could return to assess the situation.

Lawwali and Umar Abdullahi, a Magami resident, said the attack was carried out in reprisal after local vigilantes had killed a number of bandits.

Both men said the actual toll from the kidnapping was likely higher.

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Calais (France) (AFP) – Three undocumented migrants, including a 10-year-old boy, died on Monday off the French coast while trying to cross the Channel to Britain, French authorities said.

France has long been a staging post for asylum seekers without visas hoping to cross the sea to Britain.

They pay smugglers thousands of dollars to board unstable and often overcrowded rubber dinghies to make the hazardous illegal journey across one of the world's busiest shipping routes.

The dinghy left the area of Sangatte in northern France at around 5:15 am (0315 GMT) carrying 105 people, local prefect Francois Xavier Lauch said.

Its passengers called rescue services at around 8:00 am when they were some six kilometres (nearly four miles) off the English coast, he added.

Two women in their thirties and a 10-year-old boy who were believed to be Eritrean died, seemingly in a crush as the dinghy was carrying too many people, he said.

The boy appeared to have been travelling with his mother and siblings.

Including the latest deaths, at least 22 people have died this year trying to cross the Channel, according to an AFP tally based on official French and British sources.

At least 29 lost their lives last year, according to the same tally.

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Madrid (AFP) – Demonstrators camping in a central Madrid square vowed Monday to keep up the pressure on Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over Spain's housing crisis, as the 87-year-old woman at the centre of the protest called on them to "hold on".

The demonstrators set up around 100 tents in the capital's busy Puerta del Sol square after tens of thousands took to the streets on Saturday to demand action to lower housing costs and protect tenants.

The movement was triggered by the police eviction on Wednesday of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from her lifelong Madrid apartment.

"I'm asking you all to be courageous, to fight, to defend what belongs to us," said Abascal in a video posted on X by the Madrid Tenants' Union.

Hospitalised since her eviction, she had become a symbol of the protest against Spain's runaway housing prices.

The prime minister, sharply criticised even within his own camp for failing to contain prices since he came to power in 2018, is due to present a new bill on Tuesday.

He urged other political parties to back the bill, which is expected to contain measures such as the automatic renewal of rental contracts and further restrictions on evictions.

But Sanchez's party lacks a majority in Spain's parliament, so it is unclear whether the package will be approved. A similar bill was defeated earlier this year.

"We are demanding that this decree-law be enacted, to protect the right to housing and prevent evictions," said Carlota, a 29-year-old protester who spend the night among the tents set up in the touristic square.

"We are living through a serious situation in Spain right now," said the woman, calling for "an end to putting capital and investment funds before people".

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Dublin (AFP) – Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson said his team had "raised awareness worldwide" about the Gaza conflict after they chose not to shake hands with Israel players before their 3-0 Nations League win in Hungary.

The Irish players wore black armbands in recognition of all lives lost in the conflict in Sunday's match in Debrecen, bowing their heads as the Israeli national anthem was played at the near-empty stadium.

The teams skipped the traditional pre-match handshakes and did not exchange pennants.

The game, in which Israel were the nominal hosts, had been in doubt earlier in the week until Ireland's team voted to fulfil the fixture, despite player unease over the war in Gaza.

Only one player, goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, pulled out, saying "it would be wrong to participate" in either the match or the return fixture in Serbia on October 4 due to the "killing of innocent people".

"It has been so difficult for so many players," Icelander Hallgrimsson told broadcaster RTE after the game.

"I hope that will not be in the next game because they have shown support to the protest, they have raised awareness worldwide, not only in Ireland, on the subject and that is normally the reason for protesting, to raise awareness of a situation.

"I think these players have done that with all their actions, with all that they have been saying. No more than Gavin Bazunu, but the others have done it here on the pitch and how they have shown their actions, so I hope people understand that."

Since Ireland were drawn in the same Nations League group as Israel in February, prominent Irish figures including sportspeople, fan groups and pro-Palestinian campaigners have protested against the matches going ahead.

The match in Debrecen and the return fixture next Sunday in Backa Topola, Serbia, are both being played at neutral venues.

The Football Association of Ireland opted for a neutral venue for their "home" match, citing "operational challenges".

Geneva (AFP) – Radio frequencies needed for weather forecasts, early warning systems, climate monitoring and water management must be safeguarded against the growing threat of interference from emerging technologies, the United Nations said on Monday.

Some sensors measure very weak naturally occurring signals at specific frequencies, making protection from harmful interference particularly important.

The systems enable observations of the atmosphere, oceans and land, and the transmission of data that supports life-saving early warnings, reliable weather forecasting and long-term climate monitoring.

But the UN telecommunications and weather agencies warned on Monday that increasing use of frequencies by other radio communications services, including wireless and satellite services, was raising the risk of interference affecting the frequency bands required for such systems.

They cautioned that radio frequency interference could disrupt measurements, reduce data quality or availability and thereby compromise the reliability of forecasts and alerts, affecting authorities' ability to prepare for and respond to environmental hazards.

Meeting in Geneva this week for an expert seminar, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) are calling on governments and regulatory authorities to protect access to frequencies vital for meteorology.

"As we speak, satellites are measuring changes in our oceans and our atmosphere," ITU head Doreen Bogdan-Martin told Monday's event.

"Radars are tracking storms as they develop," she explained -- including the powerful Nor'easter storm that lashed her home region in the heavily populated US Northeast corridor at the weekend, knocking out power for thousands and killing at least one person.

"Interference-free spectrum keeps weather forecasts accurate, emergency alerts and warnings timely, and climate data reliable so communities can prepare, respond and build resilience," Bogdan-Martin stressed.

"Preventing harmful radio interference is a matter of public safety and can save lives."

Weather radar, lightning location systems, aircraft and marine observation, hydrological monitoring and other vital systems all rely on these frequency bands to collect and exchange data.

Speaking to Monday's gathering, WMO chief Celeste Saulo described how the systems worked.

"A storm reveals itself in the faint natural signals it emits and in the echoes returned by the signals we send to prove it," she said.

"Essentially, all of this happens because there is a physical relation between the size of a droplet and the size of ice crystals in the clouds and the frequency spectrum," she pointed out.

These frequencies, she said, "enable observations that no other frequencies can provide".

"These bands must be protected."

Johannesburg (AFP) – The death toll in a mass shooting in a South African tavern has risen to 18 after one person died in hospital, police said Monday, adding that at least two of the dead were Lesotho nationals.

The shooting west of Johannesburg late Saturday was part of a bloody weekend in the crime-weary country, with 10 people killed in another mass shooting in Cape Town on Sunday.

Eight gunmen armed with assault rifles stormed the bar in the semi-rural township of Wedela, around 80 kilometres (50 miles) from central Johannesburg, killing 13 men and four women, police said.

"One more victim has died in hospital, bringing the total number of deceased to 18," they said Monday. Eighteen people were wounded.

"Only four of the deceased have been identified, two South Africans and two Lesotho nationals."

The motive for the attack was not clear, but police said it may have been retaliation for an incident in the same tavern in August when one person was killed and another wounded.

The area was gripped by rivalry between gangs involved in illicit mining for gold, the tavern owner told local journalists at the scene, where bloodied clothes lay on the ground.

"Even if they finish investigating, I am scared to continue selling again. I am too scared," she said, hiding her identity.

Thousands of unregistered miners operate in abandoned mining shafts in South Africa, in a sector linked to organised crime, assassinations and other illegal activities.

Many come from across southern Africa, including the kingdom of Lesotho which is embedded within South Africa.

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