MIDDLE EAST

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Morocco's billionaire prime minister-designate Aziz Akhannouch said Monday he will cut ties with his family's businesses, a move apparently aimed at heading off charges of mixing business with politics.

Akhannouch, whose fortune is estimated by Forbes at over $2 billion, has been tasked with forming a new government after his National Rally of Independents (RNI) thrashed incumbent Islamists in elections last week.

He served as agriculture and fisheries minister since 2017, during which time he faced accusations of collusion between business and politics.

Photo Credit: AP

Two suicide bombers and gunmen attacked crowds of Afghans flocking to Kabul's airport on Thursday, transforming a scene of desperation into one of horror in the waning days of an airlift for those fleeing the Taliban takeover. The attacks killed at least 60 Afghans and 12 U.S. troops, Afghan and U.S. officials said.

The U.S. general overseeing the evacuation vowed the United States would “go after” the perpetrators of the bombings, and warned that more such attacks are expected.

Israel reported on Monday a decrease in the effectiveness of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in preventing infections and symptomatic illness but said it remained highly effective in preventing serious illness.

The decline coincided with the spread of the Delta variant and the end of social distancing restrictions in Israel.

Vaccine effectiveness in preventing both infection and symptomatic disease fell to 64% since June 6, the Health Ministry said. At the same time the vaccine was 93% effective in preventing hospitalizations and serious illness from the coronavirus.

Photo Credit: AP

Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza early Tuesday, hitting the high-rise home of a Hamas field commander and two border tunnels dug by militants, as Hamas and other armed groups fired dozens of rockets toward Israel. The escalation in the conflict was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.

Since sundown Monday when the cross-border attacks began, 24 Palestinians — including nine children — were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, Gaza health officials said. The Israeli military said 15 of the dead were militants. During the same period, Gaza militants fired more than 250 rockets toward Israel, injuring six Israeli civilians in a direct hit on an apartment building.

Photo Credit: Reuters

A Washington-backed Afghan peace conference in Turkey has been postponed due to the Taliban’s non-participation, three sources told Reuters on Tuesday.

The meeting was scheduled for April 24 to fast-track an agreement between Taliban insurgents and the Afghan government following Washington’s announcement that foreign troops would leave Afghanistan by Sept. 11.

“The Istanbul meeting is not happening on the given date because the Taliban refused to attend,” a senior Afghan government official told Reuters.