TEHRAN -- Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are "very close" to agreeing on a new framework for the resumption of bilateral cooperation.
He made the remarks at a conference in Tehran while commenting on the future cooperation between Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog, as well as the results of a new round of talks between the two sides, which began in Vienna on Friday, according to the official news agency IRNA. (Iran-IAEA-Cooperation Framework)
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SANAA -- A senior Yemeni government forces commander and several escorts were killed on Saturday in a Houthi drone strike in Yemen's northern Marib province, a military source told Xinhua.
Khaled bin Dowaid Muthanna, chief of staff of the southern front in Marib, together with a few escorts of his, was killed when a drone targeted a military site in the Al-Falihah area, southern Marib, the source in the government forces said. (Yemen-Houthi Drone Strike-Senior Commander's Death)
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KHARTOUM -- At least six people were killed, and around 20 others remain missing after the collapse of a traditional gold mine in River Nile State, northern Sudan, according to reports by a local official and volunteers on Saturday.
"The collapse occurred yesterday (Friday) at one of the gold mines in the Um Oud area, west of the city of Berber," Hassan Ibrahim Karar, executive director of the Berber locality, said in a statement. He added that search operations are ongoing for others believed to still be trapped under the rubble. (Sudan-Mine Collapse-Casualties)
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GAZA/JERUSALEM -- The Israeli army destroyed a 15-floor residential tower in Gaza City on Saturday, a day after it flattened another high-rise, as part of its expanding military operations across the enclave.
Gazan residents told Xinhua that Israeli warplanes launched several consecutive missiles at the al-Sousi tower, located in the western part of Gaza City, reducing it to rubble within minutes. (Gaza-Israeli Missile Attack-Residential Tower) ■
