LONDON: Pope Francis received a moving letter from a young Palestinian refugee when Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, visited the pontiff at the Vatican on Thursday.

During their meeting, Lazzarini detailed the unprecedented challenges Palestine refugees continue to face, particularly in light of the lack of any prospect of a solution to their plight.

RIYADH: The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and its rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF) signed on Thursday a declaration committing themselves to International Humanitarian Law to facilitate humanitarian action to meet the needs of civilians.

In a document titled “Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan”, the warring parties also promised to prioritize discussions “to achieve a short-term ceasefire to facilitate the delivery of emergency humanitarian assistance and restoration of essential services.”

ABU DHABI: The UAE’s Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology assembled energy leaders in Abu Dhabi to address the major challenges in the adoption of green hydrogen and the growth of its attendant economy.

The dialogue session took place during the UAE Climate Tech forum, which ran from May 10-11 in preparation for COP28, the Emirates News Agency reported.

The forum brought together 1,000 global policymakers, CEOs, experts, technology leaders, and investors to help accelerate decarbonization through innovative technologies and economic prospects.

AL-MUKALLA:Control of Riyan International Airport, in the port city of Al-Mukalla in southeastern Yemen, has been returned to local authorities by the Arab coalition that has been guarding it during the conflict in the country, Mabkhout bin Madhi, the governor of Hadramout province, has announced.

He said the coalition has handed over the airport to the provincial government, which has pledged to renovate it and establish new air routes.

KHARTOUM: Like many Sudanese forced to flee their homes amid raging street battles, Mohammed said that when he finally returned to his flat, he found heavily armed paramilitaries had moved in.

After cautiously approaching his Khartoum apartment block, he discovered that “the entire building had become like a military barracks filled with weapons and ammunition.”

Almost a month of heavy fighting has turned Khartoum into a war zone, with the city’s 5 million residents enduring artillery barrages, gunfights, airstrikes and anti-aircraft fire.