News in Brief - Fri - May 15 - 21:30 GMT

1 Iran rejects U-S allegations that Tehran's engaged in destabilizing activities in the Middle East. Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham says such accusations are contrary to regional realities. Afkham said Iran has always stressed expansion of ties with its neighbors and has never recommended military solutions to regional conflicts.

2 Saudi Arabia has once again violated a humanitarian truce in Yemen by firing over a dozen rockets into the provinces of Hajjah and Sa'ada. The Yemeni army has threatened to respond to the violations. At least 10 Ansarullah fighters have also been killed during clashes with al-Qaeda militants in Ta'izz.

3 Iran slams Saudi Arabia for hindering humanitarian aid deliveries to Yemen and violating the ceasefire. Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has called on the U-N to send relief aid to Yemen through direct flights. He described the humanitarian situation in Yemen as catastrophic and called the Saudi truce a sham.

4 Republican members of the U-S Congress have criticized Pope Francis for recognizing Palestine as an independent state. The legislators warned the Pope to stay away from politics. The G-O-P lawmakers even questioned the pontiff’s political stance on biblical grounds. Pope Francis is to address the Congress later this year.

5 A U-S federal jury has sentenced Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death by lethal injection. Tsarnaev faced 30 federal charges for the 20-13 bombings of a Marathon race in Boston which killed three people and wounded hundreds more. He can file an appeal against the verdict.

6 In Nigeria, at least 55 people have been killed during Boko Haram's attacks on two villages near the city of Maiduguri. The Nigerian army managed to repel the assaults. The army also imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on the city in the wake of the deadly attacks.

7 Syrian forces have been deployed to the ancient city of Palmyra to prevent the ISIL terrorists from destroying the world heritage site. The governor of the central Homs province says the troops are bombing the surroundings of Palmyra to push back the Takfiris. Some 35-thousand people are still in the city.

8 The latest round of talks between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries comes to an end in the Austrian capital. The two sides are working on the text of a final agreement over Iran’s nuclear energy program. They have six more weeks to reach a final agreement.

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