Briefly

MIDDLE EAST

Hamas denies gains on prisoner swaps

The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement of Hamas said on Sunday that there has been no advance toward reaching a prisoner exchange deal with Israel. Zaher Jabarin, a member of Hamas' politburo, said in a statement that "no progress "has been made because Israel is not taking any serious steps regarding the issue. Jabarin was responding to Israeli Labor Party lawmaker Emilie Haya Moatti's remark that indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel for a prisoner exchange deal have witnessed progress. Moatti, a Knesset member, did not provide further details, according to Israel Radio.

IRAN

Fighter jet crash kills three, report says

A fighter jet has crashed in northwestern Iran, killing two pilots and a civilian, the country's state-run news agency reported on Monday. IRNA said the F-5 fighter crashed into a stadium in a residential area of Tabriz. Authorities are investigating the incident, the report said. General Reza Yousefi, commander of the airbase in Tabriz, said the jet had been used for training and suffered a technical problem on its final flight.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Builders begin work on wall with Haiti

The Dominican government on Sunday began building a wall that will cover almost half of the 392-kilometer border with Haiti, its only land neighbor, to stop irregular migration and the smuggling of goods, weapons and drugs. While the two countries share the island of Hispaniola, they are worlds apart in terms of development. Crime-plagued Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the Americas while the Dominican Republic, a popular Caribbean tourist destination, has prospered in recent decades amid marked political stability. Many Haitians cross the border clandestinely in search of work in the fields or in the construction industry in the Dominican Republic.

SOUTH AFRICA

Rules tweaked to boost jabs uptake

South Africa's health department said on Monday that it was changing COVID-19 vaccination rules to try to increase uptake, as inoculations have slowed and the country has ample vaccine stocks. The government is shortening the interval between the first and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine from 42 to 21 days and will allow people who have received two doses of Pfizer to get a booster dose three months after their second shot as opposed to six months previously. It will also offer the option of "mixing and matching" booster jabs.

Agencies - Xinhua