Lebanese voted on Sunday in the first parliamentary election since the country's economic collapse, with many saying they hoped to deal a blow to ruling politicians they blame for the crisis even if the odds of major change appear slim.
An explosion at a Shi'ite mosque in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif on Thursday killed or injured at least 20 people, a local Taliban commander said.
Iraq on Sunday held a parliamentary election that drew one of the smallest turnouts on record, electoral officials indicated, a result that suggested dwindling trust in political leaders and the democratic system brought in by the 2003 US-led invasion.
Iran is to impose a one-week lockdown and a ban on road travel amid a fifth Covid-19 surge in the worst-hit country in the Middle East, state television reported on Saturday.