Growth in the 15 member states that make up the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, is likely to inch down to 5.0% this year from 5.1% last year, the bloc's regional development bank said on Tuesday.

An animal control officer found the small brown dog dead inside a wire crate that had been left in direct sunlight all day with no food or water.

"It is impacting several refugee camps in the area, and it is causing the largest population displacement of the Palestinians in the West Bank since 1967," she told reporters in Geneva via video from Jordan, referring to the six-day Arab-Israeli war that led to Israel's occupation of the West Bank.

Meanwhile, Israel and Hamas appeared no closer to a breakthrough in talks meant to pause the 21-month war and free some Israeli hostages.

There has been an increase in killings of and attacks against Palestinians by settlers and security forces in the occupied West Bank in recent weeks, the United Nations human rights office said on Tuesday.

There must be a thorough, independent, transparent investigation into all killings and all other alleged violations of international law,' says UN spokesperson - Anadolu Ajansı