The US has pulled out of the United Nations Human Rights Council, calling it a “cesspool of political bias”. The “hypocritical and self-serving” body “makes a mockery of human rights”, said US envoy to the UN Nikki Haley. Ms Haley last year accused the council of “chronic anti-Israel bias” and said the US was reviewing its membership. Formed in 2006, …

Israel says it has inflicted huge damage on Syrian air defenses after one of its fighter jets was brought down during a raid over Syria. The response was the “most significant attack” of its kind against Syria since the 1982 Lebanon war, said senior Israeli air force general Tomer Bar. The F-16 jet went down during a mission that followed …

French President Emmanuel Macron has told Donald Trump he is “concerned” the US leader could unilaterally recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Any decision on the contested city’s status must be “within the framework of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians”,Mr Macron said.   Earlier, similar warnings came from a number of Arab and Muslim nations. Reports say the US president will …