BBC News Middle East

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Egypt will bar unvaccinated public service workers from entering government buildings from mid-next month.

A cabinet notice on Sunday said workers would have to be vaccinated or take a weekly Covid test to be allowed into government buildings from 15 November.

The cabinet also allowed the opening up of bathrooms in mosques from Wednesday. The bathrooms were closed in March last year as part of measures to contain the spread of coronavirus.

The government has also allocated a billion Egyptian pounds ($64m; £47m) to address the pandemic.

Egypt has administered more than 30 million vaccine doses out of a population of over 100 million people, according to data from its health ministry.

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The British Committee for Iran Freedom (BCFIF) has issued a statement condemning the "vicious attack, which was an assault not only on Sir David, but also on democracy in the UK".

Sir David was a champion of human rights and democracy in Iran for more than three decades. He consistently spoke in support of the Iranian people’s democratic aspirations and the Iranian Resistance movement, NCRI, the BCFIF said.

"One of the proudest things I have ever done in my political career is to support the National Council of Resistance of Iran which calls for the Iranian regime to be replaced with a safer and more democratic government," Sir David said on 6 September.

In an email to the BBC, supporter Jahed Madumi wrote: "With great sorrow I heard about Sir David Amess' loss.

"As an Iranian I have to say that he was a great friend of our nation, and he always defended the freedom for the people of Iran."

Mr Amess is seen above with the British delegation during the Conference In Support Of Freedom and Democracy In Iran in Paris in 2018.

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An Italian court has given a ship's captain a one-year jail sentence because he returned migrants to Libya after rescuing them in the Mediterranean.

The skipper of the Italian-flagged Asso 28 was convicted of violating international law, which forbids sending anyone to a place where their human rights are at risk.

The verdict is at odds with the policy of Italy's government and the European Union.

They fund the work of Libya's coastguards as they round-up migrants and stem their flow towards Europe.

This EU assistance has been bitterly criticised by human rights groups, who've repeatedly reported on the appalling treatment often endured by migrants in Libya.

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Rescuers in south-west Spain are searching for 21 migrants missing after their boat capsized off Cape Trafalgar.

Four bodies have been recovered.

Three survivors said there were 28 people from North Africa on board when their rubber dinghy left Morocco.

A search-and-rescue helicopter located the sinking boat about 40 minutes after a passing ship raised the alarm.