The office of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has replaced Energy Minister Antonio Goncalves amid an acute energy crisis that has led to power cuts, said a statement.

Goncalves, who took office in July, announced earlier that power cuts of up to 10 hours per day were required due to "critical" energy shortages.

Environment Minister Ines Manzano has been designated as the interim minister of energy, reports news agency.

Manzano "will lead the transformation of an outdated matrix, which has left us 72 per cent dependent on rain, and will undertake renewable energy projects," the presidential office said on Wednesday.

The UN General Assembly elected 18 members to the 47-member Human Rights Council for the 2025-2027 term.

The 18 countries -- Benin, Bolivia, Colombia, Cyprus, Czechia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Gambia, Iceland, Kenya, Marshall Islands, Mexico, North Macedonia, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Thailand -- were elected by a secret ballot on Wednesday, and they will serve three-year terms beginning on January 1, 2025, replacing members whose terms of office are set to expire on December 31, 2024.

All the outgoing members -- Argentina, Benin, Cameroon, Eritrea, Finland, Gambia, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Montenegro, Paraguay, Qatar, Somalia, United Arab Emirates and the United States -- were eligible for immediate re-election except those members who have served two consecutive terms, including Argentina, Cameroon, Eritrea, India and Somalia, news agency reported.

Israeli airstrikes targeted several locations across Syria on Thursday, injuring at least one person and causing significant damage.

A major strike hit a car manufacturing plant in the industrial city of Hasyaa, in the countryside of Homs. The initial casualty report confirmed one person was injured, and several vehicles loaded with relief materials and aid were destroyed in the attack, news agency reported quoting the Syrian state television.

A separate strike in the town of Maarin, located in Hama province, sparked a large fire, and there were no immediate reports of casualty. Meanwhile, an explosion was reported in the city of Daraa, with authorities still investigating the cause.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a Shiite militia group, claimed responsibility for a drone attack on a "vital" site in Eilat, Israel's southern port city.

The group said in a statement on Wednesday night that the attack was conducted "in solidarity with the people of Palestine and Lebanon," pledging to continue targeting "the enemy's strongholds."

The statement did not provide further details about the targeted site or report any casualties, news agency reported.

Earlier in the day, the Iraqi militant group claimed responsibility for four drone attacks on four "vital" sites in Israel.

Israel's military said its warplanes launched an airstrike in southwestern Syria, killing a Hezbollah operative.

In a statement on Wednesday, the military claimed that Adham Jahout, a militant with Hezbollah's "Golan Terrorist Network" in Syria, was killed in the airstrike in the area of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, reports news agency.

"As part of his role, Jahout relayed information from Syrian sources to Hezbollah and transmitted intelligence gathered on the Syrian front to facilitate operations against Israel in the Golan Heights," the military said.

Syrian state television reported earlier that a policeman was killed in the attack, the latest in a series of Israeli airstrikes in the region, which, according to Israel, are aimed at Iranian and Hezbollah targets.

At least 15 people were killed and 10 others injured in a collision between a bus loaded with passengers and a truck in Cameroon's South region.

Prefect of Dja and Lobo division, Damien Owono, said the accident happened when the bus collided head-on with the truck coming from the opposite direction in the Kombe locality of the region on Wednesday.

"We woke up this early morning with this shocking news. There were 22 passengers and the driver on the bus. The ten injured people are being taken care of in hospital. We ask the families to remain calm. It was an accident. Investigations are ongoing and the authorities will establish the responsibility. We ask road users to be more careful," Owono told reporters after visiting the scene of the tragedy, news agency reported.

Two separate wildfires burning in the US state of Wyoming scorched over 130,000 acres (526.1 square kilometres) combined, according to InciWeb, an interagency all-risk incident web information management system provided by the United States Forest Service.

The latest information update by the agency said that the Elk Fire in Bighorn National Forest, which has been burning for almost two weeks, spread to 75,969 acres (307.4 square kilometres) with 16 per cent contained as of Wednesday morning, reports news agency.

Meanwhile, the Pack Trail Fire in Bridger-Teton National Forest burned down 60,676 acres (245.6 square kilometres) with zero containment as of Wednesday morning.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that the European Union (EU) needs to change if the bloc wants to be able to face its challenges.

Orban, whose country currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency, made the remarks at a European Parliament session on Wednesday in Strasbourg, France.

He highlighted competitiveness as a key issue for the country's presidency. Orban criticised the EU's green transition plan, noting that moving away from Russian fossil fuels has hurt the EU's GDP growth, according to news agency.

A total of 712 climbers have received permission by Wednesday to climb 29 mountains in Nepal during the fall climbing season.

The climbers are from 62 countries and regions, and 163 of them are females, according to the Department of Tourism.

"We're expecting a surge in the number in the coming days," Rakesh Gurung, director at the agency,news agency reported

An Israeli airstrike hit the Syrian city of Quneitra on Wednesday, killing one police officer and wounding another.

The strike occurred amid ongoing tensions between Israel and Syria. It is the latest in a series of cross-border hostilities. Israel has regularly targeted what it considers as Iranian and Hezbollah positions inside Syria,

Syria has repeatedly condemned the attacks, calling them violations of its sovereignty and territorial integrity. In contrast, Israel rarely acknowledged individual strikes, saying that its actions were aimed at preventing the entrenchment of Iranian forces near its borders.