May 14 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday Britain would accelerate its COVID-19 vaccination program, to try to contain a fast-spreading variant first identified in India that could knock a re-opening of the economy off track.

GAZA/JERUSALEM, May 14 (Reuters) - As the war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip lit up the skies and sent civilians running for cover for a fifth night running on Friday, diplomats stepped up efforts to try and end the violence.

WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday reiterated that it was working toward de-escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and a lasting peace in Gaza.

NAIROBI, May 14 (Reuters) - Ethiopia has revoked the press credentials of a foreign journalist working for the New York Times, according to the newspaper and an Ethiopian official.

ALGIERS, May 14 (Reuters) - Police dispersed a small protest in central Algiers on Friday and stopped other small groups of demonstrators from reaching the city center after weekly rallies since February that usually draw thousands.

WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - The United States is deeply concerned about increasing political and ethnic polarization throughout Ethiopia, the U.S. State Department said on Friday, adding that Washington will work with allies to secure a ceasefire in the Tigray region, provide assistance and hold human rights abusers accountable.

May 14 (Reuters) - Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas are waging their most intense conflict in years.

WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - The United States is deeply concerned about increasing political and ethnic polarization throughout Ethiopia, the U.S. State Department said on Friday, adding that Washington will work with allies to secure a ceasefire in the Tigray region, provide assistance and hold human rights abusers accountable.

BAMAKO, May 14 (Reuters) - Mali's prime minister Moctar Ouane resigned and was reinstated on Friday in a formality required before forming a new government, the office of transitional president Bah Ndaw said.