U.N., aid workers condemn air strike on civilians in Yemen; NEWS BRIEFING; Staff and news services; Bus crashes into vehicles on L.A. freeway, injuring 13 ; Israeli Supreme Court will hear U.S. student’s appeal for entry; Officials: Taliban attack Afghan soldiers, killing 17, abducting 11; Congress faces postelection border wall battle; Jordan, Syria plan to reopen vital border crossing

CAIRO - The United Nations and humanitarian workers on Sunday condemned an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition targeting Yemen's Shiite rebels that reportedly killed at least 15 civilians near the port city of Hodeida.

Video footage released by the rebels, known as Houthis, showed a mangled minibus littered with groceries and a woman's handbag, with rebel officials saying a day earlier that the airstrike in the Jebel Ras area had also wounded 20 others.

The Houthis said that five members of the same family were killed in the vehicle, adding that many women and children were among the casualties. Eyewitnesses who declined to be named for fear of their safety said that the attack appeared to target a rebel checkpoint in the area.

"The United Nations agencies working in Yemen unequivocally condemn the attack on civilians and extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims," said Lise Grande, the U.N.'s Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen.

"Under international humanitarian law, parties to the conflict are obliged to respect the principles of precaution, proportionality and distinction," said Grande. "Belligerents must do everything possible to protect civilians - not hurt, maim, injure or kill them," she added.

The United Nations in Yemen says that since June, more than 170 people have been killed and at least 1,700 have been injured in Hodeida province.

The Norwegian Refugee Council also condemned the attack, calling such strikes on Yemeni civilians "unacceptable" acts that have taken on a chillingly regular frequency.

Bus crashes into vehicles on L.A. freeway, injuring 13

LOS ANGELES - Authorities say a bus on a Los Angeles highway plowed into other vehicles and crashed through a concrete divider, injuring at least 13 people.

Fire Department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart says four people are in serious condition following the crash Sunday afternoon on Interstate 405 in the city's San Fernando Valley area. Stewart says six people were in fair condition.

City News Service reports it was difficult for paramedics to reach the scene because of multiple chain-reaction collisions.

Most of the wreckage was in southbound lanes but at least one crashed vehicle was on the northbound side.

All of the highway's lanes were closed, backing up traffic for miles on the key north-south artery.

Officials say the identities of the victims were not immediately available.

Israeli Supreme Court will hear U.S. student's appeal for entry

JERUSALEM - Israel's Supreme Court on Sunday agreed to hear the appeal of an American graduate student who is fighting an expulsion order over her involvement in the boycott movement against Israel.

Lara Alqasem has been held in detention since arriving in the country on Oct. 2 with a valid student visa. She will be allowed to remain in the country pending the appeal, scheduled for Wednesday, her lawyers said.

Alqasem, 22, turned to the high court after a lower court on Friday rejected her appeal to stay in the country. She will remain in detention pending her appeal, her lawyers said.

Israel says the Florida native, continues to promote the boycott movement against Israel. She has argued that she is no longer active.

Officials: Taliban attack Afghan soldiers, killing 17, abducting 11

KABUL, Afghanistan - The Taliban have attacked an army base in western Afghanistan, killing 17 Afghan soldiers and abducting 11 others, officials said Sunday.

Ghausuddin Noorzai, the district chief in Pusht Rod, said four soldiers were wounded in the attack, which began late Saturday and continued into Sunday morning. He said the Taliban also overran two checkpoints near the base, seizing weapons and ammunition.

The Taliban claimed the attack, the latest in their near-daily assaults on Afghan security forces.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a young girl was killed and three others were wounded in crossfire during a battle between Afghan forces and the Taliban in the western Herat province, according to a spokesman for provincial governor.

Congress faces postelection border wall battle

WASHINGTON - Congress is heading toward a postelection showdown over President Donald Trump's wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, as GOP leaders signal they're willing to engage in hardball tactics that could spark a partial government shutdown and the president revs up midterm crowds for the wall, a centerpiece of his 2016 campaign.

Trump is promising voters at rallies across the country - which echo those that propelled him to office two years ago - that Republicans will bring tougher border security. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., promised a "big fight" over the border wall money, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has not ruled out a mini-shutdown.

"Right after the election we're doing something very strong on the wall," Trump said.

Jordan, Syria plan to reopen vital border crossing

Jordan and Syria agreed Sunday to reopen a vital border crossing between the two countries, three years after the commercial lifeline fell to rebel groups and traffic was halted.

Jordan government spokeswoman Jumana Ghunaimat said the Naseeb crossing would be opened Monday after operational details are agreed upon, according to the Jordanian Petra news agency.

Syria's Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar also confirmed the crossing's reopening, according to Syria's state news agency.

The two governments had earlier issued conflicting reports of when the crossing would open.

The crossing's reopening would bring major relief to President Bashar Assad's government by restoring a much-needed gateway for Syrian exports to Arab countries.

In Texas: An argument at a toddler's birthday party in South Texas escalated into a shooting that left four men dead and a fifth man wounded, authorities said Sunday. The shooting happened Saturday in Taft, 12 miles north of Corpus Christi, police said. Authorities did not say what the men were arguing about.

In Turkey: At least 22 migrants, including children, have been killed in a truck accident Sunday, Turkey's official news agency said. The Anadolu news agency said the migrants were traveling in a truck that rolled over off a bridge. Thirteen people were injured in the crash and were being treated in nearby hospitals.

Caption: You gotta be into your gourd: Participants in the 20th annual Windsor-West Hants Pumpkin Festival regatta paddle pumpkins Sunday on Lake Pisiquid in Windsor, Nova Scotia. Racers hollow out the massive gourds and pilot them across an 875-yard course.

Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press