By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is weighing a deployment of up to 1,000 American soldiers to Kuwait to serve as a reserve force in the fight against Islamic State as U.S.-backed fighters accelerate the offensive in Syria and Iraq, U.S. officials told Reuters.

By Matt Spetalnick and David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Faced with a growing test of resolve for a new U.S. president who vowed while campaigning to get tough on North Korea, Donald Trump's aides are pressing to complete a strategy review on how to counter Pyongyang's missile and nuclear threats.

By Praveen Menon and Ju-min Park KUALA LUMPUR/SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea barred Malaysians from leaving the country on Tuesday, prompting Malaysia to take tit-for-tat action, as police in Kuala Lumpur sought to question up to three men hiding in the North Korean embassy over the murder of Kim Jong Nam.

By Ju-min Park and Kaori Kaneko SEOUL/TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korea fired four ballistic missiles into the sea off Japan's northwest coast early on Monday, South Korean and Japanese officials said, days after the reclusive state promised retaliation over U.S.-South Korea military drills it sees as a preparation for war.

By Christian Shepherd and Philip Wen BEIJING (Reuters) - China pledged more support to its military on Sunday including strengthening maritime and air defenses amid efforts to safeguard sovereignty, but in a highly unusual move did not give spending figures for 2017 despite promises of transparency.

By Maher Chmaytelli and Isabel Coles BAGHDAD/ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - The number of civilians escaping the fighting in Mosul has increased significantly as battles intensify between U.S.-backed Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants, and some have been exposed to chemical agents, the Red Cross said on Friday.

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army said on Thursday it had recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra from Islamic State for the second time in a year, with help from allied forces and Russian warplanes. Islamic State seized Palmyra in a surprise advance in December, after having been driven out eight months before.

By Julia Edwards Ainsley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s promise to use existing funds to begin immediate construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border has hit a financial roadblock, according to a document seen by Reuters.

By Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Tuesday reaffirmed support for the United States' longstanding security alliances around the world but insisted that friends and partners from Europe to the Middle East to the Pacific must “pay their fair share of the cost.”

By Stephen Kalin and Isabel Coles SOUTH OF MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi forces seized a damaged Mosul bridge on Monday which could link up their units on either side of the Tigris river, as thousands of civilians fled the fighting for Islamic State's remaining stronghold in the west of the city. U.S.