U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry took a risky gamble facing derision and much skepticism when he flew to Russia last week for the first time in two years to meet President Vladimir Putin.

But his bet may be beginning to pay off, as two top American diplomats were welcomed in Moscow on Monday for top-level talks for the first time in months on two crises bedeviling global affairs -- Ukraine and Syria.

The Islamic State group's seizure of Ramadi represents a painful blow to the U.S.-led war against the jihadists, raising fresh doubts about Washington's war strategy and the military strength of its partners in Iraq.

The defeat of Iraqi security forces in the capital of Anbar province came despite more than 160 air strikes by U.S. and coalition warplanes over the past month, and after an elaborate effort starting last year to arm and train Baghdad government troops and Sunni tribesmen.

Syria has accused Jordan of training "terrorists" on its soil and urged the U.N. Security council to force an end to Amman's backing of rebel groups.

The accusation came in a letter sent Monday by the foreign ministry to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the president of the U.N. Security Council, the official news agency SANA said.

Electricity generation in Syria has dropped by 56 percent since the civil war began in March 2011, the pro-government al-Watan newspaper reported on Monday.

"The production of electricity was at 22 billion kilowatts in 2014, compared to nearly 50 billion kilowatts in 2011 -- which is a 56 percent decrease in the last four years of war," electricity ministry official Nassuh Semsmieh told the paper. 

The Islamic State jihadist group seized two gas fields Monday northeast of Syria's ancient Palmyra, a day after firing rockets into the city and killing five people, a monitor said.

The Al-Hail and Arak gas fields, 40 and 25 kilometers (25 and 15 miles) respectively from Palmyra, were vital for the regime's generation of electricity for areas under its control, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

A Turkish court on Sunday remanded in custody seven serving soldiers accused over the interception last year of an alleged consignment of arms bound for Syria, state media said.

Following police raids in previous days, a total of 10 soldiers appeared before the Istanbul criminal court, the Anatolia news agency reported.

Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil kicked off a tour on Sunday in South Lebanon, where he called on the Lebanese military to assume its responsibility in the northeastern border town of Arsal.

“The mistakes that were done in Arsal shouldn't reoccur and the cabinet and the army should assume their responsibilities and not become spectators,” Bassil said from the Hasbaya region.

A U.S. special forces raid in eastern Syria killed 32 members of the Islamic State jihadist group, including four leaders, a monitoring group said Sunday.

"The U.S. operation killed 32 members of IS, among them four officials, including IS oil chief Abu Sayyaf, the deputy IS defense minister, and an IS communications official," said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The Lebanese army targeted on Sunday militant posts in the outskirts of the northeastern border town of Arsal, the state-run National News Agency reported.

According to the news agency, troops targeted militants positions and movements with with mortar shells and rocket-propelled grenades.

Syrian troops pushed Islamic State group jihadists back from the ancient city of Palmyra on Sunday, easing fears over the world heritage site, after fighting that left hundreds dead.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said nearly 300 people have been killed in four days of fighting since IS launched an assault on the desert oasis city on Wednesday.