BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union agreed on Tuesday to freeze assets of Islamist militants and their financial backers even if they are not on U.N. blacklists, an initiative advanced by France after deadly attacks in Paris, Brussels and Nice.

GENEVA, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The United Nations asked in vain for warring sides in Syria to stop air strikes targetting an aid convoy, the U.N. Syria and regional humanitarian coordinators Massimo Diana and Kevin Kennedy said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

LONDON (Reuters) - British police said on Tuesday they had charged two people with terrorism offences, including a woman accused of encouraging others to commit a terrorist offense in connection with a publication linked to a Turkish militant group.

TEHRAN, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Iran has reduced the number of airplanes it plans to buy from Airbus by six amid delays in U.S. regulatory approvals, and may knock one plane off a similar deal for more than 100 with Boeing, an Iranian official told Reuters.

BEIRUT, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Surveillance aircraft circled in the sky during the hours before a United Nations aid convoy was struck by warplanes on Monday, killing relief workers and destroying 18 trucks of humanitarian supplies, several witnesses said.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's defense industry faces layoffs, closures and a scramble to set up shop in the United States following the signing of a new U.S. military aid package that phases out Israel's ability to spend a quarter of the funds on its own businesses.

MOSCOW, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The Russian Defence Ministry on Tuesday rejected assertions that an aid convoy near Aleppo had been shelled or struck from the air the previous day, saying it had caught fire instead.

MANILA (Reuters) - A Saudi Arabian Airlines plane was temporarily isolated after landing at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Tuesday following a false hijack alarm, airline and airport officials said.