The Palestinian athletics coach Mousa Qadoum was so overcome by emotion upon entering the al-Aqsa mosque yesterday that he collapsed into silent tears.

Israel deported a Palestinian man to Gaza even though he faced almost certain execution there if caught by Hamas, which has charged him with spying for Israel, the man's lawyer said.

Water cannon would be valuable to police forces across England and Wales in a bid to avoid a return of last summer's rioting, a review said today.

Israeli air strikes today killed five Palestinians, including a father and his daughter, as Gaza-based militants fired dozens of rockets into Israel’s south for a fourth consecutive day.

Israeli air strikes killed a 12-year-old boy and two other Palestinians in the Gaza Strip today as militants fired fresh volleys of rockets at southern Israel on the third day of violence triggered by the killing of a militant leader.

The worst exchange of strikes between Israel and the Gaza Strip so far this year entered its second day today, as Israeli aircraft carried out raids that have so far killed 14 militants according to a Palestinian count, and militants responded with nearly 100 rockets.

An Israeli airstrike in Gaza killed the commander of the militant group behind the abduction of Gilad Schalit, an Israeli soldier who was held captive for more than five years and freed in a prisoner swap for more than 1,000 Palestinians.

It's late afternoon and in a room darkening due to an all-too-familiar power cut, Shaden Shabwan, 10, plays a Czech folk tune on a Yamaha piano as her teacher wills her to avoid mistakes.

As prime minister of Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh is one of the world's most controversial politicians. He talks to Evgeny Lebedev about the Arab Spring, suicide bombing, the Israeli blockade - and the elusive prospect of peace.

Palestinians plan diplomatic blitz to increase pressure on Israel over peace talks

Tributes were paid today to a "committed" Red Cross worker who died after being attacked on Christmas Day while on holiday in Sri Lanka.

The Palestinian conflict is a perennially fashionable cause, endlessly dissected by intellectuals. The turmoil rolls on with no resolution in prospect, creating an ever-widening diaspora of refugees. This is a tale of a fictional family: five Mujaheds, all bound up in the tragedy.

Hundreds of Christians, defying lashing rain and wind, filled the ancient Bethlehem church that marks Jesus's traditional birthplace for Christmas Day Mass today.

Tens of thousands of tourists and Christian pilgrims packed the West Bank town of Bethlehem for Christmas Eve celebrations Saturday, bringing warm holiday cheer to the traditional birthplace of Jesus on a raw, breezy and rainy night.