It says much about Benjamin Netanyahu's world class political skills that no one outside his circle had advance knowledge of the bold stroke by which he brought the centrist opposition Kadima party into the Israeli government in the early hours of Tuesday.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, has signalled he might call an early election – a decision that could put Middle East peace efforts on hold for months and cast more uncertainty on Israel's deliberations over whether to attack Iran's nuclear programme.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu overruled the planned eviction on Tuesday of Jewish settlers from a building in an occupied West Bank city that is flashpoint of tensions with Palestinians.

Anthony Shadid, a distinguished Middle Eastern correspondent who has died suddenly, was taken ill while returning from Syria after spending a week there without the knowledge of the authorities. He died of an asthma attack as he was being guided back to Turkey by smugglers after a New York Times undercover assignment.

Seven children and a teacher were killed yesterday when a truck lost control in rainy weather and crashed into a school bus.

Khader Adnan's two-month hunger strike has made him a hero among Palestinians outraged by Israel's policy of arbitrary detention

A Palestinian prisoner who human rights organisations say may be "approaching death" after 58 days on hunger strike has lost his appeal against an order holding him for four months without trial.

President Sarkozy was correct when he commented that the "eurozone crisis" was mainly a banking crisis. Your article "Greek rescue blocked by hedge fund greed" (18 January) confirms this. However, the situation is far, far worse than you describe. There is just one question to ask: cui bono – who benefits?

The Natural History Museum is today accused by a coalition of prominent academics and cultural figures of helping to break international law by leading a research project which involves an Israeli cosmetics company based in an “illegal” settlement in the occupied West Bank.

Israel's foreign ministry denied that Israeli settlers were taking water resources from the West Bank

Yaffa Yarkoni, a singer who belted out wartime songs only to become a critic of the Israeli military late in life, died yesterday aged 86. She had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease for many years.

Three people were injured and six arrested yesterday in clashes between protesters and Israeli troops after the funeral of a Palestinian demonstrator killed on Friday.

Local Palestinian residents and Israeli troops clashed today after the funeral of a 28-year-old demonstrator, whose death from wounds inflicted by a tear gas canister fired at short range by an Israeli soldier, is now the subject of a military police investigation.