Gaza Strip news and stories by mail.com

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Egypt police close Gaza border to protest kidnap
Dozens of disgruntled border policemen forced the closure of Egypt's main crossing point into the Gaza Strip on Friday to protest the abduction of ...
7 Egyptian security personnel abducted in Sinai
Suspected militants in Egypt's Sinai abducted seven security personnel as they headed to Cairo for holidays early Thursday, security officials said.
Turkish PM talks Syria with Obama at White House
President Barack Obama said Thursday that the U.S. and Turkey will keep ramping up pressure to oust Syrian President Bashar Assad from power, but ...
Palestinians mark their 1948 displacement
Tens of thousands of Palestinians marked the 65th anniversary of their mass displacement during the war over Israel's 1948 creation, marching in the ...
Critics assail Israeli silence on Arab peace plan
On the surface, the Arab League's improved peace initiative offers Israel everything it ever dreamed of — normal relations with an entire region that ...
Politics commandeer stage in Mideast TV contest
TV singing contests around the world tend to serve up light, glitzy entertainment with a dash of emotional drama. But in the Middle East's version of ...
Palestinians chose a new president, on reality TV
The Palestinians haven't elected a president since 2005, but now they are finally getting a chance to do so — virtually — thanks to a hit reality TV ...
Islamic cleric in Gaza rejects Israel's existence
A prominent Islamic scholar making a landmark visit to the Gaza Strip declared Thursday that Israel has no right to exist and voiced his support for ...
Israel moving ahead with new settler housing
Israel has given preliminary approval to build nearly 300 housing units in a West Bank settlement, a spokesman said Thursday, bringing a Palestinian ...
Israel releases top Muslim cleric in the Holy Land
Israeli police detained the top Muslim cleric in the Holy Land Wednesday in a rare crackdown on a leading religious figure, questioning him for ...
Disabled Gaza baby lives in Israel hospital
In his short life, Palestinian toddler Mohammed al-Farra has known just one home: the yellow-painted children's ward in Israel's Tel Hashomer hospital
Israel: Conflict over recognition, not territory
Israel's prime minister gave a cool reception Wednesday to a new Arab Mideast peace initiative, saying the conflict with the Palestinians isn't about ...
Israeli airstrike in Gaza kills 1 Palestinian
An Israeli aircraft attacked a motorcycle in Gaza on Tuesday, killing a top militant in a shadowy al-Qaida-influenced group who had been involved in ...
Israel responds to Gaza rocket fire with airstrike
Israel responded to rockets fired from the Gaza Strip with airstrikes on sites used by Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules the Palestinian ...
Prominent Muslim cleric to visit Gaza
The head of Gaza's Islamic affairs ministry says the prominent Muslim scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi will visit the Hamas-ruled territory in May. It's the ...
Israeli army to halt use of white phosphorus
Israel's army said Thursday that it would soon halt its use of white phosphorus shells after years of international criticism for using the incendiary ...
Israel, Turkey find way forward on flotilla money
In a step toward restoring ties, former allies Turkey and Israel agreed Monday on the "methods and principles" of working out compensation payments ...
Kerry pushes Turkey-Israel rapprochement
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday urged Turkey to speed up and cement an American-brokered rapprochement with Israel, and he explored with ...
Palestinians hold first Bethlehem marathon
Hundreds of people on Sunday took part in the West Bank's first marathon, looping around the biblical city of Bethlehem four times on a course that ...
Israeli official says drones could replace planes
Israel's air force is on track to developing drones that within four to five decades would carry out nearly every battlefield operation executed today ...
Israel: Gaza militants fired from Sinai last week
Israel's prime minister is accusing Gaza militants of carrying out a rocket attack from Egypt's Sinai desert on a southern Israeli resort last week.
Rockets fired at Eilat in southern Israel
Militants in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula fired at least two rockets at Israel's southern resort town of Eilat early Wednesday, officials said, ...
Outgoing Palestinian premier pleads for unity
The outgoing Palestinian prime minister is urging for new elections and says it's the only way to heal a bitter rift between the West Bank and Gaza ...
Israelis celebrate 65 years of independence
Israelis celebrated 65 years of independence on Tuesday, with over a million people pouring into national parks despite unusually blustery weather.
Israel at 65: Success still plagued by uncertainty
In 65 years, Israel has surpassed the dreams of its founders, emerging as the Middle East's strongest military force, a global high-tech powerhouse ...