A Goldman Sachs banker has launched a withering attack on the bank in a newspaper column announcing his resignation, saying that some managing directors at the Wall Street firm had referred to their own clients as “muppets”.

With less than a month to go before Israel plans its historic withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she will talk to both Israeli and Palestinian leaders about preserving hopes for peace and stability.

An Israeli helicopter missile attack today killed a Hamas terror group commander who was planning a ‘‘massive attack’’ on the Jewish Olympics, said military sources.

A bomb exploded at a rail station in northern Israel tonight, killing at least one person and injuring five.