Hamas, the largest Palestinian militant group said today it would not go back to all-out war against Israel, even after Israeli missiles killed one of its top gunmen.

Israeli missiles hit a car in the Gaza Strip, killing two top militants, drawing threats of reprisals and further compromising Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ’ efforts to restore calm and take control of the volatile seaside territory.

ISRAELI Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said yesterday Iran intends to destroy the Jewish state, and the international community must rally quickly to stop it.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said today that Iran intends to destroy the Jewish state, and that the international community must rally quickly to stop it.

Israel is to close the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt until further notice, officials said today, after proposing new arrangements that could include movement of Palestinians in and out of Gaza under the supervision of foreign inspectors without an Israeli presence.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom today said the Israeli army could complete its pullout of Gaza as early as next Monday, three days ahead of schedule.

EGYPTIAN president Hosni Mubarak plans to visit Israel in November, an Israeli official said yesterday, in what would be just his second visit to the Jewish state.

A mysterious blast after nightfall tonight levelled a building in Gaza City, killing four people and wounding at least 30, residents and hospital officials said.

The foreign ministers of Israel and Pakistan, a Muslim country that has long taken a hard line against the Jewish state, met publicly for the first time today, a diplomatic breakthrough that follows Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been on his way to a London hotel near the scene of one of the four blasts that ripped through the city today, said Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.

Israel was not warned about possible terror attacks in London before at least six blasts ripped through the city, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said today.

Israel must withdraw from the Gaza Strip, no matter how well Islamic militants do in Palestinian parliament elections a month before the pullout, Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz said today.

Israel’s evacuation of 21 Jewish settlements from the Gaza Strip will begin in mid-August, a month later than planned, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said today, citing a religious mourning period but raising doubts about Israel’s readiness for the evacuation and even its resolve in carrying it out.

Israeli deputy prime minister Shimon Peres said today the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip would not start, as initially planned, in the second half of July.

Israel intends to hand over the West Bank town of Tulkarem to Palestinian control this week, officials on both sides said, marking the resumption of confidence-building measures halted after a suicide bombing killed five Israelis in Tel Aviv.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today began a two-day mission to talk to Israeli and Palestinian leaders about the peace process.

Israel is “discouraged” by interim Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas’ refusal to distance himself from the legacy of Yasser Arafat, Israel’s Foreign Minister said in remarks published today, the strongest Israeli criticism of Palestinian policies since Arafat’s death.

Israel’s foreign minister offered peace talks to the Palestinians and Syria if they moved against violence, endorsing the US-backed “road map” peace plan again after a year of going it alone.

Israel and the European Union have agreed plans to forge closer ties on everything from fighting terrorism to promoting free trade as part of the EU’s efforts to strengthen relations with nearby countries.

ISRAELI leaders told US Secretary of State Colin Powell yesterday that they will do their utmost to allow Palestinian elections to take place, including easing travel restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell made a new push toward Mideast peace today, promising Palestinians full support for their elections to replace Yasser Arafat and receiving Israeli assurances of a smooth path to the ballot box.

Israel will do “everything in its power” to enable Palestinian elections to take place, Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said today, after meeting with outgoing US Secretary of State Colin Powell.

ISRAEL yesterday offered its first indication it was reassessing relations with the Palestinians after Yasser Arafat’s death.

Marwan Barghouti, a Palestinian uprising leader jailed by Israel who is perhaps the strongest candidate to oust Yasser Arafat’s old guard of politicians, will run in presidential elections, a close aide said today.

ISRAELI Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday that Yasser Arafat’s death could be a turning point for peacemaking but he would pursue a plan that would strip Palestinians of some land they want for a state.

Israel has ruled out releasing jailed Marwan Barghouti, a leading Palestinian figure who is widely seen as the strongest candidate to succeed Yasser Arafat.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is in intensive care undergoing a new round of tests today after his still-unexplained condition took a sudden turn for the worse.

Yasser Arafat’s health has deteriorated significantly, Palestinian officials said tonight.

Ailing Yasser Arafat performed Muslim prayers before dawn today, but his condition remains serious and a team of doctors flying in from Arab countries will decide whether he needs to be transferred from his compound to a hospital.

Yasser Arafat’s expulsion is ”closer than ever,” the Israeli foreign minister warned today, as eight Palestinians were killed and more than wounded in clashes with troops in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Yasser Arafat’s expulsion is “closer than ever”, the Israeli foreign minister warned today. Silvan Shalom said the Palestinian leader has no place in the region.

YOUR photo of Sonia O’Sullivan in tears after the women’s 5000 metres in Athens was a highly insensitive piece of journalism (Irish Examiner, August 24).

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said yesterday that Israel's West Bank separation barrier violates international law, during a visit to the Jewish state.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom told the White House on Friday that Iran was trying to develop longer-range missiles that could pose a threat to European nations.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat will not be allowed to leave his West Bank headquarters “for the next 45 years”, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said today.

PRIME Minister Ariel Sharon will ask his Cabinet to vote on his newly revised Gaza withdrawal plan the evacuation of just three small settlements in hopes of securing the support of undecided ministers.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will ask his Cabinet to vote only on the first stage of his Gaza new withdrawal plan – the evacuation of three small settlements – in hopes of securing the support of undecided ministers, officials said today.

Israel accused the European Union of siding with Arabs in the Mideast conflict in harsh exchanges at a meeting in Dublin today intended to promote peace.

Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom mounted a justification of the West Bank security fence today, saying his country had no alternative.

Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen has met his Israeli counterpart, Silvan Shalom, in Dublin this morning.

Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen is due to meet his Israeli counterpart, Silvan Shalom, in Dublin this morning.

Israeli workers started removing a section of the West Bank separation barrier today, a day before the world court begins a hearing on the legality of the structure.

Charly Wegman, Jerusalem

PRIME Minister Ariel Sharon has ordered a review of Israel’s West Bank separation barrier, it emerged yesterday.