JERUSALEM - Israel’s Prime Minister has avoided a split with a major coalition partner and possible dissolution of his government in a deal that could end his own political career in three months. The political developments came as a shaky cease-fire in Gaza showed more signs of unraveling.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reached a last-minute deal […]

JERUSALEM - An Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire has taken effect in the Gaza Strip. 
After months of Palestinian rocket barrages and Israeli army raids, the guns in and around the Gaza Strip have fallen silent. The ceasefire between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, that rules Gaza, is supposed to last for six months. If it holds, […]

JERUSALEM - Palestinian and Egyptian officials say Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas have reached a cease-fire agreement that will go into effect in Gaza on Thursday. Israel would not confirm the deal, but said a negotiator was rushing to Cairo to finalize details. 
Under the emerging, Egyptian-mediated truce Palestinians would halt rocket and mortar […]

JERUSALEM - Israel has announced plans to build 1,300 new homes for Jewish settlers in the disputed eastern sector of Jerusalem.
Israeli officials said Friday the new homes will be built in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood.
Palestinian officials condemned the project, saying it shows the Israeli government wants to destroy peace.
The internationally-backed “road map” for peace between […]

JERUSALEM - Israel is threatening to invade the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
Returning home from Washington, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel is considering a major military offensive in Gaza.
“At this moment the pendulum is swinging closer to military action in Gaza than anything else,” Mr. Olmert said.
He was responding to a Palestinian mortar attack Thursday that […]

JERUSALEM - Israel’s Housing Minister, Zeev Boim, is scheduled to announce later Sunday plans for the construction of nearly 900 more homes for Israelis in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of their future state.
Ministry spokesman Eran Sidis said today the government will invite tenders for 121 housing units in Har Homa (Jebal […]

JERUSALEM  - Israel’s defense minister has repeated a demand for the Palestinian militant group Hamas to release an Israeli soldier before reaching a truce in the Gaza Strip.Ehud Barak made the comment Monday in Egypt after meeting with President Hosni Mubarak.
Israel has repeatedly called for the captured soldier, Gilad Shalit, to be freed as part […]

JERUSALEM - Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak is set to meet Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to discuss a proposed truce between the Jewish state and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Barak is expected to meet Mr. Mubarak and Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman Monday in the Egyptian town of Sharm el-Sheikh.
A Hamas delegation headed by former […]

JERUSALEM - A senior Israeli official has warned of a growing military threat from the Gaza Strip, which is ruled by the Islamic militant group Hamas.
Public Security Minister Avi Dichter says half-a-million Israelis could soon be within the range of Palestinian rockets fired from Gaza, up from 200,000 today. Dichter told Israel Radio that Hamas […]

JERUSALEM - A rocket fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip struck a shopping mall in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon late Wednesday, wounding at least 14 people, some severely. The attack took place as President Bush was holding talks with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem.  
The rocket slammed into a shopping mall […]

JERUSALEM - Israelis from all walks of life celebrated their country’s 60th anniversary with military parades, musical concerts and the favorite Israeli Independence Day pastime: barbeques. The celebrations took place as Israeli intelligence services warned of about a dozen terrorist threats against the Jewish state - a reminder that 60 years after it declared Independence, […]

JERUSALEM - One of the most dramatic events of the 20th century was the founding of the modern state of Israel 60 years ago. On Israel’s 60th birthday many Israelis say they feel more secure and confident about their future than they have in years.   
Ben Yehuda Street is a relaxed place these days.  Strollers take […]

JERUSALEM - Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni indicated Sunday Israel may uproot some of its West Bank settlements as part of a peace accord with the Palestinians. Livni spoke at the start of a meeting Sunday with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. 
Palestinians have bitterly complained about recent Israeli moves to add housing units […]

JERUSALEM - The Palestinian Authority has launched a new security initiative in the West Bank. The move, which coincides with a U.S. peace mission to the Middle East, has been met with Israeli skepticism.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas deployed his police forces in the West Bank town of Jenin on Saturday.
More than 500 officers in new […]

JERUSALEM - Israel is holding a somber annual observance in memory of the Holocaust. 
Holocaust Remembrance Day began at sundown with a solemn ceremony attended by Israeli officials, Holocaust survivors and foreign dignitaries. They gathered at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem to reflect on one of the darkest chapters in Jewish history.
Flags were lowered […]

JERUSALEM - Israel has dismissed a six-month truce proposal from the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
An Israeli government spokesman, David Baker, Friday suggested Hamas was only offering a cease-fire in order to recover and re-arm following recent fighting.
Hamas officials told Egyptian mediators Thursday that they would agree to a six-month truce in the Gaza strip, followed […]

JERUSALEM - At least one Palestinian has been killed and at least three wounded in Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip. The violence occurred amid efforts for a ceasefire.  
An Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a group of Palestinian militants in southern Gaza. The army said the gunmen were spotted as they approached Israeli […]

JERUSALEM - Three Hamas militants have been killed and 13 Israeli soldiers wounded in a daring Palestinian attack on Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip. The attack is raising tension as Israel celebrates a major Jewish holiday.  
Under cover of fog, Palestinian militants rammed two military style vehicles packed with explosives into an Israeli cargo crossing […]

JERUSALEM - Israel has condemned the meeting between former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and the exiled leader of the Islamic militant group Hamas in Damascus.
The Israeli government believes former President Carter’s meeting with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal harms the global war on terrorism and the Middle East peace process. Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, […]

JERUSALEM - Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter is getting a cold reception in Israel. Mr. Carter is perceived as having a strong anti-Israel bias.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and his foreign minister have snubbed Mr. Carter and are refusing to meet with him. They are angry that the former president compares Israeli policies to apartheid and […]

JERUSALEM - Israel has launched a major civil defense exercise amid fears of war.
Israel is conducting a five-day home-front security drill to prepare for the possibility of a major terrorist attack, war or natural disaster. Schools, hospitals and government offices are involved in the drill, which includes preparation for a missile attack with nuclear, chemical […]

JERUSALEM - Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday said peace talks with the Palestinians will continue, but he ruled out any talks with Hamas militants who control the Gaza Strip.
Speaking to an annual gathering of foreign journalists in Jerusalem, Mr. Olmert repeated that he is committed to reaching the outline of a peace agreement […]

JERUSALEM - Christians around the world are celebrating Easter Sunday, marking the resurrection of Jesus. 
Christians celebrated Easter Sunday at sunrise in Jerusalem.
Thousands of pilgrims converged on the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City, where priests in festive red robes celebrated Easter Mass.
A cloud of incense rose above the ancient stone tomb, located […]

JERUSALEM - United States Vice President Dick Cheney is in Israel, the latest stop on a Middle East tour.
Vice President Dick Cheney went right into a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. The Vice President began with a message of reassurance.
“The United States will never pressure Israel to take steps that threaten its security,” […]

JERUSALEM - Christians in Jerusalem are observing Good Friday.
Thousands of pilgrims from around the world crowded the narrow cobblestone streets of Jerusalem’s walled Old City for the traditional Good Friday procession. Some of them carried large wooden crosses on their shoulders as they walked along the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Sorrows, the route that […]