UNITED NATIONS: A crisis over new Israeli security measures at a Jerusalem holy site must be resolved by Friday to avoid an escalation of violence, the UN envoy to the Middle East warned Monday.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday denounced as “excessive” the use of force by Israeli security forces in deadly clashes over sensitive Jerusalem holy site. “I condemn Israel’s insistence on its position despite all warnings… and the excessive use of force by Israeli forces against our brothers gathered for Friday prayers,” he said in…

JERUSALEM: Six people were killed on Friday in the bloodiest spate of Israeli-Palestinian violence for years, prompted by new security Israeli measures at Jerusalem’s holiest site. Three Israelis were stabbed to death in a Jewish settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, hours after three Palestinians were killed in violence prompted by Israel’s installation of metal…

JERUSALEM: When Muslim elders called for a “Day of Rage” on Friday to protest at new Israeli security measures at Jerusalem’s holiest site, photographer Ammar Awad knew where he had to be. A native of Jerusalem who has covered the city for Reuters for 17 years, Awad headed to Ras al-Amud, directly across the valley…

JERUSALEM: Israel barred access of Muslim men under 50 to Al-Aqsa mosque compound on Friday and deployed some 3,000 policemen near the site amidst expected protest over security measures. The move came after Israel’s security cabinet decided not to remove the metal detectors installed at the entrances to the Haram al-Sharif compound, known to Jews…

RAMALLAH: Palestinian religious and political figures have denounced the ongoing closure of Al-Aqsa mosque compound, calling it a violation of their religious freedoms, reported Al Jazeera. Al-Aqsa remained closed on Saturday, a day after a deadly shooting attack outside an entrance to the holy site in occupied East Jerusalem. “There is no excuse for the…

NEWS DESK: A senior Palestinian cleric denounced Israel’s closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque following a rare gun attack, calling the measures ‘collective punishment’ that affects thousands of worshippers, reported Al Jazeera. Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, the former grand Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestinian territories, said on Saturday that Israeli authorities have barred clerics from entering the…

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Benjamin Netanyahu Wednesday on the first ever visit by an Indian premier to Israel as they sought to deepen ties beyond high-priced defence deals. The two leaders presented a series of agreements between India and Israel for cooperation on satellite technology, water and agriculture, as well as…

KARACHI: The trend #DeleteIsrael has been one of the top trends on social media website Twitter ahead of Al-Quds Day, which will be observed on Friday (tomorrow). Users of social media Twitter are using the trend to express their anger and condemn the Israeli occupation of Palestine and Bait-ul-Muqaddas. Select Israel + Shift + Delete#DeleteIsrael…

JERUSALEM: By using famous authors, including the winners of three Pulitzers and a Nobel, they were aiming to “sort of trick” people “into paying attention to the occupation by baiting the trap, in a way, with the work of a really amazing writer”. Proceeds from the book will go to Breaking the Silence, an NGO…

Palestinians called for a boycott of Pizza Hut on Tuesday after the company’s franchise in Israel was accused of mocking hunger-striking prisoners. The franchise’s Facebook page was said to have shared an image released by Israeli police which appears to show Palestinian hunger-strike leader Marwan Barghouti secretly breaking his fast. “Barghouti, if you are going…

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said Tuesday he was ready to meet Israel’s prime minister as part of peace efforts by Donald Trump, who is expected to visit the Palestinian territories “soon”. The US president is expected in Israel later this month as part of his first foreign trip and Abbas said “we are looking forward…

By: Gulrukh Tausif We often talk about the negative impact of social media, Hollywood/Bollywood movies or video games on our children but we forget that children are exposed to a lot of violence many times a day through television, newspapers and the Internet. It has become quite a norm for news channels to air detailed…

Deir Hanna: Thousands of Arab Israelis and Palestinians gathered Thursday for annual demonstrations marking Land Day, which commemorates 1976 protests in which six people were killed by Israel. A few thousand protesters raised the Palestinian flag and chanted slogans at a protest in Deir Hanna in northern Israel. Smaller protests occurred in Gaza and parts…

SWEIMEH: A draft statement to be put to an Arab summit Wednesday opposes plans by President Donald Trump to move Washington’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and consider alternatives to a Palestinian state. The draft, which was drawn up by the Palestinian delegation, was approved by Arab foreign ministers at an eve-of-summit meeting in the…

JERUSALEM: An Israeli policeman caught on video beating up a Palestinian truck driver in east Jerusalem on Thursday was suspended from his post, police said. The policeman, in the video widely circulated on social media, curses the driver, headbutts him, hits him in the face and kicks him in the legs. Other Palestinians are seen…

UNITED NATIONS: US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has told rights groups that the United States will quit the UN Human Rights Council unless it undergoes “considerable reform,” according to a letter obtained by AFP on Wednesday.

NEW YORK: A U.N. agency published a report on Wednesday accusing Israel of imposing an “apartheid regime” of racial discrimination on the Palestinian people, and said it was the first time a U.N. body had clearly made the charge.

If we talk about peace and security, the world is divided into two parts where in one part a man wakes up and learns that his kids are in school while his wife has left for shopping. He freshens up to go out for his work. He doesn’t have to worry about not being able to…

The idea of a Palestinian state existing alongside Israel has been the basis of decades of international efforts to end the conflict. After new US President Donald Trump’s administration said it is no longer wedded to the so-called two-state solution, here are some questions and answers about the idea and the possible alternatives. – Which…

President Mamnoon Hussain welcoming President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas upon his arrival at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, Islamabad on 31-01-2017. ISLAMABAD: President Mamnoon Hussain and President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas Tuesday stressed the need for early and just resolution of Palestine and Kashmir issues for peace and prosperity in the region….