Hamas has said that the Gaza war has put an end to chances of negotiations with Israel, calling on Arabs to pressure Tel Aviv to cease its attacks on the Gaza Strip. In a televised speech on Saturday, Khaled Meshaal, the exiled-Hamas political leader, said Israel’s offensive on Gaza, which has killed more than 850 [...]

Doctors in Gaza City have told Al Jazeera that people have been admitted suffering burns consistent with the use of the controversial chemical white phosphorus. Human rights campaigners say that Israeli forces have used the munition, which can burn away human flesh to the bone, over Gaza City and Jabaliya in recent days. Al Jazeera’s [...]

Israel has begun sending reserve units into the Gaza Strip as the military continues to pound the territory for the 16th consecutive day. The move came amid some of the most intense fighting since the ground offensive began on January 3, with Palestinian fighters putting up stiff resistance to the Israeli advance around Gaza City. [...]

The only time Chelsea got the better of Manchester United on Sunday was when the visiting fans serenaded Patrice Evra, the champions’ full-back returning from suspension after scrapping with a Bridge groundsman, with “10 men went to mow’’, an old favourite. Otherwise, this was a soul-destroying, possibly season-destroying afternoon for the Blues. United were so [...]

France’s President Sarkozy also said he would visit the region in a bid to end the crisis, which has seen five days of Israeli raids and Hamas rocket fire. Earlier, Israeli PM Ehud Olmert rejected calls for a 48-hour truce to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to pull [...]

Israel has defied a formidable international consensus in favour of a ceasefire in Gaza by opting to continue its unprecedentedly fierce air attacks on Hamas targets and stepping up preparations for a possible ground offensive. As the security cabinet rejected an EU-backed French proposal for a 48-hour humanitarian halt to the bombing, Prime Minister Ehud [...]

At least 59 people died in a fire thought to have been started by an indoor fireworks display at a Bangkok nightclub during New Year’s Eve celebrations. Nearly 200 others were injured in the blaze at the upmarket Santika nightclub, which is popular with foreign tourists and was full to its 1,000-person capacity. It is [...]