Israel Katz

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron urged the G7 Wednesday to adopt new "coordinated sanctions" against Iran after its weekend attack on Israel, ahead of a meeting with counterparts from the Western-led grouping in Italy.

Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, issued a stark warning to Iran, asserting that Israel would retaliate with a direct military strike if attacked from Iranian territory. The threat comes amidst escalating tensions between the two nations following a recent airstrike on Iran's consulate in Syria, which claimed the lives of several high-ranking Iranian officials.

Israel was on alert Thursday after its arch-foe Iran threatened reprisals over a strike in Syria this month that killed two Iranian generals, and as the war against Hamas ground on in Gaza.

Turkish and American top diplomats have discussed on the phone the latest developments in Gaza amid fears of a fresh escalation between Israel and Iran.

According to Turkish diplomatic sources, the phone conversation between Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken occurred upon the initiative of the latter.

Canada will halt all arms shipments to Israel, a government official told AFP on Tuesday, a decision that has drawn the ire of Israel as it faces growing international scrutiny over its war in the Gaza Strip.

The besieged Palestinian territory is facing a mounting humanitarian crisis, and months of war have pushed hundreds of thousands of Gazans to the brink of famine.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's comparison of Israel's military campaign in Gaza to the Holocaust has unleashed a diplomatic firestorm, with Brazil recalling its ambassador Monday and Israel declaring Lula "persona non grata."

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres announced Monday the creation of an independent panel to assess UNRWA, its embattled agency tasked with helping Palestinian refugees.

UNRWA is under fire over accusations by Israel that 12 staff members were involved in the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

The U.N. chief called on donor states to guarantee the flow of aid to Gaza after several halted funding to the agency for Palestinians over claims some of its staff participated in the Oct. 7 attacks.

While the row over the UNRWA aid agency for Palestinian refugees deepened, heavy fighting in the besieged Gaza Strip sent more people fleeing south towards the Egyptian border.

EU foreign ministers on Monday pressed Israel for an eventual two-state solution with the Palestinians after the war in Gaza, at meetings with the top diplomats from the two sides and key Arab states in Brussels.

EU foreign ministers hold separate talks Monday with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts on the prospects for lasting peace after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected calls for a future two-state solution.