The United States called Thursday on Egypt, Turkey and European powers to press Hamas to end bloodshed in Gaza, putting the onus on the Islamist movement to end rocket attacks on Israel.
Israel's air strikes on the Gaza Strip have heightened the tensions surrounding the Palestinian bid for observer membership at the United Nations planned for later this month.
Israel's surprise hit on Hamas's top military commander in Gaza may have enraged the enclave's Islamist rulers, but analysts said it was unlikely the movement would respond in a way which would lead to all-out war.
Arab nations demanded the UN Security Council condemn Israel's deadly attacks on Gaza at an emergency meeting, but the United States strongly defended Israel's military strikes.
UN leader Ban Ki-moon urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ease tensions with Gaza militants Wednesday and also discussed the crisis with Egypt's president.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has announced that the Palestinian Authority will present its bid for non-state UN membership, despite US and Israeli opposition.
Israel has warned the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas that it will strike with "ever-growing intensity" in response to the latest barrage of rocket attacks into the Jewish state.
UN leader Ban Ki-moon appealed Sunday to Israel and Syria to ease tensions on their disputed Golan Heights frontier amid warnings that conflict in Syria could spread.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was ready to order a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities "if necessary", in an interview aired by Channel Two television on Monday.
French President Francois Hollande said he wanted "concrete acts" from Iran to prove it was not pursuing a nuclear arms drive after his first face-to-face meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel has turned back dozens of African asylum-seekers, mostly Eritreans, trying enter the country from Egypt, Human Rights Watch and two other NGOs said on Sunday.
The European Union's foreign policy chief on Thursday criticised Israel's plan to build hundreds of homes in annexed east Jerusalem and called for it to hold fresh talks with the Palestinians.
The United States and Israel are set to launch a major military exercise in a show of unity aimed at Iran, despite friction between American and Israeli leaders over how to counter Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
The armed wings of Gaza's ruling Hamas movement and the Islamic Jihad group announced Monday they had fired a series of rockets at Israel, a day after an Israeli air strike that injured 10 people.
A ship built in Gaza will sail next year carrying Palestinian exports to international customers, and to challenge Israel's blockade from the inside out.