The Latest Breaking News from Mahmud Abbas

Far-right ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich will have assets frozen and travel bans imposed by UK and other countries

The Arab League is meeting in Baghdad on Saturday to discuss Gaza and other regional crises, but some key leaders are expected to miss the talks that come straight after US President Donald Trump's Gulf tour.

French President Emmanuel Macron has told his Palestinian counterpart Mahmud Abbas that a return to Palestinian governance was needed in Gaza as a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect on Sunday. Displaced Palestinians have started returning to the Gaza Strip and three Israeli hostages released.

United Nations leader Antonio Guterres pleaded on Thursday for a "just peace" in Ukraine, calling in a speech in front of Russian President Vladimir Putin for an end to more than two years of fighting.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Thursday called for a de-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, as Lebanon said 37 people had now been killed by booby-trapped hand-held devices.

In a bid to break out of increasing international isolation, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan this week hosted Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas in Ankara – positioning Turkey as a key player in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas told a special session of the Turkish parliament on Thursday that he would travel to Gaza.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah movement has agreed with Hamas to form a "national unity government" in post-war Gaza, but analysts are sceptical about the significance of the Beijing-brokered deal.

Israel swiftly condemned an agreement brokered by China Tuesday which Beijing said would bring Hamas into a "national reconciliation government" for post-war Gaza.