President Shimon Peres's wife passes away in Tel Aviv home, apparently from cardiac arrest.

Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak has broken away from the Labour Party he leads, dividing the once-dominant centre-left movement.

A new Jewish housing project in eastern Jerusalem, just about a half-kilometer from Ammunition Hill outside Ramat Eshkol has finally gotten off the ground – though not without loud Arab protests that required a police presence.