A year ago, Ezzedine al-Baz's decision to skip work and join tens of thousands at the first day of protests along the Gaza-Israel border nearly cost him his life.

Baz, then 29, said he had been standing a couple of hundred metres from the border fence for only about a half an hour when an Israeli sniper's bullet pierced his leg.

New tensions between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas come days before the first anniversary of the start of massive protests and clashes in the Gaza Strip.

The US move on the Golan has left fractious Arab nations scrambling for a united response to a decision taken by a key ally, which may only end up benefiting Iran, analysts said.

With British MPs set to vote on finding a way forward on Brexit, various outcomes are possible.

The Islamic State may have lost its self-styled caliphate, but its barbaric back catalogue of grisly execution videos will continue to haunt the global imagination and serve as a template for how to sow terror, analysts say.

The 1990s break-up of Yugoslavia unleashed a series of bitter wars marked by atrocities, genocide and massacres that left more than 130,000 people dead.

Bloody assaults at two New Zealand mosques that left at least 40 people dead are the latest in a series of attacks on civilians by extremists around the world.

Here is a rundown of some of the most serious since 2015.  

As final defeat looms, militants of the Islamic State group have remained organized and ruthless to their last breath. Keeping institutions functioning in their last shred of territory, they are continuing benefits like food and money to supporters while their religious police and fighters still impose their rule of fear and brutality.

Refusing to surrender, the militants have tried to squeeze out any last possible gain. Over the past three weeks, they secured the evacuation of more than 10,000 of their exhausted and wounded followers, looking to ensure long-term survival and continued conflict.

A string of violent escalations have pushed India and Pakistan to the brink of conflict, sparking global alarm and calls for restraint between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

India and Pakistan have fought two wars and countless skirmishes over Kashmir, the Himalayan region claimed in full by both nuclear-armed rivals.