British Ambassador to Israel, Matthew Gould, hosted Israel's Olympic and Paralympic delegations at his residence on Monday for a festive reception, in the presence of Sports Minister Limor Livnat.

Among the Israeli athletes who came to celebrate the kick-off to London 2012 were world windsurfing champions, Lee Kurzitz and Nimrod Mashiah, Israel's synchronised swimming team, and paralympic athl

The British ambassador to Israel has promised Israeli athletes "a proper British send off" before the London Olympics this summer.

Matthew Gould, speaking to Israel's Olympic hopefuls at the Dead Sea on Wednesday, said he was looking ahead to "the start of the greatest show on Earth".

The Labour MP Paul Flynn has apologised for questioning the loyalty of the British ambassador to Israel because he is Jewish.

Mr Flynn said: "Clumsily expressed remarks of mine have caused anger and upset.

The Labour MP at the centre of a storm over his suggestion that the British ambassador to Israel could be disloyal because he is Jewish has complained that he has been treated unfairly.

Paul Flynn, who represents the Newport West constituency, said that because Matthew Gould has "proclaimed himself to be a Zionist" he is not a suitable person for the role.

A Labour MP has called for "a debate on antisemitism" following another MP's remarks suggesting that the British ambassador to Israel has divided loyalties because he is Jewish.

Denis MacShane, the MP for Rotherham and the author of the book Globalising Hatred. The New Antisemitism, raised the issue during business questions in the House of Commons today.

The Labour MP who suggested Matthew Gould was an inappropriate British ambassador to Israel, because he was Jewish, should start preparing for his "retirement", said the chair of the All-party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism.

A Labour MP has caused outrage by suggesting that Britain's first Jewish ambassador to Israel has divided loyalties because he has "proclaimed himself to be a Zionist".

Holocaust survivors living in Israel and in need of emergency medical care will no longer have to worry about finding the money thanks to the efforts of Magen David Adom donors in Britain and France.

The contribution, which affects the more than 240,000 Holocaust survivors in Israel, was revealed at Britain's annual MDA dinner in London on Wednesday.

With just over a year to go until London hosts the Paralympic Games, the British ambassador to Israel has tried his luck against the country's wheelchair basketball team.

Matthew Gould was accompanied by some of the Paralympians who are set to represent Israel in next year's games, which kick off on August 29.

The British Ambassador to Israel has questioned the image of university campuses in this country being "hotbeds of anti-Israel sentiment".

Matthew Gould cautioned that such an image was false and emphasised the importance of not overstating the problem and putting off Israeli students from studying in the UK.

With one year to go before the London 2012 Olympics, British ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould has extended an open invitation to Britain to Israeli athletes, students, sports fans and business people, calling the UK "a natural partner for Israel".

During a speech at the Knesset on Wednesday, Mr Gould said that Israelis would be welcome in the UK, both for the Olympic Games and after.

Britain's ambassador to Israel strolls, unnoticed and unaccompanied, through Whitehall, a backpack slung casually over his shoulder.

The British ambassador to Israel has praised the spirit of Israelis who live under the constant threat of terror attack, while on a visit to the southern town of Sderot.

Matthew Gould spent Wednesday with Sderot's mayor David Buskila. The town is located just 840 metres from the Gaza border and continues to face rocket attacks by Hamas.