Germany on Thursday signed a deal to acquire the Israeli-made Arrow 3 hypersonic missile system that will become a key part of Europe's defence against air attack.

The signing of the deal was a "historic day" for both countries, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said at a press conference alongside his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant.

Worth around $3.5 billion (3.3 billion euros), the sale is the biggest ever deal for Israel's military industry.

The Arrow 3 system would make "German air defence ready for the future", Pistorius said.

Survivors of a fire that tore through an Iraqi wedding and those mourning the at least 100 lives lost filled the pews for a Christian mass Thursday, two days after the disaster.

Mourners wept or quietly embraced one another under the arches of the Syriac Catholic church of Al-Tahera, where portraits of the dead lined the stairs, showing men, women and children of all ages.

Israel on Thursday allowed thousands of Palestinian workers to cross from Gaza for the first time in two weeks through the Erez crossing, following violent protests that rocked the blockaded enclave.

The Israeli authorities had initially closed off the transit route, the only gateway for pedestrians from the Gaza Strip, for the Jewish new year holiday on September 15.

Former Brooklyn Nets starter Rondae Hollis-Jefferson was hailed as the "missing piece" for Jordan at the Asian Games on Thursday, with the "Kobe Bryant clone" hitting a game-high 17 points against Bahrain.

The American was naturalised in time to play for his adopted homeland at the World Cup last month, where his 39-point barrage against New Zealand sparked chants of "Kobe, Kobe, Kobe" from the crowd in Manila.

Israel's top court debated appeals Thursday against a law restricting how a prime minister can be removed from office, as current premier Benjamin Netanyahu faces protests against the judicial overhaul.

Eleven of the Supreme Court's 15 judges sat to hear three appeals against legislation passed by parliament in March, which determined a premier can only be declared unfit for office due to health reasons.

The law also stipulated that a two-thirds majority in cabinet is required to take such a step, before the move is approved by at least 80 of the parliament's 120 members.

Survivors of a fire that ripped through an Iraqi wedding and those mourning the at least 100 people killed filled the pews of a Christian mass Thursday, two days after the disaster.

Mourners wept, ululated or quietly embraced one another under the arches of the Syriac Catholic church of Al-Tahera where portraits of the dead lined the stairs, showing men, women and children of all ages.

Five-time Dakar Rally champion Nasser Al-Attiyah did no training for the Asian Games -- and still came away with two medals in shooting.

The 52-year-old all-rounder, already an Asian Games gold medallist in shooting in 2002 and 2010, returned to the podium with a men's skeet team silver and skeet individual bronze in Hangzhou.

Such is the Qatari's busy life on the rally circuit that he had no time to pull the trigger in training before arriving in China.

Syrian beekeeper Ibrahim Damiriya struggles to produce honey from his hives on parched land near the capital Damascus after years of war, economic collapse and worsening climate change impacts.

"The war bled us dry. We could barely keep our beekeeping business afloat, and then the insane weather made things worse," the 62-year-old in a beekeeping suit told AFP as he examined meagre honey stocks inside the hives.

Before Syria's conflict erupted in 2011, Damiriya owned 110 hives in Rankus, a village near Damascus that was once filled with apple orchards.

US Senator Bob Menendez pleaded not guilty Wednesday to corruption charges in a New York federal court, where he and his wife appeared on bribery and extortion allegations involving the Egyptian government.

Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian were greeted outside the Manhattan courthouse by at least one protester holding up a sign demanding in block letters that the 69-year-old from New Jersey "RESIGN."

A huge portrait of Jesus Christ dominates the crowd, which parts to make way for a stream of coffins after a fire tore through an Iraqi Christian wedding.

At the cemetery in the northern city of Qaraqosh, mourners gathered around the clergy from various churches, chanting prayers in Syriac and delivering sermons in Arabic.

Some of the faithful held up portraits of deceased loved ones.

The day before, those in the pictures had gathered in an elegant banqueting hall to attend a wedding.