The UN agency which organises Gaza's marathon has cancelled the event, blaming the refusal of the territory's governing Islamist Hamas movement to allow women to run, BBC News reported.

The marathon was scheduled for Sunday, March 3 and would have been Gaza's third.

Hamas said the marathon could go ahead if "local traditions" were respected.

Conservative elements in Gaza have sometimes complained about mixing between the sexes, especially in schools and at sporting events.

The UN Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) said in a statement that it had taken "the disappointing decision" after "discussions with the authorities in Gaza who have insisted that no women should participate".

Unrwa "is working on a programme of other events, which will be forwarded to those interested as soon as possible," the statement adds.