UNITED NATIONS: The Palestinian UN ambassador called Wednesday for a “definitive end” to Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, warning that a truce to release hostages “cannot be just a pause before the massacre starts all over again.”
Riyad Mansour spoke after Israel and Hamas announced a deal on Wednesday allowing at least 50 hostages and scores of Palestinian prisoners to be freed, while offering besieged Gaza residents a four-day truce after weeks of all-out war.
“Hundreds of Palestinian children will not be killed thanks to this truce,” Mansour told the UN Security Council.
“We owe it to them and to all the civilians in the Gaza Strip to put a definitive end to this criminal assault on the Palestinian people.
He thanked the nations of Qatar and Egypt for their roles in paving the way for the deal, and called on all those who contributed to “stopping this madness” to work to “to ensure a way forward that averts the resumption of this aggression.”
“This cannot be just a pause before the massacre starts all over again,” he said.
Mansour denounced Israel’s “occupation and racial discrimination, apartheid” against Palestinians, and said there was no military solution to the conflict.
Instead, Palestinians’ “inalienable rights” must be protected, he said.
Meanwhile Palestinians “do not justify the killing of a single Israeli civilian,” he said, adding: “No-one should condone atrocities based on the identity of the perpetrator.”
Israelis and Palestinians must not turn a blind eye to each other’s wounds and histories, but instead build respect on a “common vision of the future where all can live... not where one’s life is at the expense of another.”
Israeli UN ambassador Gilad Erdan responded by saying that, as soon as the truce ends, “we will continue striving toward our goals with full force.”
“We will not stop until we eliminate all of Hamas’ terror capabilities and ensure that they can no longer rule Gaza and threaten both Israeli civilians and the women and children of Gaza,” he said.
Palestinian UN ambassador calls for pause to become ‘end’ to Israel-Hamas war
https://arab.news/cnb3w
Palestinian UN ambassador calls for pause to become ‘end’ to Israel-Hamas war
- “Hundreds of Palestinian children will not be killed thanks to this truce,” Mansour told the UN Security Council
- He thanked the nations of Qatar and Egypt for their roles in paving the way for the deal
Arab League chief ‘deeply concerned’ over Yemen tensions
- Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit calls for solidarity among Yemen’s supporters, condemns southern separatist’s military operations
LONDON: The head of the Arab League on Tuesday said he is deeply concerned over escalating tensions in Yemen and called for solidarity among countries supporting Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
His comments came after the military coalition that backs Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council carried out a “limited airstrike” targeting weapons and military vehicles it said were destined for southern separatist forces.
The shipments arrived in the Yemeni port of Mukalla on board two vessels from Fujairah in the UAE.
Saudi Arabia, a key member of the military coalition, criticized the UAE over its support for the separatists, known as the Southern Transitional Council.
The Kingdom said that any threat to its national security was a red line and that the UAE should follow the Yemeni government’s request to remove its forces from the country within 24 hours.
The UAE later announced it would withdraw its remaining counter-terrorism units from Yemen.
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit expressed deep concern over the “serious and rapidly unfolding developments in Yemen.”
He called for solidarity among all countries supporting the Yemeni government and to exercise restraint.
He also condemned any military action aimed at “forcibly entrenching a secessionist reality on the ground, in a manner that threatens Yemen’s territorial unity.”
The STC, which wants a separate state in southern Yemen, seized large areas of territory in Hadramout and Al-Mahara provinces in recent weeks.
The STC is meant to be part of a coalition with the Yemeni government opposed to Houthi militants that control the north of the country.
Aboul Gheit said the southern Yemen issue must be addressed through dialogue.
The measures taken by Saudi Arabia and the military coalition were “vital to ensuring peace, security, and the unity of the Yemeni people under their internationally recognized leadership,” said Muslim World League Secretary-General Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa.
“Supporting illegitimate practices only deepens internal divisions and serves those who do not have Yemen’s best interests at heart,” he said.
