Palestine takes up seat among UN member states in ‘historic moment’ at General Assembly opening session

Palestine takes up seat among UN member states in ‘historic moment’ at General Assembly opening session
Riyad Mansour, Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations, attends the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly. (AP)
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Updated 11 September 2024
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Palestine takes up seat among UN member states in ‘historic moment’ at General Assembly opening session

Palestine takes up seat among UN member states in ‘historic moment’ at General Assembly opening session
  • UN resolution passed in May recognized Palestine met requirements for membership
  • Palestine was granted additional rights at UN, including being seated with member states

NEW YORK CITY: Palestine took up its seat among UN members at the opening session of the organization’s General Assembly on Tuesday.

A UN resolution was passed in May that recognized Palestine met requirements for membership, and requested the Security Council reconsider admitting the state.

Palestine was granted additional rights at the UN, including being seated with member states, the right to introduce proposals and agenda items, and participate in committees, but it has not been granted the right to vote.

Tuesday’s symbolic event met with support from the Egyptian delegation, which tabled a point of order to point out the “historic moment,” but it was opposed by the Israelis, who raised a counter point of order.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the 79th session was opening amid the backdrop of a “world in trouble,” but stressed that member states could work together to do something about it.

He said: “From day one, the United Nations has been the place for multilateral solutions, grounded in collaboration, dialog, diplomacy and the United Nations Charter.

“And it has been the place where respect for one another, and for the dignity and human rights that belong to every member of the human family, are brought to life. As we welcome this 79th session, these tasks now fall to you.

“This is the place where solutions are made and we need solutions across the board.”




Delegates of member states line up to greet Riyad Mansour, top right, Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations, as he arrives for the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly. (AP)

He addressed a range of topics, including economic progress, climate change and artificial intelligence.

He added: “Step by step, solution by solution, we can rebuild trust and faith in one another, and in what we can accomplish through collaboration and solidarity.

“The values that have brought us together since 1945 are more essential than ever. In confronting the challenges before us, (the UN General Assembly) remains an indispensable tool and a vital pathway toward a peaceful and just future for all people.”

The session was presided over by Philemon Yang of Cameroon, who was elected president of the General Assembly earlier this year.

Yang outlined the topics he expected to dominate discussions at this year’s assembly, including working toward peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, global health and human rights.

This year’s General Debate, which will run from Sept. 24 to 30, boasts the theme “Leaving no one behind: Acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development and human dignity for present and future generations.”

As well as the debate, there will be a Summit of the Future, which will aim to secure a negotiated “Pact for the Future” designed to boost global cooperation to tackle current challenges effectively for future generations.

There will also be high-level meetings on topics as wide-ranging as the elimination of nuclear weapons; addressing the threat posed by rising sea levels; and strengthening global health systems against antimicrobial resistance.


More than 20 killed as Israeli strikes pound towns in Lebanon, Lebanese officials say

More than 20 killed as Israeli strikes pound towns in Lebanon, Lebanese officials say
Updated 3 sec ago
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More than 20 killed as Israeli strikes pound towns in Lebanon, Lebanese officials say

More than 20 killed as Israeli strikes pound towns in Lebanon, Lebanese officials say
At least 16 more people were killed in Israeli strikes on Saturday across the eastern plains around the historic city of Baalbek
The Lebanese health ministry said Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,136 people and wounded 13,979 in Lebanon over the last year

BEIRUT: Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon over the last day have killed more than 20 people including several children, Lebanese authorities said on Saturday, after heavy Israeli bombardment pounded the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut overnight.
At least seven people were killed in the coastal city of Tyre late on Friday, Lebanon’s health ministry said. The Israeli military has previously ordered swathes of the city to evacuate but there were no orders published by the Israeli military spokesperson on social media platform X ahead of Friday’s strikes.
The ministry said two children were among the dead. Rescue operations were ongoing and other body parts retrieved in the aftermath of the attack would undergo DNA testing to identify them, the ministry added.
At least 16 more people were killed in Israeli strikes on Saturday across the eastern plains around the historic city of Baalbek, the area’s governor said in a post on social media platform X.
Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Lebanese health ministry said Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,136 people and wounded 13,979 in Lebanon over the last year. The toll includes 619 women and 194 children.
Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since October 2023, but fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year. Israel has intensified and expanded its bombing campaign, and Hezbollah has ramped up daily rocket and drone attacks against Israel.
The Iran-backed group announced more than 20 operations on Saturday, as well as one that it said fighters carried out the previous day against a military factory south of Tel Aviv.
More than a dozen Israeli strikes also hit the southern suburbs of Beirut overnight, once a bustling collection of neighborhoods and a key stronghold of Hezbollah.
Now, many buildings have been almost entirely flattened, with Hezbollah’s yellow flags jutting out from the ruins, according to Reuters reporters who were taken on a tour of the area by Hezbollah.
Some buildings were partially damaged by the strikes, leading some floors to collapse and sending furniture and other personal belongings spilling onto parked cars below.
Men and women were picking through the rubble for their belongings, shoving blankets and mats under their arms or into black plastic bags.
“We are trying to gather as many (of our possessions) as we can, so we can manage to live off them, nothing more,” said Hassan Hannawi, one of the men looking for his belongings.

Officials say Qatar decides to suspend Gaza mediation efforts

Officials say Qatar decides to suspend Gaza mediation efforts
Updated 1 min 40 sec ago
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Officials say Qatar decides to suspend Gaza mediation efforts

Officials say Qatar decides to suspend Gaza mediation efforts
  • Qatar’s announcement comes after growing frustration with the lack of progress on a ceasefire deal
  • Senior Hamas official said aware of decision, “but no one told us to leave”

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip: Qatar has decided to suspend its key mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel, officials said Saturday.
However, Qatar is highly likely to return to the efforts if both sides show “serious political willingness” to reach a deal on the war in Gaza, according to one official with Egypt, the other key mediator.
A diplomatic source briefed on the matter said Israel and Hamas, along with the United States, were informed after the decision was made. The source added that “as a consequence, the Hamas political office no longer serves its purpose” in Qatar.
A senior Hamas official said they were aware of Qatar’s decision to suspend mediation efforts, “but no one told us to leave.”
Qatar’s announcement comes after growing frustration with the lack of progress on a ceasefire deal.
“After rejecting repeated proposals to release hostages, (Hamas) leaders should no longer be welcome in the capitals of any American partner. We made that clear to Qatar following Hamas’ rejection weeks ago of another hostage release proposal,” a US senior administration official said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. The Israeli prime minister’s office had no comment.
Meanwhile, three separate Israeli strikes killed at least 16 people, including women and children, in Gaza on Saturday, Palestinian medical officials said, and Israel announced the first delivery of humanitarian aid in weeks to hungry, devastated northern Gaza.
There continued to be no end in sight to Israel’s campaigns against Hamas militants in Gaza or Hezbollah in Lebanon, where Israel’s military said that it struck command centers and other militant infrastructure overnight in Beirut’s southern suburbs. An Israeli airstrike on the southern port city of Tyre late Friday left at least seven dead, officials and a resident said.
One of the strikes in Gaza hit a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City’s eastern Tufah neighborhood, killing at least six people, the territory’s Health Ministry said. Two local journalists, a pregnant woman and a child were among the dead, it said. The Israeli army said the strike targeted a militant belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, offering no evidence or details.
Seven people were killed when an Israeli strike hit a tent in the southern city of Khan Younis where displaced people were sheltering, according to Nasser Hospital. It said the dead included two women and a child. The Israeli army didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
And Palestinian medical officials said an Israeli strike hit tents in the courtyard of central Gaza’s main hospital, including one serving as a police point. At least three people were killed and a local journalist was wounded, Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir Al-Balah said. It was the eighth Israeli attack on the compound since March.
Israel says aid trucks reach northern Gaza
The Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid to Gaza, COGAT, said Saturday that 11 aid trucks containing food, water and medical equipment reached the enclave’s far north on Thursday. It’s the first time any aid has reached the far north since Israel began a new military campaign there last month.
But not all the aid reached the agreed drop-off points, according to the the UN World Food Program, which was involved in the delivery process. In the urban refugee camp of Jabaliya, Israeli troops stopped one convoy bound for nearby Beit Lahiya and ordered the supplies to be offloaded, WFP spokesperson Alia Zaki said.
Israel’s offensive has focused on Jabaliya, where Israel says Hamas had regrouped. Other areas affected include Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun just north of Gaza City.
US deadline is looming for Israel
The aid announcement came days before a US deadline demanding that Israel improve aid deliveries across Gaza or risk losing access to US weapons funding.
The US says Israel must allow a minimum of 350 trucks a day carrying food and other supplies.
Meanwhile, a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, issued Thursday said there’s a strong likelihood that famine is imminent in parts of northern Gaza, the territory’s most isolated area.
COGAT rejected the IPC’s finding and said the report relied “on partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests.”
No emergency services functioning north of Gaza City
The UN estimates that tens of thousands of people remain in northern Gaza. Earlier this week, the Health Ministry said there were no ambulances or emergency crews operating north of Gaza City.
The conflict has left 90 percent of Palestinians in Gaza displaced, according to UN figures. Israel’s army has struck several schools and tent camps packed with tens of thousands of Palestinians driven from their homes by Israeli offensives and evacuation orders.
The military has accused Hamas of operating from within civilian infrastructure in Gaza, including schools, UN facilities and hospitals.
More than a year of war in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 people, Palestinian health officials say. They don’t distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of those killed were women and children.
The war began after Palestinian militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting 250 others.
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Samy Magdy reported from Cairo. Matthew Lee in Washington, and Jack Jeffery in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.
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Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war


Iran urges Trump to change ‘maximum pressure’ policy

Iran urges Trump to change ‘maximum pressure’ policy
Updated 09 November 2024
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Iran urges Trump to change ‘maximum pressure’ policy

Iran urges Trump to change ‘maximum pressure’ policy
  • Nuclear deal of 2015 torpedoed in 2018 after US unilaterally withdrew under Trump
  • Tehran repeatedly denied Western countries’ accusations it is seeking to develop nuclear weapon

TEHRAN: Iran on Saturday urged US President-elect Donald Trump to reconsider the “maximum pressure” policy he pursued against Tehran during his first term.
“Trump must show that he is not following the wrong policies of the past,” Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif told reporters on Saturday.
Zarif, a veteran diplomat who previously served as Iran’s foreign minister, helped seal the 2015 nuclear accord between Tehran and Western powers, including the US.
The deal however was torpedoed in 2018 after the US unilaterally withdrew from it under Trump, who later reimposed sanctions on Tehran.
In response, Iran rolled back its obligations under the deal and has since enriched uranium up to 60 percent, just 30 percent lower than nuclear-grade.
Tehran has repeatedly denied Western countries’ accusations that it is seeking to develop a nuclear weapon.
Zarif also said on Saturday that Trump’s political approach toward Iran led to the surge in enrichment levels.
“He must have realized that the maximum pressure policy that he initiated caused Iran’s enrichment to reach 60 percent from 3.5 percent,” he said.
“As a man of calculation, he should do the math and see what the advantages and disadvantages of this policy have been and whether he wants to continue or change this harmful policy,” Zarif added.
During his first term, Trump also ordered the killing of revered Iranian commander, Qasem Soleimani, who led the Revolutionary Guards’ foreign operations arm, the Quds Force.
Soleimani was killed in a drone strike while he was in the Iraqi capital Baghdad in January 2020.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei on Thursday said he hoped the president-elect’s return to the White House would allow Washington to “revise the wrong approaches of the past” — however stopping short of mentioning Trump’s name.
On Tuesday, Trump told reporters he was “not looking to do damage to Iran.”
“My terms are very easy. They can’t have a nuclear weapon. I’d like them to be a very successful country,” he said after he cast his ballot.
Trump’s victory comes as Iran has exchanged direct attacks with its arch-nemesis, Israel, raising fears of further regional spillover of the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon.


Israeli rejects ‘biased’ warning of famine in Gaza

Israeli rejects ‘biased’ warning of famine in Gaza
Updated 09 November 2024
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Israeli rejects ‘biased’ warning of famine in Gaza

Israeli rejects ‘biased’ warning of famine in Gaza
  • “Unfortunately, the researchers continue to rely on partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests,” the military said
  • Israel’s military said it had increased aid efforts including opening an additional crossing on Friday

JERUSALEM: Israel rejected on Saturday a group of global food security experts’ warning of famine in parts of northern Gaza where it is waging war against Palestinian militant group Hamas.
“Unfortunately, the researchers continue to rely on partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests,” the military said in a statement.
The independent Famine Review Committee (FRC) said on Friday in a rare alert that there was a strong likelihood of imminent famine in parts of north Gaza with immediate action required from the warring parties to ease a catastrophic situation.
Israel’s military said it had increased aid efforts including opening an additional crossing on Friday.
In the last two months, 39,000 trucks carrying more than 840,000 tons of food have entered Gaza, it said, and meetings were taking place daily with the UN which had 700 trucks of aid awaiting pickup and distribution.
With some critics decrying a starvation tactic in north Gaza, Israel’s main ally the US has set a deadline within days for it to improve the humanitarian situation or face potential restrictions on military cooperation.


Electrical generator explosion at Beirut’s Hamra district torches cars, building

Electrical generator explosion at Beirut’s Hamra district torches cars, building
Updated 09 November 2024
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Electrical generator explosion at Beirut’s Hamra district torches cars, building

Electrical generator explosion at Beirut’s Hamra district torches cars, building
  • Video footage showed some parked cars engulfed in flames as the blaze intensified

CAIRO: A large explosion on Beirut’s Hamra district on Saturday sparked a fire that engulfed several cars at a parking lot and caused smoke to spread massively across the area, local media reported.
Video footage showed some parked cars engulfed in flames as the blaze, which resulted from the electrical generator explosion, intensified.
The fire also spread to a nearby building, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) said. 
The incident triggered panic as firefighting teams rushed to the scene, battling the blaze that remained out of control. 
Civil defense teams were working to extinguish the blaze and evacuate adjacent buildings, NNA added.