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UN Security Council to hold new meeting on Israel-Palestinian clashes Friday

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3 years ago

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Tunisia, Norway and China have requested another emergency UN Security Council meeting be scheduled Friday on the worsening hostilities between Israel and Palestinians, despite ongoing US resistance for the body to take a role in the conflict.

The session would be public and would include participation by Israel and the Palestinians, diplomats told AFP Wednesday.

The Council has already held two closed-door videoconferences since Monday, with the United States — a close Israel ally — opposing adoption of a joint declaration, which it said would not “help de-escalate” the situation.

According to a diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity, the idea of a third meeting in less than a week was pushed by the Palestinians.

The goal of a new meeting is “to try to contribute to peace… and to have a Security Council able to express itself and to call for ceasefire,” stressed another diplomat speaking anonymously.

Israel has refused to allow the Security Council to get involved in the conflict, a demand Washington has so far agreed to, diplomats told AFP.

According to several sources, 14 of the 15 members of the Council were in favor of adopting a joint declaration earlier Wednesday aimed at reducing tension.

However, the United States saw the Security Council meeting as a sufficient show of concern, calling a statement “counterproductive,” diplomats told AFP on condition of anonymity.

‘Act with immediacy’

In Washington, chief diplomat Antony Blinken announced that a US envoy would travel to the Middle East to seek to calm tensions between Israel and the Palestinians.

But in a sign of frustration after the US move to block a Security Council statement, four Council members from Europe — Norway, Estonia, France and Ireland — issued their own joint statement later Wednesday.

“We condemn the firing of rockets from Gaza against civilian populations in Israel by Hamas and other militant groups which is totally unacceptable and must stop immediately,” the statement said.

“The large numbers of civilian casualties, including children, from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, and of Israeli fatalities from rockets launched from Gaza, are both worrying and unacceptable.

“We call on Israel to cease settlement activities, demolitions and evictions, including in East Jerusalem,” they wrote.

And Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour published a letter to the organization’s top officials Wednesday in which he pleaded with them to “act with immediacy to demand that Israel cease its attacks against the Palestinian civilian population, including in the Gaza Strip.”

Violence risks spiraling

He also called for them to demand that Israel “cease all other illegal Israeli actions and measures in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, including a halt to plans to forcibly displace and ethnically cleanse Palestinians from the City.”

When asked about the inability of the Council, the body in charge of world peace, to speak out on the Israeli-Palestinian clashes, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric expressed hope for a turnaround soon, and added that “any international situation will always benefit from a strong and unified voice from the Security Council.”

UN Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland had warned Wednesday’s meeting that the “situation has deteriorated since Monday… there is a risk of a spiral of violence,” according to a diplomatic source.

During a first emergency meeting on Monday, the United States also refused to back a text proposed by Tunisia, Norway and China calling on all parties to refrain from provocation.

Renewed rocket fire and rioting in mixed Jewish-Arab towns has fuelled growing fears that deadly violence between Israel and Palestinians could descend into full-scale war.

The most intense hostilities in seven years have killed at least 65 people in Gaza, including 16 children, and seven in Israel, including a soldier and one Indian national, since Monday.

— AFP

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International

Taylor Swift endorses Kamala Harris for U.S. President, calls for calm leadership

Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for president, calling her a “steady-handed, gifted leader.” In an Instagram post to her 283 million followers, Swift urged fans to research candidates’ stances and expressed concerns over AI-generated misinformation falsely linking her to Trump.

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10 hours ago

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11 September 2024

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In a bold statement shared on her Instagram account, Taylor Swift has endorsed U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris for president in the upcoming 2024 election. The post, published shortly after the U.S. presidential debate on Tuesday night, positioned Harris as the candidate who would champion the rights and causes Swift holds dear.

“As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can,” Swift wrote to her 283 million followers, adding: “I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 presidential election.”

Swift emphasized her support for Harris, describing her as a “steady-handed, gifted leader” capable of steering the country with calmness, in contrast to the “chaos” she associates with other candidates.

Swift’s post also featured an image of her with her beloved cat, Benjamin Button, nodding to comments made by Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance, who had previously mocked senior Democratic leaders as “childless cat ladies.” Swift embraced the label, signing off her statement with “Childless cat lady.”

Swift’s endorsement didn’t come without addressing misinformation. She referred to AI-generated images, circulated by former President Donald Trump’s campaign in August, falsely depicting her and her fans endorsing Trump. Swift expressed her concerns over AI’s potential for spreading falsehoods, calling it a key reason for her public clarification of her voting intentions.

“I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter,” Swift said, urging her followers to research candidates’ positions on issues that matter to them.

In response to Swift’s endorsement, the Trump campaign dismissed her support as further evidence of the Democratic Party’s alignment with “wealthy elites,” with spokesperson Karoline Leavitt stating, “There’s many Swifties for Trump out there in America.” Republican congressman Matt Gaetz also commented on Swift’s political stance, remarking, “I love her songs, but I want to live in a world where liberals make my art and conservatives make my laws and policies.”

However, Swift’s backing of Harris has garnered significant attention among her fanbase, with some already mobilizing in support of the Democratic candidate. The Swifties for Kamala Coalition, launched in August, has raised over $138,000 for the Harris campaign, further bolstering the vice president’s candidacy.

Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, expressed his gratitude to Swift during an MSNBC interview, stating, “Her endorsement took courage, and that’s the kind of courage we need in America.”

Historically, celebrity endorsements have had measurable impacts on elections. A study from Northwestern University and the University of Maryland estimated that Oprah Winfrey’s endorsement of Barack Obama ahead of the 2008 Democratic primary earned him around one million votes. Whether Swift’s massive following, particularly among Gen Z and women, will have a similar effect remains to be seen.

Swift’s endorsement marks a significant moment in the 2024 election, highlighting the intersection of pop culture and politics. As the election approaches, her influence may yet play a pivotal role in shaping the outcome, particularly among younger voters and those concerned with women’s rights.

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International

Netanyahu faces mounting protests amid hostage deaths and ceasefire dispute

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces intense protests after six hostages were killed by Hamas, with critics accusing him of prioritizing personal interests. As calls grow for a ceasefire, Netanyahu’s refusal to withdraw troops from Gaza’s border fuels further outrage at home and abroad.

Published

7 days ago

on

5 September 2024

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing increasing public pressure from families of hostages, political critics, and Middle Eastern leaders following the deaths of six hostages held by Hamas.

On Wednesday, protests erupted across Israel, including outside the Likud headquarters and at the homes of key lawmakers, as frustrations mounted over Netanyahu’s handling of the hostage crisis and the ongoing war in Gaza.

The protests intensified after Netanyahu publicly rejected calls to withdraw Israeli forces from the Gaza-Egypt border, a key demand in ongoing ceasefire negotiations.

The prime minister has insisted that maintaining a military presence in the so-called Philadelphi corridor is crucial to prevent Hamas from using the area for arms smuggling. His stance has been widely criticized both domestically and internationally, with many seeing it as a significant obstacle to progress in negotiations.

Families of the slain hostages have expressed their outrage after the release of a video by Hamas, showing one of the hostages, Eden Yerushalmi, accusing the Israeli government of abandoning her and other captives.

Yerushalmi, 24, who was abducted from the Nova music festival on 7 October, appeared gaunt and emotionally distressed in the two-minute video, which was posted by Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades on Monday. In the video, she pointedly blamed Netanyahu for failing to secure their release, further fueling anger among the families of hostages and the public.

The video’s release coincided with the funerals of the six hostages whose bodies were recovered from a tunnel near the Gaza-Egypt border.

Among the dead were Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alex Lobanov, Ori Danino, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi. Yerushalmi’s family authorized the release of a short clip from the video, which has since been widely circulated as a grim reminder of the failed negotiations. The Hostage Families Forum condemned the video as “shocking psychological terror” aimed at inflicting further pain on the families.

Hamas also released a separate video of Lobanov and Gat, who, like Yerushalmi, criticized the Israeli government for its failure to negotiate their release. Lobanov accused Netanyahu of neglecting the hostages, referencing the Shalit deal in which Israel released over a thousand Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one Israeli soldier.

“You failed and neglected us on October 7, and now you continue to fail in every attempt to release us alive,” he said, highlighting the dire conditions under which they were held and the bombing by Israeli forces.

Similarly, Gat, who had been in captivity for nearly 11 months, pleaded with the government to stop the bombing and prioritize their release.

Both hostages called on Israeli citizens to take to the streets and protest, urging the government to act. The release of these videos has intensified public anger and fueled ongoing protests demanding action from Netanyahu’s administration.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s refusal to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor has drawn sharp criticism from his former war cabinet colleague, Benny Gantz, and international condemnation from Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

While Gantz acknowledged the importance of the corridor for Israel’s security, he stressed that the return of hostages must be prioritized over territorial control.

Critics have also pointed out that Netanyahu’s personal interests may be at play in prolonging the conflict.

Facing charges of fraud, bribery, and breach of trust in three cases filed in 2019, Netanyahu’s continued tenure as prime minister is seen by many as a strategic move to avoid legal repercussions.

If convicted, Netanyahu could face up to 10 years in prison, and some argue that staying in power shields him from potential imprisonment.

His critics claim that Netanyahu is willing to risk regional stability and global peace to remain in office, as losing his political position could leave him vulnerable to prosecution, potentially leading to a life behind bars.

As tensions escalate, Netanyahu faces a critical test in navigating the hostage crisis and the broader conflict, with both domestic and international pressure mounting.

Many are questioning whether his decisions are driven by national security or personal survival, adding to the growing discontent within Israel and beyond.

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