UN to Convene Urgent Session on Israeli-Palestinian Fighting
Voice of America
The U.N. General Assembly will convene an urgent session Thursday requested by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the group of Arab countries at the United Nations to deliberate on the fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip. Here's the @DeptofDefense readout from earlier Wednesday on the @SecDef-#Israel DefMin callhttps://t.co/YuPmU1hDz5
About a dozen foreign ministers are flying in for the meeting – the first time such a high- level in-person meeting has been held at U.N. headquarters in New York since the start of the coronavirus pandemic more than 14 months ago. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has called for an immediate halt to the hostilities, will also address the special session. There was more cross-border firing early Thursday, including Israeli airstrikes that hit Gaza City and the towns of Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas traveled to the region Thursday to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials. He called the visit “a sign of solidarity with the people on both sides who fear for their lives day and night as Israel must defend itself against Hamas' rocket terror.”FILE - Indian players celebrate after beating Pakistan during T20 World Championship Cricket competition in Johannesburg, South Africa, Sept. 24, 2007. Pakistan's Shadab Khan, second right, celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of New Zealand's Michael Bracewell during the fifth T20 international cricket match between Pakistan and New Zealand, in Lahore, Pakistan, April 27, 2024.
FILE - This undated photograph handed out by French military shows Russian mercenaries boarding a helicopter in northern Mali. In this photo released by Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, and Guinea's foreign minister Morissanda Kouyate shake hands near a portrait of Guinea's President Mamadi Doumbouya in Conakry, Guinea, on June 3, 2024.