UN chief says Hamas terror attack did not happen ‘in a vacuum’ as Israel calls for resignation
Israel has said it is time to “teach the UN a lesson” amid an escalating row over the UN secretary-general’s remarks about the country’s ongoing conflict with Hamas.
“Due to his remarks we will refuse to issue visas to UN representatives. We have already refused a visa for under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs Martin Griffiths. The time has come to teach them a lesson,” Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said.
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres had said Hamas’s attacks, which killed 1,400 Israelis, did not happen “in a vaccum” and it was “important to recognise” Palestinians had been subject to 56 years of “suffocating occupation”.
He added that the grievances Palestinians people cannot justify “the horrifying and unprecedentedacts of terror” by Hamas in Israel but that “those appalling attacks cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”
Israel immediately called for called for his resignation over the “shocking” and “horrible” remarks.
“The UN Secretary-General, who shows understanding for the campaign of mass murder of children, women, and the elderly, is not fit to lead the UN. I call on him to resign immediately,” Mr Erdan said.
Israel calls for UN chief’s resignation
Israel has called for the resignation of the United Nations’ secretary-general after it slammed his “shocking” and “horrible” remarks about the country’s ongoing conflict with Hamas.
“The UN Secretary-General, who shows understanding for the campaign of mass murder of children, women, and the elderly, is not fit to lead the UN. I call on him to resign immediately,” Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said.
Secretary-general Antonio Guterres had said it was “important to recognise” Hamas’s attacks, which killed 1,400 Israelis, did not happen “in a vacuum” and that Palestinians had been subject to 56 years of “suffocating occupation”.
Meanwhile, Israel has also refused a visa to UN humanitarian affairs chief Martin Griffiths due to comments made at the UN by secretary-general António Guterres.
“Due to his remarks we will refuse to issue visas to UN representatives. We have already refused a visa for under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs Martin Griffiths. The time has come to teach them a lesson,” Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 08:15
Hamas fires rocket towards city more than 130 miles from Gaza
Hamas said it launched a rocket towards the southern Israeli city of Eilat this afternoon.
It appeared to be the longest range rocket attack of the war, with Eilat lying around 136 miles from Gaza.
Israel’s military said the rocket fell in an open area near the city, activating an alert.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 13:15
Ask our expert Kim Sengupta anything about the conflict
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Kim Sengupta25 October 2023 12:50
RAF plane on its way to Egypt, MoD says
An RAF plane is on its way to Egypt with a cargo of 21 tonnes of humanitarian supplies for Gaza, the Ministry of Defence said.
Supplies on board the C-17 aircraft include medical equipment and water filters. It comes after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced he was increasing UK support by £30m to meet the needs of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.w
The region has been subject to a siege and bombardment from Israel as Tel Aviv retaliates after Hamas’s assault on 7 October which left 1,400 Israelis dead.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 12:30
Up to 6,546 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes, Gazan health ministry says
At least 6,546 Palestinians, including 2,704 children, have been killed and 17,439 wounded in Israeli strikes since 7 October, Gaza’s health ministry said.
In the past 24 hours, 756 Palestinians including 344 children were killed in Israeli strikes, the ministry said.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 12:29
Pictured: Gaza, the West Bank and Israel
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 12:10
Up tp 171 attacks on health care provision in Palestinian territories, WHO says
There have been up to 171 attacks on health care facilities in the Palestinian territories, including health workers and ambulances.
“Since 7 October, WHO has documented 171 attacks on health care in the occupied Palestinian territory.
“493 people have been killed in health attacks including 16 health workers on duty. Health care and civilians must be protected now,” the organisation said on X, formerly Twitter.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 11:59
The Israeli military sounded sirens in the northern Carmel region, warning of possible incoming rockets or drones, but there were no immediate reports of any casualties.
The Carmel, near the port city of Haifa, is about 90 miles from the Gaza Strip, where an Israel-Hamas war is now in its third week.
It is also 26 miles from the border with Lebanon, across which Israel has exchanged fire with Hezbollah.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 11:28
Hamas ‘not a terror organisation’, Erdogan claims
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Hamas is “not a terror organisation” but a liberation group waging a battle to protect its land.
Mr Erdogan said Israel had taken advantage of Turkey’s good intentions and cancelled plans to visit the country while calling for an immediate ceasfire to the conflict.
He also called for the United Nations Security Council to be reformed in order for it to be more “more inclusive”.
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 11:13
Israel must stop ‘settlement terror’ in West Bank, Erdogan says
Israel must stop its “settlement terror” in the West Bank, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.
Over 450,000 Israelis live in illegal settlements on Palestinian land in the West Bank, with another 220,000 in east Jerusalem, which was occupied by Israel after the Six-Day War in 1967.
Last week, Mojahed Tbanjeh, a journalist in Nablus, told The Independent: “The situation here is very bad. Israeli settlers have started attacking the villages.
“Yesterday four Palestinians were killed by Israeli citizens and today another two were killed in Qusra at a funeral, a father and son.”
Alexander Butler25 October 2023 11:02