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Russia Asks UN Security Council to Vote Monday on Israel, Gaza

Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Gaza, 15 October 2023. (EPA)
Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Gaza, 15 October 2023. (EPA)
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Russia Asks UN Security Council to Vote Monday on Israel, Gaza

Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Gaza, 15 October 2023. (EPA)
Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Gaza, 15 October 2023. (EPA)

Russia has asked the United Nations Security Council to vote Monday on a draft resolution on the Israel-Hamas conflict that calls for a humanitarian ceasefire and condemns violence against civilians and all acts of terrorism.

Russia's Deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said on Saturday no changes had been made to the text since it was given to the 15-member body on Friday and that he expected the vote to be scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT) on Monday.

The one-page draft resolution also calls for the release of hostages, humanitarian aid access and the safe evacuation of civilians in need. It refers to Israel and the Palestinians, but does not directly name Hamas.

A UN Security Council resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the United States, Britain, France, China or Russia. The United States has traditionally shielded its ally Israel from any Security Council action.

Israel was preparing on Saturday to launch a ground assault against Iran-backed Hamas in the Gaza Strip, after telling Palestinians living in the densely populated territory to move south towards a closed border with Egypt.

Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas in retaliation for an attack by the Palestinian group a week ago. Hamas stormed Israeli towns, killing 1,300 people and seizing scores of hostages - the worst attack on civilians in Israel's history.

Israeli jets and artillery have already subjected Gaza to the most intense bombardment it has ever seen, putting the enclave, home to 2.3 million Palestinians, under total siege. Gaza authorities say more than 2,200 people have been killed.

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Three Palestinian Leaders Killed in Israeli Strike in Beirut

People pass by buildings damaged in an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Cola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Reuters)
People pass by buildings damaged in an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Cola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Reuters)
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Three Palestinian Leaders Killed in Israeli Strike in Beirut

People pass by buildings damaged in an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Cola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Reuters)
People pass by buildings damaged in an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Cola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Reuters)

A Palestinian armed group said on Monday that three of its leaders were killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut, the first attack within city limits as Israel escalated hostilities against Iran's allies in the region.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) said the three leaders were killed in a strike that targeted Beirut's Cola district.

The strike hit the upper floor of an apartment building in the Cola district of Lebanon's capital, Reuters witnesses said.

There was no immediate comment from Israel's military.

Israel's increasing frequency of attacks against the Hezbollah party in Lebanon and the Houthi militias in Yemen have prompted fears that Middle East fighting could spin out of control and draw in Iran and the United States, Israel's main ally.

The PFLP is another militant group taking part in the fight against Israel.

Israel on Sunday launched airstrikes against the Houthis in Yemen and dozens of Hezbollah targets throughout Lebanon after earlier killing the Hezbollah leader.

The Houthi-run health ministry said at least four people were killed and 29 wounded in airstrikes on Yemen's port of Hodeidah, which Israel said were a response to Houthi missile attacks. In Lebanon, authorities said at least 105 people had been killed by Israeli air strikes on Sunday.

Lebanon's Health Ministry has said more than 1,000 Lebanese have been killed and 6,000 wounded in the past two weeks, without saying how many were civilians. The government said a million people - a fifth of the population - have fled their homes.

The intensifying Israeli bombardment over two weeks has killed a string of top Hezbollah officials, including its leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Israel has vowed to keep up the assault and says it wants to make its northern areas secure again for residents who have been forced to flee Hezbollah rocket attacks.

Israeli drones hovered over Beirut for much of Sunday, with the loud blasts of new airstrikes echoing around the Lebanese capital. Displaced families spent the night on benches at Zaituna Bay, a string of restaurants and cafes on Beirut's waterfront.

Many of Israel's attacks have been carried out in the south of Lebanon, where the Iran-backed Hezbollah has most of its operations, or Beirut's southern suburbs.

Monday's attack in the Cola district appeared to be the first strike within Beirut's city limits. Syrians living in southern Lebanon who had fled Israeli bombardment had been sleeping under a bridge in the neighborhood for days, residents of the area said.

The United States has urged a diplomatic resolution to the conflict in Lebanon but has also authorized its military to reinforce in the region.

US President Joe Biden, asked if an all-out war in the Middle East could be avoided, said “It has to be." He said he will be talking to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.