PA, Hamas Welcome UN's Gaza Ceasefire Vote

Palestinians clear a road from building rubble with a bulldozer following overnight Israeli bombardment which hit the al-Habash family home at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 20, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians clear a road from building rubble with a bulldozer following overnight Israeli bombardment which hit the al-Habash family home at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 20, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
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PA, Hamas Welcome UN's Gaza Ceasefire Vote

Palestinians clear a road from building rubble with a bulldozer following overnight Israeli bombardment which hit the al-Habash family home at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 20, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians clear a road from building rubble with a bulldozer following overnight Israeli bombardment which hit the al-Habash family home at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 20, 2024. (Photo by AFP)

The Palestinian Authority on Monday hailed the UN Security Council's demand for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and said the fighting must end permanently.

"We welcome the UN Security Council resolution," Hussein al-Sheikh, minister for civilian affairs in the Authority which has partial administrative control in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, said on social media platform X.

"We call for a permanent cessation to this criminal war and Israel's immediate withdrawal from the Gaza Strip."

Hamas also welcomed the UN resolution, and said it was ready to negotiate the release of hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

"Hamas welcomes the United Nations Security Council's call today for an immediate ceasefire" in the Gaza Strip, the militant group said.

"We also affirm our readiness to engage in an immediate prisoner exchange process that leads to the release of prisoners on both sides."

The United Nations Security Council demanded an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas on Monday as Israeli forces carried out new airstrikes in Gaza and laid siege to two hospitals.

After vetoing three earlier draft council resolutions on the war in the Gaza Strip, Israel's main ally, the United States, abstained in the vote following global pressure for a ceasefire to ease fears of famine after nearly six months of war.



US Says Committed to 'Diplomatic Resolution' in Lebanon

FILE - Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks in Greenwich, London, Sept. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool, File)
FILE - Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks in Greenwich, London, Sept. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool, File)
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US Says Committed to 'Diplomatic Resolution' in Lebanon

FILE - Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks in Greenwich, London, Sept. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool, File)
FILE - Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks in Greenwich, London, Sept. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool, File)

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stressed that the United States was dedicated to a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon and urged Israel to improve "dire" conditions in Gaza, in a call Saturday with his Israeli counterpart.

Austin "reiterated US commitment to a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon that allows Israeli and Lebanese civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the border" in his call with Israel Katz, according to a Pentagon spokesperson.

Austin also "urged the Government of Israel to continue to take steps to improve the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza and emphasized the US commitment to securing the release of all hostages, including US citizens."

Lebanon said Saturday that an Israeli air strike in the heart of Beirut that brought down a residential building and jolted residents across the city killed at least 11 people.

Israel stepped up its campaign against the Hezbollah militant group in late September, targeting its strongholds in Lebanon.

Lebanon's health ministry says at least 3,645 people have been killed since October 2023, when Hezbollah began trading fire with Israel in solidarity with its Palestinian ally Hamas.

The United Nations and others have repeatedly decried humanitarian conditions, particularly in northern Gaza, where Israel said Friday it had killed two commanders involved in Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack.

In the call with Katz, Austin also discussed ongoing Israeli operations and reaffirmed Washington's "ironclad commitment to Israel's security," the Pentagon said.