Israel warns Hamas over hostage release; US VP Vance to meet Zelenskyy in Munich
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Trent Murray - Correspondent in Munich
Danni Hewson - Head of Financial Analysis
Giles Gibson - Correspondent in Tel Aviv
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Al Arabiya
20 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Palestinian PM says Hamas must disarm, surrender Gaza control to PA
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa said Monday that Hamas must disarm and give up control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority to restore security in the war-torn territory. 'Israel must withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip and Hamas must relinquish its control over the strip and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority,' Mustafa said at a conference on the two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians at the United Nations in New York. France's top diplomat on Monday told the conference, which is co-chaired by Paris and Riyadh, that there was no alternative to a two-state solution between Israelis and the Palestinians. 'Only a political, two-state solution will help respond to the legitimate aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security. There is no alternative,' French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said at the start of the three-day meeting. Days before the conference, which has been boycotted by Israel and the US, French President Emmanuel Macron announced he would formally recognize Palestinian statehood in September, provoking strong opposition from Israel and Wahington. Barrot said that other Western countries will confirm their intention to recognize the state of Palestine during the conference, without confirming which. 'All states have a responsibility to act now,' said Palestinian Prime Minister Mustafa at the start of the meeting, calling for an international force to help underwrite Palestinian statehood. He called for the world to recognize Palestinian statehood. France is hoping Britain will follow its lead. More than 200 British members of parliament on Friday voiced support for the idea, but Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that recognition of a Palestinian state 'must be part of a wider plan.' United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the meeting 'the two-state solution is farther than ever before.' According to an AFP database, at least 142 of the 193 UN member states now recognize the Palestinian state proclaimed by the Palestinian leadership in exile in 1988. In 1947, in a resolution approved by the General Assembly, the United Nations decided to partition Palestine, then under a British mandate, into Jewish and Arab states. Israel was proclaimed in 1948. For decades, most UN members have supported a two-state solution with Israel and a Palestinian state existing side-by-side. But after more than 21 months of war in Gaza, the ongoing expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and Israeli officials declaring designs to annex occupied territory, it is feared a Palestinian state could become geographically impossible. The current war in Gaza started following a deadly attack by Hamas on Israel, which responded with a large-scale military response that has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives and destroyed most infrastructure in the enclave. Barrot said it would be an 'illusion to think that you can get to a lasting ceasefire without having an outline of what's going to happen in Gaza after the end of the war and having a political horizon.' Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said US President Donald Trump could be a 'catalyst' to ending the war in Gaza and jump-starting the two-state solution, stressing Riyadh had no plans to normalize relations with Israel. Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said action was needed to counter Israeli 'settlements, land confiscation (and) encroachments on the holy sites.' Israel and the United States were not taking part in the meeting, amid growing international pressure on Israel to end nearly two years of war in Gaza. Despite 'tactical pauses' announced by Israel, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza will dominate speeches. Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said 'this conference does not promote a solution.'
Arab News
20 minutes ago
- Arab News
Hamas must surrender Gaza control, disarm: Palestinian PM
Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Mustafa said Monday that Hamas must disarm and give up control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority to restore security in the war-torn territory. 'Israel must withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip and Hamas must relinquish its control over the strip and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority,' Mustafa said at a conference on the two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians at the United Nations in New York.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
International summit on 2-state solution ‘deepens the illusion' of peace, says Israeli envoy to UN
NEW YORK/LONDON: Ahead of an international conference on a two-state solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, told reporters on Monday that the summit 'does not promote a solution, but rather deepens the illusion.' Formally titled the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, the two-day event began on Monday at the UN headquarters in New York, co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France. With humanitarian experts warning that Gaza is on the brink of famine, the summit has been described as urgent and long overdue. But Danon said: 'Instead of demanding the release of the hostages and working to dismantle Hamas' reign of terror, the conference organizers are engaging in discussions and plenaries that are disconnected from reality.' Jonathan Harounoff, the international spokesperson for Israel's mission at the UN, confirmed that his country would not participate in any conference that 'doesn't first urgently address the issue of condemning Hamas and returning all of the remaining hostages.' The US also boycotted the event. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant in November in connection with its investigation into war crimes during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, said the international conference 'rewards terrorism' and accused France of helping to legitimize what could become 'an Iranian proxy state.' The UN's humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, on Sunday warned that the situation in Gaza was dire, with widespread hunger, children wasting away and people risking their lives in their attempts simply to obtain food. While recent moves by Israeli authorities to ease restrictions and allow more aid into the territory represented a step forward, he said, it was not enough. Vast quantities of aid, safe access routes, consistent supplies of fuel, efforts to protect civilians, and an immediate ceasefire are urgently needed to prevent further catastrophe, he added.
