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The UN General Assembly voted Friday to back a resolution which seeks to breathe new life into the two-state solution between Israel and Palestine — without the involvement of Hamas.The text was adopted by 142 votes in favor, 10 against — including Israel and key ally the United States — and 12 abstentions. It clearly condemns Hamas and demands that it surrender its weapons.Although Israel has criticized UN bodies for nearly two years over their failure to condemn Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023, the declaration, presented by France and Saudi Arabia, leaves no ambiguity.Formally called the New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, the text states that “Hamas must free all hostages” and that the UN General Assembly condemns “the attacks committed by Hamas against civilians on the 7th of October.”It also calls for “collective action to end the war in Gaza, to achieve a just, peaceful and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the effective implementation of the Two-State solution.”The declaration, which was already endorsed by the Arab League and co-signed in July by 17 UN member states, including several Arab countries, also seeks to fully exclude Hamas from leadership in Gaza.”In the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, with international engagement and support, in line with the objective of a sovereign and independent Palestinian State,” the declaration states.Palestinian vice president Hussein al-Sheikh welcomed the decision, saying the resolution “expresses international willingness to support our people’s rights and constitutes an important step towards ending the occupation and achieving our independent state.”Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein meanwhile slammed the vote, saying in a post on X that Israel “utterly rejects” the declaration, calling it evidence that the General Assembly had become “a political circus detached from reality.”- ‘Shield’ against criticism -The vote precedes an upcoming UN summit co-chaired by Riyadh and Paris on September 22 in New York, in which French President Emmanuel Macron has promised to formally recognize the Palestinian state.”The fact that the General Assembly is finally backing a text that condemns Hamas directly is significant,” even if “Israelis will say it is far too little, far too late,” Richard Gowan, UN director at the International Crisis Group, told AFP.”Now at least states supporting the Palestinians can rebuff Israeli accusations that they implicitly condone Hamas,” he said, adding that it “offers a shield against Israeli criticism.” In addition to Macron, several other leaders have announced their intent to formally recognize the Palestinian state during the UN summit.The gestures are seen as a means of increasing pressure on Israel to end the war in Gaza, which was triggered by the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas.The New York Declaration includes discussion of a “deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission” to the battered region under the mandate of the UN Security Council, aiming to support the Palestinian civilian population.Around three-quarters of the 193 UN member states recognize the Palestinian state proclaimed in 1988 by the exiled Palestinian leadership.However, two years of war have ravaged the Gaza Strip, in addition to expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the stated desire by Israeli officials to annex the territory.That leaves many fearing that the existence of an independent Palestinian state will soon become impossible.”We are going to fulfill our promise that there will be no Palestinian state,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Thursday.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, meanwhile, may be prevented from visiting New York for the UN summit after US authorities said they would deny him a visa.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund said Friday it was excluding French mining company Eramet from its portfolio, citing risks that the company was contributing to human rights violations and environmental damage at a nickel mine in Indonesia.Managed by the country’s central bank Norges Bank and fuelled by its vast energy revenues, the fund is the world’s …

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The Eurovision Song Contest will respect countries’ decisions on participating in next year’s competition, its chief said Friday, after several European broadcasters threatened a boycott if Israel takes part.During the past two editions of the competition, the event has been drawn into the controversy over Israel’s devastating war in Gaza. Pro-Palestinian activists protested in Malmo, Sweden in 2024 and in Basel, Switzerland last May over Israel’s participation in the contest.On Friday, the Dutch joined a growing list of European countries threatening to pull out of the 2026 contest in Vienna if Israel is permitted to take part again.Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS cited the “ongoing and severe human suffering in Gaza”, in its statement announcing its decision.Its “participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 will not be possible as long as Israel remains admitted by the EBU,” it said, referring to the European Broadcasting Union, which organises the event.”If the EBU decides not to admit Israel, AVROTROS will be happy to participate next year,” it added.Their announcement came after seven-time champions Ireland said on Thursday they would not take part alongside Israel.Back in May, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that Israel should be excluded in future.- ‘Understand the concerns’ -“We understand the concerns and deeply held views around the ongoing conflict in the Middle East,” Eurovision director Martin Green said in a statement sent to AFP.The organisation said in July it was launching a consultation with all members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises the song contest over the issue.It would discuss “how we manage participation, geopolitical tensions, and how other organisations have approached similar challenges”.Those consultations were still ongoing, Green said Friday.”Broadcasters have until mid-December to confirm if they wish to take part in next year’s event in Vienna,” he said.”It is up to each member to decide if they want to take part in the contest and we would respect any decision broadcasters make.”Eurovision is the world’s largest live televised music event. This year’s edition in Basel drew in 166 million viewers across 37 countries.Austrian singer JJ won that competition, securing Austria the right to host the 2026 edition.- ‘Political instrument’ -In its statement Friday, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS linked its decision to Israel’s nearly two-year campaign in Gaza.That campaign has killed at least 64,656 Palestinians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.AVROTROS denounced a “serious violation of press freedom” by the Israelis, pointing to “the deliberate exclusion of independent international reporting and the many casualties among journalists”.And it accused Israel of “proven interference… during the last edition of the Song Contest”, in which it came in second, charging that the event had been “used as a political instrument.”This runs counter to the apolitical nature of the contest,” it added.Irish broadcaster RTE also said it felt “that Ireland’s participation would be unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza”. Israel’s war in Gaza erupted after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attacks inside Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.Of the 251 hostages seized during the assault, 47 remain in Gaza, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will leave Saturday on a trip to Israel to offer support before French-led moves to recognize a Palestinian state, the State Department said.Rubio is going ahead with the visit despite President Donald Trump gently reprimanding Israel for a surprise attack on Hamas on Tuesday in Qatar, a key US partner.Rubio will speak to Israeli leaders about “our commitment to fight anti-Israel actions including unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state that rewards Hamas terrorism,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement.Rubio will emphasize “the US commitment to Israeli security,” Pigott said.”He will also emphasize our shared goals: ensuring Hamas never rules over Gaza again and bringing all the hostages home,” he said, adding that Rubio will meet families of hostages.He said that Rubio would discuss Israel’s “operational goals and objectives” in its new offensive which includes a goal of seizing the already rubble-strewn territory’s main urban hub of Gaza City. The statement made no mention of the strikes in Qatar, although Rubio on Friday will meet in Washington with the Gulf state’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. Israel on Tuesday carried out strikes on Hamas leadership in Qatar, which has served as a key intermediary with Hamas, whose leaders were gathering to discuss a new ceasefire proposal put forward by the Trump administration.Trump called the attack unfortunate and said that the United States found out too late to stop it.- Quiet on settlements -Trump has repeatedly offered strong backing to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, doing away with most of the public concerns, however cautiously expressed, of his predecessor Joe Biden. The State Department did not immediately confirm reports that Rubio would take part in the inauguration of a new tunnel in Jerusalem’s Old City for visitors approaching the Temple Mount, the holiest site for Jews, which is also sacred for Muslims as the Al-Aqsa compound.”Rubio’s visit is nothing less than American recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the most sensitive part of Jerusalem’s Holy Basin, contradicting Washington’s long-standing position since 1967,” anti-settlement advocacy group Peace Now said in a statement.Israel seized East Jerusalem in the 1967 war and later annexed it and declared Jerusalem its indivisible capital, a step not recognized by most of the world. But Trump during his first term bucked the international consensus and moved the US embassy to Jerusalem.The Trump administration has declined to criticize ramped-up Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank. Netanyahu vowed Thursday there would be no Palestinian state and “this place belongs to us” at a signing ceremony for a major settlement project. But Netanyahu has walked back from far-right calls for a wide annexation of the West Bank after warnings by the United Arab Emirates, which took the landmark step five years ago of normalizing with Israel.Israel launched an all-out offensive in Gaza in October 2023 following a massive attack launched from territory by Hamas that resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 64,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable. The UN has declared famine in parts of Gaza, which Israel contests.

Hundreds of South Korean workers were greeted by applause and tearful relatives Friday when they returned home after being tangled in a US immigration row that cast a shadow over massive Korean investments in the United States.South Koreans made up the majority of the 475 people arrested at a Hyundai-LG battery factory site in the state …

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