United Nations Security Council countries have called for stepped-up diplomatic efforts to avert a wider Middle East conflict after the killings of two militant leaders raised tensions.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran yesterday, sparking threats of revenge against Israel and fuelling concern the Gaza conflict was turning into a wider Middle East war.
China, Russia, Algeria and others condemned Mr Haniyeh's assassination, which Iran's UN ambassador called an act of terrorism, while the US, UK and France raised what they said was Iranian support for destabilizing actors in the region.
China's Ambassador to the UN Fu Cong said failure to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza was responsible for worsening tensions.
Russia proposed that the UN Security Council adopt a statement condemning the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, but the UK, US and France blocked the idea, said Amir Saeid Iravani, the Iranian envoy to the UN.
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Iran's UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said Tehran has consistently exercised maximum restraint but reserved its right to respond decisively. He called on the Security Council to condemn Israel and punish it with sanctions.
ReplyDeleteIsrael's deputy representative to the UN, Jonathan Miller, called on the Security Council to condemn Iran for support of regional terrorism and increase sanctions on Tehran.
Three countries blocked a Russian-proposed media statement condemning the death of Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of the political bureau and resistance of the Palestinian Hamas movement. They were the USA, Great Britain and France.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the Permanent Representative of Iran to the UN, Amir Saeed Iravani, who spoke at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in connection with the murder of Haniya, Western permanent missions rejected Russia's statement. Speaking about Israel, he called for its authorities to be held “accountable for the atrocities committed.”