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Live blog: Iran warns of ‘far-reaching consequences’ if Israel not stopped
Thousands of Palestinians flee north of Gaza from the path of expected Israeli land invasion, while Israel pounds besieged enclave on ninth day of war with more air strikes, taking Palestinian death toll to more than 2,200, including 724 children.
Israel continues to bomb Gaza and has issued an ultimatum to half of its population to flee from northern areas. / Photo: AA
AA
Israel continues to bomb Gaza and has issued an ultimatum to half of its population to flee from northern areas. / Photo: AA
Sunday, October 15, 2023
2000 GMT — Iran warns Israel’s war in Gaza could ‘ricochet far-reaching consequences’
Iran has warned that if Israel’s “war crimes and genocide” are not halted immediately, “the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences,” Tehran’s mission to the United Nations in New York posted on X, formerly Twitter.
“If the Israeli apartheid’s war crimes & genocide are not halted immediately, the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences — the responsibility of which lies with the UN, the Security Council & the states steering the Council toward a dead end,” the post read.
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2340 GMT — Russia asks UNSC to vote Monday on Israel, Gaza
Russia has asked the United Nations Security Council to vote on Monday on a draft resolution on the Israel-Palestine 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 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 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 favour 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.
2130 GMT — US sends second aircraft carrier ‘to deter hostile actions against Israel’
The United States is sending a second aircraft carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean “to deter hostile actions against Israel or any efforts toward widening this war following Hamas’s attack,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said.
The USS Eisenhower and its affiliated warships will join another carrier group already deployed to the region.
The deployment signals Washington’s “ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and our resolve to deter any state or non-state actor seeking to escalate this war,” Austin said in a statement.
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Protesters in US capital warn of Israeli ‘genocide’ in besieged Gaza
2123 GMT — Israeli attack on Syrian Aleppo airport puts it out of service
Israel has launched an air strike against Syria’s Aleppo Airport that put it out of service, the Syrian Defence Ministry said.
“The Israeli enemy carried out an air attack from the direction of the Mediterranean Sea, west of Latakia, targeting Aleppo International Airport, which led to material damage to the airport and it being out of service,” the ministry added.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The airport just got to service on Saturday after simultaneous missile attacks by Israeli forces on the airports in Syria’s capital, Damascus, and the northern city of Aleppo had damaged the runways and put both hubs out of service on Thursday.
2108 GMT — Biden condemns Hamas, underscores Palestinian ‘self-determination’ in Abbas call
US President Joe Biden has underscored Palestinians’ “right to dignity and self-determination” while also condemning Hamas in a phone call with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas.
“Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and self-determination,” Biden told Abbas, according to a White House statement about the conversation between the two leaders, in which Biden also pledged “full support” to the Palestinian Authority.
