24 October 2023

0945: The Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Security Council meets again within the next few minutes at Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Headquarters in New York for what was a scheduled quarterly meeting on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, now given greater urgency by the Hamas attacks of 7 October and the deepening humanitarian crisis as the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip continues.

We¡¯ll be bringing you all the latest developments from the Council here.

It marks the fourth time the 15 ambassadors of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ¡¯s premier peace and security body will convene since the intense cycle of violence began.

You can follow all the proceedings live on X broadcast by our colleagues at Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Web TV – click on the tweet here on the page.

So far, there has no agreement on any action, to alleviate the suffering of civilians caught up in the spiralling conflict between Hamas militants, who control the enclave of over two million Palestinians.

The Council failed to adopt two previous draft resolutions addressing the escalation. The first from Russia calling for an immediate ceasefire, failed to get enough votes, while a Brazilian draft was vetoed by the United States. Although it called for humanitarian pauses for aid access, the US determined objected to the fact it did not mention Israel¡¯s right to self defence.

The Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ chief Ant¨®nio Guterres is due to brief today along with the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Special Envoy for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland.

Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory Lynn Hastings is also down to brief.

Foreign ministers from several countries are also due to take part.

So far, 92 different countries have signed up to speak.

Today is also United Nations Day, marking 78 years since the entered into force. In a statement the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ chief said that “at this critical hour, I appeal to all to pull back from the brink before the violence claims even more lives and spreads even further.”

More to follow soon…