Russia To Demand Middle East ‘Quartet’ Meeting Over Gaza

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During the ASEAN meeting in Cambodia with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Sergey Lavrov will declare the necessity of calling of the Middle East “Quartet” in connection with the aggravation of the situation between Israel and the Gaza Strip, the Kommersant daily writes on Monday.

“At the meeting with Hillary Clinton on Tuesday in Cambodia Sergei Lavrov will insist on an urgent meeting of the Middle East “Quartet” (Russia, the US, EU and UN)”, – informs the edition, referring to the data of the Russian diplomatic sources.

Israeli–Palestinian Conflict: Central Israel next to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Israeli–Palestinian Conflict: Central Israel next to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

The interlocutor of the newspaperexplained that such a meeting had been scheduled at the end of September during the UN General Assembly in New York, but the United States had blocked it.

As it was reported earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov traveled to Cambodia, where he will represent Russia at the East Asia summit.

Israel resumes airstrikes on Gaza

Israel has resumed airstrikes on the Gaza Strip following a brief lull.

A block of flats in the east of Gaza City was one of the first to come under attack that killed a family of three, including a 5-year old child, according to the local mass media.

A total of 80 people, including many women and children, have been killed in Gaza since the start of the Israeli military operation there. Israel delivers strikes in retaliation for the firing of rockets into Israel by fighters of the HAMAS movement, which is in control of the enclave.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the warring factions Sunday to immediately declare a truce. An Israeli delegation has arrived in the Egyptian capital Cairo for talks with HAMAS.

According to a HAMAS spokesman, the parties to the talks could reach agreement in the next few days. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has said that the only condition for a ceasefire is an end to rocket launches from Gaza.

Reporters without Borders denounce Israeli strikes on Gaza

The Reporters without Borders international organization has denounced Israel’s airstrikes on the Gaza Strip aiming at media offices.

This kind of attack is a threat to freedom of information, according to the Secretary General of the organization, Christophe Deloire.

He added that the “Reporters” are reminding the Israeli authorities that the media cannot be seen as military targets and that attacks on civilian facilities are a war crime and a major violation of the Geneva Conventions.

Israeli missiles hit the offices of the Russia Today Russian TV channel, the ARD German broadcaster, the Al-Arabiya, Al-Quds, Al-Aqsa, MBC, Abu Dhabi TV, and Sky News Arabiya Arab channels, as well as the offices of the Reuters and Maan news agencies.

Palestinian death toll rises in Gaza

Palestinian death toll rises to at least 82 as the Israeli Air Force continues to batter the Gaza Strip with airstrikes for the sixth day.

Palestinians report death toll has risen to five in earlier Rafah strike.

Meanwhile, Palestinian news agency Ma’an has reported that three others were killed in an IDF strike in the Zeitoun neighborhood, north Gaza overnight.

According to Ma’an, a total of nine Palestinians have been killed in the Strip since midnight.

According to reports in Gaza, since the beginning of the escalation, 1,093 rockets have been fired from Gaza toward Israel.

UN chief hails Egypt’s peacemaking effort

Israel and the Palestinians should join in Egypt’s ongoing effort to bring an end to the violence in the Gaza Strip. In a statement released on Sunday UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon made an insistent call on the conflicting sides to assist Cairo’s peacemaking moves.

“Any escalation of the conflict would inevitably result in additional civilian suffering, which must be avoided,” the statement says.

Last week the UN chef urged Israel to show maximum restraint in its response to Palestinian rocket attacks, which he insisted must be immediately stopped.

VOR

VOR, or the Voice of Russia, was the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service from 1993 until 2014, when it was reorganised as Radio Sputnik.

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