UN: Israel killed 44 Palestinians, injured 227 at UN facilities in Gaza

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Tuesday 28 Apr 2015 - 11:48 Makkah mean time-9-7-1436 UN facility, Gaza (UN photo) New York (IINA) – At least 44 Palestinians were killed and 227 injured by Israeli attacks on seven UN facilities during last summer’s offensive on the Gaza Strip, said a report issued on Monday by the UN Board of Inquiry into incidents in Gaza. In a letter transmitting to the Security Council the public summary of a report of the Board of Inquiry regarding incidents in Gaza during the recent conflict, UN chief Ban Ki-moon expressed his "profound and continuing concern” over targeting civilian populations of the Gaza Strip and Israel. “The agony of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, and the tragic, decades-long predicament they endure there, is reflected in the report of the Board of Inquiry,” Ban said in the letter. The report also said that three incidents involving weapons found in UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) schools, including instances in which Palestinian armed groups “may have used” UNRWA school premises to launch attacks. Reports of Israeli assaults against UN schools providing shelter to thousands of displaced Palestinians prompted the UN chief last November to set up a commission to analyze specific incidents in which civilians were killed and damage done to premises. AB/IINA

Saad Hariri: “We won’t allow a return to civil war” in Lebanon

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Tuesday 28 Apr 2015 - 11:41 Makkah mean time-9-7-1436 (Image from dailystar.lb) Washington, (IINA) - Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said here on Monday “we will not allow a return to civil war” in Lebanon and “we will not revert to violence,” according to Lebanese media reports. During his speech at the Wilson Center, Hariri also noted the need to elect a new president in Lebanon stressing that “the vacancy is very dangerous and involved in the paralysis of state institutions.” He also stressed the importance of Baabda Declaration, which calls for distancing Lebanon from the Syrian conflict. The former PM said his focus was on preventing the Syrian war from reigniting civil strife in Lebanon. Speaking during a talk at the Wilson Center in Washington as part of his current visit to the US, Hariri stressed that his flurry of regional and foreign political activity was primarily aimed at protecting Lebanon from the repercussions of regional turmoil, particularly the 4-year-old war in neighboring Syria. On the other side, Hariri said, “We argue that the Lebanese security agencies, namely the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Internal Security Forces, need to fight against terrorism which is why I am doing everything in my capacity to provide support and assistance to them.” In order to fight extremism, Hariri called for a clear international policy to support the voices of moderation in the region. Hariri, on his first visit to Washington since 2011, met with Secretary of State John Kerry and other senior US officials. SM/IINA

Kerry says Iran, world powers closer than ever to historic nuclear deal

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Tuesday 28 Apr 2015 - 11:37 Makkah mean time-9-7-1436 John Kerry & Javad Zarif (Reuters/Photo) New York (IINA) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday that the United States and five other major powers are closer than ever to a deal with Iran that would end a 12-year-old nuclear standoff, though more tough negotiations lie ahead, Reuters reported. Kerry was speaking at the United Nations on the opening day of a month-long conference taking stock of the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and ahead of a meeting in New York with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, their first face-to-face encounter since recent marathon talks in Lausanne, Switzerland. Zarif and Kerry, who met on Monday at the Iranian U.N. Ambassador's residence, were expected to discuss efforts to secure a final agreement between Iran and the six powers by a June 30 deadline. "We are, in fact, closer than ever to the good, comprehensive deal that we have been seeking, and if we can get there, the entire world will be safer," Kerry told the 191 NPT parties, adding that bringing Iran back into compliance with the pact was always at the heart of negotiations with Tehran. "If finalized and implemented, (an agreement) will close off all of Iran's possible pathways to the nuclear material required for a nuclear weapon and give the international community the confidence that it needs to know that Iran's nuclear program is indeed exclusively peaceful," he said. Kerry added, however, that "the hard work is far from over and some key issues remain unresolved." In remarks to Iranian state television upon his arrival in New York, Zarif echoed the concerns about unresolved issues in the talks with the P5+1 group of countries (United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China). "Beside taking part in the conference, we have come here to listen to Americans' explanations on the U.S. administration's undertakings and its domestic policies," Zarif said. AB/IINA