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Kuwait, Bolivia request urgent UN Security Council meeting on Gaza
UNITED NATIONS, United States, Nov 13, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Kuwait and Bolivia
on Tuesday requested an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss
the escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip.
Kuwait, which represents Arab countries at the council, and Bolivia asked
that the closed-door meeting be held later Tuesday, diplomats said.
Palestinian militant groups including Hamas, which rules Gaza, issued a
joint statement earlier announcing an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire with
Israel.
The groups said they would abide by the truce as long as Israel did the
same, but there was no immediate comment from the Israeli side.
Seven Palestinians were killed in Gaza as Israeli strikes targeted
militants and flattened buildings in the worst escalation of violence since
the 2014 war between Israel and Hamas.
The latest round of violence began on Sunday with a botched Israeli special
forces operation inside the Gaza Strip that turned deadly and prompted Hamas
to vow revenge.
Palestinian militants responded with rocket and mortar fire. An anti-tank
missile hit a bus that Hamas says was being used by Israeli soldiers. A
soldier was severely wounded in the attack.
Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza have fought three wars since 2008,
and protests and clashes along the Gaza border since March 30 have repeatedly
raised fears of a fourth.
BSS/AFP/MRI/2344 hrs