Briefing the Security Council this morning on the situation in the Middle East, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast said he regretted to have had to deliver such a melancholy briefing, full of death and destruction and human misery, adding that surely the people of Israel and Palestine deserved better news. The statistics were grim, he reported, noting that over the last month, 128 Palestinians and 19 Israelis had been killed and hundreds more injured. The Israeli army had demolished hundreds of Palestinian homes, in breach of its international obligations. Economic conditions continued to worsen still further, bringing yet more suffering and deepening the prevailing despair. Read more about Under-Secretary-General briefs Security Council on death and destruction in Rafah 

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan today strongly condemned the killing and injury of Palestinian demonstrators in southern Gaza, and called on Israel to immediately end its military operations there. “The killing of peaceful demonstrators, many of them women and children, has distressed the Secretary-General, who sends his deepest condolences and sympathies to the families of the victims,” his spokesman, Fred Eckhard, said in a statement. Meanwhile, the UNICEF said it was deeply concerned about the effect of the ongoing military operation in the Gaza Strip on children, particularly a missile strike Wednesday that claimed the lives of at least 10 Palestinians, many of them youngsters. Read more about Annan strongly condemns killing of Palestinian demonstrators in Gaza 

Concerned by the recent demolition of homes in the Rafah refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, the United Nations Security Council today called on Israel to respect its obligations under international humanitarian law and insisted on its obligation not to destroy homes contrary to that law. The Council voted 14 in favour, with the United States abstaining, to adopt a resolution expressing its grave concern regarding the humanitarian situation of Palestinians made homeless in the Rafah area, and calling for the provision of emergency assistance. Earlier this week, UNRWA reported that nearly 2,200 people have been left without shelter and 191 homes have been demolished throughout Gaza since the beginning of May. Read more about Security Council calls on Israel to stop demolition of Palestinian homes 

The top UN envoy Terje Roed-Larsen said today he is alarmed by the death and destruction caused by the ongoing Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip. Reports say that among the mounting casualty count are many civilians and some children under 16, Mr. Roed-Larsen said in a statement. Israel, as the occupying power, should act under the framework of international law, most critically in the protection of the civilian population, he added. UNRWA reports that many Palestinian families are leaving the Rafah refugee camp and heading north to Khan Yunis, fleeing the fighting and fearing further demolition of homes by Israeli forces. Read more about UN envoy 'alarmed' by ongoing Israeli military operation in Gaza 

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today repeated his condemnation of Israel’s widespread destruction of Palestinian homes in the Gaza Strip, which a UN agency estimates will cost some $32 million to re-house the nearly 19,000 people left homeless by the demolition. According to UN relief teams, 2,197 people have lost their homes following the demolition of 191 homes throughout Gaza in the first 15 days of May, with Rafah the worst-affected area. There was also news of Israeli military plans for a more extensive round of house demolitions in Gaza. Read more about Annan calls on Israel to halt destruction of Palestinian homes in Gaza 

The 191-member United Nations General Assembly today overwhelmingly affirmed the need to enable the Palestinian people “to exercise sovereignty and to achieve independence in their State, Palestine.” By a vote of 140 in favour to 6 against (Israel, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau and the United States), with 11 abstentions, the Assembly adopted a resolution that also affirmed that “the status of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, remains one of military occupation.” The text also affirmed that “the Palestinian people have the right to self-determination and to sovereignty over this territory.” Read more about General Assembly overwhelmingly affirms Palestinians' right to sovereignty 

Meeting today at United Nations Headquarters in New York, the so-called Quartet issued a positive reaction to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to withdraw all Israeli settlements from Gaza and parts of the West Bank, calling it a “rare moment of opportunity” and a possible restart to its Road Map peace plan for the Middle East. In a communiqué read by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan after their meeting, the UN, EU, Russia and United States said they “took positive note” of Prime Minister Sharon’s announced intention to withdraw Israeli settlements, a plan that Israel’s Likud party rejected in a referendum Sunday. Read more about Annan hosts meeting of "Quartet" to discuss Middle East peace