‘Immediate’ ceasefire in Gaza, halt West Bank annexation: Guterres 

UNITED NATIONS, Sept 17: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and an end to what he described as the “creeping annexation” of the occupied West Bank.

“We must not forget the dramatic suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank,” Guterres said in a post on X.

He called for the Gaza peace plan to be fully implemented and for unrestricted humanitarian aid to enter the enclave.

“There will be no peace in the Middle East without the two-state solution,” he added, describing a ceasefire as the first step towards a “just, lasting and comprehensive peace”.

Israel has added a tender for 2,167 housing units to its illegal E1 settlement expansion plan, the left-wing Israeli rights group IrAmim says.

The project would bisect the occupied West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, fragmenting the land Palestinians hope will form the heart of a potential state.

The tender for 2,167 units is in addition to a tender for 1,234 units announced at the end of August, bringing the total number of housing units to 3,401, IrAmim said in a statement.

The decision was condemned by a representative for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who said the E1 tenders violate international law.

The fate of many Gaza detainees is unknown due to forced disappearances. The PPS concluded from its gathering of testimonies and data that dozens of detainees have been executed.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has rejected the US State Department’s decision to deny visas to Palestinian officials and members of the Palestine Liberation Organization, in a statement on X.

The statement called the move an “unjustified measure that contradicts the efforts being made to restore trust and develop Palestinian-US relations”.

The statement came after the US State Department said it was extending visa sanctions against Palestinian officials, which, while not naming him, included the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, accusing them of not living up to peace process commitments.

The move means Abbas will be unable to attend the UN General Assembly in New York next week for a second straight year.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry reaffirmed its commitment to implementing a two-state solution and said the visa decision does little to “prepare the necessary political climate” to implement the solution and achieve peace and stability in the region.�"AL JAZEERA