UN chief calls on Israel to freeze settlements

The UN Secretary-General says progress toward peace between Israel and the Palestinians requires that Israel freeze its settlement-building.

Ban Ki-moon addresses the UN Security Council’s periodic Middle East debate and calls Israel’s settlement activities “an affront to the Palestinian people.”

Ban urges both sides to act now “to prevent the two-state solution from slipping away forever.”

Dozens of people on both sides have died in four months of violence, which Israel blames on Palestinian incitement. Palestinians say the attacks stem from frustration at nearly five decades of Israeli military rule.

Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour urges the council to act.

Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, does not address settlement-building. He instead shows reporters what he calls “terror dolls,” which he says are used to teach hatred to Palestinian children.

— AP