All 15 of the United Nations' Security Council members approved a statement released today calling for a "de-escalation, restoration of calm and a resumption of Mideast peace talks," The Associated Press reports.
The statement, while not legally binding, marked the first response from the U.N.'s most powerful body in regard to Israel's ongoing campaign against the Gaza Strip's Hamas rulers. Israel's military claims to have hit more than 1,100 targets in the five-day-long operation, including Hamas-controlled rocket-launchers, along with facilities storing a variety of other weapons. A Gaza Health Ministry spokesman puts the death toll so far at 135, and the U.N. has said as many as three-quarters of those killed may have been civilians.
The Security Council's statement called for "respect for international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians," on both sides of the conflict.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The most downloaded country song in the US is AI-generatedUnder the radar Both the song and artist appear to be entirely the creation of artificial intelligence
-
The week’s best photosIn Pictures A blindfolded giraffe, an icy unicorn, and more
-
Crossword: November 21, 2025The daily crossword from The Week
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
-
Judge blasts ‘profound’ errors in Comey caseSpeed Read ‘Government misconduct’ may necessitate dismissing the charges against the former FBI director altogether
-
Ecuador rejects push to allow US military basesSpeed Read Voters rejected a repeal of a constitutional ban on US and other foreign military bases in the country
-
Trump pivots on Epstein vote amid GOP defectionsSpeed Read The president said House Republicans should vote on a forced release of the Justice Department’s Jeffrey Epstein files
-
Trump DOJ sues to block California redistrictingSpeed Read California’s new congressional map was drawn by Democrats to flip Republican-held House seats
