The decision was announced in a joint statement issued after a meeting in New York between Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄan and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on the margins of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly.
According to the statement, Turkey will hand over the camp in stages, in line with an agreed timetable.
However, no specific date has yet been set for the withdrawal of Turkish troops.
We live at a dangerous moment.
But our future is not predetermined.
War is a choice.
Peace is also a choice.
And sometimes â
the greater courage, lies, not in starting a war â
but in preventing one.
Pakistan has made its choice.
We have chosen dialogue over confrontation.
We have chosen cooperation over coercion.
We have chosen peace over war.
Let this eighty-first General Assembly make it unanimous choice.
For ourselves.
For our children.
And for generations yet unborn.
Let us restore trust. Let us preserve peace.
And let us prove that even in a divided world â
humanity can still choose to stand together.
I thank you.
Transcript & summary
After denouncing what he called Israelâs âgenocidal agendaâ in Palestine, Sharif also condemned âIsraeli aggression against Lebanon and Syriaâ.
âThis, too, must stop immediately,â he said.
Continuing his remarks to the UNGA, Pakistanâs Shehbaz Sharif called the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandeb strait âarteries of the global economyâ that should remain free and safe.
âThey must remain open, connecting nations, not becoming chokepoints of confrontation,â said Sharif. âThese waters must carry the promise of prosperity, not the perils of war.â
Susan Sarandon was taken into police custody during a demonstration near the United Nations in New York.
The actress was among protesters calling for the United States to stop supplying arms to Israel.
The demonstration was organised by Jewish Voice for Peace as international leaders met for the UN General Assembly.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told world leaders Thursday that attacking Iran âwas one of the easiest decisions Iâve ever had to makeâ and denounced as âmoral cowardsâ a mass of delegates who walked out of the U.N. General Assembly when he took the podium to speak.
In July, a YouGov poll found that 49% of Americans believed the US government should arrest Netanyahu under the warrant, 27% said it should not, and 23% were unsure.
President Donald Trump stated earlier this summer that Netanyahu âwill not be arrested, in any way, shape, or formâ while visiting the US. His administrationâs position, as stated in a February 2025 executive order, is that Netanyahu canât be arrested. The ICC, it says, âhas no jurisdiction over the United States or Israelâ because, unlike most other nations, neither is a party to the Rome Statute, which created the court.
World leaders gather in New York City to attend the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting,…
By a recorded vote of 152 in favour to 3 against (United States, Israel and Paraguay), with 4 abstentions (Colombia, Honduras, Panama and Peru), the 193-member organ adopted the resolution on âParticipation by the State of Palestine during the eighty-first sessionâ (document A/81/L.2)
On Thursday, 152 countries voted in favour of a resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly, rejecting the US‘s decision to prevent the Palestinian delegation from participating in the upcoming UN General Assembly session in New York City.
The resolution called on Washington to reverse the decision, considering it a clear violation of the Headquarters Agreement, which legally obliges the host country to facilitate the entry of diplomatic delegations.
(October 28, 2024)
It is of vital importance that member states of the UN start taking immediate steps towards expelling Israel under the UN Charter. Expulsion from the UN is not only warranted in this case, but is imperative, as it is the only way to ensure the legitimacy of international law, and of the UN itself. Should expulsion prove politically difficult, due to the veto power Israelâs allies â in particular, the US â wield in the UNSC, member states should, at least as a first step, de facto suspend Israel from the UNGA, as was done in the case of South Africa.
The Proposal
That the General Assembly will put forward an immediate motion to vote for the expulsion of Israel from the United Nations.
Historically, the selection of a new secretary-general has been treated as the domain of the UN Security Council, especially its five permanent members, known as âthe P5.â But the wording of the UN Charter is clear that while the Council should recommend a candidate, the appointment is made by the General Assembly. If the P5 propose an unsuitable candidate for reasons of realpolitik, the states of the General Assembly can and should reject them and insist that more suitable individuals be put forward.
(August 24, 2026)
The next leader of the United Nations could, for the first time, be a woman. But first sheâll need Trumpâs approval.
(October 15, 2024)
Over the past year, Israel has launched attacks on multiple countries and occupied territories: the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
Yet countries and territories aside, Israel has also targeted one specific organization with a series of unprecedented rhetorical and violent attacks.
Yes, the United Nations. We have all witnessed Israel, in effect, declare war on the UN.
Im Wahlkampf hatte der Demokrat angekĂŒndigt, Netanjahu im Falle seiner Wahl zum BĂŒrgermeister festnehmen zu lassen. SpĂ€ter Ă€uĂerte er sich zurĂŒckhaltender und verwies auf eine PrĂŒfung der Möglichkeiten. Netanjahu wird zur UN-Generaldebatte im September in New York erwartet.
As conflicts proliferate and risks to civilians mount around the globe, embracing the âresponsibility to protectâ â an international norm aimed at preventing mass atrocity crimes, such as genocide â is more crucial today than ever before, the General Assembly heard today, in its annual debate on the topic.
âTwenty-one years ago, world leaders made a milestone commitment to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,â said Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet of Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres, who delivered opening remarks on his behalf.
Referring to the outcome of the 2005 World Summit, where Member States agreed to unprecedented new parameters for atrocity prevention, he said States remain primarily responsible for the protection of their populations. âHowever, in cases where national authorities have failed to do so, Member States undertook a promise â a promise to take collective, decisive and timely action in line with the UN Charter.â
During nearly three years of brutal conflict, civilians in North Darfur have been unlawfully detained, tortured and killed on a massive scale. Women and girls have been raped and forced into sexual slavery. Children have not just been the collateral damage of this violence: very often, they are deliberate targets.
This report documents the Rapid Support Forcesâ (RSFâs) slow and violent takeover of North Darfur and its capital, El Fasher, after it began fighting the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in April 2023. The abuses, which amount to crimes against humanity under international law, displaced hundreds of thousands of children, exposing them to death and injury during attacks or while fleeing. Countless children have been orphaned.
Sudanâs current crisis erupted against the backdrop of decades of armed conflict. When major violence escalated in April 2023 between the SAF and the RSF (a former government force), fighting was first concentrated in the capital, Khartoum. But it soon spread to other parts of the country, including Darfur, a region on the western border with Chad that has been wracked by cycles of conflict since the early 2000s. By November 2023, the RSF controlled four of the five state capitals in Darfur.
El Fasher was the lone holdout and last major stronghold in Darfur for the SAF and the allied Joint Forces (a coalition of local armed groups that draws heavily from the Zaghawa ethnic group). The area is of particular strategic importance due to its sizeable gold reserves and its position as a geographical hub linking Darfur to Libya and Chad along trans-Saharan trade routes. It became a prize the RSF seemed willing to take at any price â something made possible by the steady flow of weapons and other equipment from its foreign backers, most notably the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
(…)
TO THE AFRICAN UNION PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL
– Apply sustained political pressure on the RSF, SAF and all other parties to the conflict in Sudan to immediately agree to and implement a nationwide ceasefire accompanied by a sustainable framework for longer-term security and stability, human rights protection, justice and accountability. Regardless of progress towards a ceasefire, use all available leverage to urge all parties to immediately end attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, ensure safe and unfettered humanitarian access into North Darfur, and urgently facilitate the scaling up of humanitarian funding and response commensurate with the scale of civilian need.
– In line with the recommendation of the ACHPRâs Joint Fact-Finding Mission on the Human Rights Situation in the Republic of the Sudan, and given the ongoing risk to civilians, urgently establish and deploy a protection force to Sudan with a mandate to protect and deter attacks against civilians, prevent atrocities, create the security conditions conducive to the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and monitor and publicly report on attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure. Ensure the protection force is adequately resourced, equipped and supported to operate effectively, including through predictable and sustainable financing.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing during its campaign to seize El Fasher in North Darfur state in Sudan, Amnesty International concluded in a major new report. The organization is now calling for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan, and for the urgent deployment of an international force to protect civilians.
In an awkward rivalry among EU partners, Portugal took 134 votes and Austria 131 while Germany garnered just 104, significantly below the required 127 votes despite Berlinâs expressed confidence just hours before that it would prevail.
Both winners were seen to represent the interests of smaller countries, while Austria could benefit from its perceived neutrality as a non-Nato member and Portugal touted its strong ties in Africa and Latin America.
Wadephulâs bid won 104 votes in the UN General Assembly, falling 23 short of the two-thirds majority required for election.
This is the first time Germany has failed to win a rotating seat on the Security Council after decades of successfully securing one of the Western European seats every eight years.
„FĂŒr uns alle ist das eine wirkliche EnttĂ€uschung. Das muss man sagen. Daran will ich nicht vorbeireden“, sagt Wadephul spĂ€ter im Interview mit den ARD-Tagesthemen. In der deutschen Delegation herrscht Katerstimmung. Bis zuletzt war man zuversichtlich, dass die vielen Last-Minute-GesprĂ€che, die Wadephul seit Freitag in New York gefĂŒhrt hatte, ausreichen wĂŒrden. Die Liste der vermeintlichen UnterstĂŒtzer-Staaten schien lang genug zu sein.
The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday elected Austria, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Trinidad âand Tobago and Zimbabwe to the 15-member U.N. Security Council for âtwo-year terms starting on January 1, 2027.
Germany, which had lobbied hard for a seat, came third for the two places contested by the Western European and âOthers Group, with 104 votes, against 134 for Portugal âand 131 for Austria.
(April 18, 2026)
The Turkish official drew a direct historical parallel to the global response against Apartheid South Africa, which saw its credentials suspended by the UN General Assembly in 1974. „Just as the world united to suspend South Africa‘s membership over its racist, criminal policies, we must now act with the same resolve against the Israeli regime for its identical treatment of the Palestinian people,“ he argued. „This is not merely a regional dispute; it is a litmus test for the credibility of the international legal order.“
(August 25, 2025)
On 27 September 1974, the UN Credentials Committee rejected South Africaâs credentials, a routine procedure before General Assembly meetings.
Three days later, the General Assembly passed Resolution 3207, urging the Security Council to review South Africaâs membership in light of its constant violations of the Charter.
Although the Security Council vetoed the resolution, in November of that year the president of the General Assembly, Algeriaâs Abdelaziz Bouteflika, ruled that, given the Credentials Committeeâs decision and the adoption of Resolution 3207, the General Assembly would refuse to allow South Africaâs delegation to participate in its work.
South Africa remained suspended from the General Assembly until June 1994, following the end of apartheid.
Activists argue that the UN General Assembly could apply the same process to Israel. They note that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July 2024 issued an advisory opinion declaring Israelâs decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories âunlawfulâ and its near-complete segregation of populations in the West Bank a breach of international law on âracial segregationâ and âapartheidâ.
(March 8, 2025)
Albanese went on to clarify that UNRWA cannot disappear because it is a UN body protected by international law. „Member states cannot eliminate it by changing laws or cutting funding, as Israel and other countries have attempted. The rights of Palestinian refugees will remain intact because those rights are codified in international law.“
She also raised the issue of Israelâs violations against the UN, citing the destruction of 70% of UN premises in Gaza and the targeting of UNRWA schools, which had been sheltering refugees. „Israel has violated the UN Charter, and it must be held accountable for its actions. I have called for the suspension of Israel‘s credentials in the UN because of its disregard for international rules and laws. Israel has destroyed or damaged UN premises, targeted shelters, and accused the UN of terrorism.“
(November 12, 2024)
„There is a paragraph in this text that I find very important and vital, a paragraph that talks about moving before the General Assembly to freeze Israel‘s membership,“ Aboul Gheit said.
He reminded the attendees that, despite ongoing regional conflicts, the UN has never revisited Israel‘s 1949 admission under Resolution 181.
âToday, the Islamic group and the Arab group are two organisations moving before the international community, and I am confident that there are many countries that will support the idea of freezing membership,â he added expressing optimism that the proposal would garner widespread backing.
(November 6, 2024)
Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim has announced that Malaysia is preparing a draft resolution for the UN General Assembly to expel Israel from the United Nations.
âWe are also studying (a proposal)⊠after the violation of laws, principles and UN decisions, for Israel to be expelled as a member of the UN,â Anwar told parliament in a special address on Monday.
(October 15, 2024)
Over the past year, Israel has launched attacks on multiple countries and occupied territories: the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
Yet countries and territories aside, Israel has also targeted one specific organization with a series of unprecedented rhetorical and violent attacks.
Yes, the United Nations. We have all witnessed Israel, in effect, declare war on the UN.
NNA – Lebanon‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants on Wednesday stated in a letter that, „Based on Cabinet Decision No. 14 dated 9/4/2026, it has instructed Lebanonâs Permanent Representative to the United Nations to submit an urgent complaint to the Security Council and the Secretary-General, regarding the Israeli airstrikes on April 8, 2026, which targeted several Lebanese areas, particularly the capital, Beirut. The Ministry also requested that the complaint be circulated as an official document to the General Assembly and the Security Council.“