Gaza, Palestinian future to dominate UN gathering

   United Nations: More than 140 world leaders will descend on New York next week for the annual United Nations General Assembly summit, which will be dominated this year by the future of the Palestinians and Gaza. 

One world leader who will miss the gathering is Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian president who Washington denied US visas to attend, along with his officials. 

The humanitarian catastrophe ravaging the small Palestinian territory will dominate debates at the high-level event, two years after the beginning of the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip that was triggered by the unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. 

Saudi Arabia and France will co-chair meetings from Monday on the future of the Israeli and Palestinian two-state solution, which aims to see both sides existing alongside one another in peace. 

This meeting is expected to see the formal recognition of a Palestinian state by several countries, notably France, after the overwhelming adoption last week by the General Assembly of a text supporting a future Palestinian state -- albeit without Hamas. 

International Crisis Group analyst Richard Gowan called it a "symbolic" gesture that could have real significance "if the countries that recognize Palestine follow up with further steps to try and put pressure on Israel to end its campaign in Gaza." 

Gowan warned of Israeli reprisals and a risk of "escalation" by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will address the General Assembly and has firmly said there will be no Palestinian state on his watch.

The United States, Israel's main ally, has opposed recognition and vowed to deny visas to the Palestinian delegation, including Abbas.

The Assembly will then vote Friday to authorize the Palestinian president to speak via video link. 

All eyes will be on US President Donald Trump when Abbas speaks at the gathering, which brings much of Manhattan to a standstill every year as motorcades and heavily armed security escorts sweep up First Avenue.

Trump has initiated massive cuts to US foreign aid since his return to the White House, hammering UN agencies as humanitarian needs grow. 

The United Nations, engulfed by deep financial crisis and raging wars, quietly celebrated its 80th anniversary while fending off criticism of its efficacy.

"The multilateral system... is under an existential threat," said Federico Borello, Interim Executive Director at Human Rights Watch. 

"Norms are being weakened when powerful states, that include permanent members of the Security Council, either commit or are complicit in serious violations of international humanitarian law, as is happening in Gaza, in Ukraine and elsewhere." 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for action on Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan and climate change. 

"People are demanding answers and action, actions that match the gravity of the challenges our world faces, actions that meet the expectations of all those on the outside looking in," Guterres said. 

Syria's President Ahmed Al-Sharaa will be a prominent new addition to the group of nearly 140 world leaders, which also includes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. 

Close attention will be paid to Sharaa nearly a year after his forces overthrew Bashar al-Assad, as he now confronts the challenges of rebuilding after years of civil war.

Iran's nuclear program will also be high on the agenda as sanctions against Tehran lifted 10 years ago could be reinstated at the end of September, following a process triggered in late August by Paris, London, and Berlin. 

A Security Council vote was expected on Friday and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he put forward a "creative, fair, and balanced" proposal to European powers that "addresses genuine concerns and is mutually beneficial." 

"Turning this idea into action can be prompt and resolve the respective bottom lines to avert a crisis," Araghchi said on social media platform X, arguing that "Iran cannot be the sole responsible actor." 

Guterres and Brazil's Lula will also organize a climate summit on Wednesday where some states may announce new goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, just weeks ahead of COP30 in Brazil. 

Agence France-Presse