GAZA STRIP, Mar 21 (AFP): The United States has circulated for the first time a draft UN resolution calling for an "immediate" ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, as warnings grow of famine in besieged Gaza.
Washington had blocked previous Security Council texts using the word "immediate" but US top diplomat Antony Blinken confirmed the shift in position on Wednesday.
Blinken, who is to meet five Arab foreign ministers in Egypt on Thursday, stressed any immediate truce must be linked to the release of hostages snatched by Palestinian Hamas during the October 7 attack that set off the war.
The Israeli bombardment of Gaza continued overnight with the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory saying at least 70 people had been killed, pushing the overall toll towards 32,000.
"We were sleeping safely when we heard a big blast," Gaza resident Mahmud Abu Arar told AFP following an Israeli bombardment in the southern city of Rafah on Wednesday.
Gaza war: US for 'immediate' truce
FE Team | Published: March 21, 2024 23:35:45
Gaza war: US for 'immediate' truce
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