GAZA AND MIDDLE EAST PEACE AMONG ISSUES DISCUSSED BY BAN AND ISRAELI LEADER

By UN

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met today at United Nations Headquarters in New York, where they discussed a number of issues including the Middle East peace process and the situation in Gaza.

The UN chief has welcomed the additional measures announced this week by Israel in increasing the scope and quantity of materials allowed into Gaza, and said he hoped they will lead to an improvement in the situation of the 1.5 million Palestinians living in the territory.

He and other UN officials have repeatedly called for ending the blockade against Gaza, which Israel imposed on the territory for what it called security reasons after Hamas, which does not recognize Israel's right to exist, ousted the Fatah movement in the Strip in 2007.

Mr. Ban and Mr. Netanyahu also covered, among other topics, Lebanon and Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizbollah.

Their meeting also included a one-on-one discussion, according to the Secretary-General's spokesperson.

Accra / Ghana/ Africa / Modernghana.com