Brazil, the current president of the UN Security Council, has convened a meeting of the 15-member body on Friday to discuss the escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Brazilian foreign affairs minister, Mauro Vieira, cut short his Asia trip to attend the meeting in New York, according to a statement from his ministry on Wednesday.

Brazil had previously called for an emergency meeting of the Security Council on Sunday, the day after Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the worst violence in the country’s history. Israel responded by bombing Hamas targets in the densely populated Gaza Strip, where more than 1,200 people have also died, including many civilians, according to Palestinian authorities.

More than 338,000 people have been displaced by the fighting, which has also damaged vital infrastructure and humanitarian facilities, according to the United Nations. The Security Council has been divided over how to address the crisis, with some members calling for an immediate ceasefire and others supporting Israel’s right to self-defense.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has urged both sides to protect civilians, especially children, and to respect international humanitarian law. In a post on social media platform X on Wednesday, Lula said that Hamas should release the Israeli children who were kidnapped from their families and that Israel should stop its bombing so that Palestinian children and their mothers could leave the Gaza Strip via the Egyptian border. “There needs to be a minimum of humanity in the insanity of war,” he said.

Brazil has been a vocal advocate for a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and has recognized Palestine as a state in 2010. The country has also maintained good relations with Israel and has condemned Hamas as a terrorist organization.

The UN meeting on Friday is expected to hear from the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has warned that the situation is “spiraling out of control” and that the risk of a regional war is growing. Guterres has called for an end to the “senseless cycle of bloodshed” and for a revival of the peace process based on a two-state solution.

He has also appealed for more humanitarian aid and access to Gaza, where he said the situation is “desperate”. The international community has expressed its concern and solidarity with the people of Gaza and Israel and has urged both parties to cease hostilities and resume dialogue.

Many countries have also offered their assistance and meditation to help end the conflict and prevent further suffering.

Source: Punch