Palestinian state

A Hamas leader says the Gaza roadmap the group agreed to includes the establishment of a Palestinian state. The statement frames the deal as going beyond ceasefire arrangements and touching long-term political questions. Observers are weighing how the claim aligns with the terms accepted by other parties and what it signals for negotiations over Gaza's future governance.

The US-led Board of Peace has stated that Unrwa, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, will have no role in Gaza's future administration. The announcement signals that the body overseeing postwar arrangements intends to exclude the agency from relief and reconstruction efforts, a move likely to draw strong objections from the UN and Palestinian representatives who have long relied on Unrwa's services in the territory.

China has come out against unilateral military actions as fighting between the United States and Iran escalates, urging a return to diplomacy. Beijing also renewed its call for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, positioning itself as a voice for de-escalation and negotiation in the Middle East.

The United Nations has added 61 companies to its blacklist of firms operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, citing alleged violations of Palestinian human rights. The updated list identifies businesses across sectors including construction, finance and technology. The move is expected to draw criticism from Israel and the United States, which have previously condemned the database, while human rights groups have welcomed it as a step toward corporate accountability.

The United Nations has expanded its database of Israeli companies operating in West Bank settlements to 215 firms. The list, maintained by the UN Human Rights Council, names businesses deemed to be enabling settlement activity, which Israel and the United States oppose as politically motivated. Rights groups welcomed the move, while Israel denounced it, and the list is expected to fuel debates over corporate responsibility in occupied territory.

The former head of UNRWA says the Gaza Board of Peace, the body established under Donald Trump's ceasefire framework, held unpublicised meetings with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. The contact would be notable given Israel's push to dissolve UNRWA and its exclusion from the Trump plan, suggesting the agency still has a role in Gaza's humanitarian future.

The Vatican's top diplomat told the UN General Assembly that a two-state solution remains essential to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and called for limits on the development and use of artificial intelligence. The speech aligns with Pope Francis's repeated appeals for peace in the Middle East and for ethical guardrails on new technologies. It underscores the Holy See's effort to shape international debate on both conflicts and technology governance.

The city of Ma'aleh Adumim is challenging the attorney-general's legal opinion in an effort to delay or block approval of new homes in the E1 settlement area near Jerusalem. The dispute touches on one of the most sensitive planned settlement projects, which has long drawn international opposition over its potential to divide the West Bank and complicate a future Palestinian state.

In São Paulo, Brazil, activists on Monday removed a street sign reading 'State of Israel' from a city square and replaced it with one reading 'Free Palestine' and 'Palestine Square'. The act is linked to pro-Palestinian activism surrounding the Gaza conflict, with references to Brazilian activist Thiago Ávila circulating alongside calls for a ceasefire.