The UN Security Council will hold an informal meeting on May 6 on the protection of Palestinian civilians, an issue the Palestinians have pressed for decades and say is more needed now than ever.
Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour said four council members Egypt, Senegal, Venezuela and Malaysia are organizing the meeting which will hear briefings from a legal scholar, an Amnesty International representative and others.
Last October, the UN sent the council a study on precedents in addressing the protection of civilians in conflicts around the world.
Mansour told reporters yesterday that the meeting is a first step toward action that the Security Council must take. "Our desire is to find any form of protection to protect our people from the brutality of this occupation," he said.
Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon responded to the announcement of the council meeting saying: "The Palestinians are continuing to lie to the world and turn to the international community with ridiculous claims instead of focusing their efforts on fighting terror and incitement.
