UN Secretary-General to visit Israel and Occupied Palestinian territories later this month

March 10th, 2010 - 5:55 am ICT by BNO News  

NEW YORK (BNO NEWS) – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will visit Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza strip following next week’s meeting in Moscow, a spokesperson announced on Tuesday.

On March 19, the members of the diplomatic Quartet, comprising the UN, the European Union, the United States and Russia, will meet in Moscow to discuss the Roadmap peace plan calling for Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security.

In recent months, senior UN officials have voiced their concern over the impasse in negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians. On Monday, secretary-General Ban said that he hoped the Moscow meeting will lead to direct talks between the two sides.

On Monday’s meeting, Mr. Ban and Israel’s Vice Prime Minister, Silvan Shalom, discussed the Middle East peace process in UN headquarters in New York. Secretary-General Ban regretted the lack of meaningful steps toward reconstruction and rehabilitation in Gaza after one year of the Israel military attacks; once again he called on Israel to ease the closure of border closings into the territory.

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